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Ballotpedia's Daily Presidential News Briefing - June 29, 2016
From Ballotpedia
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Wednesday's Leading Stories
- Ballotpedia partnered with Evolving Strategies and surveyed voters across seven states (June 10 – 22) regarding their vote preference. We tested six election scenarios. In one set, we matched Hillary Clinton (D) in a series of two-way contests with Donald Trump (R), Ohio Governor John Kasich (R), and House Speaker Paul Ryan (R). In the second set, we matched these same candidates in a series of three-way contests that also included former governor Gary Johnson. In all seven states, Clinton polled higher than Trump. The tightest battleground race between the two frontrunners was in Iowa, where Clinton leads Trump by a weighted 4 percentage points. Clinton saw the largest lead in Michigan, where she leads Trump by a weighted 17 percentage points. Comparatively, John Kasich polls ahead of Clinton in five of the seven states, and Paul Ryan polls ahead of Clinton in three states.
Evolving Strategies and Ballotpedia surveyed 4,242 registered voters, with a margin of error of +/-4.0%.
- In a speech delivered on Tuesday, Donald Trump explained how he would change America’s “failed trade policy” by rejecting the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, appointing the best trade negotiators, renegotiating and potentially withdrawing from the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and labeling China a currency manipulator. In his prepared speech, titled “Declaring American Economic Independence,” Trump warned his supporters that “Hillary Clinton, and her campaign of fear, will try to spread the lie that these actions will start a trade war. She has it completely backwards. Hillary Clinton unleashed a trade war against the American worker when she supported one terrible trade deal after another – from NAFTA to China to South Korea. A Trump Administration will end that war by getting a fair deal for the American people. The era of economic surrender will finally be over. A new era of prosperity will finally begin. America will be independent once more.” (DonaldJTrump.com)
- On Tuesday, Hillary Clinton presented her “Tech & Innovation Agenda,” which includes the following elements:
- Creating jobs “through new commitments in computer science and STEM education, support for entrepreneurial ecosystems, and other policies to build the human capital pipeline;”
- Delivering “high-speed broadband to all Americans;”
- Promoting “more high-tech exports and ensuring the free flow of data;”
- Establishing “rules of the road to support innovation—rules that foster healthy competition, reduce barriers to entry, and effectively protect intellectual property—while safeguarding privacy and security;” and
- Making “our government smarter, more efficient, and more responsive, using new technologies to deliver real results for the American people.” (HillaryClinton.com)
- The presidential candidates released statements regarding the terrorist attack at an airport in Istanbul, Turkey, on Tuesday that left at least 36 people dead and injured 147 people.
- Clinton: “Today’s attack in Istanbul only strengthens our resolve to defeat the forces of terrorism and radical jihadism around the world. And it reminds us that the United States cannot retreat. We must deepen our cooperation with our allies and partners in the Middle East and Europe to take on this threat.” (ABC News)
- Johnson: “My thoughts are with the victims of the horrific and cowardly attack in #istanbul, & with our ally Turkey. Violent extremism is pure evil.” (Twitter)
- Trump: “Our prayers are with the families of those killed and injured in Istanbul. The whole world is stunned and horrified. The terrorist threat has never been greater. Our enemies are brutal and ruthless and will do anything to murder those who do not bend to their will. We must take steps now to protect America from terrorists, and do everything in our power to improve our security to keep America safe.” (DonaldJTrump.com)
Polls
- On Tuesday, Public Policy Polling released the results of polls in the following states:
- Pennsylvania: Clinton 46 percent vs. Trump 42 percent (Public Policy Polling)
- Ohio: Clinton 44 percent vs. Trump 40 percent (Public Policy Polling)
- Iowa: Clinton 41 percent vs. Trump 39 percent (Public Policy Polling)
- Arizona: Trump 44 percent vs. Clinton 40 percent (Public Policy Polling)
- New Hampshire: Clinton 43 percent v. Trump 39 percent (Public Policy Polling)
- Wisconsin: Clinton 47 percent vs. Trump 39 percent (Public Policy Polling)
Democrats
Hillary Clinton
- On Tuesday, after the House Select Committee on Benghazi released its final report on the September 11, 2012, terror attacks in Benghazi, Libya, Hillary Clinton said, “I’ll leave it to others to characterize this report, but I think it’s pretty clear it’s time to move on. I understand that after more than two years and $7 million spent by the Benghazi Committee out of taxpayer funds, it had to today report it found nothing — nothing — to contradict the conclusions of the independent accountability board or the conclusion of the prior, multiple congressional investigations carried out on a bipartisan basis in the Congress. So while this unfortunately took on a partisan tinge, I want us to stay focused on what I’ve always wanted us to stay focused on, and that is the important work of diplomacy and development.” (The Hill)
- On Tuesday, NBC News reported that Clinton and pro-Clinton groups have outspent Donald Trump and pro-Trump groups in ad spending this month, $26 million to $0. (NBC News)
