Hillary Clinton arrives at the U.S. Capitol for a closed lunch with Senate Democrats on July 14. | Getty Senate Democrats’ ‘lovefest’ with Clinton, Sanders

Hillary Clinton trekked to Capitol Hill Thursday to meet with Senate Democrats for the first time since rival Bernie Sanders bowed out of the race — a private unity powwow, senators said, that bore little resemblance to the tense session Donald Trump had with GOP senators just one week ago.

While Trump singled out recalcitrant Republicans and senators pushed right back, the conversation between Clinton and Senate Democrats revolved around the nuts and bolts of campaign strategy, such as the importance of turnout, particularly among young voters, senators said. It also helped that the entire caucus, including independent Angus King, now has endorsed her.


Clinton and Sanders showered each other with praise at the top of the meeting, held in the Lyndon B. Johnson Room just steps from the Senate chamber. Sanders received multiple standing ovations from the caucus — for how he ran his campaign and his ultimate endorsement of Clinton. Sanders officially backed her at a campaign event in New Hampshire two days ago.

“Sen. Sanders had some positive things to say, she had some positive things to say about Sen. Sanders,” said Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware. “Secretary Clinton made a point of thanking him for being so gracious in his remarks in New Hampshire.”

Still, Clinton stressed a message that she faces a tough campaign ahead through November, senators said — a likely slog that was reinforced by a New York Times/CBS News poll released Thursday that showed she and Trump are tied in national polling, each with 40 percent of the vote.

The same poll also found 67 percent of voters found her not trustworthy — showing Clinton’s image had been badly bruised by the fallout from her email scandal, even though the Justice Department declined to bring charges against her. Though he recommended not bringing charges, FBI Director James Comey called Clinton’s handling of sensitive information “extremely careless," a statement Republicans have eagerly pounced on.

The topic of Clinton’s standing with the public did come up in the meeting, attendees said.

“Without going into all the details [of the meeting], there’s no question that the campaign ahead is going to be tough,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) said when asked whether Clinton’s poll numbers were addressed. “She knows it’s going to be a rocky road and she’s prepared for it. No sense that this campaign is going to be a walk in the park.”

Still, Blumenthal added: “The sense is that she really is on a path to unifying Democrats.”

Senators quizzed Clinton on her plans for battleground states — and she reciprocated by asking those with a strong social media presence to use Twitter and other outlets to rally support for her, senators said.

Near the end of the meeting, one senator tossed out a question: So who are you picking for vice president?

Clinton demurred at the question — which was made mostly in jest, senators said — even when lawmakers insisted they could keep a secret. Her only response was that the person would be a qualified one.

“It was a lovefest,” New York Sen. Chuck Schumer, the third-ranking Senate Democrat, told reporters. “Quite the opposite of the Republican caucus when Trump visited.”