WASHINGTON _ Rep. Emanuel Cleaver has been pitching former Vice President Joe Biden on a trip to Missouri, a state that hasn't gone for a Democrat in a presidential election since 1996.
Cleaver, D-Mo., believes the right Democratic nominee in the presidential race can "return Missouri to its status as a bellwether" and return the party to relevance in down ballot races across the state despite President Donald Trump's 19-point victory in Missouri in 2016.
"We talk. We've known each other for years. I have not endorsed yet," Cleaver said of Biden, who currently leads in national polls. "But I told my colleagues _ black and white colleagues in the House _ I'm only going to endorse someone who can help us in Missouri."
