2016 Presidential Campaign Blog

Donald J. Trump at Mid-America Center in Council Bluffs, Iowa on Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Donald J. Trump at Mid-America Center in Council Bluffs, Iowa on Tuesday, December 29, 2015

When:
Tuesday, December 29, 2015 at 7:30 PM (CST)

Where:
Mid-America Center

Hosted By:
Dobnald Trump

Register for this event now at :
http://www.eventbrite.com/e/donald-j-trump-in-council-bluffs-ia-tickets-20102333621

Event Details:

Doors open at 5:00pm.

Please arrive early to ensure entrance into the venue.

Lindsey Graham Suspends Campaign for President

Lindsey Graham Suspends Campaign for President

Dear Friend,

Since launching my campaign for president on June 1st, I have offered a path to saving the American Dream and working together on bold solutions to solve big problems. This has been a problem solvers' campaign. I have tried to be honest with the American people, look for realistic ways to get things done, and inject a little humor along the way.

Most importantly, the centerpiece of my campaign has been securing our nation. I have offered a detailed plan to win a war we cannot afford to lose and to turn back the tide of isolationism that has been rising in the Republican Party.

I believe we have made enormous progress in this effort. Four months ago at the very first debate, I said that any candidate who did not understand that we need more troops on the ground in Iraq and Syria to defeat ISIL was not ready to be Commander in Chief. At the time, no one stepped forward to join me. Today, most of my fellow candidates have come to recognize this is what's needed to secure our homeland.

While we have run a campaign that has made a real difference, I have concluded this is not my time. Please watch this important video about the future of my campaign.

I want to thank you for standing with me. More than you will ever know, you have honored me with your support. I hope we have run a campaign in which you have been proud. I know I am, and I know that together we have won an important contest of ideas.

God bless our men and women in uniform, and God bless America.

Sincerely,

Lindsey Graham
United States Senator     

A message from Lindsey Graham

Today, I’m suspending my campaign for president. I want to thank everyone who has taken this journey with me. You have honored me with your support.

I believe we’ve run a campaign you can be proud of. We put forward bold and practical solutions to big problems, like retiring our debt and fixing a broken immigration system. This has been a problem solver’s campaign.

However, the centerpiece of my campaign has been securing our nation. I got into this race to put forward a plan to win a war we cannot afford to lose and to turn back the tide of isolationism that was rising in our party. I believe we’ve made enormous progress in this effort.

Four months ago at the very first debate, I said that any candidate that did not understand that we need more American troops on the ground in Iraq and Syria to defeat ISIL was not ready to be commander-in-chief. At that time, no one stepped forward to join me. Today, most of my fellow candidates have come to recognize this is what’s needed to secure our homeland.

I am far more confident today that our party will reject the Obama doctrine of leading from behind and will provide the strong leadership America needs to restore our military, take the fight to our enemies and do what it takes to make our country safe and preserve our way of life.

This is a generational struggle that demands a strategy and the will to win. I will continue to work every day to ensure that our party – and our nation – takes on this fight. I’m suspending my campaign, but never my commitment to achieving security through strength for the American people.

Hillary Clinton To Wrap Up 2015 In New Hampshire on December 29th

Hillary Clinton To Wrap Up 2015 In New Hampshire, Talk About What's At Stake in 2016
 
Manchester - Hillary Clinton will spend one of the final days of 2015 in New Hampshire, engaging voters in a conversation about what's at stake in this election, and how she will work tirelessly to help Granite State families get ahead in 2016. Clinton will return to New Hampshire on December 29th, following her successful debate performance in Manchester this weekend.
 
At events in Portsmouth and Berlin, Clinton will lay out her plans to get the economy working for everyone--not just those at the top. And she will discuss her record of getting results for working families as First Lady, Senator, and Secretary of State.
 
Individuals who would like to attend the Portsmouth Town Hall meeting can sign up here: http://hrc.io/1J141hg. Individuals who would like to attend the Berlin Town Hall meeting can sign up here: http://hrc.io/1O1qk6J.
 
