Ballotpedia's Daily Presidential News Briefing - May 4, 2016
From Ballotpedia
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Wednesday's Leading Stories
- Bernie Sanders won the Indiana Democratic primary last night, defeating Hillary Clinton by five points. With 52.5 percent of the vote, Sanders picked up 42 delegates, while Clinton, who earned 47.5 percent of the vote, picked up 36 delegates. (Ballotpedia)
- After winning Indiana’s primary election last night, Sanders said, “I understand that Secretary Clinton thinks that this campaign is over. I’ve got some bad news for her. Tonight we won a great victory in Indiana. Next week we are going to be in West Virginia. We think we have a real shot to win in that great state. And then we’re going to Kentucky, and we’re going to Oregon. And we think we have a pretty good chance to win there as well. We feel great about tonight not only in winning here in Indiana and accumulating some more delegates but also gaining the momentum we need to take us to the finish line.” (The New York Times)
- Despite losing Indiana’s primary election, Clinton said, "I'm really focused on moving into the general election ... We're going to have a tough campaign." (USA Today)
- Donald Trump won the Indiana Republican primary last night with 53.2 percent of the vote. Ted Cruz earned 36.7 percent of the vote, and John Kasich earned 7.6 percent of the vote. Trump picked up 51 delegates. In his post-election analysis, Ballotpedia’s James Barnes wrote, “According to the television networks’ exit poll, a representative sampling of Indiana primary voters as they left their precinct polling stations, Trump won both men and women who voted in the GOP primary, all age and income groups, evangelical and non-evangelical voters, as well as voters who described themselves as moderates and ‘somewhat conservative.’ Cruz won Republicans who called themselves ‘very conservative’ and those with post-graduate degrees.” (Ballotpedia)
- After winning Indiana’s primary election last night, Trump said, “It has been some unbelievable day and evening and year — never been through anything like this.” He added that Cruz “is one hell of a competitor.” (The New York Times)
- Ted Cruz suspended his campaign last night after losing Indiana’s primary election. He said to a group of supporters, “Tonight I’m sorry to say it appears that path has been foreclosed. … We gave it everything we got. But the voters chose another path.” (The New York Times)
Polls
- According to a poll released by Public Policy Polling on Tuesday, Donald Trump has a significant lead over Ted Cruz and John Kasich among West Virginia Republican primary voters. Trump has 61 percent support, Cruz has 22 percent, and Kasich has 14 percent. On the Democratic side, Bernie Sanders leads Hillary Clinton 45 percent to 37 percent. (Public Policy Polling)
- According to a CNN/ORC poll released on Wednesday, in general election matchups, Sanders is leading Trump and Kasich, Clinton is leading Trump, and Kasich is leading Clinton. (CNN/ORC)
- Clinton 54 (percent) v. Trump (41 percent);
- Kasich 51 (percent) v. Clinton (44 percent);
- Sanders 56 (percent v. Trump (40 percent);
- Sanders 50 (percent) v. Kasich (46 percent)
Democrats
Hillary Clinton
- Clinton’s campaign chairman John Podesta released the following statement last night after Ted Cruz dropped out of the GOP race: "Throughout this campaign, Donald Trump has demonstrated that he’s too divisive and lacks the temperament to lead our nation and the free world. While Donald Trump seeks to bully and divide Americans, Hillary Clinton will unite us to create an economy that works for everyone." (USA Today)
- During an interview on MSNBC on Tuesday, Clinton was asked about her conversation with “Bo Copley, a former coal employee who lost his job.” Copley asked her about why she said she wants to "put a lot of coal miners and coal companies out of business." Clinton said she was "honored" that Copley was “‘so open and honest, emotionally’ in explaining his experience in the coal business.” She added, "I think we've got to move both toward a clean energy future. ... But we also have to remember who turned on the lights and powered the factories and provided the energy we needed to build our country.” (USA Today)
- During a campaign stop in Athens, Ohio, on Tuesday, Clinton, who acknowledged that voters in Appalachia “may find it hard to vote for any Democrat, or for me in particular,” said, “I will fight for you and your families every day, whether you vote for me or not. I will be your partner, and I will not for one moment give up.” According to The Columbus Dispatch, “As president, Clinton said, she will strive to ensure that industry honors safe-workplace and pension commitments to miners and steelworkers, partner the federal government with local job creation and training efforts, and invest in education, including free community college.” Clinton also told voters that “former Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship — sentenced last month to a year in prison for conspiring to violate mine safety laws after 29 miners died in 2010 at a company mine — showed up with Trump supporters outside one of her events in West Virginia on Monday.” The crowd cheered when Clinton said, "If Donald Trump wants to have somebody like that, he can have him.” (The Columbus Dispatch)
- Democratic Senator Tim Kaine (Va.) has been identified as a possible running mate for Clinton. (CNN)
- Peter Buttenwieser, “a major Democratic donor and Clinton backer,” said, "I would be 100% enthusiastic about Tim Kaine being our vice presidential candidate. Nobody could be better."
