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Ballotpedia's Daily Presidential News Briefing - July 28, 2016
From Ballotpedia
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Thursday's Leading Stories
- U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) received the vice presidential nomination of the Democratic Party on Wednesday night by acclamation. (Ballotpedia)
- During his acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention, Kaine spoke about his years in public service and vouched for Hillary Clinton’s character. He said, "I want to tell you why I trust Hillary Clinton. On a personal level, as he's serving our nation abroad, I trust Hillary Clinton with our son's life. Remember Karla, the little girl we heard from on Monday who was worried that her parents would be deported? Karla said she trusts Hillary to keep them together. And remember the Mothers of the Movement last night? They said they trust Hillary to keep other mothers' sons and daughters safe." He then criticized Trump, saying, "You know who I don't trust? Donald Trump." (CNN)
- Day three of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) featured the following speakers: President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, among others. Highlights from their speeches appear below.
- President Barack Obama: In the most anticipated speech of the night, Obama attacked Trump and his campaign slogan and explained why Clinton and Kaine are the right people to serve as president and vice president. Obama said, “America is already great. America is already strong. And I promise you, our strength, our greatness, does not depend on Donald Trump.” In his endorsement of Clinton and Kaine, he said, “You know, nothing truly prepares you for the demands of the Oval Office. Until you’ve sat at that desk, you don’t know what it’s like to manage a global crisis, or send young people to war. But Hillary’s been in the room; she’s been part of those decisions. She knows what’s at stake in the decisions our government makes for the working family, the senior citizen, the small business owner, the soldier, and the veteran. Even in the middle of crisis, she listens to people, and keeps her cool, and treats everybody with respect. And no matter how daunting the odds; no matter how much people try to knock her down, she never, ever quits. That’s the Hillary I know. That’s the Hillary I’ve come to admire. And that’s why I can say with confidence there has never been a man or a woman more qualified than Hillary Clinton to serve as President of the United States of America. And, by the way, in case you were wondering about her judgment, look at her choice of running mate. Tim Kaine is as good a man, as humble and committed a public servant, as anyone I know. He will be a great Vice President, and he’ll make Hillary a better President.” (Politico)
- Vice President Joe Biden: Biden made the case that Trump does not understand the needs and experiences of people in the working and middle classes but Clinton does. Biden said, "He's [Trump’s] trying to tell us he cares about the middle class, give me a break. That's a bunch of malarkey. This guy doesn't have a clue about the Middle Class. Not a clue. He has no clue about what makes America Great. Actually he has no clue. Period.” In his endorsement of Clinton and Kaine, Biden said, “So let me say as clearly as I can, if you live in the neighborhoods like the ones Jill and I grew up in, if you worry about your job and getting a decent pay, if you worry about your children's education, if you're taking care of an elderly parent, then there's only one, only one person in this election who will help you. There's only one person in this race who will be there, who's always been there for you. And that's Hillary Clinton's life story. It's not just who she is. It's her life story. She's always there. She's always been there. And so has Tim Kaine.” (ABC News)
- Former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta: While Panetta was speaking about Clinton’s national security experience and warning about the danger of a Trump presidency, delegates from Oregon and Washington interrupted the speech yelling, “no more war.” Panetta said, "I have worked alongside nine presidents, Republicans and Democrats ... and I can tell you this: There is only candidate for president who has the experience, temperament, and judgment to be Commander-in-Chief and that's Hillary Clinton. This is no time to gamble with our future. She is smart. She is principled. She is tough and she is ready. Hillary Clinton is the single most experienced and prepared person who has ever run for President of the United States.” (The Hill, ABC News)
- Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg: Bloomberg criticized Trump’s business record and urged voters consider the candidate and not the party label when they cast their votes in November. He said, "When I enter the voting booth each time, I look at the candidate, not the party label. There are times when I disagree with Hillary Clinton. But let me tell you, whatever our disagreements may be, I've come here to say: We must put them aside for the good of our country. And we must unite around the candidate who can defeat a dangerous demagogue." (CNN)
- On Wednesday, Trump asked Russian hackers to find and publish emails that Clinton deleted from her private email server. He said, "If they hacked, they probably have her 33,000 emails. I hope they do. They probably have her 33,000 emails that she lost and deleted. You'd see some beauties, so we'll see. … Russia, if you are listening. I hope you are able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing. I think you will probably be rewarded mightily by the press." The comments came two days after the FBI announced that it was investigating whether the Russian government leaked the Democratic National Committee’s emails in order to influence the presidential election. (The Hill)
- Clinton senior policy adviser Jake Sullivan responded to Trump’s comments in the following statement: "This has to be the first time that a major presidential candidate has actively encouraged a foreign power to conduct espionage against his political opponent. That's not hyperbole, those are just the facts. This has gone from being a matter of curiosity, and a matter of politics, to being a national security issue.”
