President Donald Trump&#8217;s pick for Alabama Senate, former Auburn University football coach Tommy Tuberville, trounced former Attorney General and longtime Senator Jeff Sessions in a devastating primary Tuesday night, and will now go on to face Democrat Doug Jones in November – and Democrats are already taking vicious aim.
Trump had a rather productive Tuesday night, with several key wins, <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/07/15/who-won-primaries-texas-maine-alabama-363200">per Politico</a>. In addition to Tuberville&#8217;s victory over Sessions, &#8220;Trump’s former White House physician, Ronny Jackson, won in Texas and is all-but-certain to come to Congress in January,&#8221; the outlet reported.
The president took a very active role in the Alabama race, likely as a way of exacting retribution on Sessions, who recused himself from the Department of Justice investigation into whether the Trump campaign had impermissibly coordinated with Russian officials to undermine the 2016 presidential election.
&#8220;[Trump] tweeted about it repeatedly over the course of the 18 weeks between the endorsement and the runoff, calling Sessions a &#8216;disaster&#8217; in the days before the vote,&#8221; Politico noted. &#8220;He met with Tuberville last month on a visit to Texas and held a runoff-eve conference call with the coach and his supporters.&#8221;
Tuberville&#8217;s victory was decisive, <a href="https://www.al.com/news/2020/07/17-of-registered-voters-cast-ballots-in-primary-runoff-sessions-wins-3-counties.html">according to AL.com</a>; Sessions won just three of Alabama&#8217;s 67 counties.
&#8220;Slightly more than 17% of Alabama’s registered voters cast a ballot in Tuesday’s primary runoff, according to the Alabama Secretary of State’s Office,&#8221; the state-based outlet noted. &#8220;Unofficial results show 626,551 ballots were cast out of 3,608,572 registered voters for a turnout of 17.36%. The greatest number of votes – 549,721 – were cast in the race for the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate. Winner Tommy Tuberville received 333,890 votes, or 61%, to Jeff Sessions’ 215,831 votes, or 39.26%.&#8221;
Before the results were even finalized, though, Democrats were taking aim at Tuberville, launching a series of attacks on the former football coach, largely over rumors of malfeasance during Tuberville&#8217;s career at Auburn and his time as an SEC coach at Ole Miss.
&#8220;Sen. Jones got justice for four little girls murdered during church by the Klan. Tommy Tuberville thought a one-game suspension was enough when one of his players raped a little girl. Which one cares more about your daughter’s future?&#8221; the <a href="https://twitter.com/aldemocrats/status/1283240632409096192">Alabama Democrats tweeted</a>, citing an opinion piece from the Washington Examiner.
&#8220;Tommy Tuberville said he&#8217;d leave Ole Miss &#8216;in a pine box,'&#8221; the account railed. &#8220;Days later, he left for Auburn. Never told his players goodbye. At Auburn, he had a wandering eye every year. At Texas Tech, he ditched a recruit during dinner to leave for Cincinnati. Wonder who he&#8217;s lying to now?&#8221;
Tuberville is a longshot to defeat Jones. Although Sessions was clearly not the favorite to win the Republican primary, he was generally considered to be a more reliable candidate in the general, up against Jones, the incumbent Democrat who defeated former judge Roy Moore in a special election to fill Sessions’ seat when Sessions went to serve in the DOJ.

Alabama Senate Candidate Jeff Sessions Votes In Runoff Primary Election

Trump Favorite Trounces Jeff Sessions In Alabama Primary But Now Democrats Take Aim

