Clinton Extends Lead, Trump Faces Resistance – KOA Interview With April Zesbaugh and Steffan Tubbs

Super Tuesday Part Two extended Hillary Clinton’s delegate lead and ended Bernie Sanders’ hoped for breakout in the industrial heartland. With five major states voting, Clinton swept the South, winning Florida and North Carolina. But her substantial win in Ohio and her birth state of Illinois showed she could win the states essential to the fall battle with Republicans. She now has 66 percent of the needed delegates. She leads Sanders by nearly two-to-one.

Sanders claims he will not end his campaign nor lessen his criticism of Clinton, including her Wall Street ties and free trade history.

Unfortunately for Clinton, most of the big contests aren’t until April, leaving several weeks of small state contests where Sanders can showcase his criticism of the frontrunner. At this point, his cause-oriented campaign can’t win the nomination, but it does damage Clinton.

Donald Trump also had a good night. He drove the establishment’s last best candidate from the field and crossed the halfway point to 1,237 delegates (621 or 50.2%). Marco Rubio, after his nearly 19-point loss in Florida, is unlikely to endorse Trump; hence, adding to the only suspense left in the Republican nomination – can Trump be stopped short of 1,237 delegates? The problem with the contested convention scenario is that it will be as devastating to a general election campaign as polls indicate a Trump victory will be.

Ted Cruz, with the most delegates after Trump, had a weak evening, scoring third in Florida and Ohio and second in North Carolina, Illinois and still contested Missouri.

Conclusion
The continued contests hurt the frontrunners. Sanders is pushing Clinton to the left and reinforcing people’s distrust of her. She will be a weaker general election candidate for it.

Trump is even more harmed by the still formable resistance to his nomination. The incredibly high negative they each carry into the general election will produce the regret election – the candidate who the public feels the least regret over choosing will win.

Listen to KOA interview here