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| Ted Cruz creeps up on Donald Trump after Super Saturday victories – live updates | Ted Cruz creeps up on Donald Trump after Super Saturday victories – live updates |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| 3.57pm GMT | |
| 15:57 | |
| Alan Yuhas | |
| Dickerson presses Clinton on a genuine policy question: Libya, and her hawkish role in pushing President Obama toward military intervention there in 2011. | |
| She says it was ultimately Obama’s decision to join air strikes against dictator Muammar Ghadafi, and asks Dickerson to “remember, as we were, the kinds of threats and actions that we were taking.” | |
| “Ghadafi hollowed out their country, left them without a functioning military, a functioning government,” she adds. | |
| She says she feared “an absence of action by Nato, by Arab League nations” and the US. That lack of action “would have probably turned Libya into Syria, which I think would’ve been an even more dangerous situation,” she says. | |
| But Clinton admits that Libya, riven by a chaotic civil war of its own, is “not good”. But she compares a few thousand killed in Libya in 2015 to “probably 150,000” in Syria – insisting that intervention was the lesser of two evils at the time. | |
| Clinton has a relatively hawkish foreign policy position compared to Bernie Sanders, who espouses a more reluctant philosophy to intervention. | |
| 3.46pm GMT | |
| 15:46 | |
| Alan Yuhas | |
| Hillary Clinton appears next on the CBS show, where she tells the host that she’s unfazed by the relatively low turnout of the Democratic primary race compared to that of the Republican contest. | |
| “I’ve gotten more votes than anybody running on either side,” she says. “I’ve gotten more votes than Donald Trump, though I’m sure he doesn’t want to hear that.” | |
| The host now asks about Clinton’s notorious private email server, and in particular how a former State Department staffer has been called to testify, raising fears that someone might be indicted in the investigation into the server’s security. | |
| Clinton says “there is no basis for that” fear of indictment. “It’s a security review. I’m delighted that he has agreed to cooperate as everyone else has.” | |
| CBS: You see this as good news? | |
| Clinton: “Yeah, I do, absolutely. I see this as getting closer and closer to wrapping this up.” | |
| 3.46pm GMT | |
| 15:46 | |
| More of the same from Mitt Romney, writes Ed Helmore, who was watching Fox News Sunday. Except he did, when asked if he would support Trump if he became the nominee, say this: | |
| “I plan to support Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio or John Kasich. If they don’t become the nominee then I pland to go to the voting booth and find someone whose running as a conservative or just write the name of someone I believe should be president of the United States and who I could be proud of.” | |
| Apparently, though, that name would not be “Mitt Romney”. No. Not ever. | |
| 3.41pm GMT | |
| 15:41 | |
| Trump discusses torture and 'the rules', again | |
| It turns out Trump spoke to CBS’s Face the Nation – but taped it last night in Florida. Speaking to host John Dickerson, the frontrunner went back to the well on Isis, torture and the constraints or not of international law. Thanks to Politico for the excerpt, in which Trump said: | |
| We cannot beat Isis. We should beat Isis very quickly. General Patton would have had Isis down in about three days. General Douglas McArthur. We are playing by a different set of rules… | |
| The interview continued on familiar lines: “[T]he Isis people chop off the heads, and they then go back to their homes and they talk. And they hear we’re talking about waterboarding like it’s the worst thing in the world, and they’ve just drowned 100 people and chopped off 50 heads. They must think we are a little bit on the weak side. ... [W]e are playing by rules, but they have no rules.” | |
| Dickerson then asked Trump if “playing by rules” was what “separates us from the savages?” | |
| Trump: “No, I don’t think so … We have to beat the savages.” | |
| Dickerson: “By being savages?” | |
| Trump: “No, well. We have to play the game the way they’re playing the game. You’re not going to win if we’re soft and they have no rules. | |
| Now, I want to stay within the laws. I want to do all of that, but I think we have to increase the laws because the laws are not working. | |
| “The laws” he wants to increase would be “the Geneva conventions”. | |
