Today in Politics: A Backlash Costs Donald Trump, and Possibly Republicans
Good Thursday morning from Washington. As we head into the holiday, the campaign trail is crowded in Iowa, and Hillary Rodham Clinton released a large fund-raising figure as her emails while secretary of state continue to be parsed. And with news of another business partner deserting Donald J. Trump, he has put Republicans in a delicate spot, even as he finds some success in the polls.
Mr. Trump has gone from sideshow to serious problem for Republicans as his comments that Mexican immigrants are “rapists” and “killers” risk staining the party.
Republicans have struggled with the question of immigration overhaul for years, trying to balance a hard-line stance with the need to appeal to Hispanics. Now they have to say whether they agree with Mr. Trump’s views.
Democrats relish the situation. Mrs. Clinton called Mr. Trump’s remarks “emblematic” and suggested that they were inappropriate talk-radio fodder.
American Bridge 21st Century, the Democratic “super PAC,” tried to tar the rest of the party with his views.
“Donald Trump is suddenly a force to be reckoned with in the G.O.P. primary, proving their rebrand is going splendidly,” said Jessica Mackler, president of American Bridge. “He’s a great example of everything Republicans stand for.”
For Mr. Trump, who has for years used the prospect of running for president to generate publicity, the attention may be a mixed blessing.
Mr. Trump is performing surprisingly well in recent national polls and in New Hampshire and Iowa, the crucial primary season states. However, businesses like Univision, NBC Universal and Macy’s have cut ties with him, dealing a financial blow to the billionaire who boasted that running for president would be cheap.
“The potential is Trump benefits from this politically because it keeps him in the spotlight,” said Dan Hill, a crisis communications specialist. “In terms of his brand and his business, obviously it’s devastating.”
Since Mr. Trump’s brand is built on outrageousness, refusing to soften his tone will most likely lift his standing with some Republicans, keep him afloat in polls and help him reach the debate stage. But if he continues to offend companies and their customers, a long campaign could be more costly than he expected.
–Alan Rappeport
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What We’re Watching Today
In the morning, the United States will release the unemployment numbers for June.
And later in the day, President Obama, who is hoping to see those numbers fall from May, will be in Madison, Wis., to deliver a speech on the economy.
Iowa is a popular choice for the candidates in the days before the Fourth of July. The Republicans, former Gov. Mike Huckabee of Arkansas, who won the caucuses in 2008, Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky and Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina will be there, as will Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont and former Gov. Martin O’Malley of Maryland, both Democrats. Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey and Mrs. Clinton are in New Hampshire.
Clinton’s $45 Million War Chest Is a Limited Yardstick
When Mrs. Clinton‘s aides announced her campaign fund-raising haul for the first three months of her candidacy — a war chest of $45 million — there were parallels drawn to the same fund-raising period for Mr. Obama in 2011.
He raised a few million less during that same quarter, the second one of that year, as a sitting president.
While that may be the closest measure, the reality is there hasn’t been a candidate like Mrs. Clinton in modern memory, making comparisons difficult. She is a non-incumbent who nonetheless has the name recognition and party dominance of one, with the appeal of potentially being the first female president.
(The team is only looking to raise money for the primary.)
She will also be measured against herself, including in terms of her online fund-raising, and her campaign has not released those numbers.
— Maggie Haberman
Republicans Have Options to Hinder Obama’s Cuban Embassy Plans
The Obama administration might have had an easier time resolving its embassy issues with the Cuba than it will with the Republican-led House Appropriations Committee.
Anticipating the White House move to establish an embassy in Havana, the State Department spending bill facing consideration already contains new restrictions on what the administration can do in Cuba. And critics of the Cuba policy might even try to tighten those limits.
The legislation would prevent the administration from spending any money for “a United States diplomatic presence, including an embassy, consulate or liaison office, in Cuba” beyond the facility in existence before Dec. 17, 2014, the day Mr. Obama initially announced he intended to restore diplomatic relations with Cuba.
If approved, the provision could tie the administration’s hands in expanding its operations in Havana even with Secretary of State John Kerry scheduled to head there to raise the American flag this summer.
