Reporters Jonathan Allen and Amie Parnes are putting out a new book called “Shattered: Inside Hillary Clinton’s Doomed Campaign.” While much of the book is dedicated to the ins and outs of the campaign itself, from debates to caucuses, the final pages of the book unveil new insight into the final night, in which Hillary Clinton had to concede to Donald Trump.
The first sign that the Clinton campaign had that they were not going to win, as they had expected to, was when Steve Schale, the best vote-counter the Democrats had in Florida, called her to tell her that she was “going to come up short” in the battleground state.
A few hours later, at 11:00 p.m., when Fox News had called Wisconsin for Trump, the calls from the White House began. Then-President Barack Obama wanted Clinton to concede the race rather than dragging it out. He wanted to avoid a messy recount and the drama that comes with it.
However, Clinton and her aides largely ignored the calls in which Obama repeatedly said, “You need to concede.”
But, finally, Clinton told her aides, “Give me the phone,” and she placed the call to say “Congratulations, Donald.”
Her next call was with Obama, and while he was consoling her on the loss, Clinton said quietly, “Mr. President, I’m sorry.”