2020 Election

Alabama

Donald Trump

Doug Jones

Jeff Sessions

President Trump continued his post-impeachment trial &#8220;victory lap&#8221; Monday by issuing a series of (mostly) optimistic predictions about what he believes will happen to some of the Democratic Party&#8217;s leading names in upcoming elections, including the senator who led the Democratic pro-impeachment vote, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and the congressman who oversaw the drafting of the two articles of impeachment, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-NY).
Trump&#8217;s post-acquittal electoral prognostication got going on Sunday with a prediction about the fate of Democratic Alabama Sen. Doug Jones, who is up for re-election this year after narrowly winning Jeff Sessions&#8217; vacated seat in a special election in 2017 against embattled Republican candidate Roy Moore.
&#8220;So good to see that Republicans will be winning the Great State of Alabama Senate Seat back, now that lightweight Senator [Doug Jones] cast a partisan vote for the Impeachment Hoax,&#8221; Trump tweeted Sunday (posts below). &#8220;Thought his boss, Cryin’ Chuck [Schumer], would have forced him to vote against the Hoax. A Do Nothing Stiff!&#8221;
Monday morning, Trump added a few more predictions, including that freshman democratic socialist Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) would primary, and defeat, Schumer.
&#8220;Because of how badly they did with the Impeachment Hoax, AOC will primary Cryin’ Chuck Schumer, and win, and Jerry Nadler has a good chance of losing to his far left primary opponent!&#8221; Trump wrote. &#8220;It is all getting quite interesting.&#8221;
Ultimately, Trump declared, &#8220;Pelosi will lose the House, AGAIN!&#8221; — in part, he suggested, because his approval rating is up. &#8220;My poll numbers great,&#8221; he wrote, referencing his approval hit its highest in years in some polls, including a recent Gallup tracking poll that showed him at <a href="https://news.gallup.com/poll/284156/trump-job-approval-personal-best.aspx">49%</a>, his highest since first taking office in 2017.
&#8220;95% Approval Rating in the Republican Party, a Record!&#8221; Trump noted in a post ahead of his House prediction. &#8220;53% overall (plus add 9 points?).&#8221;
&#8220;Corrupt Democrat politicians have brought me to highest polling numbers ever with the Impeachment Hoax,&#8221; he added. &#8220;Thank you Nancy!&#8221;
In a follow-up tweet, Trump highlighted some other positive polling trends. Citing New York Post opinion writer Miranda Devine, Trump tweeted out a quote: &#8220;Trump has gained 20 points since Impeachment began in October. He gets 67% on economy. Nonwhite approval of Trump is also at a high: 28%, up 10 points in a year. Nice one, Nancy.&#8221;
Prior to his Monday morning predictions, Trump reminded his 72 million followers that he is making an appearance in New Hampshire that night ahead of the primary. His goal: &#8220;to shake up the Dems a little bit.&#8221; In the reminder, he also worked in a quick dig on the Democrats over the ongoing Iowa caucuses debacle.
&#8220;Will be in Manchester, New Hampshire, tonight for a big Rally,&#8221; he wrote. &#8220;Want to shake up the Dems a little bit — they have a really boring deal going on. Still waiting for the Iowa results, votes were fried. Big crowds in Manchester!&#8221;
Trump&#8217;s optimism about 2020 follows what many analysts, particularly on the right, have called one of his best weeks ever, a result of his acquittal in the Senate on the charges presented in the Democrats&#8217; two impeachment articles, and the Democrats&#8217; embarrassing mishandling of the Iowa caucuses, which resulted in suspect results inspiring a fed-up Democratic National Committee chairman to declare &#8220;enough is enough&#8221; and order a complete recanvassing of the vote. Meanwhile, longtime Democratic frontrunner, the most centrist of the Democrats&#8217; leading candidate, came in a stunning fourth place in Iowa, a major blow to his campaign.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
So good to see that Republicans will be winning the Great State of Alabama Senate Seat back, now that lightweight Senator <a href="https://twitter.com/DougJones?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DougJones</a> cast a partisan vote for the Impeachment Hoax. Thought his boss, Cryin’ Chuck, would have forced him to vote against the Hoax. A Do Nothing Stiff!
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1226591267817185280?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 9, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Will be in Manchester, New Hampshire, tonight for a big Rally. Want to shake up the Dems a little bit &#8211; they have a really boring deal going on. Still waiting for the Iowa results, votes were fried. Big crowds in Manchester!
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1226830302485630977?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2020</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
95% Approval Rating in the Republican Party, a Record! 53% overall (plus add 9 points?). Corrupt Democrat politicians have brought me to highest polling numbers ever with the Impeachment Hoax. Thank you Nancy!
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1226835190569414657?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Because of how badly they did with the Impeachment Hoax, AOC will primary Cryin’ Chuck Schumer, and win, and Jerry Nadler has a good chance of losing to his far left primary opponent! It is all getting quite interesting. Pelosi will lose the House, AGAIN! My poll numbers great.
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1226847711703584768?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Thank you to <a href="https://twitter.com/mirandadevine?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@mirandadevine</a> of the New York Post for your interesting (and correct) column today. “Trump has gained 20 points since Impeachment began in October. He gets 67% on economy. Nonwhite approval of Trump is also at a high: 28%, up 10 points in a year. Nice one, Nancy.”
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1226874798715949057?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2020</a></blockquote>
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This article has been updated to include Trump&#8217;s New York Post tweet.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY)

