By Orlando Watson
Communications Director
for Black MediaRepublican National Committee
Hillary
Clinton refuses to support the one policy that could make an immediate impact and
difference in the lives of millions – expanding school choice.
Hillary refuses
to believe that parents should have the right to choose the best education for
their children. Black voters know that Hillary Clinton can’t be trusted,
particularly after a number of social media ploys and flip-flops on issues such
as educational reform.
The Wall Street Journal writes:
Hillary Clinton hopes
the African-American vote is her political firewall against Bernie Sanders,
especially in next Saturday’s South Carolina primary. So she’s going all out to
show she’s a champion of black economic opportunity—except for endorsing the
one policy that would make the most difference… Mrs. Clinton refuses to address
the main reason that so many black children lack a quality education: failing
public schools, with no chance to escape to a better one. Not too many years
ago Mrs. Clinton understood this enough to support charter schools, if not private
vouchers. But in this election year she has become a charter critic, attacking
them for not taking all comers even if they rescue tens of thousands each year.
In return she has received the unusually early endorsements of both the
American Federation of Teachers and the National Education Association. Those
endorsements may help her beat Mr. Sanders, but they also create an opening for
Republicans in the fall: Her talk about opportunity is empty as long as she
dooms poor minority children to failing schools. Read more HERE.
FLASHBACK:
NewsOne conducted a survey of black families on educational reform and found:
72% of black families favor
charter schools while only 13% oppose them. Meanwhile, 79% of black families supported
vouchers or education scholarships that would enable them to send their
children to charter, private, or parochial schools.
In Ohio, the RNC kicked off Black History Month celebrating the contributions of African Americans to their communities, the Republican Party, and the country. The Dayton Daily News reports: Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairman Reince Priebus highlighted a new direction for the party in terms of reaching out to the black community in remarks made during a Black History Month celebration in Columbus. The event was co-hosted by the Republican National Committee and the Ohio Republican Party, and was organized to honor black Republicans from Ohio, and release details regarding “statewide engagement efforts in communities of color, and recruited applicants for the Republican Leadership Initiative (RLI),” Priebus said before making his remarks, which were delivered via video as his flight to the event was cancelled due to the inclement weather … The discussion at the RNC event turned towards the RLI recruitment initiative that the GOP hopes to see blossom in Ohio and places like Butler County where the base does very well. Read more HERE.
(Brian Barnes and Jeffrey Pastor, co-directors of African American Strategic Initiatives in Ohio, emcee the Black History Month celebration in Columbus, 02/16/16)
James Evans, chairman of the Republican Party of Utah and a graduate of Tuskegee University, a historically black University (HBCU),writes at NBC News/NBC BLK that the RNC will continue to compete for every vote in black communities across the country: Progress takes time and investment, which is why the Republican National Committee (RNC) got started right away with engaging black voters around the country after the 2012 presidential election. Since 2013, the RNC, under the leadership of Chairman Reince Priebus, has developed and executed a strategy to compete for the black vote, a strategy with results that point to a brighter future for the Republican Party and the country. Republicans earned double digit support from black voters in the 2014 midterm elections, which was an increase from 2012. While there is more work to be done, we cannot ignore the successes that have been achieved. To put it simply, the vision of how the Republican Party can best connect with black voters through the places where they live, work, watch and worship has been working. The RNC has listened and learned, and is inviting black voters to join us in 2016. Read more HERE.
Hillary’s Polling Collapse
Two new
national polls show the once inevitable frontrunner in free fall against Bernie
Sanders, with one survey giving the Vermont socialist a three-point lead over
Clinton. The polls all also show Clinton losing to nearly every GOP candidate
in general election matchups and facing “record high” unfavorables.
·
A new Fox News poll shows
Bernie Sanders taking a three point national lead over Hillary Clinton after
trailing by 22 points as recently as two months ago. FOX News reports: Bernie Sanders now tops Hillary Clinton in the race for the
Democratic nomination. The latest Fox News national poll finds 47 percent
of Democratic primary voters now back the Vermont senator, up from 37 percent
in January. Clinton gets 44 percent, down from 49 percent a month ago.
This is the first time Sanders has been ahead of Clinton, who not long ago was
regularly described as the “presumptive Democratic nominee.” Clinton led
Sanders in the Fox poll by as many as 46 points last summer, and had a 22-point
lead as recently as two months ago. “One thing that is clear from our poll --
and others -- is that Clinton has been losing support and Sanders has been
gaining,” says Democratic pollster Chris Anderson. “And this process
appears to have accelerated since the contests in Iowa and New Hampshire.”
·
A new NBC/WSJ poll shows
Clinton’s lead cut by more than half and facing “record high” unfavorable
numbers. The Wall Street Journal reports:
Sen. Bernie Sanders
has cut Hillary Clinton’s once-commanding national lead in the Democratic
primary race by more than half over the last month, a new Wall Street
Journal/NBC News poll finds. Mrs. Clinton, the former secretary of state, drew
support from 53% of people who expect to vote in Democratic primaries, while
42% picked Mr. Sanders. That 11-point spread is much closer than the 25-point
advantage Mrs. Clinton enjoyed a month ago, when the poll found her ahead by
59% to 34%. The new poll found that Mrs. Clinton holds a solid but diminished
lead among her core group of supporters: women … The poll points to a long-term
challenge for Mrs. Clinton in the continued rise of negative feelings about her
among the broader electorate. Half of the people surveyed said they felt
negatively about her, a record high for her. More than half said they would
feel uncertain or pessimistic if she won the White House.
