by nolan d. mccaskill 10/27/16 03:41 pm edt updated 10/27/16 04:21 pm edt first lady michelle obama on thursday reduced donald trump<u+2019>s strategy to winning the presidential election to a single ploy: voter suppression. campaigning alongside democratic presidential nominee hillary clinton for the first time, obama put the onus on voters to turn out to elect clinton. story continued below <u+201c>if hillary doesn<u+2019>t win this election, that will be on us,<u+201d> she said during the joint rally in winston-salem, north carolina. <u+201c>it will be because we did not stand with her. it will be because we did not vote for her. and that is exactly what her opponent is hoping will happen.<u+201d> <u+201c>that<u+2019>s the strategy,<u+201d> she continued, <u+201c>to make this election so dirty and ugly that we don<u+2019>t want any part of it.<u+201d> trump has repeatedly claimed without evidence that the election is rigged against him. obama, however, maintained that his allegations amount to nothing more than a voter suppression technique. <u+201c>so when you hear folks talking about a global conspiracy and saying that this election is rigged, understand that they are trying to get you to stay home,<u+201d> she warned. <u+201c>they are trying to convince you that your vote doesn<u+2019>t matter, that the outcome has already been determined and you shouldn<u+2019>t even bother making your voice heard. they are trying to take away your hope.<u+201d> obama also forcefully rejected trump<u+2019>s claims that anything other than voters determines the outcome of u.s. elections. <u+201c>and just for the record, in this country, the united states of america, the voters decide our elections,<u+201d> she said. <u+201c>they<u+2019>ve always decided. voters decide who wins and who loses. period. end of story.<u+201d> she added that <u+201c>it<u+2019>s amazing to see" voters across the country coming out in droves to cast ballots early. <u+201c>we are making our voices heard all cross this country because when they go low,<u+201d> she began, prompting the crowd<u+2019>s uniform response <u+201c>you go high!<u+201d> <u+201c>and we know that every vote matters. every single vote.<u+201d> even so, she urged voters to do more, calling on them to help get out the vote by volunteering, knocking on doors, making phone calls and helping transport people to the polls. <u+201c>it<u+2019>s turnout that<u+2019>s gonna make the difference. we have to turn our people out,<u+201d> obama said. <u+201c>do not let yourself get tired or frustrated or discouraged by the negativity of this election.<u+201d> the first lady<u+2019>s comments come after bloomberg businessweek quoted an anonymous trump campaign senior official saying, <u+201c>we have three major voter suppression operations under way<u+201d> and detailing efforts to discourage african-americans, women and, in the magazine's words, <u+201c>idealistic white liberals,<u+201d> from voting. without mentioning him by name, obama took a series of swipes at trump, who has accused her of attacking clinton in a 2008 speech while campaigning for her husband and has criticized president barack obama and his wife for campaigning so much against him. <u+201c>i know that there are some folks out there who have commented that it<u+2019>s been unprecedented for a sitting first lady to be so actively engaged in a presidential campaign, and that may be true,<u+201d> she said. <u+201c>but what<u+2019>s also true is this is an unprecedented election, and that<u+2019>s why i<u+2019>m out here.<u+201d> she cast trump as the antithesis of clinton, painting him as a divisive candidate who conveys a vision of an america that<u+2019>s weak and full of despair with communities in chaos and fellow citizens who are threats to one another. that stood in direct contrast to the rosy america that obama said clinton is working for, one that builds on her campaign<u+2019>s mantra of <u+201c>stronger together.<u+201d> she also highlighted clinton<u+2019>s vast experience in public life over decades, tacitly stacking her political r<u+00e9>sum<u+00e9> up against a man whose white house campaign is his only true political experience. <u+201c>yeah, that<u+2019>s right. hillary doesn<u+2019>t play,<u+201d> obama said, after recalling that clinton has been a law professor, a lawyer, a two-term first lady, a u.s. senator and a secretary of state. <u+201c>she has more experience and exposure to the presidency than any candidate in our lifetimes. yes, more than barack. more than bill. so she is absolutely ready to be commander in chief on day one, and yes, she happens to be a woman. <u+201c>we want a president who takes this job seriously and has the temperament and maturity to do it well. someone who is steady, someone who we can trust with the nuclear codes, because we wanna go to sleep at night knowing that our kids and our country are safe,<u+201d> obama said. <u+201c>and i am here today because i believe with all of my heart <u+2014> and i would not be here lying to you <u+2014> i believe with all my heart that hillary clinton will be that president.<u+201d> she told supporters who are working their hearts out <u+201c>for my girl<u+201d> to <u+201c>please, please be encouraged<u+201d> <u+2014> <u+201c>because we still live in the greatest country on earth,<u+201d> she said. <u+201c>we do." by bill scher by thomas wright by joshua zeitz by jack shafer
michelle obama accuses trump of trying to suppress turnout - politico
nolan d. mccaskill jack shafer