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The Tap: Tuesday, August 16, 2016

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The Tap covered election news, public policy, and other noteworthy events from February 2016 to February 2022.

Review of the day

The excerpts below were compiled from issue #30 of The Tap, which was published on August 20, 2016. READ THE FULL VERSION HERE.

Federal

  • Donald Trump’s campaign announced a major staffing shakeup on Tuesday. Steve Bannon, the executive chairman of Breitbart News LLC, has joined the campaign as chief executive, and Kellyanne Conway, a senior adviser and pollster for Trump, became the campaign manager. Campaign chairman Paul Manafort’s title and position with the campaign did not change as a result of the new moves. At the time, some anticipated that the transitions could signal a smaller role for Manafort, who had overseen the campaign’s messaging and strategy since the dismissal of campaign manager Corey Lewandowski in June 2016. In explaining the shakeup, Trump told The Wall Street Journal, “I want to win. That’s why I’m bringing on fantastic people who know how to win and love to win.” Manafort resigned from the campaign on Friday, August 19.
  • Republicans voiced varying reactions to the news of the staff changes:
    • Charlie Sykes (radio host): “Hiring Bannon is a sharp pivot to the dark side for Trump. We can expect more gratuitous insults, conspiracy theories, and attacks on the media, critics, other Republicans, and the kinds of viciously personal attacks on Hillary that could end up backfiring by making her an object of sympathy.”
    • David Perdue (Ga. senator): “What it’s going to allow them to do is to focus on the real issues, and that’s the failure of Barack Obama as president and the fact that Hillary Clinton is going to double down on his failed policies. … I don’t think we ought to change Trump. I think Trump is Trump.”
    • Roy Cooper (GOP consultant): “Hiring Bannon to run the campaign in the midst of its crisis is insane. Trump needs a 75 day plan. He needs a political ground strategy. He needs an organization. Instead he's bringing in someone who will encourage him to speak to the same ten people who have supported him from day one.”
    • Marjorie Dannenfelser (president of Susan B. Anthony List): “I have known and trusted Kellyanne Conway my entire professional life. No one is better at understanding what real people are thinking and how to connect with them than Kellyanne. She and [Bannon] both understand the importance of effectively communicating the pro-life position and leveraging the passion of the pro-life grassroots in winning elections.”
    • Matt Mackowkiak (GOP strategist): “Trump's entire goal is to win the votes of his 13 million primary votes a second time.”
    • Newt Gingrich (former house speaker): “In many ways Paul Manafort has been a transitional figure who has brought the campaign to a much more professional, much more national capability. But the campaign had to continue growing. Trying to run in 50 states, deal with the national media, take on the Clinton machine. That’s a lot.”
  • Hillary Clinton’s campaign also voiced reactions to the staff changes:
    • At a rally in Cleveland, Clinton said that despite new staff, “There is no new Donald Trump.” She said “I think it's fair to say that Donald Trump has shown us who he is. He can hire and fire anyone he wants from his campaign. They can make him read new words from a teleprompter but he's still the same man who insults Gold Star families, demeans women, mocks people with disabilities and thinks he knows more about ISIS than our generals. There is no new Donald Trump. This is it.”
    • Campaign chairman Robby Mook said that Trump, by hiring Bannon, is handing “his campaign over to someone who's best known for running a so-called news site that peddles divisive, at times racist, anti-Muslim, anti-Semitic conspiracy theories. … It’s clear that [Trump’s] divisive, erratic and dangerous rhetoric simply represents who he really is.”
    • Paul Begala, a senior adviser to Priorities USA, said, “It’s the candidate, stupid,” a reference to a famous line used by Bill Clinton in his 1992 presidential campaign.
