Abbreviated Pundit Round-up: State of the race in May
Take race and ethnicity, an increasingly important factor in an increasingly diverse Democratic Party. From the first four contests (Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina), it was clear Clinton did better with African Americans and Sanders’s strengths were with whites, particularly in more liberal states. Even then, it was clear Sanders would have to broaden his appeal, something his campaign said they would do once voters got to better know him as a candidate.
Using YouGov’s national polling as a guide, Sanders has made real gains with non-white voters since late last year, but Clinton has retained a substantial edge. And the progress appears to have stalled since March.
David Roberts with an interesting tweetstorm:
Charlie Cook (paywall site):
One of the biggest questions about the 2016 race is turnout. This will be the first presidential election in modern history in which both nominees are disliked by a majority of voters. This could depress turnout, but the intense hatred voters feel for the opposition could increase it. And there may be plenty of voters who disdain both candidates, but despise one while merely dislike the other. With increasing numbers of voters in recent years motivated more by antipathy toward one candidate rather than enthusiasm for the other, we could have a very large number of highly motivated voters intensely caring that one or the other not be elected president.
In short, we are in uncharted waters. The fundamentals argue that Clinton should win, but the swirl of emotions suggest it won’t be by a lot.
The Obama administration says the Department of Health and Human Services and USAID need more cash to contain Zika’s spread here through mosquito control, to develop better tests and speed vaccine development and to expand Medicaid coverage in Puerto Rico, where heat, humidity and poverty make it Ground Zero for a U.S. outbreak.
Republicans want to see more funding set aside in the regular appropriations process to deal with crises. Burr accused the White House of underfunding emergency preparedness accounts in the regular budget process — funds that are supposed to be set each year to deal with crises like Zika.
You’d think with good will this would be settled: pay it now, raise funds later. The real problem is that now or later, the Republicans refuse to fund the government.