Politics

As you can see above, Donald Trump has taken a massive lead over Ted Cruz according to a New York poll released today. But here’s the real story: New York remains solidly blue as either Clinton or Sanders top any Republican in the head-to-head general election matchups, the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University Poll finds, with some margins approaching 2-1. November …

The Washington Post reports: It’s one of the most controversial things to say on Capitol Hill, sparking looks of shock and disbelief: The House majority is in play this fall. For almost five years, ever since state legislatures and commissions finished drawing the new congressional districts for this decade, the Republican stranglehold on the House has been taken for granted …

Via Politico: There are plenty of plausible reasons why Republicans might eventually fold in the standoff over the Supreme Court: Overwhelming public opinion, a Democratic pressure campaign, and vulnerable GOP senators trying to save their jobs, to name a few. But there’s another even more persuasive reason they won’t: The wrath of the right wing. The activist right has been …

USA Today reports: Ivanka Trump, daughter of the Republican front-runner Donald Trump, has given birth to a baby boy, she announced via Twitter Sunday. Theodore James is her third child with her husband Jared Kushner. “Jared and I feel incredibly blessed to announce the arrival of Theodore James Kushner,” Ivanka Trump tweeted. Donald Trump has made frequent reference to his …

CNN reports: It may have only been rock ‘n’ roll — but Cubans seemed to like it. On Friday, the Rolling Stones became the first major international rock band to play in Cuba, drawing hundreds of thousands of people to a free concert at a decrepit sports complex on the road to the airport. For years, following the Cuban revolution, …

Via Politico: Washington state, Alaska and Hawaii all hold Democratic nomination contests on Saturday, and Sanders has a fighting chance for a sweep. All three states are holding caucuses, an activist-heavy format that Sanders has thrived on. Washington state and Alaska are also heavy on white Democrats, a core Sanders constituency, and have relatively few African Americans. Hawaii is a …

Teabagistan is aflame today over the National Enquirer’s claim that Ted Cruz made sexytime with five women not married to him in Jesus’ name. They write: Presidential candidate Ted Cruz is trying to survive an explosive “dirt file” on the finger-wagging conservative senator! And the new issue of The National ENQUIRER — on newsstands now — reveals how the reports …

The Hill reports: Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump is using quotes from people who have endorsed rival Ted Cruz in a video attacking the Texas senator. The video, posted on Instagram, highlights quotes Cruz’s former rivals for the GOP nomination made before they dropped out and endorsed him. It starts with an interview with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who …

Via Mediaite: This morning, Ben Carson appeared on The View and the hosts there dug way, way into him about his support of Donald Trump. They called the presidential candidate a racist and took Carson to task for endorsing someone who has called him “pathological” and compared him to a child molester in the past. They held nothing back and …

NPR reports: When in Rome — or in this case, Buenos Aires. President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama (right) tango with dancers during the state dinner in Argentina on Wednesday. President Obama danced the famous Argentine tango with a lithe dancer in a shimmery gold dress during the official state dinner at the Centro Cultural Kirchner in Buenos Aires, …

News outlets nationwide have reported on the mess in Arizona’s Mariciopa Country, the state’s most populous, where primary voters waited for hours due to a 70% reduction in the number of polling places. The GOP official who made that call says she won’t resign. Via the Arizona Republic: Maricopa County Recorder Helen Purcell took responsibility for the hours-long lines at …

AL.com reports: Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley this afternoon apologized to the people of Alabama for explicit comments he made to Rebekah Mason, his top political adviser. But Bentley, who has been under siege since former Alabama Law Enforcement Secretary Spencer Collier accused him of having an affair, denied he had been involved in a physical relationship with her. Bentley said …

Actress Julie Louis-Dreyfus yesterday tweeted that she is “dumbstruck” that Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has begun using her Veep character’s amusingly contradictory campaign slogan in media appearances. Junkee reports: Over the past couple of days, Turnbull has been channeling his predecessor and whipping out a bit of a three-word slogan. He first broke it in on 7.30 with Leigh …

Both Bernie Sanders and Ted Cruz dominated the Utah caucuses last night, taking 79% and 69% of the votes respectively. Cruz takes all 40 of Utah’s delegates and Sanders picks up 18 on the Democratic side, leaving five for Hillary Clinton. The pledged Democratic delegate count stands at Clinton 1214, Sanders 901.

The Jewish Telegraphic Agency reports: In an emotional apology, the AIPAC leadership expressed regret to President Barack Obama for an attack on him from its stage by Donald Trump, and for the loud applause it earned. “While we may have policy differences, we deeply respect the office of the President of the United States and our President Barack Obama,” Lillian …

CTV News reports: Rob Ford, the former Toronto mayor whose brash political style and admission he smoked crack cocaine while in office made headlines around the world, has died. He was 46. Ford, who was first diagnosed with a rare form of cancer in September 2014, died in a Toronto hospital on Tuesday, his family has confirmed. He began his …

Democrats already have a decent chance of taking back the Senate majority, regardless of who the GOP nominee turns out to be. Today Politico reports that the GOP House majority may also be in jeopardy, should Trump prevail at the convention. They write: Donald Trump is on the verge of two things once thought to be impossible: winning the Republican …

President Obama has just landed in Havana for his historic visit to Cuba. Watch below. Via Yahoo News: The three-day trip, the first by a U.S. president to Cuba in 88 years, is the culmination of a diplomatic opening announced by Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro in December 2014, ending a Cold War-era estrangement that began when the Cuban …

This happened on Trump’s home turf in Palm Beach. Via Politico: House Speaker Paul Ryan met Thursday night at a pricey French restaurant here with some of the party’s biggest donors to assess a political landscape dominated by one vexing question: what to do about Donald Trump. The dinner was a highlight of a secretive two-day conclave, convened under heavy …

Whoa. The Detroit News has the exchange: Democrats on the U.S. House Oversight and Government Reform Committee attacked Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder Thursday as he testified over the Flint water contamination crisis, with one member calling on him to resign. “I’ve had about enough of your false contrition and your phony apologies,” Rep. Matt Cartwright of Pennsylvania told the governor. …