- On Wednesday, The Hill reported that Priorities USA, a super-PAC backing Hillary Clinton, accepted $200,000 in donations from Suffolk Construction, “a company holding multiple contracts with the federal government — despite a ban on such contributions.” According to The Hill, “A review of campaign finance records by The Hill shows that the practice of skirting or openly flouting the contractor ban has become widespread in both congressional and presidential politics.” Clinton’s campaign declined to comment on the donations. (The Hill)
- After The Associated Press reported that an “additional 165 pages of emails from Hillary Clinton's time at the State Department surfaced Monday, including nearly three dozen that the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee failed to hand over last year that were sent through her private server,” The Washington Post’s Chris Cillizza discussed what that could mean for Clinton's campaign. He wrote, “And yet again, the emails poke holes in Clinton's initial explanation for why she decided to exclusively use a private email server for her electronic correspondence while serving as the nation's top diplomat. … The latest batch of emails suggest that Clinton's filter to decide between the personal and the professional was far from foolproof. That these emails never saw the light of day before Monday — or before a conservative legal advocacy group petitioned for their release — opens up the possibility that there are plenty more like them that Clinton chose to delete but shouldn't have. And it provides more fodder for the Republican argument that Clinton appointing herself as judge, jury and executioner for her emails was, at best, a very, very bad decision and, at worst, something more nefarious than just bad judgment.” (The Associated Press, The Washington Post)
Bernie Sanders
- On Tuesday, Bernie Sanders said that he will continue to fight for the Democratic Party platform to include the following: opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, raising the minimum wage to $15-an-hour, a call to end to fracking, and a tax on carbon. Sanders said that if his proposals are not adopted by the Democratic Party Platform Committee, he will “have the votes to bring amendments to the convention floor in Philadelphia and ‘we are certainly intending to do that.’” Sanders added, “I think we will succeed in having the most progressive Democratic platform in history, but what is more important is making sure that platform becomes implemented.” (USA Today)
- In an op-ed on Tuesday, Sanders argued that although the “global economy is not working for the majority of people in our country and the world,” the solution to the problem is not electing Donald Trump or following the lead of those who supported the Brexit. Sanders wrote, “But we do not need change based on the demagogy, bigotry and anti-immigrant sentiment that punctuated so much of the Leave campaign’s rhetoric — and is central to Donald J. Trump’s message. The notion that Donald Trump could benefit from the same forces that gave the Leave proponents a majority in Britain should sound an alarm for the Democratic Party in the United States. Millions of American voters, like the Leave supporters, are understandably angry and frustrated by the economic forces that are destroying the middle class.” He then called for the Democratic Party to “stand with those who are struggling and who have been left behind. We must create national and global economies that work for all, not just a handful of billionaires.” (The New York Times)
Republicans
- During an interview with The Weekly Standard on Tuesday, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) was asked about a group of anti-Trump Republican delegates who are fighting to “vote their conscience when casting presidential nominating ballots at the Republican National Convention.” McCain said, "I think it's up to every delegate to make up their own minds. I do not tell them what to do, I never have." (The Weekly Standard)
Donald Trump
- On Tuesday, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich called for “a recent poll sponsored by ABC News and The Washington Post to be withdrawn or redesigned.” Gingrich also predicted that “if Trump is within five points of Clinton on the Friday before Election Day,” Trump will be the next president. Gingrich said, "The Washington Post poll has her tying with Trump with men. Now the odds against that happening are so great that even given the total bias of The Washington Post and the degree to which they're now committing a hatchet job on Trump, I think some sense of professional dignity should have led them either to withdraw the poll or redesign it." He added that the poll, and similar polls, are “an absurdity,” saying, “Trump is down about by five or six points after several weeks in which the elite media have done everything they can to block him and to protect Hillary. This is natural in a right-left race. Reagan had the same problems. By the end of the summer, people will start sifting through it. If Trump is still standing on the Friday before the election, she will lose by a huge margin." (Politico)
- Gingrich also discussed Trump’s campaign strategy to reach out to every voter. Gingrich said, "I mean, this is a guy who I think -- I think he'll be in South Side of Chicago campaigning. I think he's going to be all in the Latino community campaigning. And he has a very simple message, which is the message coming out of Europe. If you like the way things are right now, she is the head of the establishment. If you think we better change, Donald Trump is your only vote. I think that could be a very compelling message."
