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      Washington State and ‘Uncommitted’ Will Test Biden Again Over Gaza War

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      Washington State’s primary voters will offer the next glimpse of how many Democratic voters oppose President Biden’s policy toward Israel’s war in Gaza, though it may be days before a full picture of the results is clear.The state’s primary on Tuesday comes after noteworthy numbers of Democratic voters in other states chose “uncommitted” in apparent protest of Mr. Biden’s position, including 13 percent in Michigan, 19 percent in Minnesota and 29 percent in the little-watched Democratic caucuses in Hawaii, where the antiwar advocacy groups that organized elsewhere did not have a presence.Washington’s brand of anti-establishment Pacific Northwest liberalism has the potential to be a good fit for the “uncommitted” vote that has won increasing slices of the Democratic electorate in recent weeks.And it is unlikely Mr. Biden’s forceful performance in his State of the Union address last week would have a strong impact on the results in Washington, which votes entirely by mail. More than 512,000 Democratic primary ballots had already been received by Thursday, when he delivered the speech, according to data from the Washington secretary of state’s office.Stuart Holmes, the director of elections for the secretary of state, said to expect about half the state’s ballots to be counted and reported when polls close on Tuesday night. The rest of the ballots will be tabulated and reported once a day until all votes are counted, with the vast majority of the counting expected to be complete by the end of this week, Mr. Holmes said.Shasti Conrad, the chairwoman of the Washington State Democrats, said the party would support Mr. Biden.“We know President Biden and Vice President Harris are working tirelessly toward an end to the violence and a just, lasting peace in the Middle East,” Ms. Conrad said. “Voters in Washington understand the tremendous progress Democrats have made.”“Uncommitted” backers have offered a low bar for success in each of the preceding states where they have been active.Larry Cohen, the chairman of Our Revolution, the political organization begun by supporters of Senator Bernie Sanders that is backing “uncommitted,” put the goal for success in Washington State at 10 percent — far less than previous states but more than “uncommitted” received in 2020, when 6,450 people, about 0.4 percent of Democratic primary voters, chose “uncommitted.”The state canceled its presidential primaries in 2012, the last time an incumbent Democratic president was seeking re-election. The parties held nominating caucuses instead. More

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      Trump domina el Partido Republicano, y eso afecta a todos los estadounidenses

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      Con las victorias de Donald Trump el martes, está cerca de conseguir los 1215 delegados necesarios para ganar la nominación presidencial del Partido Republicano. Lo que queda es una formalidad. El partido se ha convertido en un instrumento para las ambiciones de Trump y, con la salida de Nikki Haley, es casi seguro que será su abanderado por tercera vez.Es una tragedia para el Partido Republicano y para el país al que pretende servir.En una democracia sana, los partidos políticos son organizaciones consagradas a elegir políticos que comparten un conjunto de valores y aspiraciones legislativas. Funcionan como parte de la maquinaria de la política, trabajan con los funcionarios electos y las autoridades para que se celebren las elecciones. Sus integrantes externan sus diferencias al interior del partido para reforzar y afinar sus posturas. En la democracia bipartidista estadounidense, republicanos y demócratas se han alternado periódicamente la Casa Blanca y han compartido el poder en el Congreso, un sistema que se ha mantenido estable por más de un siglo.El Partido Republicano está renunciando a todas esas responsabilidades y, en su lugar, se ha convertido en una organización cuyo objetivo es la elección de una persona a expensas de cualquier otra cosa, incluida la integridad, los principios, la política y el patriotismo. Como individuo, Trump ha demostrado un desdén por la Constitución y el Estado de derecho que hace que no sea apto para ocupar la presidencia. Pero cuando todo un partido político, en particular uno de los dos principales partidos de un país tan poderoso como Estados Unidos, se convierte en una herramienta de esa persona y de sus ideas más peligrosas, el daño afecta a todos.La capacidad de Trump para consolidar el control del Partido Republicano y derrotar con rapidez a sus contrincantes para la nominación se debe en parte al fervor de una base de partidarios que le han dado victorias sustanciales en casi todas las primarias celebradas hasta ahora. Sin embargo, su ventaja más importante tal vez sea que quedan pocos líderes en el Partido Republicano que parezcan dispuestos a defender una visión alternativa del futuro del partido. Quienes siguen oponiéndose a Trump de manera abierta son, en su mayoría, aquellos que han dejado sus cargos. Algunas de esas personas han dicho que temían hablar porque se enfrentaban a amenazas de violencia y represalias.En unas primarias presidenciales tradicionales, la victoria indica un mandato democrático: el el ganador disfruta de la legitimidad popular, conferida por los electores del partido, pero también admite que los rivales derrotados y sus opiniones encontradas tengan espacio en el partido. Trump ya no lo tiene, pues ha utilizado las primarias como una herramienta para purgar la disidencia del partido. Los aspirantes republicanos que salieron de la contienda han tenido que demostrar su lealtad a él o arriesgarse a ser marginados. Su última rival republicana, Haley, es una dirigente con una trayectoria conservadora de décadas y quien formó parte del gabinete de Trump en su primer mandato. Ahora la ha aislado. “Esencialmente es una demócrata”, dijo el expresidente el día antes de su derrota en Carolina del Sur. “Creo que probablemente debería cambiar de partido”.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Fact-Checking Donald Trump’s Super Tuesday Speech

