Subject: Race Speech Update
From: Dan Schwerin <[email-masked]>
To: John Podesta <[email-masked]>, Robby Mook <[email-masked]>, Jennifer Palmieri <[email-masked]>, Jake Sullivan <[email-masked]>, Huma Abedin <[email-masked]>, Megan Rooney <[email-masked]>, Maya Harris <[email-masked]>, Marlon Marshall <[email-masked]>, Karen Finney <[email-masked]>, Teddy Goff <[email-masked]>, Kristina Schake <[email-masked]>, Minyon Moore <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 15 Feb 2016 00:12:12 -0500

I wanted to update everyone on where we are with this speech.

1) We had good conversations with WJC and HRC about what a speech like this
could cover and Megan is working right now on a draft. Basic outline: Have
to break all the barriers... even if we broke up the banks, there would
still be problem of systemic racism... we can't take black voters and their
concerns for granted or show up just before an election and try to get
religion, we need a sustained, comprehensive commitment... this has been a
cause of HRC's life... sometimes we get the balance wrong, very briefly go
through some of the lessons learned from the '90s... key is what do we do
now and HRC has a robust breaking every barrier agenda that includes
criminal justice but also education, opportunity, housing, voting rights,
etc.  Both WJC and HRC were quite clear that this shouldn't be a big mea
culpa, but WJC also said we shouldn't try to defend the indefensible.

2) Tonight, in a gut check conversation with Minyon, she raised some tough
questions about the wisdom of doing this speech this week. Its possible
that we would unintentionally end up elevating questions that aren't yet
being widely asked and introduce new damaging information, especially super
predator, to a lot more voters.  If media interviews go badly this week, we
could reassess. But if they go well, and if we think we can get through
South Carolina without stirring this pot, maybe we should skip the speech.

3) Talking with Jake and Maya tonight, we are mostly persuaded by these
concerns.  We wonder whether we might have more luck driving the Supreme
Court issue hard over the next few days instead, surf that news cycle as a
progressive champion, and have the benefit of avoiding going to Chicago in
a criminal justice space.  Minyon and Huma were going to continue talking
with John Lewis and HRC on the road to get their sense.

4) One relevant factor might be whether we have any data from SC about
erosion.  If we're slipping fast, maybe it's worth rolling the dice and
doing the speech.  If we're holding relatively steady, maybe we see if we
can ride this out without doing the speech.