In South
Carolina, polls show there are warning signs ahead for Hillary Clinton’s
campaign. Bloomberg: But
the survey also carries warning signs for Clinton about where the loyalties of
white Southern Democrats lie as the campaigns prepare for the crush of Super
Tuesday contests just three days after South Carolina’s Feb. 27 primary. And it
underscores how crucial it will be for Clinton to sustain her lead with black
and Hispanic voters, and turn them out, in those contests and beyond.
Hillary
Clinton refused to rule out lying to the American people. The Washington
Examiner reports: Hillary Clinton was put on the spot in a
Thursday interview with reporter Scott Pelley when he asked the Democratic
presidential candidate if she had ever lied to the American people. Pelley, the
host of CBS Evening News, mentioned former President Jimmy Carter's famous
promise that he would never lie to the country, then paused for Clinton's
response. "I have tried in every way I know how literally from my young
lawyer years to time as secretary of state to level with the American
people," Clinton said in the interview that aired Thursday night. The
journalist followed up by asking the Democratic front-runner if she had always
told the truth to Americans. Clinton replied, "I've always tried to,
always, always." A visibly frustrated Pelley doubled down, telling Clinton
again that Carter did not say he'd always tried, but promised he would never
lie. He asked Clinton if by not being specific she was giving herself
"wiggle room." "You're asking me to say I have never, I don't
believe I ever have. I don't believe I ever will. I'm going to do the best I
can to level with the American people," Hillary said, conclusively.
Republican
National Committee (RNC) Chairman Reince Priebus released the following statement
on Hillary Clinton’s hypocrisy on Supreme Court appointments during last
night’s MSNBC town hall: “Hillary
Clinton’s hypocritical and defiant response for her unprecedented vote to
filibuster a Supreme Court nominee proves she would rather put the Democrat
Party’s liberal agenda ahead of the American people. Clinton’s double
standard on Justice Scalia’s replacement is exactly why the American people
should have a voice in selecting the next Supreme Court Justice. In
eighty years there has not been a nomination and confirmation to the Supreme
Court in a presidential election year and now is not the time to break that
bipartisan precedent – the American people should have their voices heard and
the next justice should be selected by whomever the voters choose as the next
president.”
A new CNN poll shows Hillary Clinton’s lead over Bernie Sanders has collapsed in Nevada, a state she won in 2008. CNN reports: Likely Democratic caucusgoers in Nevada are split almost evenly between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders ahead of Saturday's caucuses, according to a new CNN/ORC Poll. Though Clinton holds an edge over Sanders on handling a range of top issues, the results suggest the extremely close race hinges on divided opinions on the economy. Overall, 48% of likely caucus attendees say they support Clinton, 47% Sanders. Both candidates carry their demographic strong points from prior states into Nevada, with Clinton holding an edge among women, while Sanders tops the former secretary of state among voters under age 55.
·
The Charleston Post &
Courier: In
South Carolina, Sanders Closes The Gap On Hillary
·
CNN: After
Starting With A Lead Of More Than 50 Points Nationally, Hillary Is Now Tied
With Sanders
Hillary Clinton is under fire from the New York Times for not joining Bernie Sanders in support of a $15 minimum wage. The New York Times editorializes: Instead of embracing $15, Mrs. Clinton fights on for $12, saying that states could set their own, higher minimums. That is cold comfort. Experience has shown that without a robust federal minimum, state minimums also tend to be inadequate. Today, 21 states still do not have minimums higher than the federal level, and of the 29 that do, none have minimums high enough to cover local living expenses for an individual worker. Worse, Mrs. Clinton’s stance misses the big picture, which is that the risk in keeping the minimum too low is bigger than the risk of raising it too high … Economic obstacles are not standing in the way of a $15-an-hour minimum wage. Misplaced caution and political timidity are. The sooner Mrs. Clinton overcomes those, the stronger her candidacy will be.
Despite Hillary Clinton’s attacks on Bernie Sanders’ disloyalty to President Obama, Hillary refuses to call him a “great” president. With the current economic landscape of declining incomes, poor wage growth, more Americans in poverty and a disappearing middle-class, no one can call the economy "great." Despite a poor record of achievement and even a refusal to declare his presidency "great," Clinton has awarded the Obama administration an "A" grade. Click HERE for more from RNC Research.
President Obama is finding his Supreme Court posturing hard to defend given his 2006 filibuster of Justice Samuel Alito. Reuters reports: Republicans have pointed out that Obama and members of his cabinet, who were then in the Senate, were not above trying to block the Supreme Court nomination of Justice Samuel Alito by then-President George W. Bush in 2006. "While he complained about filibusters today, he joined filibusters while in the Senate," said Don Stewart, a spokesman for Senate Republican Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Asked about his record, Obama acknowledged Democrats have played politics with nominations, too, through what he described as "strategic decisions" that ultimately did not block the president's nominee.
AND, IN CASE YOU MISSED IT…
· The Root reports that a new study used data such as black voter turnout and registration to identify the top states for black political engagement. Nine of the top 10 states – Wisconsin, Ohio, Mississippi, Michigan, North Carolina, New Jersey, Maryland, Texas and Illinois – are led by Republican governors. Read more HERE.
· The Root reports that President Obama is facing criticism from all sides for his approach to picking a successor to Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia