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      After racking up a series of wins that cleared the field, former President Donald J. Trump moved to a general election message. Here’s a fact check.Former President Donald J. Trump moved another step closer to becoming the 2024 Republican nominee for president Tuesday, sweeping up delegates and prompting his last remaining rival, Nikki Haley, to suspend her campaign. The results all but guarantee a November rematch against President Biden.But in his 20-minute victory remarks, which offered a grim view of the United States under his successor, Mr. Trump resorted to a string of false and misleading claims — on immigration, economics, energy and more — some of which were variations on familiar assertions.Here’s a fact check.WHAT WAS SAID“They flew 325,000 migrants — flew ’em in, over the borders, into our country. So that really tells you where they’re coming from, they want open borders.”This is misleading. Mr. Trump appeared to be referring to reports about documents obtained by a group that pushes for restricting immigration. The group reported that the documents showed some 320,000 migrants were flown into the United States in 2023 by receiving authorization by using a mobile app started by Customs and Border Protection.But this is not a secretive effort, contrary to Mr. Trump’s characterization, and the migrants came through programs that authorize their arrival and require them to arrange for their travel on commercial flights.The app in question, CBP One, was introduced last year to require migrants to secure an appointment at a port of entry in order to submit an asylum application. However, the app is also used to support the processing of migrants seeking to enter the United States through other programs, said Michelle Mittelstadt, a spokeswoman for the nonpartisan Migration Policy Institute.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Supermartes: quién ganó, quién perdió y qué está por definirse

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      Donald Trump y Joe Biden avanzan hacia una revancha y se espera que Nikki Haley retire su candidatura. Pero los aspirantes presidenciales no eran los únicos en la contienda.Donald Trump y el presidente Joe Biden salieron victoriosos del Supermartes, el día más importante de la temporada de primarias, y solo la estrecha victoria de Nikki Haley en Vermont la ayudó a evitar quedar fuera en las 15 contiendas republicanas. Se esperaba que pusiera fin a su campaña el miércoles.Pero los candidatos presidenciales que han ido avanzando hacia una revancha no fueron los únicos en la votación. He aquí algunas de las otras contiendas importantes que se decidieron el martes.CaliforniaEl representante Adam Schiff, congresista demócrata desde hace mucho tiempo, y Steve Garvey, un novato republicano, pasaron a las elecciones generales en la contienda por el Senado, asegurándose dos pases de salida de la “jungla” de las primarias para competir por el escaño que quedó libre tras la muerte el año pasado de la senadora Dianne Feinstein. Con un electorado dominado por los liberales, Schiff tendrá una ventaja significativa en noviembre.Tres escaños de la Cámara de Representantes de tendencia demócrata quedaron vacantes porque sus titulares se habían presentado para el escaño vacante del Senado: el Distrito 12, representado por Barbara Lee; el Distrito 30, representado por Schiff; y el Distrito 47, representado por Katie Porter. Esas contiendas están aún por decidirse.El que fuera el escaño del expresidente de la Cámara de Representantes Kevin McCarthy en el Distrito 20 también quedó vacante porque renunció a la Cámara. El representante David Valadao, uno de los 10 republicanos de la Cámara que votaron a favor de la destitución de Trump en 2021, también se enfrenta a serios retos en las primarias del Distrito 22. Ambas primarias están aún por definirse.Carolina del NorteWe are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      With Haley Expected to Drop Out, What Will Her Voters Do in November?

