Dems Debate in Miami
Sanders and Clinton joust in Miami debate. NYT: "...Mrs. Clinton threw his past support for Fidel Castro and President Daniel Ortega of Nicaragua in Mr. Sanders’s face and repeatedly criticized him for opposing a 2007 [immigration reform] bill ... [Sanders] showed he could throw a punch, such as when Mrs. Clinton questioned the cost of his Medicare-for-all plan ... 'What Secretary Clinton is saying is that the United States should continue to be the only major country on earth that doesn’t guarantee health care to all of our people,'..."
Sanders knocks Clinton's record on immigrant drivers' licenses. Time quotes: "Secretary Clinton prevailed upon the Governor of New York, Eliot Spitzer, who wanted to do the right thing and provide drivers licenses to those who are undocumented. She said don’t do it, and New York State still does not do it ... In Vermont by the way, I worked with officials, and undocumented people in Vermont do have the ability to get drivers licenses."
Bernie pushing Hillary leftward. Politico: "...Clinton’s campaign contended that they relished the chance to talk up paid family leave and community college tuition ... Sanders aides [are] taking satisfaction in forcing Clinton into positions she wouldn't otherwise have taken on deportations and trade. And they’re hoping for more."
Trade Opposition Bubbles Over In Both Parties
Voters in both parties reject trade agreements, fuel Sanders and Trump. W. Post: "In Michigan, exit pollsters for the first time asked voters whether they thought trade created or took away American jobs. The 'take away' faction made up 55 percent of the Republican primary vote and 57 percent of the Democratic primary vote. Trump won the GOP faction with 45 percent, and Sanders won the Democratic side with 56 percent."
Clinton retools trade and jobs message. NYT: "The Clinton campaign says that going forward, it will continue to run its own advertisements highlighting how Mrs. Clinton has called out specific bad corporate actors by name, an effort to combat Mr. Sanders’s line of attack. Trade deals alone could be more difficult to disavow ... the campaign [acknowledged it] needed to better communicate Mrs. Clinton’s plan to bring jobs back to the United States and to create new ones in clean energy, infrastructure and other areas."
Breakfast Sides
Rubio rejects "unity ticket." Politico: "Marco Rubio on Wednesday shot down the notion that he and Ted Cruz would band together as a ticket to halt Donald Trump's procession to the Republican nomination ... 'I think that's kind of House of Cards stuff.'"
Obama looks to clamp down methane leaks. The Hill: "The Obama administration is expanding its newest pollution crackdown for the oil and natural gas industry, now targeting existing wells for the first time ... It’s being rolled out as part of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s official state visit to the United States..."
Congress may approve aid for Flint. The Hill: "[Sen. Mike] Lee’s spokesman said Wednesday that he and Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) have agreed on a general path forward to resolve a budgeting problem with the $250 million package of infrastructure and health programs for cities with water contamination issues. But they’re waiting for the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to bless the deal."
"Obama is expected to put forward a [Supreme Court] nominee any day," reports The Hill.