Trump Makes Series Of Election Predictions For Democrats: Ocasio-Cortez, Schumer, Nadler

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

Charles Schumer

Jerrold Nadler

Nancy Pelosi

In a Wednesday morning speech on the U.S. Senate floor in anticipation of an expected ultimate impeachment acquittal vote later today, Sen. Doug Jones (D-AL) announced that he will &#8220;reluctantly&#8221; vote to convict President Donald Trump on each of the two articles of impeachment adopted by the U.S. House: &#8220;Abuse of power&#8221; and &#8220;<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/hammer-at-the-new-york-post-obstruction-of-congress-is-an-utterly-ridiculous-impeachment-charge">obstruction of Congress</a>.&#8221; Jones has been viewed as one of three possible Democratic senators, along with Sens. Joe Manchin (WV) and Kyrsten Sinema (AZ), who could cross party lines and join the overwhelmingly majority of Republican senators expected to vote to acquit Trump.
&#8220;After many sleepless nights, I have reluctantly concluded that the evidence is sufficient to convict the President for both abuse of power and obstruction of Congress,&#8221; Jones said in a statement, as <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/481610-doug-jones-says-he-will-vote-to-convict-trump">reported</a> by The Hill. &#8220;[A]fter careful consideration of the evidence developed in the hearings, the public disclosures, the legal precedents, and the trial, I believe the president deliberately and unconstitutionally obstructed Congress by refusing to cooperate with the investigation in any way.&#8221;
&#8220;The president’s actions placed his personal interests well above the national interests and threatened the security of the United States, our allies in Europe, and our ally Ukraine,&#8221; Jones added. &#8220;His actions were more than simply inappropriate. They were an abuse of power.&#8221;
Jones&#8217; decision leaves Manchin and Sinema as the remaining Democrats who still might join Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and the majority of his Republican caucus in voting to acquit President Trump of his impeachment charges. Moderate Republican Sens. Lisa Murkowski (AK) and Susan Collins (ME) have each announced their intent to vote to acquit the president, which leaves freshman Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) as the only Republican senator still considered to be a possible defector.
Jones shocked the political world in 2017, winning a special election over the deeply polarizing and scandal-plagued Roy Moore to secure a Democratic Senate seat from one of the reddest and <a href="https://news.gallup.com/poll/247016/conservatives-greatly-outnumber-liberals-states.aspx">most conservative states</a> in the country. Accordingly, Jones, who is on the ballot this November, is widely considered to be the single most politically vulnerable Senate Democrat. As The Hill notes, a &#8220;JMC Analytics and Polling survey released late last year found that 39% of voters in Alabama support impeaching Trump, compared to 54% who oppose it.&#8221;
The Alabama Senate Republican primary is a crowded field, but there is no bigger name than Jeff Sessions — the man who long held this very Senate seat before abdicating it to assume the role of the Trump administration&#8217;s first attorney general. Other candidates include Rep. Bradley Byrne (R-AL), former Auburn University football coach Tommy Tuberville, Moore, and State Sen. <a href="https://www.conservativereview.com/news/levin-endorses-arnold-mooney-alabamas-gop-senate-primary/">Arnold Mooney</a>. Assuming Moore does not prevail, whichever candidate does emerge from the Republican primary will assuredly become an immediate general election favorite over Jones.
&#8220;A new <a href="https://winwithjmc.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Alabama-Senate-Executive-Summary-General-Election-Poll-1.pdf" data-reader-unique-id="17">poll</a> on the 2020 Alabama U.S. Senate race finds an uphill race ahead for incumbent Doug Jones, but also no Republican candidate breaking from the pack,&#8221; local CBS affiliate WHNT News <a href="https://whnt.com/2019/12/23/new-polls-finds-uphill-climb-for-incumbent-u-s-sen-doug-jones-in-re-election-bid/">reported</a> in December. &#8220;The poll found also shows Jones with a solid lead over Republican Roy Moore, 47 to 33 with 20% undecided. &#8230; But in match-ups against the leading GOP contenders, including Sessions, &#8230; Tuberville, and &#8230; Byrne, Jones trails.&#8221;