Embassy funding isn’t the only congressional obstacle on Cuba that Mr. Obama faces. Pushing an ambassador through the Republican-controlled Senate seems highly unlikely, particularly given the strong opposition of Senator Marco Rubio, the Florida Republican, presidential candidate and party point man on Cuba in the Senate.
— Carl Hulse
Our Favorites From Today’s Times
Mrs. Clinton, whose full embrace of gay rights has been relatively recent, is seemingly trying to make up for it now with a slew of events, including a fund-raiser in Provincetown, Mass.
The hard right turn by Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin hard turn to the right might hurt him outside of Iowa.
And two Republicans had some welcome, if early, good news, with Mr. Walker of Wisconsin finding himself atop another poll and Mr. Christie securing an endorsement from Gov. Paul R. LePage of Maine.
Days after the Supreme Court delivered a second victory for his health care law, Mr. Obama flew into the mostly Republican state of Tennessee and began an aggressive push to get states that have resisted parts of the law to expand care.
Courting a Potential Kingmaker in South Carolina
The race to kiss the ring of Senator Tim Scott is on.
Mr. Scott, Republican of South Carolina, will be playing host to all 16 declared Republican White House candidates in town-hall-style events around his state over the next several months, beginning with Mr. Huckabee on Monday in Anderson.
The events will be similar to the ones Mr. Scott held in 2012 when he was a House member and Republicans raced toward him like deer to a salt lick.
Unlike in 2012, however, when Mr. Scott made it clear he wouldn’t be endorsing in the race, this time, his nod is up for grabs. School choice and education overhaul will be his pet policy issues.
Mr. Scott, like many lawmakers, has called for the Confederate battle flag to be removed from the state’s capitol; Mr. Huckabee has said the flag was “not an issue for a person running for president.”
No word yet on how important he will consider this week’s expiration of the federal charter of the Export-Import Bank to be. The bank has been a central component of the South Carolina economic resurgence; most Republican candidates oppose it. Next up: Former Gov. George E. Pataki of New York in Beaufort County. But most entertaining may be when he plays host to his state’s senior senator, Mr. Graham.
— Jennifer Steinhauer
What We’re Reading Elsewhere
Mr. Sanders, The Huffington Post writes, received a crucial endorsement of his own as he continues to draw closer to Mrs. Clinton in polls: that of Larry Cohen, the former head of the Communications Workers of America. “One of the main factors in his decision, Cohen said,” The Post reported, “was Clinton’s equivocation on granting President Barack Obama so-called fast-track authority on his mammoth trade deal.”
While in Iowa on Wednesday, Mr. Paul said that not only could he win the Republican primary, he could also defeat Mrs. Clinton in a general election by winning many of the states that helped propel Mr. Obama to victory in 2008. The Des Moines Register was there.
And, according to the Pew Research Center, though “some have come to worry that many – if not all – the issues connected to science are viewed by the public through a political lens,” a broad analysis of these topics finds “that the role of party and ideological differences is not uniform.”
The Washington Post reports on how Democrats are cheering Mr. Trump‘s rise in the polls.
Some Democrats are wondering why Mrs. Clinton‘s campaign doesn’t unleash Bill Clinton to raise money for her super PAC, Politico reports.
Peas Bring Obama and Bush Together
Mr. Obama and Jeb Bush have found something they agree on: Guacamole is no place for peas.
The New York Times on Wednesday posted a recipe on Twitter that recommended adding peas to the classic dish. The recipe, which started a debate on Twitter so raucous that Mr. Obama was asked about it, suggests that “the peas add intense sweetness and a chunky texture to the dip, making it more substantial on the chip.”
But Mr. Obama begged to differ. Asked about it in a Twitter chat on Wednesday, the president was steadfast in his support for the traditional recipe.
There were few proponents of peas on Twitter and even Mr. Bush concurred.
For Mr. Obama, the subject of guacamole is no laughing matter. Last year, he revealed that a good bowl of chips and guacamole was one of his weaknesses.
Sam Sifton, The Times’s food editor, noted that the newspaper had more than a dozen recipes for guacamole, but suggested on Twitter that Mr. Obama should keep his lost mind open.
“He’ll come ’round,” Mr. Sifton posted.
— Alan Rappeport
Note to Readers
Though the candidates might not rest on Friday for the July 4 holiday, we shall. We will return to your inbox on Monday. Enjoy your weekend.
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