Portsmouth Town Hall
Where: South Church, 292 State Street Portsmouth, NH
Event Start: 1:00 PM ET, December 29th
 
Berlin Town Hall
Where: Berlin High School cafeteria, 550 Willard Street, Berlin
Event Start: 6:15 PM ET, December 29th

Mike Huckabee Returns to Iowa on December 21-22, 2015

Mike Huckabee Returns to Iowa on December 21-22, 2015

Monday, December 21, 2015

EVENT: Huckabee Huddle with Heroes- Keeping our Promise to Veterans  
 TIME: 11:15 a.m.-12:45 p.m. CT
 LOCATION: Iowa Veterans Home
 ADDRESS: 1301 Summit Street, Marshalltown, Iowa

EVENT: Manufacturing Jobs for Iowa - Tour & Town Hall Meeting
 TIME: 1:45-3:15 p.m. CT
 LOCATION: Restonic Mattress
 ADDRESS: 1000 South Prospect Drive, Toledo, Iowa

EVENT: Neighborhood roundtable discussion with community leaders and Iowa farmers
 TIME: 3:45-4:45 p.m. CT
 LOCATION: Van Horne Community Center
 ADDRESS: 500 First Avenue, Van Horne, Iowa

EVENT: Iowa Faith & Freedom Coalition House Party
 TIME: 5:30-7:00 p.m. CT
 LOCATION: Kava House & Cafe
 ADDRESS: 122 2nd Street SE, Swisher, Iowa

Tuesday, December 22, 2015

EVENT: Huckabee Huddle
 TIME: 8:30-9:30 a.m. CT
 LOCATION: Klunders Kafe
 ADDRESS: 929 W Milwaukee Street, New Hampton, Iowa

EVENT: Meet & Greet with Local Party Activists & Factory Tour
 TIME: 10:15-11:15 a.m. CT
 LOCATION: Featherlite Manufacturing
 ADDRESS: 816 7th Street West, Cresco, Iowa

EVENT: Huckabee Huddle - Protecting Your Social Security
 TIME: 12:00-1:30 p.m. CT
 LOCATION: Faith Lutheran Home
 ADDRESS: 914 Davidson Drive, Osage, Iowa

EVENT: Huckabee Huddle with Iowa Farmers
 TIME: 2:30-3:30 p.m. CT
 LOCATION: Ag Power Enterprises
 ADDRESS: 1806 Central Ave, Northwood, Iowa

EVENT: Huckabee Huddle
 TIME: 5:00-6:30 p.m. CT
 LOCATION: Riverview Restaurant
 ADDRESS: 945 Highway 69 South, Forest City, Iowa

RNC Statement On ABC Democrat Presidential Primary Debate

RNC Statement On ABC Democrat Presidential Primary Debate
 
WASHINGTON – Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairman Reince Priebus released the following statement at the conclusion of Saturday’s Democrat primary debate:
 
“Hillary Clinton once again proved inconsistent on the issues and out-of-touch with the American people.
 
“Clinton’s assertion that we are ‘where we need to be’ on ISIS in the wake of the San Bernardino and Paris attacks shows a complete disconnect with reality and is completely out-of-touch with the American people.
 
“Clinton’s claim that premium hikes from Obamacare are just ‘glitches,’ was an insult to working families struggling to pay their healthcare bills.
 
“It’s clear the Democrat establishment worked hard to bury their debate on a Saturday night just days before Christmas, when few would be watching, in order to prevent the American people from seeing Hillary Clinton’s record of dishonesty and her role as the architect of the Obama administration’s failed strategy for confronting radical Islamic terrorism.
 
“As Americans’ concerns about terror grow, the country cannot risk continuing down the Obama administration’s failed path. With less than a year until Election Day, Americans are ready to break from the failed Clinton-Obama approach to fighting radical Islamic terrorism and elect a Republican president.”

Ted Cruz for President Launches New SNL Christmas Ad in Iowa “Cruz Christmas Classics”

Ted Cruz for President Launches New SNL Christmas Ad in Iowa “Cruz Christmas Classics”

HOUSTON, Texas – The Cruz for President campaign released a new Christmas ad, “Cruz Christmas Classics”. The ad shows Cruz along with his wife Heidi reading stories to their two daughters. Featuring classics like, How Obamacare Stole Christmas, Rudolph the Underemployed Reindeer, The Grinch Who Lost Her Emails, Frosty The Speaker of the House, and Auditing St. Nick. The ad will run in Iowa during this weekend’s “Saturday Night Live” show.

What People Are Saying About Martin O’Malley At Tonight's ABC News Debate in New Hampshire Part 3

What People Are Saying About Martin O’Malley At Tonight's ABC News Debate in New Hampshire Part 3

“O’Malley Had His Best Night” … “Brilliantly Articulate”... “Touting an Impressive Record” … “Passion In His Voice” “Does Good”...  “Saved His Best Answer for the End”...“High-Energy Opening and Closing Statements” … “Good Run Talking About Drug Addiction”

Greta Van Susteren ‏@greta
Who is winning Dem debate?

Sahil Kapur @sahilkapur: High-energy opening and closing statements from O’Malley.

Matthew Dowd (Video): “I think Martin O’Malley had his best night”

Salon.com @Salon: Wow, Martin O'Malley really went there and just called Donald Trump a fascist during Democratic debate slnm.us/bNMnhlK

Athena Jones @AthenaCNN: O'Malley's had a good run these last few mins talking abt what he did as mayor (& gov) on issues like policing & drug addiction #DemDebate

John Fritze @jfritze: O'Malley, in his closing, I believe is the only candidate to mention immigration during this debate.

T.J. Holmes @tjholmes: OMalley saved his best answer for the end. Asked if his wife would give up her job if he was elected: "that would be totally up to her"

Anita Kumar @anitakumar01: .@MartinOMalley's best answer of the night: His wife's role in the White House is up to her. #DemDebate

Darth moghul @hsmoghul: There's some passion in his voice: Good on you, @MartinOMalley #DemDebate. "We must never surrender our American values to racists."

Vox @voxdotcom: “What would we do if this were Ebola? How would we act?” – O’Malley on responding to the heroin epidemic

Newsday @Newsday: "What would we do if this was Ebola? How would we act?" - @MartinOMalley on the heroin epidemic nwsdy.li/1PdNRk2 #DemDebate

Vocativ @vocativ: .@MartinOMalley says he’s flattered that @HillaryClinton has borrowed so many of his proposals. #DemDebate #Shade

Julio Ricardo Varela @julito77: .@MartinOMalley said that he was "flattered" that @HillaryClinton borrowed some of his higher education proposals 2 months later #demdebate

John Myers @johnmyers: "We're going to be proud of them every month of our lives." Pretty good quip by O'Malley on borrowing college $ for his kids.

Vocativ @vocativ: "We're the only nation that's saddling out kids with a lifetime of bills." @MartinOMalley on education costs at the #DemDebate

Planned Parenthood @PPact: As Gov of MD, @MartinOMalley expanding #familyplanning services to 33K Marylanders. #DemDebate #InOurCorner

Joy Reid @JoyAnnReid: O'Malley says he's the only one on stage who has balanced a budget. The governor / executive gambit. #DemDebate

Joy Reid @JoyAnnReid: O'Malley says Repubs "can have their anger and fear." Tries to end on an optimistic note. #DemDebate

Thom Hartmann @Thom_Hartmann: O'Malley does good. raise taxes on income over $1M and equalize Capital Gains to Earned Income - Reagan did the latter for 1 year #DemDebate

Kavitha A. Davidson @kavithadavidson: O'Malley: As mayor of Baltimore, reduced violent crime to 30-year lows while also reducing incarceration rates to 20-year lows #DemDebate

Luke Broadwater @lukebroadwater: .@MartinOMalley's 1st year as Baltimore mayor ('99) there were 32 police-involved shootings. His last year ('06) there were 15. #DemDebate

The Advocate @TheAdvocateMag: O'Malley: In Baltimore and Md helped lower crime rate, improved policing of police. #DemDebate

USA TODAY Opinion @USATOpinion: #OMalley: Reduced violent crime to 30-year lows, incarceration rate to 20-year lows in Md. Must improve how we police the police. #DemDebate

