Trump boosts Sanders — and discord among Dems

WASHINGTON — President Trump has stepped up his efforts to boost Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign and to sow doubts among Sanders’ supporters about the fairness of the nomination process, an update of the disruptive strategy he believes helped him win the White House four years ago.

People close to Trump and his campaign say the tactic is as deliberate as it is simple, with a goal of creating chaos in the Democratic Party in hopes of weakening its turnout in November while aiding a potential opponent whom Trump considers fatally flawed.

With Sanders hoping to lock down a clear delegate lead after the all-important Super Tuesday contests on March 3, Trump also is playing a card that fires up his own base, taunting the iconoclastic senator from Vermont as a “crazy” socialist who would lead the country into economic ruin if elected.

Sometimes he combines the two messages. After Sanders won the Feb. 22 Nevada caucuses, for example, Trump congratulated “Crazy Bernie” in a tweet, warning “Don’t let them take it away from you!”

On Tuesday in New Delhi, Trump claimed without evidence that Democrats had leaked intelligence to undermine Sanders’ campaign. Democrats “don’t want him, so they put out a thing that Russia is backing him,” Trump said.

And in South Carolina, where registered voters can vote in either party primary, Republican activists urged Trump supporters to vote for Sanders in Saturday’s Democratic primary — echoing Trump’s instructions to New Hampshire independents to “vote for the weakest candidate” before that state’s primary.

“The only thing better for Trump than Bernie Sanders getting screwed out of the nomination is if Bernie Sanders wins the nomination,” said Michael Caputo, who worked on the 2016 campaign and remains in touch with Trump’s advisers....