By — Domenico Montanaro Domenico Montanaro By — Rachel Wellford Rachel Wellford By — Simone Pathe Simone Pathe Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/2016-hillary-clinton-gop-drama Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter 2016 is all about Hillary Clinton and the GOP drama Politics Nov 12, 2014 9:22 AM EDT Today in the Morning Line: A completely gratuitous look at the 2016 presidential election Hillary Clinton starts as the favorite, but Democrats have no bench Republicans have a deep bench, which is going to create another long primary Morning Line going on a two-week break Setting the table for 2016: Congress is back today for the first time following the midterm elections, and there will be plenty to chew on about what will get done in the lame duck (Attorney General nominee? Keystone vote? President Obama executive action on immigration?). We’ll get to that, but following the midterms, we, at Morning Line, are taking a short break. We’ll be on a two-week hiatus, starting tomorrow. But first, to be completely politically gratuitous, we set the 2016 table for you. We have avoided it through the midterms, but, unfortunately, there’s no avoiding it anymore with all the political activity going on with the people who will be seeking the White House. The presidential race: If she were a Republican, she’d be the elephant in the room. In many ways, the 2016 election is all about Hillary Clinton. She leads in all the polls. Republicans have been taking aim at her since she stepped down as secretary of state. The day after the midterm elections, Republicans were saying that her policies were on the ballot, too. Some in the media want to create drama in a Democratic primary, because why not? So there will be lots of coverage of Martin O’Malley, Bernie Sanders, Jim Webb and the mysterious candidate who could ultimately derail Clinton’s nomination (will Elizabeth Warren re-think it, etc.) Problem with that narrative is there’s no Barack Obama this year, and Warren has said definitively she won’t run this year. The only wildcard is if Clinton has a change of heart or has a prohibitive health issue. And then, what do Democrats do? GOP drama set to play out: The Republican race, on the other hand, is setting up to be another long, drawn-out primary process. The GOP has a good problem — unlike Democrats, they have a deep bench. But they also have a continued presidential primary problem — the internecine conflict between the conservative and establishment wings. What’s happened predictably in the last two elections is the establishment candidate has won out, but gets pulled to the right (see John McCain on immigration, Mitt Romney on, well, almost everything). That is going to continue to play out. Conservatives’ argument is, “We nominated two so-called moderates in the last two elections and how’d that work out. Plus, we stuck to our principles in 2010 and 2014, and we won.” That’s an easy, but false narrative. Midterms are different elections than presidentials. The white vote has continued to decline in presidentials and will continue to do so with the non-white vote increasing. It’s why people like Rand Paul have been out there talking to black voters and trying to sell his more libertarian message. But many of Paul’s views are likely going to be seen as outside the mainstream, and how does he get through a GOP primary with some of them? Maybe he will, but there’s lots of drama to play out. Establishment vs. Conservative wings: The GOP primary usually sets up as a fight between two brackets — conservative and establishment candidates with the winner of each squaring off. We’ve outlined 13 potentially serious 2016 Republican candidates, and where they fit: For the conservative bracket (the people who have to win Iowa): Texas Sen. Ted Cruz; Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker — he could be a hybrid, but being from a state that borders Iowa, he needs to do well there; former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, the 2012 Iowa winner; Indiana Gov. Mike Pence; Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal; Dr. Ben Carson, who is on the lips of every tea party/grassroots conservative — and, yes, we predict there will be a poll that shows him leading the GOP field; South Dakota Sen. John Thune. (We’re not buying runs by Mike Huckabee or John Bolton.) For the establishment slot (the people who have to win New Hampshire): New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie; former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush; Ohio Sen. Rob Portman. (We’ll save you the digital ink — Mitt Romney is NOT running.) Hybrids, who might try to play in both: Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan — if he runs and we’re not convinced he will; Florida Sen. Marco Rubio — it’s not clear he will run if Jeb Bush does since they have many of the same