On Thursday, President Joe Biden held a major fundraiser with two former presidents, Barack Obama and Bill Clinton in New York, while his general election opponent, former President Donald Trump, got a financial infusion through the IPO of his social media app, Truth Social. Political commentator Sue O’Connell shares how the money could affect the campaign — or not.
Voters in Connecticut, Rhode Island and two other states will weigh in Tuesday on their parties' presidential nominees, a largely symbolic vote now that both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump have locked up the Democratic and Republican nominations.
Biden and Trump are both expected to easily win their primaries in Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York and Wisconsin and add to their delegate hauls for their party conventions this summer. The decisions will nevertheless offer clues about enthusiasm among base voters for the upcoming 2020 rematch that has left a majority of Americans underwhelmed.
In particular, the tallies in Wisconsin, a pivotal November battleground, will give hints about the share of Republicans who still aren't on board with Trump and how many Democrats are disillusioned with Biden. Trump was scheduled to campaign Tuesday in Wisconsin and Michigan, two Midwest battlegrounds.
All four states have multiple candidates on the ballot, and three of them also have an option to vote for “uncommitted” or “uninstructed delegate.” Biden has faced opposition from activists encouraging Democrats to vote against Biden to send a message of disapproval for his handling of the war between Israel and Hamas.
This year in Rhode Island, 17-year-olds who will be 18 at the time of the general election in November are allowed to vote in the primary.
Trump and Biden turned their attention to the general election weeks ago after Nikki Haley dropped out of the GOP contest. Biden visited all the top battlegrounds last month after his State of the Union speech.
Biden and the Democratic National Committee have outpaced Trump and the Republicans in fundraising. Biden claimed the largest single-event fundraising record last week when he took in $26 million at a star-studded New York event last week with big names from the entertainment world teamed up with the president and his Democratic predecessors, Barack Obama and Bill Clinton.
Trump is looking to one-up his rival with a fundraiser in Palm Beach, Florida, this weekend that he hopes will bring in $33 million.
