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58%
Of Republican voters like Jeb Bush less after hearing more about him, compared with 32% who like him more, a new McClatchy-Marist poll finds.
165
Combined number of New York Times and Washington Post articles that were all (or partially) about Barack Obama and Jeremiah Wright between the time Obama first launched his presidential bid (Feb. 2007) and his 2008 victory (Nov. 2008), according to First Read. “During that same time period, we found an additional 41 New York Times and Washington Post pieces on Obama and Bill Ayers. And from the start of her campaign (April 2015) until now, we discovered a combined 44 NYT/WaPo articles about Hillary Clinton and her email server. … Bottom line: When you’re atop of the presidential polls, you’re going to get scrutiny — lots of it.”
By the way, President Obama says, ‘If these guys can’t handle moderators, how are they gonna handle China and Russia?’ You should be able to know that you’re going to be asked any question. It’s all fair game.
— Fox Business anchor Maria Bartiromo, quoted by the Daily Beast, saying the GOP candidates should expect tough questions at their debate tomorrow night.
As I look at the race, historically, there have been two major lanes in the Republican primary. There’s been a moderate lane and a conservative lane. Marco is certainly formidable in that lane. I think the Jeb [Bush] campaign seems to view Marco as his biggest threat in the moderate lane.
— Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), distinguishing himself from Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) by painting him with the moderate brush, Bloomberg reports.
$500,000
Amount left unpaid from Carly Fiorina’s failed 2010 U.S. Senate bid “— even as Fiorina reimbursed herself nearly $1.3 million she lent the campaign. She finally cleared most of the balance in January, a few months before announcing her run for president,” the Washington Post reports. Said Fiorina’s former campaign manager Martin Wilson: “Occasionally, I’d call and tell her she should pay them. She just wouldn’t.”
There’s homophobes still left. Most of them are running for president, I think.
— Vice President Joe Biden, quoted by The Hill.
70
Number of days Scott Walker was a candidate for president. “The complete and utter collapse of Scott Walker’s presidential bid appears to bring to an end the shortest presidential campaign since at least 2000,” the Washington Post reports. “Walker’s bid began with his announcement July 13 before a fancy backdrop and in front of an energetic crowd in Waukesha, Wis. It ended in Wisconsin on Monday, in front of a drab background and with only a few reporters listening in. From start to end, the campaign lasted 70 days — a shorter campaign than even Rick Perry’s, since Perry started earlier. … Looking back at major candidate campaigns since 2000, 70 days appears to be the shortest, by at least a week. Jim Gilmore’s 2008 bid lasted 79 days. Tim Pawlenty hung on for 83 days in 2012.”
It seems to be hard for people actually to hear English and understand it.
— Ben Carson, saying “his controversial comments about opposing a potential Muslim president were taken out of context,” the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.
This year is different, and what is happening now is leaving a searing impression. This is toxic for the Republican Party — potentially lethal for it.
— Ex-Bush official Peter Wehner, quoted by the Washington Post, on the “shrill rhetoric” of GOP presidential candidates.
32%
Donald Trump’s lead in the GOP presidential race, followed by Ben Carson at 12%, Jeb Bush at 11%, Carly Fiorina at 6%, Ted Cruz at 5% and Marco Rubio at 5%, according to a new Morning Consult poll. On the Democratic side, Hillary Clinton for the first time has fallen below the 50% mark. She maintains a strong lead over Sen. Bernie Sanders — 49% to 28% — though her 21-point lead is at its lowest point since Morning Consult began surveying the Democratic field.
