Ballotpedia's Daily Presidential News Briefing - June 13, 2016
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Monday's Leading Stories
- Following the deadliest mass shooting in American history at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, early Sunday morning, the presidential candidates reacted by releasing statements and adjusting their campaign schedules to address what President Barack Obama described as “an act of terrorism and an act of hate.” (Politico)
- Donald Trump initially tweeted, “Appreciate the congrats for being right on radical Islamic terrorism, I don't want congrats, I want toughness & vigilance. We must be smart!” Referencing his proposal to temporarily ban all Muslims from entering the U.S., Trump wrote in another tweet, “What has happened in Orlando is just the beginning. Our leadership is weak and ineffective. I called it and asked for the ban. Must be tough.” (The Washington Post, The Atlantic)
- Trump later released a formal statement offering condolences to the victims’ families and condemning how Obama has addressed terrorism. “In his remarks today, President Obama disgracefully refused to even say the words 'Radical Islam'. For that reason alone, he should step down. If Hillary Clinton, after this attack, still cannot say the two words 'Radical Islam' she should get out of this race for the Presidency. If we do not get tough and smart real fast, we are not going to have a country anymore. Because our leaders are weak, I said this was going to happen – and it is only going to get worse. I am trying to save lives and prevent the next terrorist attack. We can't afford to be politically correct anymore,” he said. (Donald Trump for President)
- On Monday, Trump will discuss “this terrorist attack, immigration and national security” instead of Clinton’s credentials as planned during a speech at St. Anselm College in New Hampshire. He has also canceled a fundraiser in Boston and postponed a rally in Portsmouth, both originally scheduled for Monday. (CBS Boston)
- Clinton initially tweeted her sympathies before releasing a statement. She said, “I join Americans in praying for the victims of the attack in Orlando, their families and the first responders who did everything they could to save lives. This was an act of terror. Law enforcement and intelligence agencies are hard at work, and we will learn more in the hours and days ahead. For now, we can say for certain that we need to redouble our efforts to defend our country from threats at home and abroad. That means defeating international terror groups, working with allies and partners to go after them wherever they are, countering their attempts to recruit people here and everywhere, and hardening our defenses at home. It also means refusing to be intimidated and staying true to our values.” She also called the shooting an “act of hate” targeting the LGBT community. (The Atlantic)
- Clinton and Obama have postponed their first joint campaign event originally scheduled for Wednesday. (The Hill)
- Bernie Sanders released the following statement: “All Americans are horrified, disgusted and saddened by the horrific atrocity in Orlando. At this point we do not know whether this was an act of terrorism, a terrible hate crime against gay people or the act of a very sick person, but we extend our heartfelt condolences to the victims’ families and loved ones and our thoughts are with the injured and the entire Orlando LGBTQ community.” (The Atlantic)
Democrats
- Former vice chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee and U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) encouraged her supporters on Saturday to sign a petition to end the use of superdelegates. She wrote in a Facebook post, “Whether you are a Bernie Sanders supporter or a Hillary Clinton supporter, we should all agree that unelected party officials and lobbyists should not have a say in who the presidential nominee of our party is. That should be left up to the voters.” (Politico)
Hillary Clinton
- Rev. Jesse Jackson endorsed Hillary Clinton on Saturday, saying, “We trust her to work on health care, to fight for the poor. We trust her to fight in the defense of children.” Commenting on the Democratic primary, he added, “The campaign is technically over, but the crusade is not. I support Hillary’s campaign and Bernie’s crusade, and they are reconcilable." (The Washington Post)
- Wikileaks founder Julian Assange said on Sunday that his organization had “emails pending publication” from Clinton’s time as secretary of state. (The Guardian)
- The Wall Street Journal reported last week that the FBI investigation into Clinton’s private email server was focused on exchanges about drone strikes in Pakistan, which were sent via a non-classified government computer system and sometimes forwarded to Clinton’s private email account. Given the covert nature of the drone program, a more secure system should have been used to handle the communications. Clinton spokesman Brian Fallon said, “If these officials’ descriptions are true, these emails were originated by career diplomats, and the sending of these types of emails was widespread within the government.” (The Wall Street Journal)
- The Clinton campaign released on Saturday an infomercial parody of Trump University. “We guarantee you’ll give Trump U a glowing review—because we’ll make you. Don’t miss this once-in-a-lifetime chance to give your hard-earned money to an alleged billionaire,” the narrator concludes in the clip. (TIME)
- Kunoor Ojha, the former national student organizing director for Bernie Sanders’ campaign, has joined Clinton’s campaign to work on campus engagement. Viacom’s Anne Hubert and Rock the Vote’s Sarah Audelo have also joined Clinton’s staff to work on multi-platform messaging and youth vote organizing, respectively. (CBS News)
- The Clinton campaign released its first general election campaign ad, “Who We Are,” on Saturday. "It's wrong to pit people against each other. We've had enough partisan division and gridlock already. It's time to unite behind some simple, common goals,” Clinton says in the video after showing clips of Trump mocking a disabled reported and encouraging a supporter to “knock the crap out” of a protester. (Politico)
- Trump tweeted in response on Sunday, “Clinton made a false ad about me where I was imitating a reporter GROVELING after he changed his story. I would NEVER mock disabled. Shame!”
