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Ballotpedia's Daily Presidential News Briefing - December 10, 2015
From Ballotpedia
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Ballotpedia's Daily Presidential Briefing was sponsored by the Leadership Project for America. | ||||
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Thursday's Leading Stories
- Ben Carson released his healthcare reform policy on Wednesday. At the core of Carson’s platform is the combination of tax-protected “health empowerment accounts” and high-deductible health insurance plans. Additionally, Carson’s plan supports transferable plans across state lines and family members, a fixed contribution for Medicare beneficiaries to select the insurance plan of their choice, and the gradual increase of the eligibility age for Medicare to 70. (The Huffington Post, The Washington Post)
- On Wednesday, Ken Griffin, the billionaire hedge fund manager who “was the driving force behind the successful effort to elect Bruce Rauner as governor [of Illinois] and to put in place an agenda of overhauling the state pension system and reducing the impact of labor unions,” endorsed Marco Rubio. Griffin said, “Senator Rubio is uniquely qualified to lead our nation with conviction and courage to tackle the pressing issues of our time, whether it’s strengthening our military, ensuring the safety of our people, or lifting the weight of government from our shoulders in everything from free enterprise to health care.” (The New York Times)
- The U.S. Senate approved the conference report for S 1177 - Student Success Act on Wednesday. Joining 11 other Republicans, Rand Paul voted against the measure seeking to overhaul the No Child Left Behind program. Lindsey Graham voted in favor of the bill. Both Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio were absent from the roll call, although Cruz released the following statement: "In many ways, the conference report was worse than the original Senate bill — removing the few good provisions from the House bill that would have allowed some Title I portability for low-income students as well as a parental opt-out from onerous federal accountability standards. The American people expect the Republican majority to do better." (The Hill)
- Poll: In a CNN/WMUR poll of likely Democratic primary voters in New Hampshire, Bernie Sanders led Hillary Clinton, 50 percent to 40 percent. Martin O’Malley registered just one percent. CNN reported, “New Hampshire's ‘undeclared’ voters, who are not registered with a party and are able to choose to participate in either party's primary … are the ones boosting Sanders' candidacy. Among those registered undeclared who say they are likely to vote in the Democratic primary, 55% back Sanders, 37% Clinton. Among registered Democrats, it's 47% Clinton to 40% Sanders.” (CNN)
- Poll: In South Carolina, Donald Trump dominates the Republican field with 35 percent to Ben Carson’s 15 percent in a Fox News poll released on Wednesday. Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio each have 14 percent. The poll was conducted from Saturday through Tuesday night and includes respondents reacting to Trump’s proposal to ban all Muslims from entering the U.S. “There are enough people in the last two nights of the sample to question the widespread assumption that Trump’s comments will hurt him among GOP primary voters,” said pollster Daron Shaw. Hillary Clinton tops the Democratic field, leading Bernie Sanders 65 percent to 21 percent. (Fox News)
- Poll: In a New York Times/CBS News national poll released on Thursday, Trump leads the Republican field with a commanding 35 percent support. Cruz and Carson follow with 16 percent and 13 percent, respectively. “Trump leads among both men and women. He has more than a 20-point lead among non-college graduates (and a smaller lead among those with a college degree). But Cruz has made inroads with evangelicals,” CBS News reported. For Democrats, Clinton leads Sanders by 20 points with 52 percent to Sanders’ 32 percent. “Clinton leads among many voter groups - men, women, liberals, moderates, non-whites and voters over age 45. But Sanders performs better with voters under 45 and independents,” according to CBS News. (CBS News)
Democrats
- In an interview in The Chicago Tribune on Wednesday, Joe Biden said he made “the right decision” to not run for president after the death of his son, Beau Biden. He continued, “I believed I could win, but that's not enough. I know myself. And I know it takes time. … When I lost Beau, I lost the most honest, insightful, knowledgeable political adviser I had. He managed me well, for real." He added that although he has “spoken at length” with Hillary Clinton, Martin O’Malley, and Bernie Sanders, he will not endorse any candidate for the Democratic nomination. (The Chicago Tribune)
Hillary Clinton
- On Wednesday, Hillary Clinton said she would use the regulatory authority of the U.S. Department of the Treasury to curb the number of corporate inversions if Congress did not act. “This is not only about fairness. This is about patriotism. If Congress won’t act, then I will ask the Treasury Department, when I’m there, to use its regulatory authority, if that’s what it takes,” she said during a campaign stop in Iowa. (The Wall Street Journal, The Hill)
