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Biden and Democrats Seize on Trumps Interview With Time Magazine – The New York Times
The Biden campaign is mounting a concerted push to attack former President Donald J. Trump over statements he made to Time magazine in a wide-ranging interview published Tuesday morning, particularly on abortion.
In the interview, Mr. Trump refused to commit to vetoing a national abortion ban and said he would allow states to monitor womens pregnancies and prosecute those who violated abortion restrictions.
This is reprehensible, President Biden wrote on X. Donald Trump doesnt trust women. I do.
Julie Chavez Rodriguez, Mr. Bidens campaign manager, said in a statement that Mr. Trump would sign a national abortion ban, allow women who have an abortion to be prosecuted and punished, allow the government to invade womens privacy to monitor their pregnancies and put I.V.F. and contraception in jeopardy nationwide.
Abortion has become a winning issue for Democrats, and Mr. Biden has argued that Mr. Trump and Republicans will continue to erode abortion rights. He and Vice President Kamala Harris have campaigned heavily on the issue in battleground states, and Democrats hope that state ballot initiatives to protect abortion rights will help their candidates for president, Congress and state offices. Their messaging has sought to pin state abortion bans directly on Mr. Trump, whose appointees to the Supreme Court helped overturn Roe v. Wade.
Gov. Gavin Newsom, Democrat of California, posted screenshots of the interview on X, writing that Mr. Trump had said he would let red states monitor womens pregnancies and prosecute those who violate abortion bans and had hinted at banning abortion pills.
Hell see what women think about that this November, said Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, also a Democrat.
The former president also told Time that he would deploy the U.S. military to detain and deport migrants, and did not dismiss the possibility of political violence should he lose the election.
Democrats highlighted some of those statements as well.
Donald Trumps repeated threats of political violence are as horrifying and dangerous as they are un-American, said Alex Floyd, a spokesman for the Democratic National Committee. Trump is hellbent on threatening our democracy, win or lose.
Hillary Clinton urged her followers on X to read about Mr. Trumps plans for a second term and take them seriously.
Mr. Trumps interview in which he faced detailed and probing questions about his policy positions reveals the pitfalls for candidates when they sit down with mainstream news organizations. Mr. Trump does so rarely. But Mr. Biden has been even more averse to being questioned by journalists, a traditional undertaking of those running for the White House.
The presidents two most recently released interviews have been on The Howard Stern Show and the comedy podcast SmartLess.
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Biden and Democrats Seize on Trumps Interview With Time Magazine - The New York Times
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Democrat Jennifer McCormick gets teacher union endorsement in race for Indiana governor Indiana Capital Chronicle – Indiana Capital Chronicle
Indianas largest teachers union gave its official support to Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jennifer McCormick on Wednesday, citing her common sense and bipartisanship approach to state politics and education policy.
Speaking on the south steps of the Statehouse Wednesday morning, Indiana State Teachers Association (ISTA) President Keith Gambill announced its political action committee, I-PACE, has endorsed McCormick, a former teacher and principal who served as Indianas final elected superintendent of public instruction from 2017 to 2021.
I cant teach a kid thats not there. Indiana lawmakers give final approval to absenteeism bill
Shes the only gubernatorial candidate on the Democratic primary ballot and has already effectively secured her place on the November ballot.
There are six candidates vying for the Republican nomination. The victor will face McCormick and Libertarian nominee Donald Rainwater who was chosen in a party convention in the general election.
Today, as we face continuous challenges that threaten the fabric of public education, we need a leader like Dr. McCormick, someone who understands these issues deeply not just from the perspective of policy but through the lens of personal experience as a teacher, and a principal and an administrator, Gambill said. I call upon all supporters of public education, all who believe in a brighter future for Indiana, to stand with us. Stand with a leader who has proven she can uplift our educational standards and advocate tirelessly for our needs.
Speaking to a small crowd at the announcement event, McCormick emphasized that Indiana must reinvest in its traditional public schools not private voucher programs in order to reverse lagging literacy, increase teacher recruitment and retention, and improve overall outcomes for Hoosier students.
As the governor, I will be committed to kids kids first, always. I will tell you, though, in order to make that promise come true, we must take care of our teachers, McCormick said. If we take care of our teachers and give them the support that they dont only need, but that they deserve, everybody wins. Our kids win. Our families win. Our communities win. The State of Indiana wins. We need to make sure that is the goal.
I-PACEs endorsement provides McCormicks campaign with financial support and other resources, Gambill said. The PAC currently has about $1.3 million cash on hand, according to state campaign finance filings. Gambill said the committee hasnt decided if it will support any other statewide candidates yet.
Lawmakers seek to require science of reading in all Indiana schools to improve literacy rates
A former Republican, McCormick fell out of favor with the Indiana GOP while serving as state superintendent.
The Republican-controlled legislature with approval from Gov. Eric Holcomb eliminated the elected position and replaced it with a Secretary of Education, who is appointed by the governor.
McCormick switched sides to become a Democrat shortly after. She announced her campaign for governor in May 2023 and formally filed to run in February.
Angie Hood, an educator in Warren Township in Indianapolis, said that in her 25 years of teaching, things have drastically changed and not for the better. She said she wants to see McCormick in office to better support teachers and the tools they need in their classrooms.