Bernie Sanders
- Bernie Sanders is set to meet with Hillary Clinton on Tuesday to discuss her policy agenda. Discussing the meeting in an interview on Sunday, Sanders said, "I simply want to get a sense of what kind of platform she will be supporting, whether she will be vigorous in standing up for working families and the middle class, moving aggressively in climate change, health care for all, making public colleges and universities tuition-free. And after we have that kind of discussion, and after we can determine whether or not we are going to have a strong and progressive platform, I will be able to make other decisions." (The Chicago Tribune)
- Sanders “invited a couple dozen key supporters from around the country to come to Burlington” to discuss his campaign on Sunday, according to spokesman Michael Briggs. (The New York Times)
- Sanders called for D.C. statehood in a statement on Saturday. “I think it is morally wrong for American citizens who pay federal taxes, fight in our wars and live in our country to be denied the basic right to full congressional representation," he said. (The New York Times)
- On Saturday, Sanders endorsed U.S. Reps. Rick Nolan (D-Minn.) and Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) in their reelection campaigns. (The Hill)
Republicans
- In an interview on Friday, 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney said that he would consider supporting Gary Johnson and Bill Weld on the Libertarian ticket since he would not be voting for either Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton. "If Bill Weld were at the top of the ticket, it would be very easy for me to vote for Bill Weld for president. So I'll get to know Gary Johnson better and see if he's someone who I could end up voting for. That's something which I'll evaluate over the coming weeks and months,” he said. (CNN)
- Romney also expressed concern that Trump’s candidacy could lead to “trickle-down racism.” He continued, “I don't want to see a president of the United States saying things which change the character of the generations of Americans that are following. Presidents have an impact on the nature of our nation, and trickle-down racism, trickle-down bigotry, trickle-down misogyny, all these things are extraordinarily dangerous to the heart and character of America."
- Republican National Committee Chair Reince Priebus responded on Twitter, “Respect Mitt and differences but couldn't disagree more. SCOTUS too important to lose for generations. Let's stop this and unify.”
- Donald Trump tweeted on Saturday, “Mitt Romney had his chance to beat a failed president but he choked like a dog. Now he calls me racist-but I am least racist person there is.”
- Meg Whitman, who served as the finance co-chair of Romney’s 2012 presidential campaign, reportedly indicated on Friday at a private event that she would likely support Clinton in the general election. Asked to comment on the story, Whitman said, "I haven't made that decision. We’ll see, get to the conventions, see who the vice presidential picks are. And then I will make that decision." (ABC News)
Donald Trump
- Speaking at a Christian evangelical conference on Friday, Donald Trump called for racial harmony after receiving criticism throughout the week for alleging that the Mexican heritage of federal judge Gonzalo Curiel made him biased. "Freedom of any kind means no one should be judged by their race or their color and the tone of his hue. Right now, we have a very divided nation. We're going to bring our nation together,” he said. (Reuters)
- Outside of Trump’s rally in Richmond, Virginia, on Friday, five people were detained and one charged with disorderly conduct after an altercation. (The Richmond Times-Dispatch)
- On Friday, Trump threatened to attack President Barack Obama if he campaigned on behalf of Hillary Clinton in the coming months. He said, “I hear he's going to take a lot of time, during our time, when he's supposed to be looking at trade and the military and all of these things, and he's going to campaign for Crooked Hillary." Trump continued, “You know what? That's OK. That's OK. Because if he does that, we're allowed to say things about him that normally we wouldn't bring up.” (CBS News)
- Trump condemned the effort in Virginia to permit felons to vote, saying on Friday, “This whole thing with the prisoners, this whole thing with the prisoners is not sounding too good. Where murderers can vote and all these people can vote? I don’t think so.” (The Los Angeles Times)
- Over the weekend, Trump continued to refer to U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) as Pocahontas. “You know when I use a slightly off word, slightly off, when I call this really bad senator. She's done nothing, she's done nothing. She said she's Native American. And I said Pocahontas, it's Pocahontas. And somebody said to me, one of the media, 'Mr. Trump would you apologize?' I said, yes, I’ll apologize to Pocahontas. I will apologize because Pocahontas is insulted by the statement,” he said. (ABC News)
Third Party Candidates
Gary Johnson (Libertarian Party)
- Asked on Saturday if his campaign was on track to raise the $20 million necessary to sustain a competitive presidential bid, Gary Johnson said, “It is a process, so first you got to engage in dialogue and that dialogue is actually occurring. There has to be interest. That interest is there. Has that $20 to $30 million transpired? Meaning have checks been written? Not to this point, but it is a process. And it looks pretty bright." (CNN)
- The Socially Liberal and Fiscally Conservative PAC is set to boost Johnson and Weld’s fundraising efforts and make ad buys in the futures, The Boston Globe reported on Sunday. (The Boston Globe)
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
