In Las Vegas, President Obama Cautions Voters not to 'Fold'

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA — President Obama campaigned for Hillary Clinton and Senate candidate Catherine Cortez Masto in Nevada Sunday, holding a rally at a high school in Las Vegas, where he had just one message for the crowds, which was to get out and vote and encourage their friends and family to do the same.

"Don't boo, vote," Obama said repeatedly, and the crowd seemed to agree.

Obama spoke at length about Cortez Masto's opponent, Republican Joe Heck and about Republican nominee for president Donald Trump. He reminded voters that Heck had supported Trump up until recently but it was too late now. Invoking a gambling metaphor, he said the only way Democrats would lose the election is if they folded on a winning blackjack hand by not going out and voting. He touted Cortez Masto's record as attorney general and the sex-trafficking legislation she sponsored that toughened penalties on trafficking while noting that the candidate Heck had supported for president has bragged about behaving inappropriately with women.

He called out Trump for his "bromance" with Vladmir Putin and his claims of a rigged election, saying it was similar to when one is losing a game of basketball and then starts to say the referees are biased and walks off the court. Obama also said if the election was rigged it would be a really big conspiracy since nearly every governor in the swing states, where polls are favoring Clinton, is a Republican. To Republicans who have accused him of not respecting the constitution, Obama asked them to look at their own candidate who says he will jail his opponent and silence reporters. He wondered why those Republicans didn't give Trump a pocket sized constitution, the way Khizr Khan did.

To disavow the words of Trump one doesn't have to be a Democrat, just a decent human being, Obama said.

Both the president and first lady Michelle Obama have emerged as powerful surrogates for Clinton, with the first lady delivering speeches that are as emotional as they are potent in moving voters. Obama on the other hand has been outspoken in his criticism of Republican nominee Donald Trump, saying he is unfit for the presidency. Recently, at a joint press conference with Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, he advised Trumo to "stop whining" in reference to Trump's claims that the election is "rigged," despite offering any real evidence to support the claims.

Time political reporter Maya Rhodan notes Obama's involvement in the Clinton campaign is unusual in recent history and while it is about electing Hillary Clinton to be the next president, it is also motivated by his effort to keep Trump out of the White House. Watch a video of the rally below.

According to the RealClear Politics polling average, Clinton is leading Trump in Nevada.

Image Credit: Renne Schiavone/Patch