Rubio Cartoon

America, we could be looking at a Trump, Clinton contest

For the first time in months, it wasn’t just a big night for political outsiders.
After a virtual tie in Iowa and a blowout in New Hampshire, Hilary Clinton needed to show that she could turn out voters, that her message was resonating and that there was an end – or at least a pause – in Bernie Sanders’s momentum.
In Saturday’s Nevada caucus she certainly showed that.
With polls showing a tightening race in the past few days after she led by over 25 points just six weeks ago, it was possible that Sanders could’ve pulled this out. But the Clinton “firewall” of African-American voters was out in full force as they voted for her three-to-one -- an excellent sign as she heads to South Carolina where over 50 percent of the electorate is black and she is heavily favored to win.
No one has doubted the strength of Sanders’s message focusing on the rigged economy, reining in Wall Street, offering universal health care and tuition free college with liberal voters. Saturday in Nevada the Vermont senator still won with those who identified themselves as liberal and voters under 45 who went for Sanders three- to-one. He also far surpassed expectations with Latinos, showing that his message can resonate with minority voters.
But Clinton won handedly with moderates, which adds to the argument that she’s more electable come November. And she won, critically, with women – a voting bloc that she has been rapidly losing over the last few months. This is especially significant after the comments by Madeleine Albright and Gloria Steinem just two weeks ago that exposed a large gulf in the way that younger women look at feminism – and Clinton herself – as compared to women of Clinton’s generation.
Furthermore, Clinton showed that she has figured out a winning formula for how to be associated with Obama successfully: she won over 75 percent of voters who want to continue his policies. This also certainly helps her to keep the black vote as we go through the primaries.
Sanders isn’t stopping anytime soon, but Saturday really couldn't have gone better for Clinton.
And the same could be said for Donald Trump who won the South Carolina primary decisively.
Hot off a feud with the pope and a few polls showing his lead under 10 points in South Carolina and even narrowing nationally, there was talk that Trump would win, but not by as much as had been projected.
But the South Carolina voters had something else in mind.
Trump won with retirees, military personnel and veterans and Evangelicals amongst other groups.
We must consider how astounding it is that Ted Cruz couldn’t win in a state like South Carolina with such a large born-again Christian voter base. And that of the entire field of GOP candidates – including Cruz and Carson, two devout Christians – that Jerry Falwell, Jr. endorsed Trump.
Or that Trump could go after President George W. Bush in a state where Bush has over 80 percent favorability and who campaigned for his brother on President’s Day and not be hurt whatsoever.
Saturday night also brought the news that Jeb Bush, once the frontrunner, has dropped out of the race. The question now is if the establishment will finally accept that Trump is on the path to become the Republican nominee. The rest of the primary states are much more favorable to Trump than New Hampshire and South Carolina, where he won handedly.
We could very well be seeing a Trump/Clinton general election match-up.
Now won’t that be fun?