Julio Ricardo Varela @julito77: .@MartinOMalley calls for more transparency and accountability for police departments, including reporting of excessive force  #demdebate

Lauren Gambino @LGamGam: Martin O Malley says we have to get better at "policing the police". #DemDebate

NBC Latino @NBCLatino: O'Malley: Need policing to be more transparent, reportable and accountable #BlackLivesMatter #NBCLatino #DemDebate #NBC2016 @NBCPolitics

KALB News Channel 5 @KALBtv5: .@MartinOMalley: I expanded drug treatment funding in our city and state (Baltimore/MD). We need to reign in over prescribing.

WMUR TV @WMUR9: .@MartinOMalley: families aren't able to contribute to economy because of debt: wmur.tv/6018BpxjI #DemDebate pic.twitter.com/4wnksRsn8L

Amber Phillips @byamberphillips: O'Malley joins many GOP candidates in sharing a personal, often tragic story about how drugs have touched his life wpo.st/sFRy0

Andrew Wiese  @WieseKhalifa: Martin OMalley is brilliantly articulate with his precise answers to asked questions #DemDebate

Julio Ricardo Varela @julito77: .@MartinOMalley also brings up comprehensive immigration reform in closing statement  #demdebate

CBS News Politics @CBSPolitics
.@MartinOMalley brings up climate change in his closing statement of tonight's #demdebate: cbsn.ws/1RwS7hM

Edward Colby @EdwardBColby: .@MartinOMalley on the GOP candidates: “They can have their anger and they can have their fear, but anger and fear never built America”

The Advocate @TheAdvocateMag”: O'Malley: Greatest biz opportunity in many years is clean energy. #DemDebate

Roger Simon @politicoroger: O'Malley: "There is now a 150-mile stretch of Libya that is potentially the next safe haven for ISIL." #DemDebate

Tyler Allen @Tallen69: @MartinOMalley is keeping it real and not making promises that he can't keep. Instead is touting an impressive record #DemDebate

DNC Chair Statement on Tonight’s Democratic Debate in New Hampshire

DNC Chair Statement on Tonight’s Democratic Debate in New Hampshire

MANCHESTER -- DNC Chair Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz issued the following statement on tonight’s Democratic debate in New Hampshire:

“I’m extremely proud of the job all of our candidates did tonight. Tonight we saw that presidential candidates can respect one another and respect the American people with the truth about what it takes to keep the American people safe. Our candidates laid out clear and detailed plans for dealing with our nation’s epidemic of gun violence at home and for combating ISIL and other terrorist threats abroad. Our candidates also had a spirited debate on how to improve the economic security of the American people, and how to build on President Obama’s legacy of creating jobs and moving the economy forward. Finally, I’m proud that both Senator Sanders and Secretary Clinton were able to quickly deal with the campaign data controversy and move on to the issues that matter to the voters.
 
“Our substantive and thoughtful debates stand in sharp contrast to the dangerous and offensive rhetoric that Republican candidates have embraced, which is making America less safe. No one on our debate stage attacked the appearance of another candidate or insulted any group of Americans. No one on our stage called for banning people from entering the country based on their religion. And on the economic front, no one on our stage endorsed failed trickle-down economic plans that would take us back to the policies that were in place preceding the Great Recession, which cost our country 8 million jobs while countless Americans lost their homes and savings. That's what's at stake in this election.
 
“Tonight’s debate makes me proud to be a Democrat, and makes me confident that we will keep the White House in Democratic hands in 2016. Our next president was on stage tonight at St. Anselm.”

DFL Chairman Ken Martin’s Statement on the Third Democratic Debate

DFL Chairman Ken Martin’s Statement on the Third Democratic Debate

“Tonight’s Democratic Debate proved once again that Democrats have serious and substantive candidates who understand what it takes to invest in the middle class and keep America moving forward. All three Democratic candidates show time and time again that they have a firm grip on the issues facing our nation and respect the voters enough to give significant answers on what it takes to tackle these challenges.

