Subject: RE: ABC This Week
From: "Crystal, Andy" <[email-masked]>
To: "Bhatnagar, Akshai" <[email-masked]>, "Dillon, Lauren" <[email-masked]>, Comm_D <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 8 May 2016 08:21:51 -0700

Segment 4: Matt Dowd, Rich Lowry, Donna Brazille, Alex Castellanos, Katrina Vanden Heuvel

Can Trump defy expectations again?

Dowd: Much harder task in a general. It is possible he can beat HRC but it is unlikely. Trump is more disliked and distrusted by 2/3 of the country more than HRC is.

Castellanos: Trump has at least a 50/50 shot if not better. He is a talented political salesman and HRC is one of the worst candidates in history. Country is in the mood for disruptive change.

Brazille: The electoral map does not favor Trump in a general. He cannot put together the Reagan democrats.

Lowry: have to give Trump credit for winning the primaries with such little organization. But the electoral map is extremely tough for him in a general. Wouldn't surprise him if Trump ends up to the left of HRC on healthcare.

Katrina: Trump is moving HRC to the progressive left. Demographics are on HRC side but the democratic party needs Bernie supporters to get out and vote.

Does HRC try and double down on the Bernie supporters or try and attract disaffected Republicans?

Dowd: needs to try and move as quickly as she can to a populist rhetoric.

Katrina: she has become a better candidate because of Bernie.

________________________________
From: Crystal, Andy
Sent: Sunday, May 08, 2016 11:03 AM
To: Bhatnagar, Akshai; Dillon, Lauren; Comm_D
Subject: RE: ABC This Week

Segment 2: Trump Interview

You said fixing the economy is your number one priority as president. Your tax plan is the most substantive and specific proposal you have put out so far. You said you believe in raising taxes on the wealthy but your plan gives a massive tax cut to the wealthy. How do you reconcile that?

[As Dillon pointed out, this question is a total train wreck for Trump. He doesn't make any sense. He thinks his tax plan is just a starting offer that will be negotiated with Congress. He also seems to not have any idea what is actually in his plan]

It is a massive tax cut to everybody. I make deals, I negotiate. I put out a plan that puts out a massive tax cut, bigger than every other candidate.

Taxes on the wealthy will go up a little bit. Taxes may be going down in my plan but by the time it is negotiated it will go up.

His tax proposal is his optimal plan but it is going to be negotiated. He will try and keep everything in but what he really wants is lower taxes on business and the middle class.

He doesn't mind paying more taxes.

His tax plan right now is just a concept. He is going to put in lower taxes than he actually wants because it is a good starting point for his negotiation with Congress.

You were against raising the minimum wage but now you said you are in favor of increasing it. What is your position on the minimum wage?

I am allowed to be flexible and change my positions. My real minimum wage is bringing jobs back to this country and they can earn more.

We have to use the power of the tariffs and of taxation.

Don't you have to be flexible on trade? So many of the products in the Donald Trump collection are made overseas -

That is because you can't even buy them here (??).

He does not think that making his own products overseas undercuts is argument on trade at all.

You said you might try to repurchase the US debt at a discount. Won't that undermine the full faith and credit of the US?

If you can buy it at a discount that is a great thing, we have to lower debt.

We have to rebuild the whole infrastructure of our country. Airports are falling apart.

Trump says lower interest rates are a great thing. Stephanopoulos interjects and says if you try to buy debt back at a discount, interest rates are going to go up because you have to borrow to pay for it. Trump says you buy debt back and take advantage of certain things. [Trump basically avoids the entire question about the consequences of repurchasing our debt]

You said we should work with our Muslim allies to defeat ISIS but don't you push those allies away when you talk about banning Muslims from entering the country?

If anything it makes the alliances stronger. First of all, it is temporary until we find out what is going on. Look at what is happening in Europe, Germany, Sweden. We can't be the stupid people anymore. We don't know who they are or where they are coming from.

What if you are president and our allies come to you and say we want to help in the fight against ISIS but we can't do it if the Muslim ban is in place?

Well, I disagree with them. We are not getting any help right now anyway. We give them equipment but they run away and our enemies pick up the equipment.

________________________________
From: Crystal, Andy
Sent: Sunday, May 08, 2016 10:35 AM
To: Bhatnagar, Akshai; Dillon, Lauren; Comm_D
Subject: RE: ABC This Week

Segment 1

Montage of what happened in politics this week. Showing the terrible headlines about how Trump's nomination killed the Republican Party and all the prominent Republicans coming out against Trump. Some clips of the Trump interview:

What will you tell Paul Ryan?

Will tell him this is what the people want. Have had so much support from all the people Paul Ryan works with, congressmen are endorsing him in waves now. Doesn't care if Lindsey Graham supports him.

Was very surprised and very disappointed in Ryan.

The party doesn't necessarily have to be unified. It would be better if it were, but doesn't think it actually has to be unified in the traditional sense.

I am a conservative but don't forget that this is called the Republican Party, not the Conservative Party.