Bush suspends campaign, bows out of 2016 race

Republican presidential hopeful Jeb Bush suspended his once front-running campaign for the White House on Saturday, following a poor showing in the South Carolina primary. 
“I’m proud of the campaign that we have run to unify our country,” Bush said. “But the people of Iowa and New Hampshire and South Carolina have spoken, and I really respect their decision. So tonight I am suspending my campaign.”
Bush was mired in single digits in South Carolina returns and had failed to place in the top three in any of the early contests. Bush, the former Florida governor, entered the 2016 presidential race as an early favorite, but steadily fell in the polls, despite having had a couple strong debate performances in recent weeks.
“The presidency is bigger than any one person,” Bush said during an emotional speech. “It is certainly bigger than any candidate.”
He added that he firmly believed "the American people must entrust this office to someone who understands that whoever holds it is a servant, not the master."
But Bush’s campaign seemed to struggle out of the gate. He first promised to run as his “own man” and distanced himself from his family but later relied on the Bush family name on the campaign trail.
The son of George H. W. Bush and brother of George W. Bush entered the race to huge expectations in June, and quickly fueled them with fundraising. Working with a super PAC that has supported his candidacy, Bush and allies raised more than $150 million by the end of 2015 -- far more than any of his GOP rivals.
However, Bush's presence in the race and fundraising potential wasn't enough to dissuade more than a dozen other Republicans from entering the race, including fellow Floridian, Sen. Marco Rubio.
Fundraising reports filed Saturday night show how dire Bush's financial situation had become.
His big-money super PAC raised just $379,000 in January, and most of that was from a single donor who'd also given the same amount to rival Marco Rubio. The group, Right to Rise, had blown through more than $85 million over the past nine months, largely on TV ads, bashing other candidates, most notably Rubio.
Meanwhile, Bush's official campaign -- which provided basic funding for his travel and political staff -- had less than $3 million in available cash as the month began. He had only been able to raise $1.6 million in January, despite a once-sprawling donor network.
Bush's failure to ignite was not simply a factor of the size of the GOP field. Bush, like others, was caught off-guard by the durable popularity of political outsiders -- particularly Trump.
The final stage of Bush's campaign became an all-out bout with the outspoken real estate mogul -- the two frequently referring to each other as a "loser." Bush took shots at Trump's lack of experience while Trump attacked Bush's family legacy, particularly the unpopular Iraq war waged by his brother George W. Bush.
Bush, meanwhile, offered himself as an experienced public executive and potential world statesman informed in part by his father's and brother's wartime presidencies. But it wasn't a case strong enough to translate into votes.
"I just don't see a third Bush presidency," Julie Michau of Beaufort, South Carolina, said Wednesday after attending a Bush event.
There were other problems as well. The policy-oriented Bush was overshadowed in early debates by Trump and Rubio, which dramatically slowed his early autumn fundraising.
Bush went on to finish sixth in the Iowa caucuses, but barely squeezed ahead of Rubio in New Hampshire for a fourth place finish. South Carolina was viewed as a last early voting state for Bush to make a mark.
While the South Carolina primary claimed Bush, neurosurgeon Ben Carson, who returns indicate will finish either last or second-to-last, has vowed to stay in the race.
In a lengthy speech, Carson told his supporters that “people are being easily manipulated and told what they are supposed to think and who they are supposed to follow.” He added that he “truly believes as time goes on more and more people will begin to get serious.”

Trump wins South Carolina GOP primary

Donald Trump swept to victory in the South Carolina Republican primary on Saturday, putting him in a commanding position as the race shifts to a slew of delegate-rich contests.
Jeb Bush, though, abruptly suspended his campaign after a distant finish, leaving unclear to whom his supporters will gravitate.
But Trump, at his victory rally, seemed to dismiss the notion that other candidates would benefit from Bush's exit.
"[The pundits] don't understand that as people drop out, I'm going to get a lot of those votes," Trump said.
He said the primary race lately has been "mean" and "vicious" but: "When you win, it's beautiful."
He closed by saying, "Let’s put this thing away, and let’s make America great again."
Trump's victory is not by the big double-digit margin that pre-election polls had suggested. Still, this makes back-to-back victories for Trump, who more than doubled the vote of his closest competitor in New Hampshire last week.
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio remain locked in a battle for second place.
With 99 percent of precincts reporting, Rubio is narrowly leading Cruz with just over 22 percent. Trump leads with 33 percent.
Both candidates were staying confident.
"After tonight, this has become a three-person race, and we will win the nomination,” Rubio told supporters.
Rubio placed third in Iowa, but stumbled in New Hampshire following a rough debate performance. He vowed to bounce back, and entered the South Carolina contest enjoying support from the state's popular governor, Nikki Haley, and other state leaders.
Senior Cruz aides maintained the Texas senator remains “well-positioned” going into looming Southern state primaries, since he won Iowa and placed third in New Hampshire.
Lagging far behind Saturday were the three other candidates – Ohio Gov. John Kasich, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson and Bush, all of whom appear to be stuck in single digits.
While Bush suspended his campaign, Carson vowed to stay in, as did Kasich.
The GOP race heads next to Nevada and after that to Super Tuesday, representing a delegate gold mine. Even South Carolina, with 50 delegates, is the most valuable GOP primary to date. As the winner, Trump would get the lion's share.
South Carolina, historically, also is a prized contest for Republican candidates as it has a knack for picking the eventual nominee – the primary winner has gone on to claim the nomination in every race since 1980, except for 2012 when Newt Gingrich won.
The state has a reputation as well for bringing out bare-knuckle campaign tactics, and this year was no exception. Charges of dirty politics flew on all sides in the lead-up to Saturday’s primary, with robo-calls and misleading websites surfacing about the candidates.
The race tightened in the final days, but not enough to shake Trump's long-time advantage there.
Trump had enjoyed a 13-point lead in the latest average of pre-election polls by Real Clear Politics. Fox News exit polls indicate significant numbers of late-deciding voters ended up supporting Cruz and Rubio, causing both candidates to perform more strongly than pre-election polling suggested.
Trump, according to exit polls, was still the overwhelming favorite among voters who said they’re angry with the federal government. Cruz, though, had the edge among voters who said their top issue is terrorism.
But of the three other candidates, only Kasich has made it onto the leaderboard in the three opening contests. With Bush out, he's the last governor standing in the race.
Bush, the former Florida governor, entered the 2016 presidential race as an early favorite, but fell in the polls steadily, despite having had a couple strong debate performances in recent weeks.
“The presidency is bigger than any one person. It is certainly bigger than any candidate,” he said in suspending his campaign.
SOUTH CAROLINA GOP PRIMARY RESULTS
Kasich, who placed second in New Hampshire, had low expectations in South Carolina. He is looking toward more moderate states that vote later in March.
Trump's victory, meanwhile, could foreshadow a solid performance in the collection of Southern states that vote on March 1. Victories in those Super Tuesday contests could put the billionaire in a commanding position in the delegate count, which determines the nomination.
Trump won in South Carolina after the Democrats held caucuses earlier in the day in Nevada, where Hillary Clinton was projected the winner.