  • The Boston Globe editorial board on Tuesday argued that if Hillary Clinton is elected in November, the Clinton Foundation “should be shut down.” The board offered some initial praise the foundation’s work, but it cited an “inherent conflict of interest” and said, “as long as either of the Clintons is in public office, or actively seeking it, they should not operate a charity, too.”
  • The FBI sent to Congress a report explaining why it did not recommend charges in its investigation of Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server during her tenure as secretary of state. The report, which includes notes from interviews with Clinton, is the same one that the FBI provided to the Justice Department last month. CNN notes that the information in the report is classified and cannot be shared with the public without the FBI’s permission. The Clinton campaign responded to news of the report being sent to Congress by saying the report should be made public. “This is an extraordinarily rare step that was sought solely by Republicans for the purposes of further second-guessing the career professionals at the FBI. We believe that if these materials are going to be shared outside the Justice Department, they should be released widely so that the public can see them for themselves, rather than allow Republicans to mischaracterize them through selective, partisan leaks,” read a statement from the campaign.
  • The Working Families Party, a liberal group that backed Bernie Sanders during the Democratic primaries, announced its plans to endorse Hillary Clinton. Dan Cantor, the organization’s national director, said, We were pretty enthusiastic for Bernie; he told the truth, and we liked it. We’re now shifting, obviously. There’s a pretty important election coming up. There’s overwhelming support for Clinton. And we're going to continue the political revolution in every district we can.”
  • The Trump campaign announced that it will begin airing television ads in Florida, Ohio, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania starting on August 19. The ads will be Trump’s first of the 2016 general election cycle. Hillary Clinton’s campaign and pro-Clinton outside groups have spent a combined total of more than $100 million on general election ads in the past two months. Last week, NBC reported that both Jill Stein’s and Gary Johnson’s campaigns had spent more on television ads for the general election, at $189,000 and $15,000, respectively. Outside groups supporting Trump, however, have spent $8.2 million.
  • In a local TV interview in Wisconsin, Trump signaled his disinterest in “pivoting to the general election.” He said, “Everyone talks about, ‘Oh, you’ve got to pivot.’ I don’t want to pivot. I don’t want to change. You have to be you. If you start pivoting, you’re not being honest with people. No, I am who I am.” He went on to cite his successes in the Republican primaries. “I’ve gotten here in a landslide. So we’ll see what happens. I am who I am.”
  • The Trump campaign announced a 65-member agricultural advisory committee that includes former rivals for the Republican nomination such as Rick Perry and Jim Gilmore and Midwestern governors such as Sam Brownback and Terry Branstad. Politico described the committee as “a Who’s Who of farm policy, with five members of Congress, including the chairmen of the House and Senate agriculture committees, 10 current and former farm-state governors.”
  • Independent candidate Evan McMullin missed the deadline for getting on the ballot in California and may file a lawsuit. The California deadline was last Friday, and the state requires independent candidates to submit 178,039 valid signatures. Joel Searby, McMullin’s chief strategist, said, “In California, both the legal and write-in options remain for us and we intend to pursue any and all options to ensure that Californian's get a chance to vote for Evan McMullin in November. … Part of the problem with California and Florida and Texas and several others is that the threshold is so wildly divergent from almost every other state, so we believe it's ripe for a challenge and we intend to proceed.”