- Following oral arguments in Evenwel v. Abbott on Tuesday, Clinton said that the Supreme Court should guarantee the concept of “one person, one vote.” She said in a statement on Wednesday: "In the Supreme Court yesterday, parties challenging Texas’ Senate apportionment plan insisted that political representation in our democracy should be based on eligible voters, instead of total population. This change would mean that many in America, including children and non-citizen residents, would no longer be counted for purposes of representation in every state in the country. Such measures are an insult to the millions of Americans who have fought throughout our history for our country to achieve equality and justice for all people. The Supreme Court should protect political equality and turn away this harmful and reckless attempt to write off so many." (Talking Points Memo)
- The director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, James Comey, said on Wednesday that President Obama does not receive briefings on the agency’s investigation into Clinton’s private email server. “As I’ve said many times, we don’t give a rip about politics. We care about finding out what is true and doing that in a competent, honest and independent way. I promise you that’s the way we conduct ourselves,” Comey said. (The Hill)
Martin O’Malley
- Speaking at UC Berkeley on Wednesday, Martin O’Malley “called for raising the minimum wage to $15 per hour, making it easier to join labor unions, guaranteeing equal pay between genders, and expanding paid family leave.” He also highlighted his commitment to immigration reform for “new American immigrants” and “not-yet-naturalized students” who would be impacted by legislation like the DREAM Act. (San Jose Mercury News)
Bernie Sanders
- In addition to leading Hillary Clinton by 10 points in the latest CNN/WMUR New Hampshire poll, Bernie Sanders garnered a net favorability rating of 74 percent in the state. Andrew Smith, the director of the University of New Hampshire Survey Center, said such a score is “almost unheard of.” Smith continued, “I have never seen favorabilities for any candidate this high at this point in the primary.” (Boston.com)
- The Working Families Party, a national coalition of labor and progressive organizations, endorsed Sanders on Tuesday after 87 percent of its members voted for Sanders in an online poll. “We want to live in a nation that allows all people to live a decent life, no matter what is in their parents' bank account or who is in their family tree. But the super-rich have used their economic muscle to buy political muscle, and unless you're one of them, what you think government should do basically doesn't count. That's why we're standing with Bernie Sanders to build the political revolution and make our nation into one where every family can thrive,” said Dan Cantor, the coalition’s national director. (Latin Post)
Republicans
- North Carolina announced all 14 Republican presidential candidates are set to appear on its primary ballot in March. (The News & Observer)
- Charles Spies, the general counsel for Right to Rise, has requested the Federal Election Commission investigate whether Donald Trump is improperly involving his company with his campaign. In a statement on Wednesday, Trump’s organization said, “Going forward, the company will continue to zealously protect Mr. Trump’s brand and business interests wherever and whenever necessary. This is in no way any form of campaign activity and does not run afoul of federal election laws.” (USA Today, The New York Times)
- FOX Business will hold a second Republican debate on January 14 in South Carolina, two days after President Obama’s final State of the Union address is scheduled. (FOX Business)
Jeb Bush
- Right to Rise, a super PAC supporting Jeb Bush, has spent $49 million since the beginning of the year, nearly half of its total fundraising haul. The Washington Post reported in a profile of the organization’s efforts to promote Bush, “In Iowa, where Right to Rise has spent nearly $9.4 million since late June, Bush remains stalled in single digits. After the group blanketed New Hampshire with $18.5 million worth of TV ads and yard signs touting Bush, he dropped from a double-digit standing to between 5 and 9 percent support. And in South Carolina, he has fallen out of the top three among GOP presidential contenders, despite a $6.5 million super-PAC barrage on his behalf.” (The Washington Post)
- Responding to Donald Trump’s assertion that 68 percent of Trump’s supporters would back him in an independent run, Bush tweeted on Wednesday, “Maybe Donald negotiated a deal with his buddy @HillaryClinton. Continuing this path will put her in the White House.” (The Washington Post)