- During a question and answer session at the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership's Western Media Summit in Colorado, Donald Trump Jr., discussed the media bias that he has witnessed during his father’s campaign. Trump Jr. said, "If you're running as a conservative, and you're running on the conservative side of things, I think 95 percent of the media is out to get you from the start. There's nothing wrong with tough criticism at all. We've taken plenty of it. That's fine and I think that's fair, if only the other side were given that same level of criticism instead of free passes." Trump Jr. also discussed the campaign's decision to revoke The Washington Post’s press credentials “after the paper ran an online story that said Trump blamed President Obama for the recent Orlando slayings.” Trump Jr. said, "I don't think it's fair for a publication of that supposed level of credibility to go out and publish something that's a blatant lie that influences millions and millions of people. I think it makes a statement that you shouldn't have a media that is used as someone's pit bull. In that case, the Washington Post was bought by Jeff Bezos who's a billionaire liberal who's used that as his attack dog to go after anyone conservative to protect his corporate interests." (Washington Examiner)
- On Tuesday, Trump announced three new additions to his campaign staff. Jason Miller will serve as Senior Communications Advisor. Michael Abboud will serve as a Communications Coordinator. Alan Cobb will serve as the Director of Coalitions for the campaign. Trump commented on the new members of his campaign, saying, “As we continue to work to defeat Hillary Clinton this November, I am constantly building a superior political team. After winning the most votes in the history of a Republican primary contest, we are taking our messages to the people so that we can Make America Great Again.” (DonaldJTrump.com)
- On Tuesday, Miller, who served as a top aide for former presidential candidate Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas), deleted tweets that were critical of Trump. According to CNN, Miller called Trump “‘#SleazyDonald’ in a series of five tweets sent in the heat of the Republican primary.” On May 3, 2016, Miller tweeted: “Unbelievable watching this Trumpbot on @cnn tell Cruz to be classy. Um, Trump described his avoiding VD's as his own Vietnam. #SleazyDonald," (CNN)
Third Party Candidates
Jill Stein (Green Party)
- On Tuesday, Jill Stein posted a tweet stating her position on net neutrality after Hillary Clinton released her Technology and Innovation Initiative. Stein tweeted: “I oppose all legislation that would undermine internet freedom and equality. We need to protect #NetNeutrality.” (Twitter)
- Stein also criticized Clinton’s plan to forgive the student loans of entrepreneurs. Stein tweeted: “Why only forgive entrepreneurs student debt? So they can donate to you Hillary? We need to forgive ALL student debt.” (Twitter)
Gary Johnson (Libertarian Party)
- In an op-ed on Tuesday, Gary Johnson and William Weld, Johnson’s running mate, explained their decision to sign a pledge to “support a constitutional amendment for term limits on members of Congress” created by U.S. Term Limits, “a leading national organization seeking to limit terms for elected officials.” Citing President George Washington’s choice to leave office after serving two terms, Johnson and Weld wrote, “elected leaders — as we were as governors of New Mexico and Massachusetts — must recognize their time-limited role. We came to office not to seek for our own power, but to implement sound principles and to benefit all the people within our states. We then passed the torch to the next generation of leaders. Imagine how different — and better — policy and politics in America would be if term limits applied to the United States Congress. … This process of becoming career politicians is one reason Congress is so unpopular. It’s unhealthy to be constantly seeking re-election. It’s like a shepherd feeding himself on the lambs in his own flock, instead of fending for and protecting them. Term limits are reassuring for citizens. They know that they minimize the opportunity for corruption and centralization of power within a single individual. That’s not the American way. We believe in the rule of law, not the rule of a strongman or -woman.” (The Washington Times)
- During an interview on Tuesday on America with Jorge Ramos, Ramos asked Johnson “if the same ‘anti-immigrant sentiment’ of Brexit might make its way to the polls on November 8th in the U.S.” Johnson replied, “I don’t see Britain’s exit from the European Union as isolationist. I really see it as them staking out their own opportunity.” Johnson called the European Union “a giant bureaucracy” and a “crony capitalist” institution. (The Libertarian Republic)
- During an interview on MSNBC on Monday, Johnson criticized Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump and explained why his Libertarian issue positions are an alternative to Clinton and Trump. (RedState)
- On Clinton: "I think her answer for everything is more government. I think she's been the architect of our foreign policy, that if it continues the world is going to continue to be less safe as opposed to more safe."
- On Trump: "When it comes to Donald Trump - starting with immigration - deporting 11 million undocumented workers, building a fence across the border, killing the families of muslim terrorists, bringing back waterboarding or worse. Free trade - that doesn't mean forcing Apple to make their iPads and iPhones in the United States, that doesn't mean a 35% tariff on imported goods."
- On his Libertarian views: "There's a big highway right down the middle that most people in this country occupy. I'm making the case that that's libertarian, it's that people don't know it. … I think it's what most people are all about - being fiscally conservative and socially don't give a damn. As long as you don't force me into believing what it is you believe. Let people have choices in life. … Let's rule the world with free trade. Let's bring peace to the world. Let's involve ourselves diplomatically.”
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
