President Obama endorses John Conyers for re-election

Dean of the U.S. House
of Representatives
John Conyers, Jr.

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama has lent his support to U.S. Rep. John Conyers in the Aug. 2 primary,  endorsing the 87-year-old Detroit Democrat in what would be his 27th two-year term in Congress.

Conyers' campaign announced the endorsement this morning.

"Congressman John Conyers has been a champion for jobs, justice, and peace over his career in Congress and I am proud to endorse him for re-election," said a statement from Obama. "I need John by my side as we fight to create good jobs and build an economy that works for everyone."

Obama — who will leave office in January shortly after Conyers would be sworn in for another term if he wins — gave Conyers his endorsement over Detroit City Clerk Janice Winfrey, Conyers' only rival in the August Democratic primary. Michigan's 13th Congressional District, which includes much of Detroit as well as parts of Downriver and western Wayne County, is considered a virtual lock for a Democratic nominee to hold onto.

"I am so grateful to President Obama for his tireless work to improve the lives of hardworking families in metro Detroit and all over this country," said Conyers. "His support of me and my re-election campaign means so much at this critical time for our country. I am looking forward to building on this to win in August, then generating unprecedented voter turnout this November to help elect Democrats up and down the ticket."

http://www.freep.com/story/news/politics/2016/06/22/president-obama-endorses-john-conyers-re-election/86222476/

Conyers, an early supporter of Obama's when the latter became a presidential candidate, hasn't always agreed with Obama. In 2009, Conyers criticized the new president on a couple of occasions, in one case accusing him of not showing enough leadership on health care and suggested he had been "bowing down to every nutty right wing proposal" during the debate over what would become the Affordable Care Act.

"I'm getting tired of saving Obama's can in the White House," Conyers said on one radio show at the time.

Conyers, a civil rights icon who helped found the Congressional Black Caucus, is a former chairman of of the House Judiciary Committee and remains its top ranking Democrat. He became the longest-serving active member of Congress in 2015, when former U.S. Rep. John Dingell — a Dearborn Democrat whom Conyers once worked for — retired.

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