MORNING MESSAGE
Clinton’s
base – older Democratic voters – is voting for continuity. They favor continuing
Obama’s policies, not changing them. They favor experience and electability over
honesty and shared values ... Sanders continues to capture the future by large
margins. Millennials under 29 flock to his banner; a majority of voters under 45
support him ... a party whose leaders are selling more of the same may well find
it hard to inspire young voters and independents who are looking for a very new
deal.
“LISTEN
LIBERAL”: Join Thomas Frank Friday in Washington as he discusses his
new book, “Listen Liberal: Whatever Happened to the Party of the People?” Sign
up here for the event, to be held at noon at the AFL-CIO headquarters. To
learn more about the book and for tour dates outside of Washington, go
to the “Listen Liberal” book page.
CLINTON EXPANDS LEAD
Clinton
takes at least four states. CNN: “Hillary Clinton’s southern firewall — and
support among minorities — held strong in Florida, where she won 73% of the 51%
of voters who were non-white. In Ohio, Clinton won big among black voters (68%
support) and voters who felt that international trade costs U.S. jobs (53%).
Clinton won among registered Democrats Tuesday, including 56% in Missouri and
Illinois. But Bernie Sanders continued his pattern of winning strong support
among independents…”
Clinton
adjusted her message. W. Post: “After Clinton’s loss in Michigan called her
economic message into question, her campaign moved to retool her stance on trade
by strengthening her opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership and emphasizing
support for manufacturing in her jobs plan. In Ohio, Clinton took specific aim
at elements of the pending trade package seen as harmful to the auto and steel
industries.”
Clinton
pivots to Trump. Politico: “After noting that she now has a 300-delegate
lead – which will make it essentially impossible for Sanders to catch up given
the rules of the Democratic process — Clinton turned her attention to [Trump] …
‘When we hear a candidate for president call for rounding up 12 million
immigrants, banning all Muslims from entering the United States,’ Clinton said,
discussing Trump’s most outrageous policies, ‘when he embraces torture, that
doesn’t make him strong, it makes him wrong.'”
BERNIE SEES WINS AHEAD
Bernie
moves on to Arizona. AP: “…the Vermont Senator delivered an hour-long
version of his stump speech to an enthusiastic crowd of several thousand inside
the Phoenix convention center. He urged supporters to flood the polls March
22…”
Sanders
campaign see favorable terrain ahead. Politico: “…they were … looking ahead
to Arizona … and upcoming caucuses in Idaho, Utah, Alaska and Washington. But
Sanders campaign aides say they’ll be able to keep Clinton from reaching the
2,383 delegate magic number she’d need to clinch the nomination at the
convention and, by being close enough, convince the superdelegates to
switch…”
EPI’s
Robert Scott assesses the trade records of Sanders and Clinton in new video:
“[Sanders] has been out front in criticizing agreements like NAFTA and the TPP …
[Clinton] has generally tended to favor the kinds of deals that have generated
lost jobs and downward pressure on wages of most working Americans.”
OHIO DENIES TRUMP SWEEP
Republicans
may face brokered convention. Time: “…his failure to deliver a knockout blow
in Ohio gives him an uphill fight to secure the 1,237 delegates required … In
order to sew up the nomination before Cleveland, Trump has to win roughly 55% of
remaining delegates. The majority of the remaining 21 contests award delegates
proportionally or by congressional district, with only six winner-take-all
contests left.”
Trump
warns of “riots” on CNN. Reuters quotes: “I don’t think you can say that we
don’t get it automatically. I think you’d have riots. I think you’d have riots.
I’m representing many, many millions of people.”
Rubio
quits. Politico: “…when Rubio stumbled, as all candidates do, there was no
infrastructure to catch him, no field program to lift his support, no base to
fall back upon.”
TNR’s
Brian Beutler explores why the GOP took Trump over Rubio: “It’s easy to
forget that Rubio’s campaign floundered until he adopted a dark, conspiratorial
message in January … This should have alerted Rubio to something that’s been
clear to many of us on the outside of Republican politics, looking in: that the
rise of Donald Trump is overwhelmingly a function of dynamics within the
Republican Party, not of some greater national decadence … a fostered,
apocalyptic denialism and defeatism of which Trump is both the apotheosis and
the promised remedy.”
SCOTUS NOM TODAY
“I’ve
made my decision” Obama says. NPR: “The [Supreme Court] announcement is
slated to be made at 11 a.m. ET, when the president will speak from the Rose
Garden at the White House.”
Progressive
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