What do you do when you don't have a ringing endorsement from one of your party's top senators? You make it up, of course!
At least, that's what Maryland Democrat gubernatorial candidate Ben Jealous seems to have done.
At a local Democratic event this week, Jealous told a group of supporters that he'd received the endorsement of Sen. Bernie Sanders, and would "roll out the endorsement of Cory Booker" in September. "That's intentional," Jealous added. "It's to send a signal that we are building a unified campaign."
Bethesda Magazine reports on the small problem with that statement:
"Booker’s press office did not respond to multiple requests for comment from Bethesda Beat this week about the promised endorsement.
When Bethesda Beat asked if Jealous could elaborate on his comments Tuesday, his campaign said he was unavailable as he participated in a civil disobedience action in Washington, D.C. to protest immigration policies.
An adviser provided a statement, however.
‘Ben and Senator Booker remain very close friends and at this time there are no formal plans for the Senator to endorse Ben for governor,’ Kevin Harris, a senior adviser, said in a statement. ‘In the coming weeks we look forward to announcing the support of several leaders and organizations across Maryland who realize that Ben Jealous is the strongest candidate to defeat Larry Hogan and get Maryland back to doing big things again.’
Asked Thursday morning why Jealous said he would have Booker’s endorsement, a campaign spokeswoman wrote in a text message that the campaign had nothing more to add to the statement.”
Jealous isn't the only candidate in the Democratic primary field for governor to have faced uncomfortable questions lately...