| This week, a group of leading Republican figures on national security wrote an open letter saying they would not follow orders from a President Trump which contravened such international law, by, say, ordering waterboarding, or the targeting of family members of terrorist suspects. | |
| Trump subsequently rowed back a bit, only to row back the other way at his rallies this weekend: | |
| Here's the full bit of Trump talking about having the "laws broadened" on waterboarding: pic.twitter.com/3JtF2jlAYq | |
| Updated | |
| at 3.41pm GMT | |
| 3.41pm GMT | |
| 15:41 | |
| Trump: I don't want KKK votes | |
| Alan Yuhas | |
| Trump also disavows former KKK leader David Duke, and given his strongest denunciation of white supremacist groups on the CBS program. | |
| He says he doesn’t want votes from white supremacists, even though he can’t help whatever Duke tells his sympathizers. | |
| Trump: “I don’t like any groups of hate. Hate groups are not for me.” | |
| You can catch up on Trump’s dithering from last week on Duke and the Ku Klux Klan. | |
| Updated | |
| at 3.44pm GMT | |
| 3.31pm GMT | |
| 15:31 | |
| Alan Yuhas | |
| Glenn Beck is now on ABC comparing Donald Trump to Adolf Hitler, a “funny kind of character” who says dangerous things. Beck supports Ted Cruz. | |
| Then he says “the GOP establishment” is maybe even more nefarious than Trump because of their “games” toward a brokered convention. He says that could “quite honestly lead to civil war in the country”. He says you cannot continue to disenfranchise people. | |
| “I won’t vote for Donald Trump ever but I will stand for his right because the people have spoken.” | |
| Then Republican party chair Reince Priebus materializes. He says “there are no plans to undo the rules or change the nominatino process midstream. So we’re gonna be 100% for the nominee, George.” | |
| He thinks a brokered convention is highly unlikely. “I just don’t see that happening. It doesn’t mean it’s impossible, it just means you don’t know what next week’s gonna bring, or the week after.” | |
| If in a month, he says, “it’s still some sort of tied scenario, then I think people start talking about it more clearly.” | |
| Priebus insists it’ll all get sorted in due time. “There’s over 1,650 delegates to go, maybe I’m off a little bit … It’s a long way to go, George, so I think this is kind of premature.” | |
| ABC: So you’re OK with having two past presidential candidates repudiate the frontrunner? | |
| Priebus: Yeah, sure, that’s their right. | |
| “Saying you’re not going to support someone is different, and it’s their right to say those things and do those things, then then taking it a step further and saying the party is going to somehow do something at a convention to create a scenario that is unfair.” | |
| Updated | |
| at 3.34pm GMT | |
| 3.19pm GMT | 3.19pm GMT |
| 15:19 | 15:19 |
| Alan Yuhas | Alan Yuhas |
| Stephanopoulos presses Kasich on how he imagines he could win the nomination, and Kasich rebuts that everyone except for Donald Trump faces a steep path to victory. He says he would have to win 68% of the vote, Marco Rubio would have to win 64%… | Stephanopoulos presses Kasich on how he imagines he could win the nomination, and Kasich rebuts that everyone except for Donald Trump faces a steep path to victory. He says he would have to win 68% of the vote, Marco Rubio would have to win 64%… |
| “Ted would have to win like 60. Donald Trump is gonna fall short. If Trump wins all the rest of these things he’ll go to the convention” with an outright win, Kasich says. | “Ted would have to win like 60. Donald Trump is gonna fall short. If Trump wins all the rest of these things he’ll go to the convention” with an outright win, Kasich says. |
| But otherwise, “we’re in a multi-ballot convention. What’s the big deal about that? Other than it’ll be exciting.” | But otherwise, “we’re in a multi-ballot convention. What’s the big deal about that? Other than it’ll be exciting.” |
| Kasich insists he’s no “establishment” man. “I agree with Ted Cruz from the standpoint we can’t let a bunch of Washington insiders pick the nominee.” He says those insiders don’t like him. | Kasich insists he’s no “establishment” man. “I agree with Ted Cruz from the standpoint we can’t let a bunch of Washington insiders pick the nominee.” He says those insiders don’t like him. |
