The Clinton campaign belittled the work of its own activists in key states, stunning stories from the battleground reveal, dismissing efforts to talk to voters and pass out literature as unnecessary in light of their data-driven model, derived from headquarters in Brooklyn.
Staffers based in New York obsessed over their model, telling concerned operatives on the ground they didn’t need their anecdotes and data because they had their own, reports Politico. Their arrogant mindset apparently caused the campaign to miss key voter trends, such as the loss of white union members to Donald Trump in states such as Michigan and Pennsylvania.
One woman eager to help Clinton reportedly showed up to a campaign office in Michigan, hoping to grab a sign for her lawn and volunteering to reach out to voters in the area. But she was told those methods weren’t “scientifically” significant, so she left the office and never returned, apparently convinced her energy was a waste of time for the campaign. (RELATED: DNC Poured Millions Into Chicago Fearing Hillary Might Win The Election But Lose The Popular Vote)
In a similar instance, a crew of Michigan workers showed up to a campaign office offering to go door to door and hand out literature to voters, but left after being told there was no literature to hand out, as the campaign didn’t find the method worthwhile.
The Service Employees International Union loaded up a bus of volunteers about a week ahead of the election and headed for Michigan, hoping to energize a discouraged team on the ground in Detroit. They were supposed to be volunteering in Iowa, but knew that was a lost cause. But when the group’s leader called the Clinton campaign to inform them of the change in strategy, the staffers were infuriated and ordered them to turn the bus around. Go back to Iowa so Trump, they were told, Michigan is a guaranteed win and we need you in Iowa so Trump is tricked into devoting resources there.
“They believed they were smarter, which they weren’t,” Donnie Fowler, a consultant for the Democratic National Committee during the campaign told Politico. “They believed they had better information, which they didn’t.”
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