- Later in the day, NBC News correspondent Katy Tur asked Trump whether he had “any qualms about asking a foreign government ... to hack into a system of anybody’s in this country.” Trump replied, “Hey, you know what gives me more pause, that a person in our government, crooked Hillary Clinton — here’s what gives me more pause...” When Tur interrupted him to ask another question, Trump said, “Be quiet, I know you want to, you know, save her. That a person in our government, Katy, would delete or get rid of 33,000 emails. That gives me a big problem. After she gets a subpoena. She gets subpoenaed, and she gets rid of 33,000 emails. That gives me a problem. Now, if Russia or China or any other country has those emails, I mean to be honest with you, I’d love to see them.” (Politico)
- Trump also denied having ties to the Russian government or Russian investors. When asked if the Russian government is trying to help him get elected, Trump said, "I don't know anything about it. I can tell you, I think if I came up with that, they'd say, 'Oh, it's a conspiracy theory,' it's ridiculous. I mean I have nothing to do with Russia. I don't have any jobs in Russia. I'm all over the world but we're not involved in Russia." Trump was then asked “whether Russian funds have flowed into his businesses and if Russian President Vladimir Putin is trying to control him as a result.” Trump said, "Is that the theory? I haven't heard that at all. I mean I haven't heard that. But I have nothing to do with Russia, nothing to do, I never met Putin, I have nothing to do with Russia whatsoever." (CBS News)
- Trump's campaign chairman Paul Manafort also denied that Trump has financial ties to Russia. When asked if Trump would release his tax returns to prove that he does not have ties to Russia, Manafort said, "Mr. Trump has said that his taxes are under audit and he will not be releasing them. It has nothing to do with Russia, it has nothing to do with any country other than the United States, and his normal tax auditing processes -- so that issue will be dealt with when the audits are done." (CBS News)
Polls
- According to HuffPost Pollster, Gary Johnson (L) is pulling support from Hillary Clinton (D) and Donald Trump (R). When polls ask voters to choose between Trump and Clinton, “Clinton currently leads Trump by over 1 percentage point overall. When Libertarian nominee Gary Johnson is included in the question, ...Clinton loses over 4 percentage points to Johnson, going from 43.9 percent in questions without any explicit mention of him to 39.6 percent with the Libertarian in the picture. Trump drops more than 3 points, from 42.6 percent to 39.2 percent, when Johnson is a named option in the poll.” (The Huffington Post)
- An LA Times/USC poll released on Tuesday shows Trump with a seven-point lead over Clinton. (LA Times/USC)
- Oregon: Clinton leads Trump 43 percent to 40 percent in Oregon. Johnson comes in third with 6 percent, and Stein has 3 percent support, according to a Clout Research poll released on Wednesday. (Clout Research)
- Delaware: Clinton leads Trump 42 percent to 32 in Delaware, according to a News Journal/PublicMind poll released on Wednesday. (News Journal/PublicMind)
- Vermont: Clinton leads Trump 39 percent to 17 percent in Vermont. Johnson comes in third with 5 percent, according to a Vermont Public Radio poll released on Wednesday. (Vermont Public Radio)
- Missouri: Trump leads Clinton 47 percent to 37 percent in Missouri, according to a poll released by KSDK-TV/SurveyUSA on Tuesday. (KSDK-TV/SurveyUSA)
- Kansas: Trump leads Clinton 44 percent to 27 in Kansas, according to a Fort Hays St. University poll released on Tuesday. (Fort Hays St. University)
Democrats
- On Wednesday, Ballotpedia senior writer Jim Barnes sat down for a Q&A with Tad Devine, a veteran Democratic presidential campaign operative and leading Democratic media consultant who has worked on numerous campaigns and attended several party conventions. The interview can be viewed here.