donors; Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul — he could play a third route here and for a while in the primary. Unlike his father, who always had a following but won no delegates, we predict this Dr. Paul will pick up at least a few and maybe more than that. Daily Presidential Trivia: On this day 1979, President Carter shut down all oil imports from Iran in response to 63 Americans being taken hostage at the U.S. embassy in Tehran eight days earlier. Why were the Americans being held hostage? Be the first to tweet us the correct answer using #PoliticsTrivia and you’ll get a Morning Line shout-out. Congratulations to P Arndt (@parndt66), roy wait (@ind22rxw) and EmGusk (@EmGusk) for guessing Tuesday’s trivia: Who was president when Arlington Cemetery was established? The answer was: Lincoln. LINE ITEMS The Associated Press has finally called the Alaska Senate race for Dan Sullivan, who leads Sen. Mark Begich by 8,100 votes, but with thousands of ballots still uncounted Begich has refused to concede. With the Republican win in Alaska, the Senate’s balance of power stands at 53 Republicans and 46 Democrats, with the Louisiana Senate race pending due to a December runoff. The U.S. and China reached a joint accord to cut carbon emissions. Lawmakers return Wednesday for the beginning of the lame duck session. Look for what gets done during these next two months to dictate how productive Congress will be over the next two years. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee is rebuilding his political team for a possible presidential bid, with staff scouting real estate for headquarters in Little Rock. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi doesn’t see last week’s midterms as a GOP “wave,” and thinks that her party needs her now more than ever. “Quite frankly, if we would have won, I would have thought about leaving,” she told Politico. A new Pew study found that 48 percent of Americans are happy that Republicans gained control of the Senate, and only 44 percent of Americans approve of Republican congressional leaders policies and plans for the future. Despite Republican Gov. Rick Scott’s reelection, Florida is becoming less and less purple and slightly more blue every election year. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz’s “repeal Obamacare or bust” strategy is not supported by most of his fellow Republicans. Republicans will make in-person pitches Wednesday for the two open leadership positions at the Republican Study Committee and Republican Policy Committee. Five members of the House who lost their reelection bids or are retiring have open ethics investigations, but with their departure those cases are effectively dismissed. The Washington Post compiled a list of 2014’s worst candidates, and the winner is…Bruce Braley! Congratulations, Bruce. Your prize is that you no longer have to serve in Congress. On Tuesday, Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon pledged to keep the city of Ferguson safe when the grand jury’s decision in the Michael Brown shooting case comes out. Coloradans may have elected a GOP senator, but they rejected two pro-gun Republican lawmakers elected during last year’s recalls. The next Senate class will be the least experienced group since 1989, according to data compiled by Washington Post’s Philip Bump. It’s fall cleaning time on Capitol Hill, as staffers for the outgoing members of Congress begin the packing process to make way for the next group of pols. Keep an eye on the Rundown blog for breaking news throughout the day, our home page for show segments, and follow @NewsHour for the latest. TOP TWEETS In 2014 exit polls, clear that non-Obama candidates can win Obama-level non-white vote AND lose the white vote by Obama margins. cc Hillary — daveweigel (@daveweigel) November 11, 2014 Cape Town's monument to Nelson Mandela, who devoted his life to the battle against glaucoma. http://t.co/oKqkXShwMc pic.twitter.com/SB2p5OgtjS — Kriston Capps (@kristoncapps) November 11, 2014 Photos: Vice President Biden lays wreath at Arlington National Cemetery to mark Veterans Day. http://t.co/615c304xv2 pic.twitter.com/lbkpzSKLc3 — DCist (@DCist) November 11, 2014 That time post election when you think your email must be broken b/c you've gotten so little in your inbox — amy walter (@amyewalter) November 11, 2014 The fastest "bicycle" in the world can go 207 miles per hour, and it just dusted a Ferrari. (via @StreetSignsCNBC) https://t.co/LACT5ZoPq8 — CNBC (@CNBC) November 11, 2014 For more political coverage, visit our politics page. Sign up here to receive the Morning Line in your inbox every morning. Questions or comments? Email Domenico Montanaro at dmontanaro-at-newshour-dot-org or Rachel Wellford at rwellford-at-newshour-dot-org. Follow the politics team on Twitter: Follow @DomenicoPBS Follow @elizsummers Follow @rachelwellford Follow @sfpathe We're not going anywhere. Stand up for truly independent, trusted news that you can count on! Donate now By — Domenico Montanaro Domenico Montanaro By — Rachel Wellford Rachel Wellford Rachel Wellford is a general assignment producer for PBS NewsHour. @rachelwellford By — Simone Pathe Simone Pathe @sfpathe
