Super Tuesday:  Where Do We Go from Here!

Dear Commons Community,

The long-awaited Super Tuesday primaries came and went yesterday.  This morning the media will analyze and re-analyze down to fine predictions what the results mean as the 2016 presidential nomination season continues.

Hillary Clinton did well on the Democrat side winning seven of the eleven state primaries over Bernie Sanders.  Right now, Clinton supporters and the Democratic Party establishment are happy about the way the primaries are playing out in favor of Hillary.  Bernie Sanders has lots of appeal but not enough to overcome Hillary’s lead.

For the Republicans, Donald Trump continues to lead but not necessarily surge having won seven states to Cruz’s three and Rubio’s one.  Kasich and Carson did not win any state primaries yesterday.  The results were greeted with enthusiasm by Trump and Cruz supporters but not the Republican Party establishment which would rather support a Rubio-type candidate.  The Republican Party will continue to chug toward its convention with Trump having the most votes of any candidate but not necessarily a majority of votes.  Trump has fervent supporters who want an anti-insider, anti-establishment candidate.  It is not clear that the Republican Party is ready to cede the nomination to them.

Thomas B. Edsall, writing in the New York Times, had a biting comment about Trump’s candidacy”

“The tragedy of the 2016 campaign is that Trump has mobilized a constituency with legitimate grievances on a fool’s errand.

If he is shoved out of the field somehow, his supporters will remain bitter and enraged, convinced that a self-serving and malign elite defeated their leader.

If he prevails, a constituency that could force politicians to confront the problems of the working and middle class will waste its energies on a candidate incompetent to improve the lives of the credulous men and women lining up to support him.”

Tony

 

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