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Meet Clinton's Newest Roadblock: Jill Stein

by Margaret Judson

Just when Hillary Clinton thought she could breathe easy after a long sparring match in a hotly contested primary with Bernie Sanders, she may have someone else to worry about — and no, I don't mean Donald Trump. The Green Party candidate Jill Stein has fighting words for Clinton. Stein, a member of the Green Party, is not shy about hammering Clinton and certainly seems to be going hard after Bernie supporters, which could potentially dent the Democrats' odds in the general election.

Historically, the Green Party hasn't been much of a threat in a general election and, as a result, doesn't get a ton of attention from the media or voters. However, Stein is capitalizing on a not-so-secret weapon — the far-left voters that Sanders riled up and shined a new light on this election. Stein, playing to the Bernie base, is calling herself the "plan B" to Bernie. Furthering this position, Stein penned an open letter called "Keep The Revolution Going":

The toxic 2016 Presidential election is yet another manifestation of the desperate need for deep change. Many have flocked to the banner of socialism and equality raised by the Sanders campaign, while conservative voters have rejected the illusions peddled by Republican elites. Meanwhile the two corporate parties have anointed the two most disliked politicians in the country to be their standard bearers this November.

And Stein has good reason to take aim at Clinton: a recent Bloomberg poll shows 45 percent of Sanders voters aren't ready for Hillary. Now, Stein is moving full speed ahead and she's not mincing words, taking Clinton to task on some major issues. From making allegations about the Clinton Foundation to slamming Clinton over Wall Street ties — including going after her hefty speaking price tags for Goldman Sachs — Stein has been going after Clinton with, arguably, the same ferocity as Donald Trump.

Stein is even going after her about the Clinton's EmailGate scandal regarding her private server as Secretary of State — even though that during the first Democratic debate, Sanders famously said, "the American people are sick and tired about hearing about your damn emails."

All things considered, the likelihood of a Green Party candidate taking a lead at this point in the race isn't high, but Stein could be putting a serious dent in the Democratic unity that will be important on the national contest. Stein is still pretty unknown, according to a Quinnipiac poll published June 1, 87 percent of voters don't know enough about her to have an opinion. Even so, if Stein gains enough heat with Sanders voters and Democrats fail to unify as much as they need to, the environment is such that Stein could be the spark to blow up Clinton's White House shot.