Robert Reich on the superdelegate coronation

His FB post is copied below. Quoting:

Before Californians even woke up this morning, the national media had declared Hillary Clinton the presumptive Democratic nominee – based on a so-called “survey” of superdelegates by the Associated Press, that promptly became headline news in the New York Times (see below).
Hello? May I remind the media that:

1. Superdelegates don’t even vote until July 25, so a “survey” of their current intentions, while perhaps interesting, is not any more newsworthy today than it might be tomorrow. Why make this the headline story today -- the same day as the last major primaries?

2. Naming Hillary Clinton the “presumptive” Democratic nominee just before polls open in California, New Mexico, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and New Jersey could very well discourage some people in these states from voting. This is particularly unfortunate given how close Hillary and Bernie are in the polls in California, and also given the size and demographic importance of California.


3. One of the biggest issues in this election is the rigging of the American political and economic system in favor of insiders – exemplified in the Democratic Party by “superdelegates” (Party officials and congressional Democrats), as well as shenanigans by the New York Times (such as rewriting a story that initially was favorably-disposed to Bernie, to make it be less favorable). For the Times and other mainstream media to anoint Hillary just before today’s voting only heightens the suspicion and distrust of the establishment -- and for no good reason (see item #1 above).

4. If Hillary Clinton gets the nomination she will have to win over Bernie supporters. Today's preemptive move – almost certainly encouraged by Democratic Party insiders -- will not help.