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      Many Americans are dreading a Trump-Biden rematch, but no one feels the anguish quite like a Nikki Haley voter.“She would make a great president, and the alternatives are not appealing,” said Patti Gramling, 72, before voting in the South Carolina Republican primary in February in an upscale suburb of Charleston, S.C. “Biden is too old. And I think Donald Trump is horrible.”With Ms. Haley expected to end her 2024 campaign, a crucial new equation is emerging in the electoral math: Where will her voters — and voters like them in key battlegrounds across the country — go in a general election contest between Mr. Trump and President Biden?“The million-dollar question is, will they vote, will they sit it out — or will they vote for Joe Biden?” former Gov. Jim Hodges, a South Carolina Democrat, said of Ms. Haley’s centrist supporters in the state. “A moderate Republican voter in Charleston is not all that different than a moderate Republican voter in the Milwaukee suburbs.”How Republicans Voted on Super TuesdaySee how Republicans in different states voted in the Super Tuesday presidential primary between Donald Trump and Nikki Haley.In recent interviews with nearly 40 Haley supporters across South Carolina’s Lowcountry, primarily conducted in historically more moderate enclaves of the state, many fell into what pollsters call the “double haters” camp — voters who don’t like either expected nominee. But some of them gave a sense of what her voters could do in November. More

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      Inflation Fears Stalk Presidential Politics and the Markets

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      Lawmakers on Capitol Hill are set to grill Jay Powell, the Fed chair, about interest rates and the economy, topics that are top of mind for voters and investors alike.Jay Powell, the Fed chair, will begin two days of testimony on Capitol Hill with inflation a hot topic for voters and markets.Richard Drew/Associated PressInflationary pressure and presidential politics President Biden and Donald Trump dominated Super Tuesday, setting the stage for a rematch of the 2020 election. One topic that’s high on the agenda for voters: Inflation.That means all eyes will be on Jay Powell, as the Fed chair makes a two-day appearance on Capitol Hill this week, for any sign of what’s next on rate cuts.Inflation is kryptonite for any politician, and especially for Biden. Trump again pounded the president on high prices, an issue that’s lifting the Republican in polls even as a range of indicators show that the economy is performing strongly.(The White House is putting the blame on corporations that “try to rip off Americans.” Watch for that theme at Thursday’s State of the Union address.)Powell will appear before the House on Wednesday and before the Senate on Thursday. Data published in recent weeks shows that jobs are plentiful, wages are rising and consumers are still spending. Analysts have upgraded their economic forecasts, raising hopes that a soft landing is likely.But market pros see warning signs. Concerns remain that inflation will stick above the Fed’s 2 percent target, forcing the central bank to put the brakes on interest rate cuts that traders expect to begin in June. The futures market on Wednesday is forecasting three to four cuts this year — down from nearly seven just weeks ago — and the more cautious sentiment has helped drag the S&P 500 lower this week.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Josh Stein Wins Democratic Primary for North Carolina Governor

