Clinton wishes Trump well and thanks her supporters
Former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton addressed her supporters Wednesday in what was her first public remarks since her stunning defeat to Donald Trump in yesterday’s 2016 Presidential Election.
Must Read: Donald Trump wins in a stunning upset.
Her campaign initially said she’d speak to staff and supporters at the New Yorker Hotel at 9:30 a.m. but that time was changed to 10:30 a.m. Clinton didn’t take the stage until 11:40 a.m.
Standing before a crowd of sad but cheering supporters, she said, “This is painful and it will be for a long time.”
Trump’s win over Clinton, not declared until well after midnight, will end eight years of Democratic dominance of the White House. He’ll govern with Congress fully under Republican control and lead a country deeply divided by his rancorous campaign against Clinton. He faces fractures within his own party, too, given the numerous Republicans who either tepidly supported his nomination or never backed him at all.
A little after 3 a.m. a victorious Donald Trump was gracious in victory praising Clinton. After a hard fought battle that is was time to for Americans to “come together as one united people.”
Trump, said the nation owed Clinton “a major debt of gratitude” for her years of public service. Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway said Obama and Trump had “a very nice talk” when the president called him.
President Barack Obama called Trump to congratulate him and invited the Republican to a meeting at the White House Thursday to discuss transition. Obama also called Clinton to convey his admiration for the “strong campaign she waged throughout the country,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest said.
That sentiment was echoed by the GOP House Speaker Paul Ryan, who had been a reluctant Trump supporter. “This needs to be a time of redemption, not a time of recrimination,” Ryan said in a news conference. He also said Trump had earned a “mandate” to enact his agenda.
Some quotes in this story were from Associated Press.
