As expected, presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump won his primary in West Virginia. Trump also easily won the Republican primary in Nebraska on Tuesday, with no challengers left on the field.
Bernie Sanders won the Democratic primary in West Virginia.
At this writing, it looks like Sanders will notch a victory in the neighborhood of +10 points, which means the delegate math between him and Hillary Clinton (who currently has a delegate lead of about 295) won’t change by more than a handful – possibly a 5-8 net gain for Sanders.
Democrats had their world rocked a bit this morning as the latest Quinnipiac University poll showed tight races between former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and brash businessman Donald Trump in three all-important swing states – Pennsylvania, Ohio and Floridia.
Buckle up for the next six months: Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are effectively tied in the swing states of Florida, Ohio and Pennsylvania, according to the results of a Quinnipiac University survey released Tuesday. Split along lines of gender, race and age, the presumptive Republican nominee and the likely Democratic nominee appear poised for tight battles in those states, though Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders performs better against Trump than Clinton does and is also seen more favorably by voters in all three states. No presidential candidate has won an election since 1960 without winning at least two of the three states.
At roughly the same point in 2012, President Barack Obama led Mitt Romney by single digits in Ohio and in Pennsylvania, while Romney led by 1 percentage point in Florida. (Obama ended up winning all three, all by single digits.) Four years earlier, eventual Democratic nominee Obama trailed Arizona Sen. John McCain by 1 point each in Florida and Ohio, but led by 9 points in Pennsylvania. (Obama also won all three states in November, winning Florida and Ohio by single digits and Pennsylvania by 10 points.)
Real Clear Politics poll averages puts Clinton ahead of Trump by +4.3 in Florida, +3 in Ohio, and +7 in Pennsylvania.
Trump clinched the GOP nod with nearly the same vote % as Romney — and a bigger share than McCain https://t.co/Qvz8dUuYI0— Steve Kornacki (@SteveKornacki) May 9, 2016
Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump whines that CNN’s Chris Cuomo didn’t begin this morning’s interview with a “congratulations” on becoming the GOP nominee, even though Cuomo had already congratulated Trump the last time they spoke.
Cuomo started off by asking Trump about a line of rhetoric that has emerged from the campaign trail — “you are attacking Hillary Clinton for the sexual past and indiscretions of her husband,” he noted — a tactic that may give voters pause. “What is your thinking on this line of attack?” Cuomo furthered.
Did Trump answer the question? Not even close. “Well this is a nice way to start off the interview,” the presumptive nominee said with all the sensitivity of a kid in a candy store who was denied his Sour Patch Kids. “First of all, you should congratulate me for having won the race. I thought, you know, at least there would be a small congratulations but I’m not surprised with CNN because that’s the way they treat Trump.”
“You know, they call it the ‘Clinton Network,’ and I believe that. So, uh, let’s start off right there,” Trump continued to say during his phone-in hit. “I said congratulations the last time we spoke!” clarified Cuomo.
Sarah Palin, the former half-term governor of Alaska, tells CNN’s Jake Tapper that Speaker of the House Paul Ryan’s “political career is over, but for a miracle, because he has so disrespected the will of the people.”
This is in reference to the news this past week that Ryan told the press he isn’t prepared “yet” to get behind Donald Trump as the 2016 Republican presidential nominee.
Palin posits that Ryan may be trying to torpedo Trump in this year’s election cycle to clear the way for himself come 2020.
A few days after Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren used the words “narcissistic” and “racist” to describe presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump on her Twitter account, The Donald slapped back with a few jabs of his own.
I hope corrupt Hillary Clinton chooses goofy Elizabeth Warren as her running mate. I will defeat them both.
South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham took to Twitter today to make clear that he is definitely NOT on the Trump train:
It’s hard to believe that in a nation of more than 300 million Americans Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump will be our choices for President.
As for me, I absolutely will NOT support Hillary Clinton for President.
Hillary Clinton represents the third term of Barack Obama & our nation cannot afford to continue those failed policies at home or abroad.
I also cannot in good conscience support Donald Trump because I do not believe he is a reliable Republican conservative, do not believe he is a reliable GOP conservative, nor has he displayed the judgment and temperament to serve as Commander in Chief.
Finally, I do not plan to attend the Republican convention in Cleveland this summer.
After the election, regardless of who wins, I’ll do everything I can to help new President deal w/ the many challenges facing our nation.
“I fully understand why Lindsey Graham cannot support me. If I got beaten as badly as I beat him, and all the other candidates he endorsed, I would not be able to give my support either,” he said in a statement.
“Every time I see Lindsey Graham spew hate during interviews I ask why the media never questions how I single handily destroyed his hapless run for President. As a candidate who did not receive 1% in his own state – compared to my victory at nearly 40% with many others in the race – he has zero credibility.”
Just days after Donald Trump became the presumptive presidential candidate for the Republican party, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has publicly announced he will not support or vote for The Donald.
The American Presidency is an office that goes beyond just politics. It requires of its occupant great fortitude and humility and the temperament and strong character to deal with the unexpected challenges that will inevitably impact our nation in the next four years.
Donald Trump has not demonstrated that temperament or strength of character. He has not displayed a respect for the Constitution. And, he is not a consistent conservative. These are all reasons why I cannot support his candidacy.
Hillary Clinton has proven to be an untrustworthy liberal politician who, if elected, would present a third term of the disastrous foreign and economic policy agenda of Barack Obama.
In November, I will not vote for Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton, but I will support principled conservatives at the state and federal levels, just as I have done my entire life. For Republicans, there is no greater priority than ensuring we keep control of both chambers of Congress. I look forward to working hard for great conservatives in the Senate and House in the coming months.