The map below compares signature requirements by state. A lighter shade indicates a lower total signature requirement while a darker shade indicates a higher signature requirement. Click the map to be taken to Ballotpedia’s interactive version with additional details.

  • In an interview with Fox News, McMullin responded to a question about whether he was helping Hillary Clinton get elected by running for president. He said that Donald Trump “has no chance of winning” and was already “ensuring Hillary Clinton is elected as our next president.” McMullin also noted that he is unlikely to reach the 270 electoral votes needed to win the general election but noted that he could still win through the House of Representatives in the event that neither Trump nor Hillary Clinton reach 270. He also expressed skepticism that Trump would continue his campaign into November.
  • Gary Johnson’s campaign reported $2.9 million in online fundraising during the first two weeks of August. About half of that amount was raised in a single day, August 15. In a statement, the Johnson campaign said, “The fact that we received more than 90,000 individual small contributions is overwhelming, and a major boost for the campaign. It is increasingly clear that a great many Americans, from across the political spectrum, are ready to join our effort to offer an experienced, credible alternative to the polarizing nominees of the Republican and Democratic parties. These contributions, and the enthusiasm behind them, are providing the fuel we need to take our message of smaller government and greater freedom to the millions of voters who are looking for a way to break the two-party status quo. During the entire 2012 election cycle, Johnson raised a total of $2.3 million.
  • Wyoming held congressional primaries.
    • There is no U.S. Senate election in Wyoming in 2016.
    • Wyoming has a single At-Large Congressional District. Cynthia Lummis (R) is not seeking re-election to the seat. Liz Cheney, daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, defeated seven other Republican candidates to win the nomination in the primary. Ryan Greene defeated Charlie Hardy in the Democratic primary. The race is rated safely Republican in the general election.
  • During his visit to Serbia, Vice President Joe Biden worked to convince Serbia to formally recognize Kosovo as a sovereign state and offered his condolences to victims of a 1999 U.S.-led NATO air campaign meant to end the widespread killing of ethnic Albanians. While speaking in Belgrade, Biden said, "There's a long history between our two countries, the United States and Serbia, not all of it good. Some of it painful. But I'm proud the United States and Serbia have started a new chapter in our relationship, grounded on the shared ideas of mutual respect." He added that “the scars of the wars of the 1990s are still raw" and that "the memories of lost loved ones are still fresh. I'd like to add my condolences to the families of those whose lives were lost during the wars of the nineties, including as a result of the NATO air campaign, in terms of responsibility.” Biden’s presence, however, was not appreciated by members of the Serbian Radical Party who protested Biden’s visit and marched in support of Donald Trump because has put forward a less interventionist foreign policy than previous administrations. Serbian Radical Party leader Vojislav Seselj said, "Trump is the alternative to globalization. He will destroy old centers of power in the United States and he's a supporter of Russia, because he wants an agreement with Russia. These are the reasons the radicals are supporting Trump."
  • The Obama administration finalized stronger fuel economy standards for heavy-duty vehicles, including buses and large trucks. The standards require that heavy-duty vehicles between model years 2021 and 2027 must become 2.5 percent more efficient annually. Certain tractors will have to reduce their carbon emissions up to 25 percent. The standards are part of the Obama administration’s regulatory action on greenhouse gas emissions and climate change. The administration argued that the standards would cut carbon emissions by 1.1 billion tons and save consumers $170 billion in fuel costs. Meanwhile, the standards will likely result in more expensive vehicles—approximately $14,000 more for a large truck, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
  • In an op-ed, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) called on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to do more in the fight against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS). She wrote, “The time has come for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to invoke its self-defense clause so the full weight of the alliance is brought to bear against Islamic State, also known as ISIS.” She noted that “only seven of America’s 27 NATO allies—Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, the Netherlands, Turkey and the U.K.—have joined the U.S. in directly attacking the group.” She also proposed creating a NATO rapid-reaction force that would bring together “advanced capabilities in intelligence, airpower, special operations” to attack ISIS. In addition, she called on social media companies to remove “the online propaganda that motivates attackers to strap bombs to their chests and spray crowds of innocent civilians with gunfire. … I proposed legislation in December 2015 that would require internet companies to report terrorist activity they encounter online to law enforcement agencies, so that the authorities can quickly act on such leads.”

State

  • Wyoming held its primary election for the House and Senate.
    • Three incumbents, all representatives, were defeated by challengers. Sam Krone (R) was defeated by Scott Court (R) in District 24, and Rosie Berger (R) lost to Bo Biteman (R) in District 51. In District 58, incumbent Tom Reeder (R) was defeated by Patrick Sweeney (R) by just three votes.
    • Other close races in the House included District 18, where Thomas Crank (R) won by 42 votes; District 41, where Bill Henderson (R) won by just one vote; and District 52, where William Pownall (R) won by 16 votes. There was one close Senate race in District 6, where Representative David Zwonitzer (R) lost to Anthony Bouchard (R) by six votes. Recounts are likely to occur among these close races, which may change the official results in the coming weeks.
    • Wyoming is one of 23 states with a Republican trifecta. Both chambers will continue to have Republican majorities after the general election.
  • The Florida First District Court of Appeal affirmed the ruling of a trial court that plaintiffs challenging the state’s school choice program do not have standing to sue. The program provides tax credits to corporations that make charitable contributions to organizations offering scholarships for students to attend private schools, including religious schools. The Florida Education Association (FEA) filed a lawsuit against the program in 2014, when the state legislature was debating whether to expand it. The lawsuit argued that public schools were harmed by the program and that the program was unconstitutional for sending state funds to religious schools. The court wrote that the challenge was at most a “quarrel with the Legislature’s policy judgments” and that the program is constitutional b

