Ted Dickens (C) assists a person to get their ballot to vote in the Michigan primary election at Chrysler Elementary School in Detroit, Michigan, on March 10, 2020. (Photo by JEFF KOWALSKY/AFP via Getty Images)
Six more states will vote in the Democratic primary Tuesday night in the first contest since Senator Elizabeth Warren and former NYC Mayor Mike Bloomberg exited the field and prominent moderates coalesced around former Vice President Joe Biden.
Biden and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders will go head to head for the 352 delegates promised on what some are calling ‘Super Tuesday 2.0,’ with a focus on the battleground state of Michigan, where Biden is up by 24 points according to the last Detroit Free Press poll out today. FiveThirtyEight also has the former VP slated to win every state tonight.
Michigan, a blue state for Obama that voted for Trump in 2016, but also awarded Sanders a surprising primary victory the same year, is potentially showing signs it may again lean blue. One Republican mayor said he is backing Biden in the primary. Michael Taylor of Sterling Heights, in Macomb County, voted for John McCain in 2008 and Mitt Romney in 2012 and his county voted for Trump in 2016.
Some states voting today are battling coronavirus outbreaks like heavily stricken Washington, which promises the second-highest delegate haul. The state, which votes-by-mail, has asked voters to use water (instead of saliva) to seal ballot envelopes. As for Michigan, election officials are advising regular cleaning of voting machines and social distancing between voters.
Though campaign rallies are still on, staffers were using hand sanitizer on those entering rallies at a Biden event in Michigan. President Trump has also said he is not changing his own campaign plans, though public health officials worldwide are advising against public gatherings.
Florida lawmakers have introduced a controversial bill restricting some discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in classrooms with young students. Supporters say the move empowers parents to have more of a say in what their children learn. Florida State Senator Shevrin Jones joins Cheddar News to discuss more.
Congress this week passed a bill that would end forced arbitration for workplace sexual assault and harassment, one of the most significant changes to employment law in years. Cheddar News speaks with Marjorie Mesidor, Sexual Harassment Attorney, who explains that arbitrators are often retired judges or attorneys who "tends to have a more conservative view both to law and rewards."
As the situation with Russia has grown more precarious, the White House urged Americans remaining in Ukraine to leave immediately. The Biden administration that it sees continuing signs of escalation but did not have specific information detailing a timetable for a potential invasion. Kristine Berzina, senior fellow and head of the geopolitics team at the Alliance for Securing Democracy, joined Cheddar News to provide her analysis. "There's talk of an impending phone call between President Putin, President Biden," Berzina said. "That is certainly a good sign to indicate that there would be significant cost."
Terrell Starr, host of 'Black Diplomats' podcast and senior nonresident fellow at the Eurasia Center for Atlantic Council, joins Cheddar News from Kyiv, Ukraine to discuss the mounting tension there.
The White House laid out plans for a $5 billion investment into a national network of charging stations to ease EV driving anxiety. Bruce Brimacombe, CEO of EV infrastructure GOe3 joined Cheddar News to discuss how much needs to be done for drivers to get over the fear of running out of energy. "People need to be able to do what they're doing now," he said. "But that is the way that if you're going to buy an electric car, you got to feel like you're not changing your world." Brimacombe noted that building out the infrastructure between cities was GOe3's own focus.
U.S. automakers are saying that the blockade of the Ambassador Bridge, a crucial border crossing between the U.S. and Canada, is affecting their production lines. Michelle Krebs of Cox Automotive warns that the disruption "couldn't come at a worst time," amid chip and labor shortages in Detroit.
AND DETROIT-BASED AUTO MAKERS SAY THEY ARE SHUTTING DOWN PLANTS OR SCALING BACK PRODUCTION BECAUSE OF PARTS SHORTAGES.
Plans to add affordable housing to a development in Yellow Springs, Ohio, were squashed after comedian Dave Chappelle and other community members spoke out against the project. Chappelle threatened to pull the plug on his local comedy club and restaurant projects if the development had been approved.
David Tafuri, Former Obama Campaign Foreign Policy Advisor & Former State Department Official, joined Cheddar News to break down the latest geopolitical stories from Beijing, amid China's human rights abuses against Uyghur Muslims and yet another Russian doping scandal.
Dr. Jennifer Haythe of Columbia University's Irving Medical Center, joined Wake Up With Cheddar to discuss the latest with the pandemic, as the debate over child safety rages amid low vaccination rates and states easing school mask mandates.
