For the first time this election season, we witnessed (for lack of a better word) a lifeless GOP debate on CNN Thursday night. Trump kept the insults to a minimum, while the four other candidates largely engaged in substantive policy debate. This is due in part to the moderators’ line of questioning, which, unlike past debates, was not designed to stir up hostility on stage.
Trump and Cruz have the most victories in the primaries and have the clearest path to the nomination — and that’s bad news for the Republican establishment.
Republican primaries
Donald Trump:Former presidential candidate Ben Carson officially supported businessman on Friday morning, noting that Trump has the “guts and energy” to be president. The announcement came as a surprise to some, considering Trump called Carson “pathological” during the campaign this fall. In other news, Trump denied allegations that his campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, caught Breitbart News reporter Michelle Fields during a news conference this week, bruising her arm. Fields responded by filing a criminal complaint against Lewandowski on Friday.
Ted Cruz:Cruz’s performance in Thursday night’s debate caused a stir especially well with conservatives, especially when he explained the need for confined government. With Cruz being his closest rival in terms of primaries and delegates, many see him as the best alternative to Trump.
Marco Rubio:In an fascinating move by the campaign, Rubio spokesman Alex Conant is telling supporters to vote for John Kasich in Ohio, a sure-fire way to stop Trump from taking the key swing state. But Kasich’s team has rejected Rubio’s plan, noting that they don’t need his facilitate to win on the governor’s home turf. Rubio put in a great performance in Thursday’s debate in Miami, besting Trump on policy depth. But as New York Times noteslikely came too delayed. On Friday, the Florida senator denounced Trump’s “neutral” stance on hostility between Israelis and Palestinians. In stark contrast, Rubio noted that he would scrap the Iran nuclear deal and restore confidence in the U.S.-Israel relationship.
Jan Kasich: As mentioned above, Kasich’s team believes he is on track to win the governor’s home state of Ohio. The latest polls seem to be in his favor. Fox News PollFor example, Kasich is up 34 percent and Trump is up 29 percent.
Democratic primaries
Bernie Sanders AND Hillary Clinton both have novel ads on Friday. Clinton “Mothers of the Movement” spot features women who have been victims of gun violence noting how they trust Clinton to enact “common sense” gun reforms. Meanwhile, Sanders attacks Clinton hesitation on trade agreements in his new campaign ads. Clinton gained significant influence in Hollywood when it came to endorsements after television producer Shonda Rhimes appeared in announcement Several of her show’s stars have declared, “I’m with Hillary.” Sanders, however, has no shortage of support. Thousands fans followed this passionate progressive to his rallies in Florida.
Number of delegates
Republicans (needs 1,237 votes to win):
Trump-458
Cruz-359
Rubio – 151
Kasich-54
Democrats (need 2,383 votes to win):
Clintons – 1223
Sanders-574
Primary/Debate Schedule:
Saturday – Republican Party primary in Washington and Republican Party primary in Wisconsin.
Tuesday – R/D primaries in Florida, Illinois, Missouri, North Carolina and Ohio
