Facing long primary slog, Clinton allies fear helping Trump

CLEVELAND (AP) — When Hillary Clinton dueled with Barack Obama for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2008, their slog eventually yielded to a largely unified party.

Democratic strategists wanted to use the spring to settle on early lines of attack against GOP front-runner Donald Trump, the brash billionaire who successfully has deflected nearly all Republican efforts to undermine his candidacy.

Sanders is demanding that Clinton release transcripts of her paid speeches to Wall Street banks, citing her past support for trade deals and trying to make the argument that most Washington politicians are bought and paid for by campaign contributors.

While the delegates will be awarded proportionately, Clinton's support with superdelegates — elected officials and party leaders free to back whomever they'd like — puts her in a strong position to win the nomination.

According to an Associated Press analysis, Clinton holds 1,231 of total delegates, more than half the amount needed to clinch the nomination.

Some Clinton backers worry that Sanders, long a self-identified independent, won't feel the same obligation to support the party the way Clinton claims to have done for Obama in 2008.