Warren could join a presidential ticket
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren plans to get behind a presidential candidate and in an interview televised on Sunday she did not rule out joining a ticket this year.
"Way, way, way premature to talk about that," the Cambridge Democrat told New England Cable News reporter Alison King on Sunday when asked if she might consider running for vice president.
Warren, who is up for reelection in 2018, has faced some criticism over her refusal to back a candidate in the Democratic primary race between former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of neighboring Vermont.
Progressives who have cheered Warren's public policy positions have largely aligned behind Sanders, who trails Clinton but has attracted a devoted following.
Without specifying a timeframe, Warren said she would put her support behind a candidate.
While the Republican primary contest has proven divisive with several prominent conservatives announcing they would not support frontrunner Donald Trump, the Democrats appear likely to rally behind their nominee.
And though he supports Sanders, state Sen. Dan Wolf said in February he will support Clinton if she becomes the Democratic nominee and would "do anything to stop the Trump juggernaut."
Asked about the fracas at a recent Trump rally in Chicago, Warren said the controversial Republican frontrunner deserves blame for crowds' behavior at his events.
"This is on Trump. This is what Trump has been fostering and fomenting for months now and it finally reached the next level," Warren said.
Trump canceled a speech in Chicago Friday after clashes between Trump protesters and Trump supporters reportedly turned violent.
"We're all together and we want to get along with everybody, but when they have organized, professionally staged wise guys, we've got to fight back, we've got to fight back," Trump said Saturday, according to CNN.
Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney earlier this month spoke out against Trump's professed business acumen and policy positions, urging voters to cast ballots for the other Republican candidates. Romney had accepted Trump's endorsement in his run for president in 2012.
Warren did not praise the former Republican nominee's move to rebut the current Republican frontrunner. When asked if she respected Romney speaking out, Warren said, "Where was Mitt Romney for the last eight years? I'm sorry. Where was Mitt Romney since he ran for president?"
After scoring a significant victory here in the 2008 primary against Barack Obama, Clinton barely edged Sanders in the Massachusetts presidential primary on March 1.
Many elected officeholders here, including Sen. U.S. Edward Markey, have lined up behind Clinton, with fewer supporting Sanders.
More than two dozen women, including 23 statewide, House and Senate elected leaders, held a February rally to make the case for Clinton.
"She is the candidate who can take on the GOP in November. She is the only one who can take on the GOP," Sen. Linda Dorcena Forry said at that rally.
Treasurer Deb Goldberg is backing Clinton and said at the rally that Warren's reluctance to choose a candidate was her prerogative.
"I am sure that the senator has her reasons. I think that it's very hard when you find an affinity with both candidates and they're running against each other and so I respect Sen. Warren's decision. Would I have loved to seen her endorse Hillary Clinton, absolutely, but for whatever reason she has I have to respect those," Goldberg said.
Gov. Charlie Baker endorsed New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie shortly before Christie dropped out of the race for president and got behind Trump's campaign. Since then, Baker has faced frequent questions about his preferences in the shrinking field of candidates. The governor declared that if Trump, who handily won the Massachusetts Republican primary, becomes the Republican nominee he will not vote for him in the November general election.
On Feb. 25, Baker told reporters, "I haven't decided what I'm going to do and I certainly hope you're going to ask every other elected official in Massachusetts the same question." When told that people value his opinion on the matter, Baker said, "They value U.S. senators' opinions, too, but nobody seems to be asking them."
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