“In stark contrast to Tuesday’s Republican Debate where the candidates threw harsh attacks at one another and discussed failed policies that forced us into the Great Recession, our Democratic candidates shared their policies that would continue growing our economy and getting Americans back to work. We've seen 69 consecutive months of job growth and brought the unemployment rate back down to 5% thanks to the hard work being done by President Obama and Congressional Democrats. Hard working Americans can’t afford another Republican President who will risk their family’s safety and security.

“After tonight’s debate it is clear that Democrats are the only presidential candidates committed to building a better country for all Americans.”

What People Are Saying About Martin O’Malley At Tonight's ABC News Debate in New Hampshire Part 2

What People Are Saying About Martin O’Malley At Tonight's ABC News Debate in New Hampshire Part 2

“Powerful” … “Having A Good Night".. "Bashes Hillary Clinton for Flipping on Guns” … “Says Answer Isn’t Socialism or Crony Capitalism” … “

Sahil Kapur @sahilkapur: SANDERS: This is what we should do
CLINTON: So here’s what I would do
O’MALLEY: I’VE ACTUALLY DONE STUFF GUYS #DemDebate

The Hill @thehill: JUST IN: O’Malley accuses Clinton, Sanders of flip-flopping on gun control: hill.cm/JjNOHgC #DemDebate pic.twitter.com/wHmsFzlfi8

Washington Examiner @dcexaminer: .@MartinOMalley bashes @HillaryClinton for flipping on guns "every election year" washex.am/1OftLCK #DemDebate pic.twitter.com/LUQcOMyKut

Joy Reid @JoyAnnReid: O'Malley again hits both: "we can't fix economy by replacing capitalism with socialism, or through crony capitalism." #DemDebate

USA TODAY 2016 ‏@usatoday2016: O'Malley says the answer isn't socialism (Sanders) or crony capitalism (Clinton). Bashes Clinton on the latter issue. #DemDebate

Chris Cillizza @TheFix: O'Malley is right here: Clinton's use of 9/11 to defend her fundraising ties to Wall Street was, um, ridiculous.

CBS News Politics @CBSPolitics: .@MartinOMalley calls @HillaryClinton's relationship with Wall Street "cozy" #demdebate

Kavitha A. Davidson @kavithadavidson: O'Malley: Increased education funding 37% in Maryland. Went 4 yrs in a row w/o increasing college tuition. #DemDebate

The Advocate @TheAdvocateMag: O'Malley: Raised minimum wage in Maryland, increased education funding, invested in infrastructure. #DemDebate

Iowa Starting Line @IAStartingLine: .@MartinOMalley touts plan for clean energy future, hits solar power jobs in Maryland #DemDebate

NBC Latino @NBCLatino: O'Malley: We were the only state without a penny increase in tuition #NBCLatino #DemDebate #NBC2016 @NBCPolitics nbcnews.to/1QBhRJM

Sarah Fowler @FowlerSarah: O'Malley touting his experience as governor and saying states need to do more to alleviate cost of college

Rocky Maivia @AJFrancis410: .@MartinOMalley's last answer was powerful

USA TODAY 2016 @usatoday2016: O'Malley says he addressed income inequality as governor of Maryland. #DemDebate

Education Votes @edvotes: .@MartinOMalley We were the only state in the country without a penny's increase in college tuition. #DemDebate

Kavitha A. Davidson @kavithadavidson: O'Malley: Created 2,000 new jobs in solar. Must move toward 100% clean energy economy. #DemDebate

Philip Tortora  @PhilipTortora: Agree with him or not, O'Malley is succeeding at ratcheting up the tension and feistiness at the #DemDebate.

Celeste Katz @CelesteKatzNYC: "May I offer a different generation's  perspective on this?" -@MartinOMalley GOES THERE #DemDebate

Ben Jacobs @Bencjacobs: O'Malley campaign sends out a blast calling Hillary Clinton "The Democrats’ Wolf of Wall Street"

Jamil Smith  @JamilSmith: Yes, @BenSpielberg, I have seen @BernieSanders's racial justice plan. It's terribly vague. O'Malley's is much more detailed. #DemDebate