Report: Obama Has 'Gone to Bat' for Warren

Barack Obama is sticking to his pledge not to endorse anyone in the Democratic race, but one report says he is at least singing the praises of Elizabeth Warren in closed-door meetings with big donors. The Hill reports that Obama has "gone to bat" for Warren of late when talking to donors who are a little iffy about her because of her criticisms of Wall Street. The former president has "vouched for her credentials, making it clear in these private sessions that he deems her a capable candidate and potential president, sources say," writes Amie Parnes. One donor tells the outlet that it appears Obama thinks Warren is running the most substantive campaign.

It appears that Obama isn't proactively talking about Warren, but rather praising her when asked and making sure that donors will fully back her should she win the nomination. At the conservative site Hot Air, Ed Morrissey wonders how this news will sit with a certain former vice president. "Isn’t this a bit of a no-confidence vote by Obama in Joe Biden?" he asks, before questioning the timing. "This is a race between Biden and Bernie Sanders, which makes one wonder why Obama’s concerned about clearing a path for Warren—and not his old partner." (Obama recently said that women are "indisputably" better than men.)