On Jeb Bush not endorsing him -

Trump doesn't blame him, says if he were Jeb he probably wouldn't vote for himself either.

Are you worried about Obama out there campaigning against you?

Thinks it could be a good thing down the road.

On his comments about women -

A lot of it was said in his role as an entertainer because he had the Apprentice or some was said in fun situations like the Howard Stern show. He is not worried about those past clips coming back to haunt him because he was just saying what everyone else thinks.

What politicians say behind the scenes is far worse than anything Trump has said or will ever say.

HRC is a baby - just look what happens with her family. Take a look at her husband, how do you think he talks to women? She is playing the women's card so loudly.

There was an article about Melania in GQ this week and you said that spouses should be kept out of it. Do you think Bill Clinton should be off the table?

It depends on how involved he is in the campaign. He gets involved when she plays the women card.

Melania was a very successful model and now she just wants to be a homemaker. She is a very good woman.

Round Table: Matt Dowd, Rich Lowry, Donna Brazille, Alex Castellanos, Katrina Vanden Heuvel

Can this feud between Ryan and Trump be healed?

Dowd: the breach is between the GOP elite and GOP voters. The voters have spoken and have said Donald Trump represents their party. Donald Trump isn't the problem for the GOP elite, the voters are the problem.

Castellanos: It is going to be up to Trump to realize that Paul Ryan is the future of the GOP. Trump isn't running as a party guy, he has no vision around which to rally the party.

Lowry: Ryan rightfully expressed disgust at how many Republicans immediately got on board with Trump with no questions asked.

Donna: Ryan has been at least one of the Republicans who have spoken out against the kind of bigotry Trump is embracing.

Katrina: we are seeing the crack up of the party because the elites have not delivered for the base. Trump is like the Republicans frankenstein with orange hair. The Republican Party is reaping what they sowed. This is a party which has continually exploited what Trump is now exploiting - dog whistle racism.

Dowd: what party is Paul Ryan the future of? The Party says we want to ban muslims and build a wall, that is what they are now. Paul Ryan is the future but it is a future that is of a dinosaur party that is gone.

How can Paul Ryan come around to Trump if Trump continues to embrace the Muslim ban and the deportation of immigrants?

Lowry: Going to be very hard. Trump does not like foreign trade, foreign nations including our allies, foreign interventions, or foreigners when they come here.

________________________________
From: Bhatnagar, Akshai
Sent: Sunday, May 08, 2016 10:01 AM
To: Dillon, Lauren; Comm_D
Subject: RE: ABC This Week

Trump Part Two<https://toolbox.dnc.org/?tool_name=vantage%20uploader&path=vantageuploader.dnc.org/videos/shared_show?jwt=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJpYXQiOjE0NjI3MTU5NTEsImVtYWlsIjoiYmhhdG5hZ2FyYUBkbmMub3JnIiwiaWQiOjMxNjM1OCwiZG93bmxvYWRhYmxlIjp0cnVlfQ.TJkW5DVUoirVUROzXQuRGh-dU67UwPWeGytABc8mmCo>

From: Bhatnagar, Akshai
Sent: Sunday, May 08, 2016 9:59 AM
To: Dillon, Lauren; Comm_D
Subject: RE: ABC This Week

Trump Part One<https://toolbox.dnc.org/?tool_name=vantage%20uploader&path=vantageuploader.dnc.org/videos/shared_show?jwt=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJpYXQiOjE0NjI3MTU5MTEsImVtYWlsIjoiYmhhdG5hZ2FyYUBkbmMub3JnIiwiaWQiOjMxNjM1NywiZG93bmxvYWRhYmxlIjp0cnVlfQ.gSwAxACQT9b02Nv5DPDRQZ8iAvv0TKhUKbqL8wPHqYg>

From: Dillon, Lauren
Sent: Sunday, May 08, 2016 9:48 AM
To: Comm_D
Subject: RE: ABC This Week

Gary Johnson interview

Said he thought he would take as much from Clinton as he would from Trump.
Glad he is being added to the polls.

Legalizing marijuana would make the world a better place.
Safer alternative to other substances.
The war on drugs has taken a huge human toll.

Who would he choose between Hillary or Trump?
-he’d always vote libertarian.

From: Dillon, Lauren
Sent: Sunday, May 08, 2016 9:38 AM
To: Comm_D
Subject: ABC This Week

I missed the beginning of the Trump interview but came in when he was arguing that his tax plan will be negotiated and not look like what he put out. He claimed it would be a boon for the middle class and raise his taxes. We could/maybe should do a hit on  this. Sounded like he didn’t know his own plan.

On a Fox panel one of the commentators (Kim something?) hit Trump for changing his mind on his tax plan this week.

He was asked about his flip flop on the minimum wage and he said he was open to changing it but he really wanted to bring jobs where people could earn more.

He was asked how he could keep Carrier and other companies here when the products for the Trump Collection aren’t made in the US. He said that the items for his collection aren’t made here and didn’t think it was hypocritical….

There is probably more from this interview so someone should take a second look.