- Steve Elmendorf, “a Democratic lobbyist and Clinton backer,” said, "It's hard to construct a short list for vice president that he's [Kaine’s] not on.”
- Glen Fukushima, “a Democratic donor who gave $100,000 to Clinton's super PAC last year” said, "He [Kaine] has a business sense and international experience (and) speaks Spanish, which are both pluses. He also has experience as a governor, which could complement Hillary's background."
Bernie Sanders
- During a campaign event in Indiana on Tuesday, Bernie Sanders criticized “United Technologies, the parent company of Carrier” for their decision to “relocate 1,400 Indianapolis jobs to Monterrey, Mexico.” Sanders said, “I am going to tell United Technologies, you are not going to get away with this. You are not going to give former CEO a $171 million severance package. This is the type of greed that in fact is destroying the middle class in this country. … This is not a case where people think the workers here are not productive. The company acknowledges that. It is simply greed. They can make more money moving to Mexico paying people $3 to $4 an hour. It is unacceptable. … I think that the taxpayers of this country do not feel good about awarding profitable defense contracts to a company that is in the business of destroying thousands of lives. And I think that should be taken into consideration.” (WISHTV.com)
- Sanders will campaign in West Virginia on Thursday. He will visit South Charleston and is tentatively scheduled to visit Charleston, Morgantown, and McDowell County. (WSAZ.com)
Republicans
- After Donald Trump won Indiana’s primary election and Ted Cruz suspended his campaign, Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus tweeted: “@realDonaldTrump will be presumptive @GOP nominee, we all need to unite and focus on defeating @HillaryClinton #NeverClinton.” (Twitter)
- John Weaver, John Kasich’s chief strategist, replied to Priebus’ tweet, saying, "Appreciate @Reince & his hard work for @GOP, but until someone has 1,237 bound delegates there is no presumptive nominee. CA here we come.” (CNN)
- According to The Washington Post, “D.C. GOP leaders voted not to certify the election of Rina Shah Bharara as a convention delegate after they said they discovered that she lives in Virginia, not the District — a violation of party rules.” Bharara provided documents that show she pays property taxes and utilities at her business property located at the Navy Yard in Washington, D.C. In addition, she has a D.C. driver’s license and is registered to vote in the city. Bharara said, “This is all Trump-driven. They are searching for anything to get rid of me. I have not been dishonest; it’s actually the D.C. party that is overstepping its authority. . . . I was elected, and I’m going to Cleveland.” A complaint about Bharara’s residence was filed by a Trump supporter after Bharara expressed anti-Trump opinions. On Twitter, she wrote, “.@realDonaldTrump is not a real Republican. So, he’ll never get my vote. He is a racist, misogynist flip-flopper. Wake up #USA! #NeverTrump.” (The Washington Post)
Ted Cruz
- On Tuesday, Ted Cruz said to reporters, “I’m going to do something I haven’t done for the entire campaign. I’m going to tell you what I really think of Donald Trump.” Cruz said that Trump is a “pathological liar,” an “utterly amoral” man, and a “narcissist at a level I don’t think this country has ever seen.” He added, “Listen, Donald Trump is a serial philanderer and he boasts about it. I want everyone to think about your teenage kids. The president of the United States talks about how great it is to commit adultery. How proud he is. Describes his battles with venereal disease as his own personal Vietnam.” Cruz also accused “the news media of enabling Mr. Trump, singling out Rupert Murdoch and Roger Ailes of Fox News for transforming the network into ‘the Donald Trump network, 24/7,’” according to The New York Times. Cruz concluded his comments by saying, “If anyone has seen the movie ‘Back to the Future 2,’ the screenwriter says that he based the character Biff Tannen on Donald Trump, a caricature of a braggadocious arrogant buffoon. We are looking, potentially at the Biff Tannen presidency.” (The New York Times)
- Trump responded to Cruz’s comments by calling him “a desperate candidate trying to save his failing campaign.” Trump added that Cruz was growing “more and more unhinged” due to a string of primary losses.