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      Josh Stein, the North Carolina attorney general, handily won the state’s Democratic primary for governor on Tuesday, according to The Associated Press, setting the stage for a matchup with a fiery Republican rival in a race that will be tightly contested and closely watched.The race will probably be the most expensive in the country this year outside of the presidential election, as Democrats try to retain a governor’s office that they have held for all but four of the last 31 years, a rare Southern stronghold for the party.Mr. Stein, 57, who was endorsed by Gov. Roy Cooper, a term-limited Democrat, easily defeated his four primary opponents, including Michael Morgan, a former North Carolina Supreme Court justice.Now Mr. Stein, who has presented himself as a stable and experienced leader, will turn his attention to his opponent, Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson. The attorney general has cast Mr. Robinson as an extreme figure distracted by culture war issues.Mr. Stein has highlighted a number of statements that Mr. Robinson has come under heavy criticism for making in recent years, including that Christians are “called to be led by men,” not women, and that “there’s no reason anybody anywhere in America should be telling any child about transgenderism, homosexuality, any of that filth.”“Some politicians spark division, ignite hate and fan the flames of bigotry,” Mr. Stein said in a campaign ad that showed clips of Mr. Robinson.Mr. Robinson has dismissed the criticism while doubling down on anti-L.G.B.T.Q. remarks and painting Mr. Stein as an extreme liberal.Political science professors in North Carolina say that Mr. Stein will have an easy time portraying Mr. Robinson as a Trump-aligned Republican who would further roll back abortion rights. A big question is which candidate will benefit more from the huge influx of voters the state has seen over the last few years; many have settled in the suburbs and exurbs of Charlotte and Raleigh. President Biden won the counties that contain those cities in 2020 but lost many of the surrounding areas to Donald J. Trump.A native of Chapel Hill who has degrees from Dartmouth and Harvard, Mr. Stein became the first Jewish person elected to statewide office in North Carolina in 2016 when he defeated Buck Newton, a Republican, to become attorney general. He previously served as a state senator.His re-election victory in 2020, however, showed how slim his margins could be: He won by fewer than 14,000 votes that year, with 50.1 percent of the vote. Mr. Trump won the state in 2020 by 1.3 percentage points, and Mr. Cooper by more than 4 percentage points. More

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      Mark Robinson Wins Republican Primary for North Carolina Governor

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      Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson of North Carolina defeated his two challengers in the Republican primary for the governor’s race on Tuesday, according to The Associated Press. His win proved that his blustering, Trump-aligned style is favored by conservatives who are gearing up for what will probably be the most expensive and closely contested statewide race in the country.Mr. Robinson had consistently maintained a sizable lead against his opponents, Dale Folwell, the state treasurer, and Bill Graham, a personal injury and wrongful death lawyer. Now he will face Josh Stein, the Democratic state attorney general, whose policies mirror those of Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat who is popular but term limited.Mr. Robinson’s nomination notched another success in what has been a remarkable rise for the lieutenant governor: In 2018, he was working in furniture manufacturing. A year later, after he drew national attention in conservative circles with a video showing him criticizing gun control at a public meeting in Greensboro, he entered the race for lieutenant governor.Now, four years after being elected to statewide office as a political firebrand and newcomer, Mr. Robinson is charging toward the executive mansion in Raleigh with a brand of conservatism that focuses on culture war issues, testing how far right North Carolinians are willing to go in their purple state.Mr. Robinson has characterized the civil rights movement as a communist and socialist plot to “subvert capitalism,” promised to arrest transgender women who use women’s restrooms and said that Christians are “called to be led by men.” He has disparaged the L.G.B.T.Q. community, made comments widely perceived as antisemitic and called for limiting discussions about racism in public schools.Mr. Robinson’s rhetoric will ratchet up the attention on North Carolina, which many see as crucial to winning the presidency. Democratic leaders in the state hope that Mr. Robinson’s controversial comments will drive Democrats to the polls and help them win swing voters. But some Republican strategists believe Mr. Robinson’s personality will animate the base and drive up their own turnout.Mr. Robinson supports a so-called heartbeat law, banning abortion at about five or six weeks of pregnancy; such a ban would go further than current state law, which restricts abortion after 12 weeks. His campaign spokesman said that Mr. Robinson supports exceptions for rape, incest or when the life of the mother is in danger, but he did not provide details. More