Today in the Morning Line: A completely gratuitous look at the 2016 presidential election Hillary Clinton starts as the favorite, but Democrats have no bench Republicans have a deep bench, which is going to create another long primary Morning Line going on a two-week break Setting the table for 2016: Congress is back today for the first time following the midterm elections, and there will be plenty to chew on about what will get done in the lame duck (Attorney General nominee? Keystone vote? President Obama executive action on immigration?). We’ll get to that, but following the midterms, we, at Morning Line, are taking a short break. We’ll be on a two-week hiatus, starting tomorrow. But first, to be completely politically gratuitous, we set the 2016 table for you. We have avoided it through the midterms, but, unfortunately, there’s no avoiding it anymore with all the political activity going on with the people who will be seeking the White House. The presidential race: If she were a Republican, she’d be the elephant in the room. In many ways, the 2016 election is all about Hillary Clinton. She leads in all the polls. Republicans have been taking aim at her since she stepped down as secretary of state. The day after the midterm elections, Republicans were saying that her policies were on the ballot, too. Some in the media want to create drama in a Democratic primary, because why not? So there will be lots of coverage of Martin O’Malley, Bernie Sanders, Jim Webb and the mysterious candidate who could ultimately derail Clinton’s nomination (will Elizabeth Warren re-think it, etc.) Problem with that narrative is there’s no Barack Obama this year, and Warren has said definitively she won’t run this year. The only wildcard is if Clinton has a change of heart or has a prohibitive health issue. And then, what do Democrats do? GOP drama set to play out: The Republican race, on the other hand, is setting up to be another long, drawn-out primary process. The GOP has a good problem — unlike Democrats, they have a deep bench. But they also have a continued presidential primary problem — the internecine conflict between the conservative and establishment wings. What’s happened predictably in the last two elections is the establishment candidate has won out, but gets pulled to the right (see John McCain on immigration, Mitt Romney on, well, almost everything). That is going to continue to play out. Conservatives’ argument is, “We nominated two so-called moderates in the last two elections and how’d that work out. Plus, we stuck to our principles in 2010 and 2014, and we won.” That’s an easy, but false narrative. Midterms are different elections than presidentials. The white vote has continued to decline in presidentials and will continue to do so with the non-white vote increasing. It’s why people like Rand Paul have been out there talking to black voters and trying to sell his more libertarian message. But many of Paul’s views are likely going to be seen as outside the mainstream, and how does he get through a GOP primary with some of them? Maybe he will, but there’s lots of drama to play out. Establishment vs. Conservative wings: The GOP primary usually sets up as a fight between two brackets — conservative and establishment candidates with the winner of each squaring off. We’ve outlined 13 potentially serious 2016 Republican candidates, and where they fit: For the conservative bracket (the people who have to win Iowa): Texas Sen. Ted Cruz; Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker — he could be a hybrid, but being from a state that borders Iowa, he needs to do well there; former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, the 2012 Iowa winner; Indiana Gov. Mike Pence; Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal; Dr. Ben Carson, who is on the lips of every tea party/grassroots conservative — and, yes, we predict there will be a poll that shows him leading the GOP field; South Dakota Sen. John Thune. (We’re not buying runs by Mike Huckabee or John Bolton.) For the establishment slot (the people who have to win New Hampshire): New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie; former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush; Ohio Sen. Rob Portman. (We’ll save you the digital ink — Mitt Romney is NOT running.) Hybrids, who might try to play in both: Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan — if he runs and we’re not convinced he will; Florida Sen. Marco Rubio — it’s not clear he will run if Jeb Bush does since they have many of the same donors; Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul — he could play a third