Post Politics Now Forecast of severe weather forces Trump to reschedule rally with GOP gubernatorial hopeful in Nebraska

Trump endorsed Rep. Greg Pence (R-Ind.), brother of Mike Pence, in a statement that kept out the name of his former vice president.

“Congressman Greg Pence is doing a great job representing the people of Indiana’s 6th Congressional District,” Trump said. “A former First Lieutenant in the U.S. Marine Corps, Greg continues to proudly serve our Country in the U.S. House of Representatives.”

The relationship between Trump and his former vice president has grown tense since Jan. 6, 2021, when a pro-Trump mob attacked the Capitol — many of them chanting, “Hang Mike Pence!”

Trump has long held that Pence could have reversed the results of the 2020 election, something Pence maintained he did not have the authority to do. Recently, the former vice president has been more vocal about his opposition to Trump’s stance on the results of the 2020 election, saying in February that Trump was “wrong” when he called him to overturn the election.

His brother, meanwhile, has largely kept silent about Jan. 6.

Greg Pence, Trump said, “is Strong on the Border, Protects Life, Defends the Second Amendment, and Supports our brave Military and Vets.”

“Greg Pence has my Complete and Total Endorsement,” Trump said.

New York was forced to reschedule some of its primaries for late August after the state’s Court of Appeals ruled this week that new district maps were unconstitutional.

A judge ordered that the state’s congressional and state Senate primaries be moved from their original date of June 28 to Aug. 23.

State Judge Patrick McAllister announced the new date, saying that the independent expert he’s tasked with redrawing the congressional maps will finish the job by May 20.

As our colleague Colby Itkowitz reported, the initial maps, drawn by a Democratic-led assembly, largely benefited the Democratic Party. The court called the map “substantively unconstitutional as drawn with impermissible partisan purpose.”

The state will still be allowed to hold gubernatorial and State Assembly primaries in June, but the legislature or Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) could delay those elections, too. Two primaries could prove costly for the state. As Bloomberg Government reported, the rescheduling could double the cost of the elections for taxpayers.

Is there any argument that the electoral college could use their power to choose a different president if Trump were elected by the people? How would that process even work? — asks Tony from Maryland.

We saw headlines like this throughout November 2016 — “Could the electoral college stop Trump?” — and the easy answer, reader, is: technically, no.

While the electoral college was created so that, in the words of Alexander Hamilton, electors could “afford as little opportunity as possible to tumult and disorder” in the U.S. presidency, there is not much it could realistically do with its contemporary political power to undo the results of a democratically held election.

Let’s start with how the electoral college works: When voters go to the polls in November, they’re essentially casting a vote for the slate of electors representing the ticket. Electors then meet in December to cast their votes for president and vice president with the expectation they’ll follow their state’s vote. This way, they certify the election’s winner, which Congress affirms Jan. 6.

During an election, the candidate who wins a majority — at least 270 — of electors becomes president.

But let’s say Donald Trump wins in 2024 and some electors decide they don’t want him to be president (this is, again, highly unlikely).

All but two states have winner-take-all systems when it comes to the electoral college, and 32 states — plus D.C. — require electors to vote for the candidate who received the most votes in their state. But only 15 states have penalties for punishing or replacing electors who go rogue.

The Supreme Court decided in 2020 that states can require electors to support the winner of its popular vote and may punish or replace those who don’t. But that decision, as our colleague Robert Barnes wrote then, doesn’t eliminate the possibility electors could go rogue, given that not all states explicitly require conformity, and the court’s opinion does not force them to set up such systems. Not all scenarios are covered.

So it is possible, in an extremely unlikely scenario, that a set of electors in states that do not heavily punish those who go rogue decide to cast their vote for a winner that is not Trump. And that could, maybe, change the results of the election.

A forecast of severe weather has forced Trump to reschedule his rally in Nebraska with Republican gubernatorial hopeful Charles Herbster, a longtime political ally who has been accused of sexually assaulting several women.

Trump, in a statement, said he’ll hold the rally the evening of May 1, “weather permitting.”

The former president thanked all those “who waited in line for our Save America Rally” and said the forecast of possible “60 mph+ wind, hailstorms, and maybe even tornadoes” kept him from visiting the state Friday night.

“The most important thing is to keep you safe, and that cannot be done with such a terrible forecast,” Trump said. “Thank you to Charles W. Herbster and his wonderful staff for working so professionally with us.”

“See you on Sunday!” Trump added.

While Herbster has faced multiple accusations of sexual assault, Trump has remained loyal to his endorsee, who has also campaigned with Trump’s son Donald Trump Jr. Herbster has denied the allegations.

Biden endorsed another House incumbent Friday, throwing his support behind Rep. Shontel Brown (D-Ohio), who is facing a rematch against former state senator Nina Turner.

Biden in a statement said the freshman Democrat “has been an ardent advocate for the people of Ohio and a true partner in Congress.”

“We need leaders like Shontel to help continue the fight to respond to this pandemic, lower costs for working families, and rebuild the middle class,” said Biden, who recently endorsed Rep. Kurt Schrader (D-Ore.) in his primary race.

Biden also endorsed Brown over Turner in the 2021 special election held to replace then-Rep. Marcia L. Fudge (D), who the president tapped as his housing secretary.

In a tweet, Brown thanked the president:

Brown also has the endorsement of House Majority Whip James E. Clyburn (D-S.C.), who will travel to Cleveland to campaign for her this weekend.

Turner, a former Ohio state senator, has received the backing of far-left Democrats and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). Turner was co-chair of Sanders’s 2020 campaign and notably insulted Biden with an expletive.

The tense rematch for the seat is, like last year’s race, a reminder of the friction in the Democratic Party between its more moderate members and the far-left wing. Brown appears to have made more inroads during her time in Congress with more liberal members of the party.

The Congressional Progressive Caucus, for example, endorsed her through its PAC, with its leaders — including its chair, Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) — calling Brown an enthusiastic supporter of “key progressive priorities and legislation.”

The primary is Tuesday.

Republicans, amplified by Fox News and other conservative media, have argued since President Biden was inaugurated that American parents are unhappy with what’s being taught in schools.

Per Philip Bump’s count, Fox News has talked about this issue more than 1,000 times.

The focus has, over the last year, shifted from what schools are teaching about race — back during the Virginia gubernatorial contest, conservatives pushed to get Toni Morrison’s novel “Beloved” off the shelves — to gender, thanks in large part to Florida’s “don’t say gay” bill, a new law that limits discussions of gender and sexuality in classes.

But, as Philip notes:

For all of the time and energy spent discussing these subjects, though, and for all of the intonations from elected officials about how they’re responding to the concerns of parents in their districts or states, new polling conducted by Ipsos for NPR reveals something interesting.

Most parents think that their kids’ schools are teaching what they should be. ...

[Parents] were asked if the schools their kids attended taught U.S. history in a way that was consistent with their own values. Most said they did.

The poll also asked about other subjects, like race and racism, the impacts of slavery and racism and sexuality and gender identity. In each case, more parents said they thought those things were being taught in keeping with their own values than said they weren’t.

You can find this Ipsos/NPR polling here, and read more from Phil on this here.