| The ABC host says it looks an awful lot like the Republican party is cracking up. Kasich doesn’t quite concede the point. “I think ultimately at the end of the day, the Republican party is a reflection of the nominee.” | The ABC host says it looks an awful lot like the Republican party is cracking up. Kasich doesn’t quite concede the point. “I think ultimately at the end of the day, the Republican party is a reflection of the nominee.” |
| 3.15pm GMT | 3.15pm GMT |
| 15:15 | 15:15 |
| Alan Yuhas | Alan Yuhas |
| John Kasich appears next on the ABC program, telling Stephanopoulos that he’s sticking in the race in part because he’s picking up delegates in places he never thought he would. | John Kasich appears next on the ABC program, telling Stephanopoulos that he’s sticking in the race in part because he’s picking up delegates in places he never thought he would. |
| “It’s like March Madness,” he says, referring to the annual college basketball tournament. “We’ve now moved to the midwest, we’ve now moved to more my territory, I’m going to win in Ohio.” | “It’s like March Madness,” he says, referring to the annual college basketball tournament. “We’ve now moved to the midwest, we’ve now moved to more my territory, I’m going to win in Ohio.” |
| In contrast, he admits there are “some places in the south where we just didn’t compete there.” | In contrast, he admits there are “some places in the south where we just didn’t compete there.” |
| Kasich does his stump speech routine of describing himself as the adult in the Republican party. Stephanopoulos points out that its the guys who do throw mud who’re winning hundreds of delegates, in contrast to Kasich’s few dozen. | Kasich does his stump speech routine of describing himself as the adult in the Republican party. Stephanopoulos points out that its the guys who do throw mud who’re winning hundreds of delegates, in contrast to Kasich’s few dozen. |
| “You guys didn’t give me any coverage! For six months I wallowed at 1% in the polls,” Kasich says, blaming the media. “You know why? Cause I didn’t do any name-calling.” | “You guys didn’t give me any coverage! For six months I wallowed at 1% in the polls,” Kasich says, blaming the media. “You know why? Cause I didn’t do any name-calling.” |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 3.20pm GMT | at 3.20pm GMT |
| 3.11pm GMT | 3.11pm GMT |
| 15:11 | 15:11 |
| Alan Yuhas | Alan Yuhas |
| Sanders does a bit of trade-deal bashing, saying “these disastrous trade policies, Nafta” and plans like the TPP all contribute to “a race to the bottom where many of the new jobs that are being created pay significantly less than those jobs.” | Sanders does a bit of trade-deal bashing, saying “these disastrous trade policies, Nafta” and plans like the TPP all contribute to “a race to the bottom where many of the new jobs that are being created pay significantly less than those jobs.” |
| “That is the result of a disastrous trade policy. I’m not going to say it’s the only problem Detroit or Flint has but i am going to say it’s a very significant part of the decline.” | “That is the result of a disastrous trade policy. I’m not going to say it’s the only problem Detroit or Flint has but i am going to say it’s a very significant part of the decline.” |
| Stephanopoulos goes back to the election odds, which are stacked against Sanders at the moment. You’re right, your numbers are correct,” Sanders concedes about Clinton’s large lead. | Stephanopoulos goes back to the election odds, which are stacked against Sanders at the moment. You’re right, your numbers are correct,” Sanders concedes about Clinton’s large lead. |
| “But you know we’re still fairly early in the process,” he says. “We think we have an excellent chance to do well out in the west coast and California, the state of Washington, Oregon … excellent chance to do well in large states such as New York.” | “But you know we’re still fairly early in the process,” he says. “We think we have an excellent chance to do well out in the west coast and California, the state of Washington, Oregon … excellent chance to do well in large states such as New York.” |
| “I think that time is on our side because the more people that get to hear our message, and that message is we need to reform a corrupt campaign finance system,” Sanders trails off onto his key points: inequality, corruption, etc. | “I think that time is on our side because the more people that get to hear our message, and that message is we need to reform a corrupt campaign finance system,” Sanders trails off onto his key points: inequality, corruption, etc. |