John Kasich
- On Tuesday, John Kasich’s campaign said in a Facebook post that he “will remain in the race unless a candidate reaches 1,237 bound delegates before the Convention.” The post said, “Our strategy has been and continues to be one that involves winning the nomination at an open convention. The comments from Trump, on the verge of winning in Indiana, heighten the differences between Governor Kasich and his positive, inclusive approach and the disrespectful ramblings from Donald Trump. Prior to tonight’s primary, the Kasich campaign had already secured a large plurality of Indiana delegates committed to Governor Kasich at a multi-ballot convention as part of the pre-primary delegate selection process.” (Facebook)
Donald Trump
- Donald Trump said on Monday that he will not allow military general speak to the media if he is commander in chief. Trump said, “I don't want them saying things like ‘our nation has never been so ill-prepared.’ Even though it's true, I don't want the enemy knowing that. … A general should not be on television. I don't want our generals on television. I will prohibit them. … You think Gen. George Patton or Gen. Douglas MacArthur, do you think they'd be on television saying about how weak we are? Number one, they wouldn't be on television because they'd be knocking the hell out of the enemy and they wouldn't have time.” (MilitaryTimes.com)
- Citing a National Enquirer story, Donald Trump “alleged that Ted Cruz’s father was with John F. Kennedy’s assassin shortly before he murdered the president,” according to Politico. During a phone interview with Fox News on Tuesday, Trump said, “His father was with Lee Harvey Oswald prior to Oswald's being — you know, shot. I mean, the whole thing is ridiculous. What is this, right prior to his being shot, and nobody even brings it up. They don't even talk about that. That was reported, and nobody talks about it. I mean, what was he doing — what was he doing with Lee Harvey Oswald shortly before the death? Before the shooting? It’s horrible.” The story claims “that Rafael Cruz was pictured with Lee Harvey Oswald handing out pro-Fidel Castro pamphlets in New Orleans in 1963” shortly before Oswald murdered President Kennedy. (Politico)
- A Cruz campaign spokesperson said that it was “another garbage story in a tabloid full of garbage.”
- Cruz responded to the allegations, saying, “I guess I should go ahead and admit, yes, my dad killed J.F.K. He is secretly Elvis and Jimmy Hoffa is buried in his backyard.” (The New York Times)
- According to NBC News, after Trump discussed the “ludicrously thin-sourced National Enquirer story” on Fox News claiming that Cruz’s father collaborated with Oswald to murder President Kennedy, NBC News compiled a list of conspiracy theories and “debunked Internet and tabloid rumors” that Trump has used “to smear his enemies.” The list included: Trump’s claim that President Barack Obama was born in Kenya; his claim that the Mexican government sends rapists to the U.S.; his claim that Muslims in New Jersey celebrated the 9/11 attacks; his claim that “black criminals disproportionately prey on whites;” and his claim that General John Pershing subdued “Muslim rebels in the Philippines by executing dozens of prisoners with bullets dipped in pig blood.” (NBC News)
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
