For the Record: 50 days of 'meh'
We're 50 days out from Election Day, kids -- and the race could not be tighter. RealClearPolitics had to break out a decimal point to express how close the Clinton-Trump head-to-head polling average is. Will this weekend's violence sway voter opinion one way or another? Will the 10-plus percent of third-party supporters stand by their candidates, or will they make a break for one of the front-runners? Will next Monday's debate create any distance between Clinton and Trump? Or will this be the first presidential election decided by a devastatingly well-timed Twitter zinger?
Individuals detained in NYC blast; investigations continue in New Jersey, Minnesota
The U.S. suffered a spate of violence Saturday, prompting questions about the motives of the attacks in three states. The recap:
- A pipe bomb exploded in a garbage can in Seaside Park, New Jersey, along the route of a U.S. Marine Corps charity race. No one was injured in the blast thanks to a race registration snafu, which delayed the start of the race until after the explosion.
- A knife-wielding man wearing a private security uniform stabbed eight people at a mall in St. Cloud, Minnesota before being shot and killed by an off-duty police officer. Following the attack, an ISIS-controlled news agency referred to the man as a "soldier of the Islamic State."
- An explosion in New York City's Chelsea neighborhood injured 29, one seriously; an undetonated pressure-cooker bomb was found four blocks away. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said there was no evidence of ties to international terrorist groups. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said "We have a lot more work to do to determine what type of motivation was behind this." Video surveillance captured an individual both at the site of the explosion and the location of the undetonated device. The FBI made a traffic stop of a vehicle of interest on Sunday, detaining up to five individuals, though none have been charged with any crime as of yet.
- Another undetonated device was found Sunday night in a trash can in Elizabeth, New Jersey. The device exploded as a robot tried to disarm it.
As for the campaigns, Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump and Chris Christie engaged in a protracted debate about whether the explosions could be called bombings and/or terrorist attacks. Jill Stein dropped an emoji in her condolence tweet, because millennials love emojis. And Gary Johnson said he was just glad no one was hurt, before later acknowledging that yes, a few dozen people were hurt. Nice presidenting, all of you.
Kasich on double-secret probation, may get expelled
A little less than 90% of Republicans are backing Trump, a number that annoys GOP Chair Reince Priebus to no end -- especially when it comes to the former Republican candidates who refuse to back Trump's candidacy. "(P)eople who agreed to support the nominee, that took part in our process, they used tools from the RNC," Priebus told John Dickerson on CBS' Face the Nation.
And Priebus even threatened to kick them out of Republicanism if they don't fall in line. "(I)f they’re thinking they’re going to run again someday, you know, I think that we’re going to evaluate the process of the nomination process, and I don’t think it’s going to be that easy for them." Them who? Kasich, the guy who's been hanging out with President Obama behind the gym? "Governor John Kasich. So if he wants to run again, it seems like he might want to, he might be out of luck as far as the RNC goes."
More from the campaign trail
- Medical report says Pence has allergies, a thing that could make his heart stop beating suddenly, and heartburn (Paste BN OnPolitics)
- Obama says sexism to blame for the lack of a woman president. Also, his 2008 victory in the Democratic primary (Paste BN OnPolitics)
- Walker to act as Kaine for Mike Pence's debate prep (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
- Nearly 1 in 5 cheeseheads still undecided (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
- SNL's Kate McKinnon wins Emmy, thanks Hillary (Paste BN Life)
- Trump Classic is back (Paste BN)
Kimmel only gave Bush 3 stars due to low energy
Please clap for Jeb Bush, who made a guest appearance during the intro to last night's 2016 Primetime Emmy Awards.