TO: Interested Parties 

FROM: John Weaver, Chief Strategist 

RE: What's Next

Democratic National Committee             

WASHINGTON - DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz issued the following statement on tonight’s Indiana primary results: 
 
“Tonight’s results in Indiana are the culmination of what can only be described as a disastrous week for the Republican Party. Clearly the GOP’s problems go well beyond their convention.
 
“In just seven days, Republicans saw their former House Speaker call one of their candidates ‘Lucifer in the flesh,’ watched a desperate, mathematically-eliminated campaign announce a Vice Presidential pick and get ridiculed for it, and then kicked off the Indiana primaries this morning with accusations that Ted Cruz’s father was tied to Lee Harvey Oswald. The absurdity of that last allegation was compounded by the fact that Dangerous Donald Trump, who is just a hair’s-breadth away from securing the Republican nomination, based it on a tabloid story he saw in the National Enquirer.
 
“No wonder the Republican Party is less popular than it’s been in more than two decades. Just today, exit polls in Indiana showed that 53 percent of Indiana Republican primary voters say they feel betrayed by the Republican Party. And in recent weeks, exit polls in primary after primary have shown that a majority of Republican voters believe their primary has been divisive, with as much as a third preferring to either stay home or vote for an alternative, rather than voting for their eventual nominee.
 
“Meanwhile, Democratic voters are proud of their candidates and it shows each time they go to the polls. Last week, in Connecticut and Pennsylvania respectively, 67% and 71% of Democrats reported feeling energized by our primary. Today in Indiana it was three-quarters of Democratic voters who said our primary has energized our party, and a majority of Democrats who voted today expressed support for either one of our candidates.
 
“Today it’s clearer than ever that none of the Republican candidates has the judgment or temperament to serve as our Commander in Chief. The next President of the United States will be nominated at our Democratic convention in Philadelphia.”

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Indiana Democratic Party

INDIANAPOLIS – Like Indiana’s economy and national reputation, Republican Presidential Candidate Senator Ted Cruz tonight became the latest victim of Governor Mike Pence’s deep unpopularity with Hoosier voters.

“Hoosier Republicans rejected Ted Cruz this evening and in the process, rejected Mike Pence. The fact that a majority of Republican voters found the candidate their own Governor endorsed too out of touch speaks volumes about how unpopular Mike Pence has become with Hoosiers across the state,” said Drew Anderson, communications director. “It’s no secret Mike Pence and Ted Cruz are two peas in a pod with their social agenda as they have driven away economic opportunities and scared off young Hoosiers and moderates of their own party. The fact is, though, Mike Pence is simply not getting the job done, and it’s why Hoosiers are coalescing around John Gregg and his common sense ideas to move Indiana forward.”

Cruz earlier this primary considered Indiana a ‘must-win’ state and tied his fortunes to Mike Pence – another politician that prioritizes a social agenda ahead of the state’s well-being. And after what was labeled a ‘lame’ endorsement by some in the national media, Mike Pence still traveled the state with Cruz and even appeared in radio and television commercials on his behalf. This effort all fell short as Donald Trump won Indiana’s Republican Primary this evening.

So overall, it appears that Mike Pence just shot another air ball as Indiana’s governor.

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Democratic National Committee

DNC Chair Statement on  Cruz Suspending Campaign and Trump Becoming Republican Presumptive Nominee

WASHINGTON – DNC Chair Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz issued the following statement on Ted Cruz dropping out of the Republican primary and Donald Trump becoming the GOP’s presumptive nominee:
 
“Tonight, Donald Trump is the Republican Party. Ted Cruz may have been the least-liked politician in Washington, but Trump is one of the least liked men in America, and Democrats will hold him accountable for his offensive rhetoric, dangerous ideas, and lack of judgment every single day between today and November 8th.
 
“While Ted Cruz was known for obstruction, having forced a government shutdown that cost the U.S. economy $24 billion and even opposing emergency aid for a region hit by a devastating hurricane, he didn’t stand up to Donald Trump until it was too late. None of the Republicans running for president did, because after years of elevating extreme voices in their party, they didn’t want to alienate them.
 
“The decades-old Republican strategy of exploiting unfounded fear of immigrants, minorities, the poor, the LGBT community and more, all for political gain, have laid the groundwork for Donald Trump. The Republican Party sold hardworking Americans the empty promise of trickle-down prosperity, while strangling America’s middle class with backwards economic policies that only enrich those already at the top. Donald Trump’s looming nomination will be the ultimate, destructive culmination of the results of that strategy.
 
“Democrats won’t hesitate to fight for the vast majority of the American people, who share our values of inclusion, hard work, dignity and opportunity for all, and we’ll hold Republicans on the ballot at every level accountable for their standard bearer. Voters will have a clear choice come November, and Americans of every stripe, including those disillusioned and disaffected by this year’s unprecedentedly nasty Republican primary have a home in the Democratic Party. Our voters are energized, enthusiastic, and optimistic because our candidates are committed to moving America forward. And that’s why we’re going to win on Election Day in November.”
 

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Hillary for America

Here's a quick recap of what the GOP is embracing in selecting Donald Trump as its standard bearer :

• Unapologetic misogyny;
  
  
• "Punishment" for women who get abortions and a hardline opposition to funding women's health programs;
  
  
• Inflammatory anti-immigrant rhetoric and advocacy of the forcible deportation of 11 million undocumented immigrants;
  
  
• Abhorrent xenophobic fear-mongering;
  
  
• Hawkish and amateurish foreign policy;
  
  
• Tax plans that cost trillions and disproportionately boost the top 1%;
  
  
• Climate change denial;
  
  
• Proposals that threaten seniors and future retirees earned benefits; and,
  
  
• Refusals to give hardworking Americans a raise.