| “One of the key differences between secretary Clinton and I, she has a super Pac,” he says, versus the individual contributions for his own campaign. “People appreciate that. So I think we have momentum on our side, the more people hear our message the better we are going to do.” | “One of the key differences between secretary Clinton and I, she has a super Pac,” he says, versus the individual contributions for his own campaign. “People appreciate that. So I think we have momentum on our side, the more people hear our message the better we are going to do.” |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 3.21pm GMT | at 3.21pm GMT |
| 3.07pm GMT | 3.07pm GMT |
| 15:07 | 15:07 |
| Alan Yuhas | Alan Yuhas |
| Bernie Sanders is back on, this time on ABC’s This Week with George Stephanopoulos. The host asks about Sanders’ victories on Saturday – and his defeat in the race to amass delegates. | Bernie Sanders is back on, this time on ABC’s This Week with George Stephanopoulos. The host asks about Sanders’ victories on Saturday – and his defeat in the race to amass delegates. |
| “I think we did great overall, yesterday, we won as you mentioned by over 2-1 in Kansas, and very well in Nebraska,” Sanders says. | “I think we did great overall, yesterday, we won as you mentioned by over 2-1 in Kansas, and very well in Nebraska,” Sanders says. |
| He adds that what “impresses me very much” is voter turnout, saying Kansas “had the largest voter turnout in their caucus history”. | He adds that what “impresses me very much” is voter turnout, saying Kansas “had the largest voter turnout in their caucus history”. |
| “In every primary and caucus that we have won we have won by double-digit numbers,” he adds. “I still think we have that path toward victory.” | “In every primary and caucus that we have won we have won by double-digit numbers,” he adds. “I still think we have that path toward victory.” |
| Stephanopoulos notes though that Clinton has trounced him in other states, especially with black voters. “It’s not just racial, it’s more generational,” Sanders replies. “We are doing better and better with yougn African Aemricans, young Latinos, young whites.” | Stephanopoulos notes though that Clinton has trounced him in other states, especially with black voters. “It’s not just racial, it’s more generational,” Sanders replies. “We are doing better and better with yougn African Aemricans, young Latinos, young whites.” |
| “With the old people we’re not doing as well, and that’s something we’re going to have to work on.” | “With the old people we’re not doing as well, and that’s something we’re going to have to work on.” |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 3.09pm GMT | at 3.09pm GMT |
| 2.40pm GMT | 2.40pm GMT |
| 14:40 | 14:40 |
| Michigan poll gives Trump and Clinton leads in battleground state | Michigan poll gives Trump and Clinton leads in battleground state |
| Sanders also rejects accusations of “fantasy” policies, from the Clinton campaign, particularly on healthcare and its universal provision. Of course he does: “This is not fantasy, this is reality, I will stand up for the middle class.” And it’s on to the Michigan debate tonight, where such things will no doubt come up again. | Sanders also rejects accusations of “fantasy” policies, from the Clinton campaign, particularly on healthcare and its universal provision. Of course he does: “This is not fantasy, this is reality, I will stand up for the middle class.” And it’s on to the Michigan debate tonight, where such things will no doubt come up again. |
| Speaking of Michigan, a new CBS poll today puts Clinton and Trump ahead in that battleground state, which votes on Tuesday. | Speaking of Michigan, a new CBS poll today puts Clinton and Trump ahead in that battleground state, which votes on Tuesday. |
| Trump leads Cruz 39% to 24%, with Rubio on 16% and Kasich 15%. Ben Carson takes 5%, presumably from respondents who responded before he withdrew from the race this week. | Trump leads Cruz 39% to 24%, with Rubio on 16% and Kasich 15%. Ben Carson takes 5%, presumably from respondents who responded before he withdrew from the race this week. |
| On the Democratic side it’s Clinton 55%, Sanders 44%. | On the Democratic side it’s Clinton 55%, Sanders 44%. |
| I shall pretend the missing 1% still hold out hope for Martin O’Malley. | I shall pretend the missing 1% still hold out hope for Martin O’Malley. |
| 2.35pm GMT | 2.35pm GMT |
| 14:35 | 14:35 |