- Bush wrote an op-ed for Fox News on Wednesday detailing his proposal to restore states’ rights. He pledged to veto legislation that “exceeds federal authority,” nominate judges who believe in “the Constitution’s limits on federal authority,” reform the regulatory process to return power to the states, and permit states “to enforce laws that promote the goals of federal immigration law without allowing states to create their own immigration regimes.” (Fox News)
Ben Carson
- On Tuesday, Ben Carson argued the narrative around settling Syrian refugees in the U.S. should be more nuanced. He said, “It's a false narrative that we only have two narratives: to bring in thousands of Syrian refugees or to turn our backs in cold-hearted indifference. We have another option and that is to support the safe havens that they have over there, you know, Jordan has plenty of space for them and all they need is more financial support.” (The Washington Examiner)
Chris Christie
- New Hampshire House Speaker Pro Tem Sherman Packard (R) and House Majority Leader Richard Hinch (R) endorsed Chris Christie on Wednesday. The New Hampshire Union Leader reported, “Packard and Hinch both serve on a new legislative task force on the state’s heroin and opioid crisis. They said Christie, in multiple campaign stops in New Hampshire, helped focus on the human side of the drug problem. (New Hampshire Union Leader)
Ted Cruz
- On Tuesday, Ted Cruz held a hearing to debate whether there was scientific evidence showing climate change was manmade. He discussed his position in an interview with NPR, saying, “The scientific evidence doesn't support global warming. For the last 18 years, the satellite data - we have satellites that monitor the atmosphere. The satellites that actually measure the temperature showed no significant warming whatsoever. … Climate change is the perfect pseudoscientific theory for a big government politician who wants more power. Why? Because it is a theory that can never be disproven.” (NPR)
- In that interview on NPR, Cruz also defended his bill to halt refugees from ISIS and al-Qaeda-controlled territory being resettled in the U.S. He said there should be an exception for Christians coming from those regions. "What is happening to the Christians by ISIS is qualitatively different. They are facing genocide in that ISIS is attempting to exterminate the Middle Eastern Christians in a way that is qualitatively different from other people,” he said, arguing his bill did not “impose a religious test.” (NPR)
- Alan Steinberg, a former regional administration for the Environmental Protection Agency in George W. Bush’s administration, endorsed Cruz on Wednesday. He said in a statement, “Ted Cruz is the most competent candidate for the Republican presidential nomination on foreign policy issues since Ronald Reagan. Like Reagan, he believes that our foreign policy and international military involvements should be governed by one criterion: the vital interests of the United States. Like Reagan, he rejects the policies of both isolationists and out-of-control interventionists.” (PolitickerNJ.com)
- The National Organization for Marriage (NOM) endorsed Cruz on Wednesday. NOM President Brian Brown said, “Sen. Ted Cruz is a proven champion for marriage and religious freedom and someone we can absolutely count on to fight to restore marriage to our nation’s laws and defend the religious liberty of the tens of millions of Americans who believe that marriage is the union of one man and one woman.” (The Washington Blade)
Carly Fiorina
- Questioning the logic of Donald Trump’s plan to bar Muslims from entering the U.S., Carly Fiorina said in an interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity on Wednesday that “we know that Sharia Law is counter to our Constitution and way of life. On the other hand, Sean, it’s true that people in many parts of the world, who are not Muslim also believe in very objectionable things. In China, for example, so many babies are aborted or left to die through exposure simply because they’re female. So, does that mean we have to worry about every Chinese who wants to become an American citizen?” (Breitbart)
Jim Gilmore
- Jim Gilmore discussed Donald Trump’s proposal to ban Muslims from entering the U.S. during a speech at George Mason University on Wednesday. In his prepared remarks, Gilmore said, “Just like his outrageous declaration that he would end birthright citizenship for Latinos, Donald Trump is playing fast and loose with our Constitution when he says he will prohibit members of a specific religion from coming to our nation. … We already have one president who shows disdain for the Constitution. We don't need another one. Donald Trump is pandering to the anger caused by terrorism and by illegal immigration, but he goes much too far. His proposals do not reflect America." (Washington Examiner)
Mike Huckabee
- Mike Huckabee said he was “ashamed” of how the U.S. government responded to Operation Protective Edge. ”I remember John Kerry and President Obama said, both sides need to calm down. I thought, wait a minute, I'm walking down the street, someone mugs me. I'm not supposed to calm down. The mugger is the criminal, I'm the victim. I have a right to defend myself. Please don't tell me I somehow invited the attack,” Huckabee said, defending Israeli action in the 2014 conflict. (Arutz Sheva)
