Bill Clinton stumps for wife in Puerto Rico as primary nears

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – Former U.S. President Bill Clinton promised Puerto Ricans on Tuesday that his wife Hillary Clinton will fight for equal treatment of the economically struggling U.S. territory if she’s elected president.

He also said she backs immediate action to restructure the island’s $70 billion public debt as the local government warns it is running out of money for essential services.

“She believes that the United States has failed to provide truly equal and adequate treatment to the people of Puerto Rico,” he said to applause from a crowd clutching umbrellas under a searing sun. “This country is supposed to work for everyone, and that includes the people of Puerto Rico.”

Clinton visited the island ahead of the June 5 primary, and officials say the Democratic presidential candidate herself will come before the vote. Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders visited on Monday.

Clinton said his wife would seek to reduce Puerto Rico’s dependence on oil to lower expensive power bills and that she supports the right of Puerto Ricans to vote in presidential elections since they’re U.S. citizens. She also has called for a vote to decide the future of the island’s political status.

“She thinks it’s time to resolve the status question once and for all with no ambiguity,” he said.

The island is struggling with a worsening, decade-long economic crisis that has prompted an exodus of more than 200,000 Puerto Ricans in the past five years. Meanwhile, the U.S. Congress has stalled on a bill that calls for creation of a fiscal oversight board to help Puerto Rico manage its debt.

Puerto Ricans are not allowed to vote in U.S. presidential elections, but they can participate in U.S. primaries. May say they plan to, given the island’s economic woes.

“The situation has gotten out of control,” said Glenda Marrero, a 41-year-old health care administrator who has not picked a candidate yet.

Tellymar Pineiro, a 21-year-old student, was looking forward to voting in a primary for the first time.

“I’m doing it for the island’s well-being,” she said. “We have lost faith in ourselves.”

Puerto Rican Democrats will choose 67 delegates to the party’s national convention.

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Danica Coto on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/danicacoto