| Sanders says there is not an “enthusiasm gap” between the Democratic race and the Republicans, who have been experiencing high turnout. He has high turnout, he says, for his rallies, and that’s true. | Sanders says there is not an “enthusiasm gap” between the Democratic race and the Republicans, who have been experiencing high turnout. He has high turnout, he says, for his rallies, and that’s true. |
| He’s asked about Clinton’s emails. Unlike Mitt Romney he doesn’t want to play ball, at all. So he doesn’t. | He’s asked about Clinton’s emails. Unlike Mitt Romney he doesn’t want to play ball, at all. So he doesn’t. |
| 2.33pm GMT | 2.33pm GMT |
| 14:33 | 14:33 |
| Bernie Sanders speaks to CNN | Bernie Sanders speaks to CNN |
| We’re over to the Democratic race, in which Sanders took Kansas and Nebraska in caucuses last night and Hillary Clinton took Louisiana in a primary, keeping the whole thing bubbling nicely. | We’re over to the Democratic race, in which Sanders took Kansas and Nebraska in caucuses last night and Hillary Clinton took Louisiana in a primary, keeping the whole thing bubbling nicely. |
| Clinton took more delegates last night, Sanders the most states. This happens a lot in American politics: Ted Cruz got more delegates than Donald Trump yesterday though they won two states each. So. | Clinton took more delegates last night, Sanders the most states. This happens a lot in American politics: Ted Cruz got more delegates than Donald Trump yesterday though they won two states each. So. |
| Sanders is speaking live to CNN, anyway, and he’s asked about his problem in attracting African American voters, who seem to be going for Clinton. He deflects the question and says it is also a “generational divide”, and he is getting the young across all barriers of race. | Sanders is speaking live to CNN, anyway, and he’s asked about his problem in attracting African American voters, who seem to be going for Clinton. He deflects the question and says it is also a “generational divide”, and he is getting the young across all barriers of race. |
| “We have now won seven primaries and caucuses across the country all with double-digit leads,” he says, predicting good things in Maine today “if the turnout is high”. He also says he’s the strongest candidate to beat Trump. | “We have now won seven primaries and caucuses across the country all with double-digit leads,” he says, predicting good things in Maine today “if the turnout is high”. He also says he’s the strongest candidate to beat Trump. |
| Will he fight to the convention if Clinton reaches the delegate target before that? | Will he fight to the convention if Clinton reaches the delegate target before that? |
| “We have made enormous progress over the last 10 months,” he says, and lists his successes. “We are going to stay in the campaign until the convention in July.” | “We have made enormous progress over the last 10 months,” he says, and lists his successes. “We are going to stay in the campaign until the convention in July.” |
| Dana Bash asks again. | Dana Bash asks again. |
| “Dana, you are speculating, I don’t think that’s going to happen.” | “Dana, you are speculating, I don’t think that’s going to happen.” |
| He says he can win big states, New York for example, and on the west coast. “We think we have momentum and we think we’re going to do just fine,” he says. | He says he can win big states, New York for example, and on the west coast. “We think we have momentum and we think we’re going to do just fine,” he says. |
| He also says he won’t speculate, and Bash points out he just did so about New York and the west coast. | He also says he won’t speculate, and Bash points out he just did so about New York and the west coast. |
| So on fighting to the convention if Clinton hits the delegate candidate, that’s not a yes, not a no. | So on fighting to the convention if Clinton hits the delegate candidate, that’s not a yes, not a no. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 2.47pm GMT | at 2.47pm GMT |
| 2.23pm GMT | 2.23pm GMT |
| 14:23 | 14:23 |
| Romney also defends himself against having sought Trump’s endorsement in 2012, because he says Trump’s outbursts in this campaign – he lists them again – are much worse than when he was merely questioning Barack Obama’s birth in 2012. He also said this in his speech on Thursday. | Romney also defends himself against having sought Trump’s endorsement in 2012, because he says Trump’s outbursts in this campaign – he lists them again – are much worse than when he was merely questioning Barack Obama’s birth in 2012. He also said this in his speech on Thursday. |
| CNN not digging up much that’s new, so far. | CNN not digging up much that’s new, so far. |