A Vote sign and American flag outside an election station in Dearborn, Michigan, February 27, 2024 (Paul Sancya/AP)
UPDATE 1859 GMT:
I joined The Pat Kenny Show on Dublin NewsTalk on Tuesday to dig deep into the results of Super Tuesday, noting in particular how the outcome — despite Donald Trump effectively securing the Republican nomination — may signal trouble for him in the general election in November.
Listen to Discussion from 1:57:
For all of Donald Trump’s braggadocio and his altering of reality, he betrayed concern when he kept hammering away at “unity, unity, unity”.
Moderates make up a significant chunk of the Republican Party. They’re the reason why Nikki Haley stayed in the race for so long.
It begs the question: come November, will the moderates sit on their hands? Or even defect to the Democrats?
UPDATE, MARCH 6:
As polls were closing on Super Tuesday, I joined Times Radio’s Carole Walker for a full-and-frank 50-minute special looking at the US primaries and far beyond.
Listen to Discussion from 2:06.36
After reviewing the likely outcome of Donald Trump as the Republican nominee challenging President Joe Biden in November, I take on vital questions.
I consider the 30-35% of Republicans still balking at a vote for Trump and, even more importantly, the 2/3rd of GOP “moderates” who supported Nikki Haley instead. Will they sit out November’s vote or even switch to the Democrats?
Nikki Haley stayed in the race not because she thought she could win but because Haley — and a lot of people behind her. a lot of Republican donors, a lot of Republican members — are not happy with Trump and are unsettled with him on a number of issues.
Voters said on Tuesday that their priorities include education, women’s rights, immigration, and “democracy” — encompassing Trump’s attempt to overthrow the 2020 election and the felony charges which he faces.
Will these be covered in an election which is centred on issues? Or will media continue to be led by Trump’s dystopian spectacle of “America is dying”?
After I warned of “being led by the nose” rather than discussing the issues, Walker insisted on a focus on “Joe Biden’s age”. That prompted my firm response: Don’t Do This.
As she kept cherry-picking Biden slips, I drew a line:
Carole, you’re absolutely whipping this up.
While you and I are talking about Biden — and age should be an issue for both candidates — Donald Trump has made up the name of an African country “Nambia”. Just over 24 hours ago, he confused Joe Biden with Barack Obama. He confused Nikki Haley with Nancy Pelosi.
Of the two men running for President, only one of them took a cognitive ability test while in office. And that wasn’t Joe Biden.
ORIGINAL ENTRY, MARCH 5: I joined Dublin NewsTalk’s Ciara Kelly on Tuesday morning to discuss the “Super Tuesday” primaries and caucuses in the US Presidential election.
Listen to Discussion from 8:39
I get beyond the polls and the expected outcome — confirmation of Donald Trump as the Republican nominee to face President Joe Biden in November — to analyze the key issues beyond the ballot box.
I explain how the significance of the GOP contests will lie not in Trump’s likely triumphs but in the size of those Republicans and independents who will not vote for him today.
And I knock back yet another question presuming a Trump win in November, playing into his narrative, to get to the heart of the most important election for the US system since 1865.
We are talking about a man who is facing 91 felony charges. We are talking about a man who has already been convicted in civil court of sexual assault and wide-scale business fraud. We are talking about a man who tried to hold onto his office with an attempted coup.
Those are the facts that would seem to be important in this election.