Hillary Clinton
- Ballotpedia senior writer Jim Barnes, who has covered every Democratic and Republican national convention since 1984, reflects on Hillary Clinton’s many performances at the Democratic National Convention as she prepares to formally accept her party’s nomination tonight. Click here for the full article. (Ballotpedia)
Republicans
Donald Trump
- On Wednesday, Donald Trump said that he “would like to raise it [the federal minimum wage] to at least $10.” Trump also said that “states should really call the shots” on setting a minimum wage. According to The Wall Street Journal, “In calling for a federal wage increase to $10, Mr. Trump is putting himself more in line with President Barack Obama and other Democrats, including his opponent, Hillary Clinton.” (The Wall Street Journal)
- On Wednesday, after State's Attorney for Baltimore, Maryland, Marilyn Mosby dropped the three remaining cases against police officers charged in the death of Freddie Gray. Donald Trump said, "I think she ought to prosecute herself. I think it was disgraceful what she did and the way she did it, and the news conference that she had where they were guilty before anybody knew the facts. I give a lot of credit to those police officers, who probably could have made a deal. You had victory after victory after victory, and she had no chance. She should prosecute herself. She should be held accountable. ... I think she is a disgrace to the world of prosecutors for what she did." (The Baltimore Sun)
- On Wednesday, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said that intelligence officials should not give Trump access to classified briefings during the election. Reid said, “How would the CIA and the other intelligence agencies brief this guy? How could they do that? I would suggest to the intelligence agencies, if you’re forced to brief this guy, don’t tell him anything, just fake it, because this man is dangerous. Fake it, pretend you’re doing a briefing, but you can’t give the guy any information. … This guy, he’s part of a foreign power. We knew he liked Putin before this, but this is quite ridiculous.” (The Huffington Post)
Third Party Candidates
Jill Stein (Green Party)
- On Wednesday, Multiple news outlets reported that some of Bernie Sanders’ supporters are turning to Jill Stein instead of Hillary Clinton and that Stein is actively asking them to join the Green Party. (Salon, Al Jazeera, The New Yorker, Fortune, Time)
- Mic reported that “In interviews, demonstrators and delegates — both Bernie or Bust-ers and Democrats who have reluctantly come around to Clinton — were eager to detail the path forward. The former said their primary goal was to rally progressive support behind the presidential candidacy of Dr. Jill Stein of the Green Party, jettisoning the Democratic Party altogether for their perceived slights against Sanders. The latter said their primary objective was to organize and fundraise for progressive candidates in local, state and congressional races across the country who feel the Bern — and will carry the torch.” (Mic)
- Speaking about the distress some Bernie backers are feeling, Stein told Fox News, "Those who are in tears, whose hearts have been broken, I’m going [to rallies] to really reassure them that their work has not been in vain." (Fox News)
Gary Johnson (Libertarian Party)
- On Wednesday, former President George H.W. Bush’s son, Marvin Bush, endorsed Gary Johnson and Bill Weld. Bush said, “That’s why I’m voting libertarian, 100%, these two guys—and nobody knows about them, people think it is sort of a wasted vote—but, both Gary Johnson and Bill Weld were each successful two term governors who balanced their budgets. So they’re fiscally conservative and their essential message is get bureaucracy off our backs. It used to be a part of what the Republicans believed.” (Buzzfeed, The Washington Times)
- On Wednesday, Weld said that he and Johnson support the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal and free trade in general. Weld said, “We’re the only free trade ticket in the race.” Weld added, “I’m convinced TPP is good policy. I’m not sure that the rank-and-file members in Congress agree with Mr. Trump on that. Until quite recently, you thought of the Republican party as the free trade party. It’s just Mr. Trump that’s gone off the reservation. … [The TPP] brings us in under the rubric, under the tent of a free trade area with 11 nations…in Asia that does not include China. So it’s almost like an informal economic alliance with those 11 countries. So it’s more than a beachhead - it’s planting the flag, economic flag big-time in Asia, and that’s worth a lot to us.” (The Washington Times)
- Weld also praised former President Bill Clinton for getting the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) approved. Weld said, “That was done with Republican votes and Bill Clinton pulled it off, and I think it was an enduring part of his legacy.” When asked about Trump and Sanders’ opposition to NAFTA, Weld said, “I say that they’re mistaken and President Bill Clinton was right. Free trade, over the years, has served the United States very well. We are the most productive country in the world per worker, and that means where there’s [flat] free trade we’re always going to get more high-wage jobs. … Trump is saying let’s throw free trade in the wastebasket, let’s have a closed economy. Somebody should lend this guy a set of history books. That was tried in the 20s, and it led to the Great Depression.”
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
