MORNING MESSAGE
Donald
Trump and Hillary Clinton – the two presumptuous if not yet presumptive leaders
for their party’s presidential nomination – won big on Tuesday. ... The
Clinton-Sanders contests adhered to the pattern set once Sanders surged into a
competitive position. ... Clinton leads among voters most concerned about
experience and electability; Sanders among those most concerned about honesty
and trustworthiness and a candidate who cares about them. Neither Clinton nor
Sanders nor any Democrat with a pulse is likely to lose against Trump, whether
they offer a “big idea” or not. But electing a candidate whose hallmark is
continuity and whose promise is incremental change will fail to meet the
challenge of this time. And the movement that Sanders has begun must continue to
build, or Trump’s faux populism will seem comic compared to the vicious
right-wing reaction that will seek to fill the void.
The Northeast Primaries
Donald
Trump, Hillary Clinton emerge from Northeast primaries as presumptive nominees.
CBS News: “After resounding victories across the Northeast on Tuesday, both
Republican front-runner Donald Trump and Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton
demonstrated that they’re ready to turn their focus squarely to the general
election. … After sweeping all five GOP primaries in Pennsylvania, Connecticut,
Maryland, Rhode Island and Delaware, Trump made a convincing argument.
Similarly, Clinton won four out of five of the Democratic contests, building
upon her nearly insurmountable delegate lead over Bernie Sanders.”
Donald
Trump says women don’t like Hillary Clinton. Vox’s Libby Nelson says they
dislike him even more. “… Among women, Clinton is still much more popular
than Trump. About 43 percent of women have a favorable opinion of Clinton,
compared to 54 percent with an unfavorable opinion, according to the latest
tracking poll from nonpartisan technology and media company Morning
Consult. … Trump, on the other hand, is viewed favorably by just 34 percent
of women — and that’s actually better than he scores in most polls, perhaps
because “somewhat favorable” was an option. (Gallup found that just 23 percent
of women have a favorable opinion.) The majority of women really don’t like
Donald Trump.”
Plan
B for Bernie Sanders: Make the Democratic Party platform more progressive. USA
Today: “The results of Tuesday’s five Democratic presidential primaries will
almost certainly force Sen. Bernie Sanders to acknowledge a hard reality — it’s
time for Plan B. Sanders hasn’t said if he has a strategy for changing the focus
of his campaign, and he insists he’ll continue fighting through the last contest
in June. But rather than insisting that victory over Hillary Clinton is still
within reach, he said after Tuesday’s contests that he’ll go to the Democratic
Party’s national convention in July ‘with as many delegates as possible to fight
for a progressive party platform.’ Sanders’ campaign believes the delegates he’s
collected so far will give him significant clout to achieve that goal.”
Maryland Primaries
Chris
Van Hollen and Katie McGinty Win Senate Primary Races. New York Times: “Two
establishment Democrats — Representative Chris Van Hollen of Maryland and Katie
McGinty, a former chief of staff to the governor of Pennsylvania — won key
Senate primaries on Tuesday, ending a contentious primary season in both states.
… The Maryland Senate primary race between Mr. Van Hollen, a white man, and
Representative Donna Edwards, a black woman, exposed deep fissures within the
Democratic coalition over race, gender and class. The two, both progressive
Democrats and both lawyers, were battling for the relatively safe Democratic
seat held by Barbara A. Mikulski, the longest-serving female senator in the
nation’s history. Like Ms. McGinty, Ms. Edwards had the backing of Emily’s
List.”
Van
Hollen beats Edwards in heated Md. Senate primary. Fox News Politics: “In
perhaps the most hotly contested race, Maryland Rep. Chris Van Hollen beat Rep.
Donna Edwards to become the Democratic nominee to replace retiring Democratic
Sen. Barbara Mikulski, who has held the seat for 30 years. Van Hollen ran as a
pragmatic progressive who could reach across the aisle, while Edwards campaigned
on her commitment to liberal principles. The contest became a nasty battle over
race, gender and personality; Edwards, if elected, would have been only the
second black female senator. Edwards also criticized Van Hollen for allegedly
being willing to compromise on principles for the sake of a deal.”
Lesson
from Edwards’s loss: ‘It shouldn’t be about race . . . We don’t go by gender.’
Washington Post: “The timing seemed perfect for Rep. Donna Edwards (D-Md.)
to take the big step up to the U.S. Senate. She was a proud outsider in an
outsider’s year, and an ultra-progressive just when Sen. Bernie Sanders of
Vermont was pushing the Democrats to the left. … It wasn’t to be. Edwards came
up short in Tuesday’s Democratic primary, as Rep. Chris Van Hollen battled back
from a slump in the polls to win the nomination. … ‘It shouldn’t be about race,’
said Ray Proctor, 70, a retired budget analyst who is black, after voting in
Prince George’s. ‘We don’t go by gender. We go by progress and the work they’re
doing.’ Edwards also paid a price for years of neglecting two key
constituencies: her fellow leaders in the Maryland Democratic party, and her
constituents in the 4th congressional district, which includes parts of Prince
George’s and Anne Arundel.”
Breakfast Sides
Governor
Signs Bill About Officers’ Use of Force, Grand Jury. ABC News: “Police
officers who use deadly force will still have a special privilege allowing them
to make a statement before a grand jury, but they’ll have to answer questions
and won’t be allowed to sit through the entire proceeding under a bill Gov.
Nathan Deal signed into law Tuesday. Supporters of the new law said officers
previously had an unfair advantage because they could listen to the prosecutor’s
case and make a statement at the end without facing any questioning.”
Right
out of college, women already earn $9,000 a year less than men. Marketwatch:
“Even among recent college graduates, there is a large wage gap between the
genders. In 2016, men ages 21 to 24 with a college degree earn an average hourly
wage of $20.94, while their female counterparts earn just $16.58, according to
an analysis by the Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit think tank Economic Policy
Institute. This difference amounts to roughly $9,000 a year.”
Progressive
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