John Kasich
- John Kasich said on Wednesday that he would not serve as vice president to any candidate. “I wouldn’t run for vice president on any ticket. I’m not running for vice president. I’ve got the second-best job in the world, governor of Ohio. Don’t be thinking about vice president for Kasich — ain’t gonna happen, mark my words,” Kasich said. (The New York Times)
- Speaking at the Council on Foreign Relations on Wednesday, Kasich unveiled his plan to combat the Islamic State. According to International Business Times, “Kasich said Obama should be spending more money and effort on arming international forces that are already on the ground fighting ISIS, such as the Kurdish military forces, while aiming to create safe havens and no-fly zones for civilians in the region.” He also called for “heightened surveillance of individuals on terror watch lists as well as advanced decryption technology to pinpoint terrorists before they strike.” (International Business Times)
George Pataki
- On Wednesday, George Pataki said he opposed sending ground troops to combat the Islamic State. “I’m not for sending thousands of troops for a decade again to try to create a democracy,” he said. He also criticized Donald Trump for his “un-American” proposal to ban all Muslims from entering the U.S. “I think he’s driving the conversation over the edge. … We want to protect ourselves, not discriminate. The idea that all Muslims who are coming to America pose a threat is absurd,” he said. (Breitbart)
Rand Paul
- Rand Paul wrote an op-ed in TIME on Wednesday to defend the Second Amendment in the wake of global terrorism. He said to promote national security, the U.S. should be “advocating for more concealed carry ability for law-abiding Americans and an end to unconstitutional gun free zone” and “fully examine and reform our border security, including refugee and visa programs.” (TIME)
- On Wednesday, Paul challenged the assertion by the White House that Donald Trump’s plan to bar Muslims from the U.S. was “disqualifying.” In response, Paul released a series of 12 tweets outlining what made “the Obama White House...unqualified.” (Politico)
Marco Rubio
- Dan Zumbach (R) and Tom Shipley (R), two state senators from Iowa who previously supported Scott Walker, endorsed Marco Rubio on Wednesday. (Business Insider)
- In an interview on Fox News on Wednesday, Rubio criticized President Obama for saying Republican opposition to resettling Syrian refugees U.S. was “baffling.” Rubio said, “We see the same intelligence the president does. For him to say something like that runs counter to information we know that he has.” (Newsmax)
- On Thursday, Rubio is set to discuss his commitment to improving services for veterans by appearing with his brother, Mario Rubio, who served in the Army from 1968 through 1971. “He's had to file a claim and wait for a hearing, which could take anywhere from 18 months to three years. Meanwhile, he's stuck waiting for the procedures he needs. Mario is going through the exact same bureaucratic nightmare every other veteran in his situation has to go through,” Rubio‘s prepared remarks read. (U.S. News & World Report)
Donald Trump
- On Wednesday, Donald Trump posted to his Instagram a video of Jeb Bush repeatedly calling Trump “a gifted politician.” The ad begins with the text: “Jeb can’t stop raving about Trump!” (Business Insider)
- A petition to ban Trump from entering the United Kingdom has received 300,000 signatures. Since it has passed the 100,000-signature threshold to be considered by the Parliament's Petitions Committee, the House of Commons has reported that committee will consider whether to place it up for debate on January 5. (CNN)
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has agreed to meet with Trump later this month when the Republican candidate travels to Israel. (The Washington Post)
- In an interview on Wednesday, Trump said he believed Hillary Clinton would be his one competitor but criticized her for not having sufficient “strength” or “stamina.” He said, “I don’t think I have a competitor because I’m leading by so much. Look, I guess Hillary is going to be. She shouldn’t be allowed to run because of what happened with email. She shouldn’t even be allowed to run. What she did was totally illegal. I assume she’s my biggest candidate. … She doesn’t have the strength or the stamina. She’s got a name and people stupidly will vote for her.” (Breitbart)
- On Wednesday morning, Trump tweeted his disappointment he had not been selected as “Person of the Year” by TIME. He called German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the recipient, the “person who is ruining Germany.” (The Huffington Post)
- Trump said on Wednesday night that his proposal to ban Muslims from entering the U.S. would have exceptions for Muslim athletes and diplomats. (CNN)
See also
- Presidential election, 2016
- Presidential candidates, 2016
- Presidential debates (2015-2016)
- Important dates in the 2016 presidential race
- Polls and Straw polls
- 2016 presidential candidate ratings and scorecards