Trump wins big in SC primary as Bush bows out; Clinton edges Sanders in Nev.

Donald Trump charges into Nevada and the mega-March primaries with a commanding lead over the GOP field after sweeping to victory Saturday in the South Carolina primary – while Hillary Clinton can breathe a sigh of relief that her firewall held just enough to beat back Bernie Sanders in Nevada, as they head to Palmetto State territory.
The outcome of Saturday’s contests helps both 2016 “front-runners” regain their footing after going one-for-one in the leadoff contests. But there are potential hurdles ahead.
The big question now looming over the GOP race is: With Jeb Bush suspending his campaign on the heels of a distant finish Saturday, where will his supporters go?
At his victory rally, Trump challenged pundits who say such votes will gravitate to his rivals. The billionaire businessman sounded a booming note of confidence as he previewed the race ahead.
“Let’s put this thing away,” Trump told cheering supporters.
Reflecting on the rough-and-tumble primary, which gave him a 10-point margin of victory, Trump also said, “When you win, it’s beautiful. “
Clinton heads into the next round in a more fragile – albeit improved – position.
Clinton has watched her lead in national polls essentially evaporate after losing big in New Hampshire. Her showing in Nevada marks a crucial victory, and she enjoys a significant advantage heading into next weekend’s South Carolina primary.
“I am so, so thrilled and so grateful to all of my supporters,” Clinton said at her Las Vegas victory rally.
NEVADA DEMOCRATIC CAUCUS RESULTS
SOUTH CAROLINA GOP PRIMARY RESULTS
But her 5-point margin of victory may not be enough, at this stage, to significantly blunt Sanders’ momentum. The Vermont senator maintained he has an “excellent chance” to score some big wins in the upcoming Super Tuesday contests.
The Palmetto State, meanwhile, delivered a huge victory Saturday night on the Republican side to Trump -- while Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz were locked in a tight race for second.
Cruz nevertheless gave a fiery speech to supporters, as the senator touted his campaign’s ability to defy “expectations” and maintained that he’s the best candidate to go up against Clinton or Sanders “or whatever other socialist they nominate” on the Democratic side.
“Indeed, the screaming you hear now from across the Potomac is the Washington cartel in full terror that the conservative grassroots are rising up,” Cruz said, while suggesting he’s the only candidate who can beat Trump.
Rubio, for his part, declared: “After tonight, this has become a three-person race, and we will win the nomination.”
Rubio was in need of a recovery after stumbling in New Hampshire following a rough debate performance earlier this month. He had vowed to bounce back, and was buoyed in South Carolina by support from the state's popular governor, Nikki Haley, and other state leaders.
With Bush now out of the race, Ohio Gov. John Kasich is the only governor left standing on the GOP side. It remains unclear where his supporters will go. The only other candidate left is retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, who vowed to press on.
The GOP race heads next to Nevada and after that to Super Tuesday, representing a delegate gold mine. Even South Carolina, with 50 delegates, is the most valuable GOP primary to date. As the winner, Trump would get the lion's share.
South Carolina, historically, also is a prized contest for Republican candidates as it has a knack for picking the eventual nominee – the primary winner has gone on to claim the nomination in every race since 1980, except for 2012 when Newt Gingrich won.
The race tightened in the final days, but not enough to shake Trump's long-time advantage there. Fox News exit polls indicate significant numbers of late-deciding voters ended up supporting Cruz and Rubio, causing both candidates to perform more strongly than pre-election polling suggested.
Clinton’s Nevada win comes just a week-and-a-half after she lost to Sanders by double-digits in New Hampshire.
"To everyone who turned out in every corner of Nevada with determination and heart: This is your win. Thank you," Clinton tweeted after the race was called.