Sen. Doug Jones

Doug Jones Will ‘Reluctantly’ Vote To Convict Trump Today

Impeachment

Joe Manchin

Kyrsten Sinema

Roy Moore

U.S. Senate

At least three Democrat Senators are reportedly considering acquitting President Donald Trump of the charges leveled against him in the Democrats&#8217; partisan articles of impeachment.
&#8220;Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Doug Jones of Alabama are undecided on whether to vote to remove the president from office and agonizing over where to land,&#8221; Politico reported. &#8220;It’s a decision that could have major ramifications for each senator’s legacy and political prospects — as well shape the broader political dynamic surrounding impeachment heading into the 2020 election.&#8221;
The move would give the president a bipartisan acquittal to the Democrats&#8217; partisan charges, something that Trump is eagerly seeking.
&#8220;All three senators remain undecided after hearing arguments from the impeachment managers and Trump’s defense team. But they could end up with a creative solution,&#8221; Politico added. &#8220;One or more senators may end up splitting their votes, borrowing a move from Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine), who voted for the abuse of power charge but against the one on obstruction of Congress.&#8221;
There appeared to be some confusion on Tuesday over a quote that Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) gave, which the LA Times reported as meaning that she was open to acquitting the president.
The LA Times tweeted: &#8220;Breaking: Sen. Dianne Feinstein became the first Democrat to suggest that she could vote to acquit President Trump despite serious concerns about his character.&#8221;
&#8220;Nine months left to go, the people should judge. We are a republic, we are based on the will of the people — the people should judge,&#8221; The LA Times quoted Feinstein as saying after the president’s team finished a three-day presentation in his defense. &#8220;That was my view and it still is my view.&#8221;
The LA Times <a href="https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2020-01-28/trump-team-wraps-impeachment-defense-with-an-elephant-in-the-senate-john-bolton">added</a>:
<blockquote>Still, she indicated that arguments in the trial about Trump’s character and fitness for office had left her undecided. “What changed my opinion as this went on,” she said, is a realization that “impeachment isn’t about one offense. It’s really about the character and ability and physical and mental fitness of the individual to serve the people, not themselves.”
Asked whether she would ultimately vote to acquit, she demurred, saying, “We’re not finished.”</blockquote>
After the LA Times published their story, Feinstein responded, &#8220;The LA Times misunderstood what I said today. Before the trial I said I&#8217;d keep an open mind. Now that both sides made their cases, it’s clear the president’s actions were wrong. He withheld vital foreign assistance for personal political gain. That can’t be allowed to stand.&#8221;
Not everyone believed Feinstein&#8217;s response.
Federalist co-founder Sean Davis responded: &#8220;Whoever runs Feinstein&#8216;s Twitter account is now walking this back, saying reporters &#8220;&#8216;understood&#8217; what Feinstein really meant, which seems unlikely. The more likely option is that staff are now re-educating Feinstein about how she will vote.&#8221;
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Whoever runs Feinstein&#39;s Twitter account is now walking this back, saying reporters &quot;misunderstood&quot; what Feinstein really meant, which seems unlikely. The more likely option is that staff are now re-educating Feinstein about how she will vote. <a href="https://t.co/4RiS5Jhjrh">https://t.co/4RiS5Jhjrh</a>
&mdash; Sean Davis (@seanmdav) <a href="https://twitter.com/seanmdav/status/1222295054460559365?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 28, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Far-left Young Turks employee Ana Kasparian responded: &#8220;Nice backpedal. Not buying it. Feckless &amp; craven Dems like Feinstein need to be voted out. We need lawmakers who actually represent us. She ain&#8217;t it.&#8221;
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Nice backpedal. Not buying it. 
Feckless &amp; craven Dems like Feinstein need to be voted out. We need lawmakers who actually represent us. She ain&#39;t it. <a href="https://t.co/hjIvEFlQlU">https://t.co/hjIvEFlQlU</a>
&mdash; Ana Kasparian (@AnaKasparian) <a href="https://twitter.com/AnaKasparian/status/1222289780337037313?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 28, 2020</a></blockquote>
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YouTuber Tim Pool responded: &#8220;Yeah yeah blame the newspaper quoting you.&#8221;
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Yeah yeah blame the newspaper quoting you
“Nine months left to go, the people should judge. We are a republic, we are based on the will of the people — the people should judge,” Feinstein said Tuesday. “That was my view and it still is my view.” <a href="https://t.co/BTC3NkFFOK">https://t.co/BTC3NkFFOK</a>
&mdash; Tim Pool (@Timcast) <a href="https://twitter.com/Timcast/status/1222289667011293184?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 28, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Senate Lawmakers Address The Media After Their Weekly Policy Luncheons

At Least 3 Democrat Senators Considering Voting To Acquit Trump. One Senator May Surprise.

