Public Employee Press

Editorials
An appeal for unity

Hillary Clinton has virtually ensured her nomination as the Democratic candidate for president. The numbers tell the story: The delegate count after her recent victories in New York, Pennsylvania and other states make her a lock for the nomination.

Though Sen. Bernie Sanders probably will not drop out of the primary race before the Democratic convention, we believe the time is now to end the rancor that has split progressives during this election season.

After the vote in New York, Clinton appealed to Sanders' backers. "To all the people who supported Senator Sanders, I believe there is much more that unites us than divides us," she said. Indeed, both candidates want to curb inequality while supporting unions, creating jobs and reforming Wall Street.

Polls currently indicate a quarter of Sanders' backers say they would never vote for Clinton. Others say they may stay home on Election Day. This is disheartening, because the stakes are too high to sit out this election: environmental protection, voting rights, reproductive rights... the list goes on and on. In the U.S. Congress, extremists are ready to ram through national anti-worker legislation that has already run rampant locally in states across the country.

Many disenchanted voters are young adults victimized by an unbalanced economy. The Clinton campaign and the Democratic Party must do all they can to embrace them.

The presumptive Republican candidate Donald Trump would be a disaster for working families and young people trying to improve their prospects for the future. Trump has said he is against raising the federal minimum wage and, in a November debate, said "wages are too high."

Trump, bursts forth regularly with absurd, angry declarations - and lies. Constantly. According to the non-partisan fact checking group Politifact, just 9 percent of the things Donald Trump says are "mostly" related to the truth.

We urge you to encourage your friends, families and coworkers to unite behind Hillary Clinton.