Campaign Chief John Podesta Asked Hillary Clinton to Call 'Needy Latinos,' According to Wikileaks Email

iStock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) —  In a purportedly hacked email released on the Wikileaks website, Hillary Clinton’s campaign chairman John Podesta appears to write to Hillary Clinton and a top aide urging Clinton to call prominent Latino politicians, including former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson and former Energy Secretary Federico Pena to ask for their support.

The subject line of the purported email reads: “Needy Latinos and 1 easy call.”

The Clinton camp and Podesta declined comment. Richardson did not immediately comment.

The message is one of nearly 2,000 dumped Wednesday and more than 7,000 released in total from the anti-secrecy website. So far, the Clinton campaign has neither confirmed nor denied the authenticity of the emails, nor commented on specific messages.

In the body of the message, which appears to have been sent to Clinton and aide Huma Abedin, Podesta includes pitches about why the democratic candidate should call each politician, both of whom served in her husband’s cabinet.

The email seems to show that Clinton’s life had become micromanaged. “Ask him how he’s been doing; ask about his views on the race and what she should be doing in Colorado; ask that he consider publicly supporting you,” Podesta writes about calling Pena.

It also highlights tension and seemingly bad blood between Richardson and the Clinton team. Podesta says that people have reminded him: “Richardson is still on TV a lot, especially on Univision and Telemundo and, notwithstanding the fact that he can be a d—, it was worth getting him in a good place.”

Only two days earlier, in August 2015, Richardson seems to have emailed Podesta, saying, in part, that if Clinton wanted his support she needed to call. Podesta references possible infighting with Richardson and President Bill Clinton, saying he thought they patched things up. “You should support her. Don’t make it so complicated,” Podesta replied.

Without responding to the content of any specific message, Podesta released a statement Wednesday evening that reads in part: “It is now clear that the illegal hack of my personal email account was — just like the other recent, election-related hacks — the work of the Russian government. This level of meddling by a foreign power can only be aimed at boosting Donald Trump and should send chills down the spine of all Americans, regardless of political party.”

When asked about a separate leaked email earlier in the day, Clinton communications director Jen Palmieri deflected questions and also blamed the Russians for trying to influence the America presidential race.

“The Russians orchestrated this hack,” she said. “We believe, as noted by the Director of National Intelligence, that they’re also behind the timing and manner of the leaks, and we’re not going to do any more to comment or aid their efforts.”

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