On Sunday, appearing on ABC News “This Week” with host Martha Raddatz, Senator Doug Jones (D-AL) <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/week-transcript-12-22-19-sen-ron-johnson/story?id=67872600">conceded</a> he might vote for acquittal if President Trump is tried in the Senate. Jones stated, “I&#8217;m trying to see if the dots get connected. If that is the case, then I think it&#8217;s a serious matter. I think it&#8217;s an impeachable matter. But if those dots aren&#8217;t connected and there are other explanations that I think are consistent with innocence, I will go that way too.”
The conversation began with Jones defending House Speaker Nancy Pelosi&#8217;s announcement that she would not forward the the articles of impeachment from the House to the Senate until she could get concessions from Senate GOP leaders on securing witnesses in a trial. Jones said, “Well, I certainly don&#8217;t think it&#8217;s unfair for her to do that … I think what the speaker is doing is to say, what are the rules going to be when I send House managers over there? What kind of playing field are we going to have? What is the timing of this?”
Raddatz’s partisanship was on display when she <a href="https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2016/10/09/exclusive-whistleblower-martha-raddatz-covered-up-acorn-scandal-before-2008-election/">covered up</a> the alleged improper collusion and coordination between Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) and Acorn in 2008. Jim A. Kuypers noted in his book, “<a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=2NNJAgAAQBAJ&amp;pg=PA288&amp;lpg=PA288&amp;dq=Martha+Raddatz+partisan&amp;source=bl&amp;ots=6RTPhwdRAS&amp;sig=ACfU3U3sCN-BxFcL-UPoYO6ouwql8Q-THw&amp;hl=en&amp;sa=X&amp;ved=2ahUKEwi_--mJ1srmAhXrmuAKHRf3DOY4ChDoATAIegQICBAB#v=onepage&amp;q=Martha%20Radd">Partisan Journalism: A History of Media Bias in the United States</a>,” “the activist approach taken by ABC’s Martha Raddatz in the October 11 vice-presidential debate and by CNN’s Candy Crowley in the October 16 town-hall debate, as both of those journalists repeatedly interrupted the Republican candidate and larded the discussion with a predominantly liberal agenda.”
Raddatz theorized the alleged crimes of Trump far superseded the crimes committed by former President Bill Clinton that triggered his impeachment, saying, “ …  this is very different than President Clinton&#8217;s impeachment. House Democrats have called the president a clear and present danger to this country and our upcoming elections. If he&#8217;s so dangerous, why are House Democrats suddenly slowing down?”
Jones protested, “Well, I don&#8217;t think that they&#8217;re slowing anything down. We&#8217;re not going to be back for awhile. I don&#8217;t think they&#8217;re slowing anything down.
Raddatz asked, “Let&#8217;s talk about the vote. The majority leader has said that he believes that at least one or two Democrats in the Senate could defect and vote to acquit the president. Is he talking about you?”
Jones replied, “I have no idea what Mitch McConnell&#8217;s talking about these days.”
Raddatz pressed, “I know, sir, you say you&#8217;re going to be an impartial juror. Given everything we have already seen in the House and that phone call, what is it that you need to know more about? What reason could there be to make you not vote to convict the president?”
Jones responded, “I didn&#8217;t sit in front of the TV set the entire time the last two or three months. I&#8217;ve been trying to read this. I&#8217;m trying to see if the dots get connected. If that is the case, then I think it&#8217;s a serious matter. I think it&#8217;s an impeachable matter.”
But then, conscious that he comes from a highly conservative state and was only elected because he ran against a problematic GOP candidate, he shifted to this: “But if those dots aren&#8217;t connected and there are other explanations that I think are consistent with innocence, I will go that way too. I have got to make sure that I — what I really want to see, though, is to — to fill in the gaps. There are gaps.&#8221;
Raddatz, knowing what was causing Jones to vacillate, asked, “I know you voted against the Kavanaugh nomination and still managed to win your Senate seat, but there are Republican strategists who say if you vote to impeach President Trump, in your deeply red state, he basically signs his death warrant. Is that what you&#8217;re doing there? Do you — are you worried about that? Quickly, if you can.”
Jones stammered, “Absolutely — no — you know, Martha, let me tell you. My — my — my — I have a — I have a — I took an oath as a U.S. senator. I&#8217;m going to take another oath. And that&#8217;s where I — my — my duty is.”

Road Collapse In Nanchang