route here and for a while in the primary. Unlike his father, who always had a following but won no delegates, we predict this Dr. Paul will pick up at least a few and maybe more than that. Daily Presidential Trivia: On this day 1979, President Carter shut down all oil imports from Iran in response to 63 Americans being taken hostage at the U.S. embassy in Tehran eight days earlier. Why were the Americans being held hostage? Be the first to tweet us the correct answer using #PoliticsTrivia and you’ll get a Morning Line shout-out. Congratulations to P Arndt (@parndt66), roy wait (@ind22rxw) and EmGusk (@EmGusk) for guessing Tuesday’s trivia: Who was president when Arlington Cemetery was established? The answer was: Lincoln. LINE ITEMS The Associated Press has finally called the Alaska Senate race for Dan Sullivan, who leads Sen. Mark Begich by 8,100 votes, but with thousands of ballots still uncounted Begich has refused to concede. With the Republican win in Alaska, the Senate’s balance of power stands at 53 Republicans and 46 Democrats, with the Louisiana Senate race pending due to a December runoff. The U.S. and China reached a joint accord to cut carbon emissions. Lawmakers return Wednesday for the beginning of the lame duck session. Look for what gets done during these next two months to dictate how productive Congress will be over the next two years. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee is rebuilding his political team for a possible presidential bid, with staff scouting real estate for headquarters in Little Rock. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi doesn’t see last week’s midterms as a GOP “wave,” and thinks that her party needs her now more than ever. “Quite frankly, if we would have won, I would have thought about leaving,” she told Politico. A new Pew study found that 48 percent of Americans are happy that Republicans gained control of the Senate, and only 44 percent of Americans approve of Republican congressional leaders policies and plans for the future. Despite Republican Gov. Rick Scott’s reelection, Florida is becoming less and less purple and slightly more blue every election year. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz’s “repeal Obamacare or bust” strategy is not supported by most of his fellow Republicans. Republicans will make in-person pitches Wednesday for the two open leadership positions at the Republican Study Committee and Republican Policy Committee. Five members of the House who lost their reelection bids or are retiring have open ethics investigations, but with their departure those cases are effectively dismissed. The Washington Post compiled a list of 2014’s worst candidates, and the winner is…Bruce Braley! Congratulations, Bruce. Your prize is that you no longer have to serve in Congress. On Tuesday, Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon pledged to keep the city of Ferguson safe when the grand jury’s decision in the Michael Brown shooting case comes out. Coloradans may have elected a GOP senator, but they rejected two pro-gun Republican lawmakers elected during last year’s recalls. The next Senate class will be the least experienced group since 1989, according to data compiled by Washington Post’s Philip Bump. It’s fall cleaning time on Capitol Hill, as staffers for the outgoing members of Congress begin the packing process to make way for the next group of pols. Keep an eye on the Rundown blog for breaking news throughout the day, our home page for show segments, and follow @NewsHour for the latest. TOP TWEETS In 2014 exit polls, clear that non-Obama candidates can win Obama-level non-white vote AND lose the white vote by Obama margins. cc Hillary — daveweigel (@daveweigel) November 11, 2014 Cape Town's monument to Nelson Mandela, who devoted his life to the battle against glaucoma. http://t.co/oKqkXShwMc pic.twitter.com/SB2p5OgtjS — Kriston Capps (@kristoncapps) November 11, 2014 Photos: Vice President Biden lays wreath at Arlington National Cemetery to mark Veterans Day. http://t.co/615c304xv2 pic.twitter.com/lbkpzSKLc3 — DCist (@DCist) November 11, 2014 That time post election when you think your email must be broken b/c you've gotten so little in your inbox — amy walter (@amyewalter) November 11, 2014 The fastest "bicycle" in the world can go 207 miles per hour, and it just dusted a Ferrari. (via @StreetSignsCNBC) https://t.co/LACT5ZoPq8 — CNBC (@CNBC) November 11, 2014 For more political coverage, visit our politics page. Sign up here to receive the Morning Line in your inbox every morning. Questions or comments? Email Domenico Montanaro at dmontanaro-at-newshour-dot-org or Rachel Wellford at rwellford-at-newshour-dot-org. Follow the politics team on Twitter: Follow @DomenicoPBS Follow @elizsummers Follow @rachelwellford Follow @sfpathe We're not going anywhere. Stand up for truly independent, trusted news that you can count on! Donate now