Theres been a lot of push for testing. Unfortunately, with the push for testing, we have seen a decline in students mental health as well as teachers mental health because it is a lot of stress on the young people, and they feel like theyre being tested too much. And they are not being encouraged to use the different sensory skills in order to learn, Hood said.
Jennifer understands that schools must meet the needs of individual students, she continued. She believes that all students can learn with appropriate support, starting with early childhood through post-secondary education. Her common sense approach is needed to move our community forward.
In her remarks, McCormick criticized existing statewide education policies, including changes to teacher licensure requirements and increased standardized testing for students.
She specifically took aim at a new law passed earlier this year that requires educators for Pre-K to Grade 6 to complete 80 hours of professional development on science of reading concepts and pass a written exam. Teachers wont be able to renew their license without doing so.
Stacy Kurdelak, a special education teacher at Rensselaer Central High School, said the new rule makes her and her colleagues feel disrespected.
Along with my 28 years of experience, I hold a masters degree, I have a professionalized Indiana teaching license in four areas, and I am consistently evaluated as highly effective by my building administrator. But, according to the state, it is no longer enough, said Kurdelak, who voiced support for McCormick on Wednesday.
Indiana schools get legislative green light to break up ILEARN testing throughout school year
I think it was a knee-jerk reaction to the literacy rate problem, McCormick added. I thought it was sloppy, at best. And I just think it was a knee-jerk reaction to appease that theyre doing something under the Republican Party.
McCormick noted, too, that existing literacy intervention programming for the states youngest students has underfunded for years. Dollars needed for local school districts to host summer school have also been cut short, she said.
She maintained that increased funding for those areas would be a more effective use of state resources for ensuring Hoosier kids are on track with reading. Looking at the root causes of literacy deficiencies will be expensive, though, she said.
Education makes up just over 50% of the states biennial budget. Lawmakers will convene and craft the next budget during the 2025 legislative session.
The Democratic hopeful also criticized a separate new law that will require IREAD standardized testing to begin in second grade and continue into third grade. Students who fail the test three times will be held back and have to repeat third grade.
McCormick said investments in childcare and providing universal pre-K education would be better approaches. If elected, those are the types of issues she promised her administration would focus on.
(Voters) are tired of extremism. Theyre tired of infighting amongst the party. They want a focus on everyday issues impacting our lives, like taking away our healthcare rights and freedoms, like not having access to affordable healthcare, like not having access to great paying jobs. Theyre worried about our public schools. Theyre worried about their kids education. Theyre worried about our environment, McCormick said. They want to see someone who can have those conversations in a civil, calm, commonsense, bipartisan way.
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Waggett wins Democratic nomination in 50th, setting up rematch with Rep. Cook – Observer-Reporter
A rematch of the Republican primary for the 50th state House District is now set for the fall.
Stephanie Waggett, who lost to state Rep. Bud Cook in the Republican primary last week, secured enough Democratic write-in votes to run against him again in November.
According to unofficial results from the April 23 primary, Waggett received 413 write-in votes from Democrats 338 of which came from Greene County voters giving her more than the 300 needed to get on the ballot in the general election. Cook received 228 write-ins, while registered Democrat Drew Ross Manko of North Bethlehem Township, who made the effort to run a write-in campaign, received 133 votes.
Cook, a four-term Republican incumbent from West Pike Run Township, easily defeated Waggett in the GOP primary, receiving 3,920 votes compared to her share of 2,367, according to unofficial results. Most surprising is that Cook had a sizable vote advantage in Greene County, despite Waggett living in Cumberland Township.
The district includes all of Greene County and parts of Washington County. While the district offers a voter registration advantage for Republicans, the general election will allow Democrats and independents to also have a say in who they want to represent them in the state legislature.
Meanwhile, in the South Hills of Pittsburgh, state Rep. Natalie Mihalek will have a Democratic challenger in the November election.
Peter Kohnke of Bethel Park easily surpassed the 300 write-in votes he needed from Democrats during the April 23 primary to get on the ballot to run for the 40th state House District seat.
The district, which Mihalek has represented since winning her first election in 2018, includes Peters Township in Washington County and Bethel Park and the southern area of Upper St. Clair in Allegheny County.
Democrats urged their voters to write-in Kohnkes name since the party did not have anyone receive enough nominating signatures to get on the primary ballot. According to unofficial vote totals, Kohnke received 534 votes in Allegheny County and 326 write-ins from Washington County voters, giving him nearly three times the number needed to qualify for the Nov. 5 general election.
Mihalek, R-Peters, received 5,757 votes from Republicans 3,755 in Allegheny County and 2,002 in Washington County in the uncontested primary.
The results must be certified by the county elections boards no later than May 13 and sent to the state Department of State.
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Waggett wins Democratic nomination in 50th, setting up rematch with Rep. Cook - Observer-Reporter
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After difficult year, NC Democrat opens up about his mental health, fight within party – Raleigh News & Observer
After difficult year, NC Democrat opens up about his mental health, fight within party Raleigh News & Observer
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After difficult year, NC Democrat opens up about his mental health, fight within party - Raleigh News & Observer
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