Local

  • In Ohio, the Toledo City Council approved an ordinance requiring lead poisoning safety inspections for certain rental properties. The city council’s vote was unanimous. The ordinance requires single-family and duplex rental properties built before 1978 to be inspected, and those properties may not be leased to tenants before the inspection is completed. Mayor Paula Hicks-Hudson (D) supported the final bill, which was opposed by some landlords in the city. Council members had debated the details of the plan since June, and several different proposals were offered and modified before the final version was approved. Toledo is the fourth-largest city in Ohio and the 67th-largest city in the U.S. by population.
  • In Oregon, Grant County Commissioner Boyd Britton survived a recall election. More than 65 percent of voters opposed the recall. Supporters of the recall collected 505 signatures, which was more than the 496 required to move the effort forward. In 2016, Ballotpedia has covered 13 county commission recalls across the United States.
  • The mayor and four city council members in Whitehall, Montana, were scheduled to face a recall election, but it was halted by court order. The recall was initiated over allegations of misconduct during a council meeting on April 11, 2016. Recall supporters argued that the council broke rules by allowing a speaker to make statements without being included on the official agenda. Recall supporters also alleged that members of the public were not allowed to comment on a proposal to have county dispatchers direct the city's ambulance to fire calls. One of the council members targeted for recall stated that the recall effort stemmed from existing debates over city ambulance services. The recall would have cost the county approximately $10,000. In 2016, Ballotpedia has covered 51 mayoral recalls and 58 city council recalls across the United States.
  • FILING DEADLINE: Deadline passed to file in retention elections for magistrates in Alaska. The election will be held on November 8, 2016. In these elections, judges do not compete against another candidate, but voters are given a “yes” or “no” choice on whether to keep the judge in office for another term. The judge must receive a majority of “yes” votes to remain in office.
  • FILING DEADLINE: Deadline passed to file in the general election for 24 school board seats across eight of Minnesota’s largest school districts by enrollment. The election will be held on November 8, 2016. These districts served 149,258 students during the 2013-2014 school year, which was 17.5 percent of all Minnesota public school students.

Preview of the day

The excerpts below were compiled from issue #29 of The Tap, which was published on August 13, 2016. READ THE FULL VERSION HERE.

Federal

State

  • Primary election: Alaska
    • State legislature: There are 10 state Senate seats and 40 state House seats up for election. Thirteen incumbents, two Democrats and 11 Republicans, are facing primary competition. Republicans maintain an eight-seat majority in the Senate and a seven-seat majority in the House. With Independent Bill Walker as the state’s governor, Alaska is one of 20 states with a divided state government.
  • Primary election: Wyoming
    • State legislature: There are 15 state Senate seats and 60 state House seats up for election. Twenty incumbents, all Republicans, are facing primary competition. Republicans have significant majorities in both chambers. Wyoming is one of 23 Republican state government trifectas.

Local

  • FILING DEADLINE: Deadline to file in the general election for 24 school board seats across eight of Minnesota’s largest school districts by enrollment. The election will be held on November 8, 2016. These districts served 149,258 students during the 2013-2014 school year, which was 17.5 percent of all Minnesota public school students.
  • FILING DEADLINE: Deadline to file in retention elections for magistrates in Alaska. The election will be held on November 8, 2016. In these elections, judges do not compete against another candidate, but voters are given a “yes” or “no” choice whether to keep the judge in office for another term. The judge must receive a majority of “yes” votes to remain in office.
  • Grant County, Oregon, County Commissioner Boyd Britton will face a recall election. Supporters of the recall collected 505 signatures, more than the 496 required to move the effort forward. In 2016, Ballotpedia has covered 11 county commission recalls across the United States.
  • The mayor and four city council members in Whitehall, Montana, will face a recall election. The recall was initiated over allegations of misconduct during a council meeting on April 11, 2016. Recall supporters argue that the council broke rules by allowing a speaker to make statements without being included on the official agenda. Recall supporters also allege that members of the public were not allowed to comment on a proposal to have county dispatchers direct the city's ambulance to fire calls. The recall will cost the county approximately $10,000. In 2016, Ballotpedia has covered 50 mayoral recalls and 58 city council recalls across the United States.



The Tap covered election news, public policy, and other noteworthy events from February 2016 to February 2022.
March: 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
April: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30
May: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
June: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30
July: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
August: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
September: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30
October: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7• 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
November: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30
December: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 31
January: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
February: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17
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