Trump Trolls Democrats Over Party Turmoil

The GOP nominee tried to use Democrats' email scandal to drive a deeper wedge between Clinton and Sanders supporters.
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ROANOKE, Va. — Donald Trump trolled the Democrats Monday over the controversies that have roiled their party over the last few days, and tried to use the ugly opening of the Democratic National Convention to drive a wedge between Hillary Clinton and the backers of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).

Trump, holding his first campaign event after his own convention, almost immediately zeroed in on Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.).

Wasserman Schultz stepped down as party chair after hacked emails showed party officials tried to undermine Sanders during the primaries, even raising questions about his religion. She tried to address members of her Florida delegation early Monday, but even there she got booed.

Trump, speaking to supporters in Roanoke, mocked her soon after taking the stage.

“Debbie Wassermann Schultz. I always knew she was highly overrated,” Trump said.

He then used the representative as a tool to attack Clinton, saying Clinton threw the party boss under the bus.

“They said ‘Debbie, you’re fired,’” said Trump. “How about that for disloyalty in terms of Hillary Clinton? Because Debbie Wasserman Schultz has been so much for Hillary Clinton.”

“There’s no loyalty there, right? There’s no loyalty — none whatsoever,” Trump added, insisting that Clinton knew everything that Wasserman Schultz was doing.

“Debbie was totally loyal to Hillary, and Hillary threw her under the bus,” Trump said. “It didn’t take her more than five minutes to make that decision. Man, I don’t want her covering my back.”

Trump also pointed to the anger of Sanders supporters who booed Wasserman Schultz, using it to criticize Clinton’s choice of Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine as a running mate.

Saying the energy of the Sanders crowd was what Clinton needed, Trump argued that Clinton showed her “bad judgment” by choosing Kaine over someone like Sanders or Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.).

“You could have picked a liberal person, and we understand it, we can live with it. And you know, she could have had party unity,” Trump said. “Instead, they have thousands and thousands of people going crazy because she didn’t pick somebody representative [of the Sanders wing].”

“She’s got bad judgment in picking a vice presidential candidate for that side of the party,” Trump said.

While liberals are unlikely to heed Trump’s advice, it does highlight the obstacles that Clinton faces in uniting her party.

Trump predicted the issues will simply bring more voters to the GOP.

“A lot of those people will vote for us, I’ll tell you right now,” Trump said.

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