| | | | No Brexit-like surprise in France as Macron wins | | The most captivating news story worldwide this weekend was the election in France, where Emmanuel Macron cruised to the presidency. His nearly two-to-one victory was predicted by the polls, but after the surprise wins last year of Brexit and President Donald Trump, the world couldn't help but wonder if there would be another shocker. At the time of Nightcap's writing, with almost all of the votes reported, Macron led far-right nationalist Marine Le Pen 65.5% to 34.5%. Relive the highlights of the day's election with CNN's live blog.
The victory was hailed by many in the West as a rejection of nationalism and isolationism. Macron was even publicly endorsed by former President Barack Obama. World leaders and US politicians quickly congratulated Macron:
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The final hours weren't without surprises, though. In an echo of the US election, hackers dumped apparent emails and documents from Macron's campaign online less than 48 hours before the country voted. The files were released just before 2 p.m. ET Friday, around four hours before the election campaign period, with its restrictions on campaigning, reporting and polling in the final days, officially closed, CNN's Steve Almasy explains. These restrictions are aimed at preventing last-minute scandals from emerging and influencing the election's outcome. More here.
What does the election ultimately mean? CNN's Paris correspondent, Melissa Bell, explains in a Q&A with CNN's Chris Cillizza: "Emmanuel Macron represents all that Donald Trump is not. He represents the world order that Trump has kicked against: Consensus based on the idea of shared values rather than the single-minded pursuit of individual interests. He is pro-European and pro-globalization. He will represent a boost to the camp of world leaders who worry about populists and want them contained." | | "Nobody dies because they don't have access to health care." -- Rep. Raul Labrador at a town hall with constituents in Idaho, earning Chris Cillizza's "worst week in Washington" (dis)honor. | | | Aftermath of Obamacare repeal vote sets in | | Members of the House quickly left town after finally passing legislation to repeal Obamacare, but over the weekend the realities of what they had done began to set in. Rep. Raul Labrador faced antsy constituents, as we noted above, and other lawmakers are sure to have contentious town halls throughout the recess week coming up.
Meanwhile, the ball is now in the Senate's court. CNN's all-star Hill team, including Dana Bash, Lauren Fox and Ted Barrett, have the list of 13 Republicans in the Senate who will form the working group to craft the upper chamber's own proposal to repeal Obamacare. All 13, notably, are men. A GOP aide defended the makeup of the group, saying they are not interested in "playing the games of identity politics."
Lawmakers are already preparing for 2018 ramifications. Politico's Alex Isenstadt and Gabriel Debenedetti game it out: "More than a dozen senior Republican strategists, lawmakers, and potential candidates expressed varying degrees of concern over the political implications of the health care push. Some predicted that House members would face a fierce backlash from voters, while others said the party had erred badly in rushing through a bill that lacked broad public support. The vote, combined with President Donald Trump's record-low poll numbers and rising public dissatisfaction with how Republicans are wielding power over the federal government, has produced a cauldron of instability for the party, which is holding onto a 24-seat edge in the House. There is also the weight of history: In every midterm election since 2002, the party in the White House has lost congressional seats."
So how did the votes come together? Promises of what political consultants call "air cover" helped House GOP leaders get to the finish line, CNN's Phil Mattingly reports. House members who worried that a "yes" vote would be unpopular in their districts were told by Speaker Paul Ryan that they would get help with TV ads and other re-election support. More on that here. | | | Who's making a list now? Jake Tapper takes a look at what's written on the most powerful whiteboard in America on this week's State of the Cartoonion. | | 3 things you may have missed this weekend | | White House chief of staff Reince Priebus defended a draft proposal to slash funds for the White House office responsible for fighting the opioid epidemic on Sunday, saying a lot of what the office does duplicates other government programs. Cautioning that "nothing is final in this debate and discussion in regard to this particular issue," Priebus told Fox News' Chris Wallace that "we have duplicative services in this regard all over the place," CNN's Sophie Tatum reports.
The White House also pushed back today on questions about a signing statement President Donald Trump added to the latest government spending bill Friday that said his administration would treat minority spending programs -- including one to help historically black colleges pay for construction -- in a manner consistent with the Constitution. A White House official said the signing statement "simply indicates that the President will interpret those provisions consistent with the Constitution" and is not dissimilar to signing statements issued by past Presidents, CNN's Athena Jones and Sophie Tatum report.
Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice warned that even with Marine Le Pen's defeat in the French election, populism is having a profound effect on global politics. "I really do believe that these populists are changing the character of the politics just by being there, so even mainstream candidates are having to respond to their agenda," the Republican said, according to USA Today. "You see fewer people talking about free trade. You see countries talking about industrial policy and protectionism. It's hard to defend immigrants almost anyplace in the world today. ... The rise of nativism is having an impact on the politics, even if the candidates aren't winning." | | | Gov. John Kasich called the Republican health care bill "inadequate." ... The second nominee for Army secretary, Mark Green, withdrew amid controversy. ... Corey Lewandowski has left his influence firm shortly after founding it. | | | We'd love to share our other newsletters with you. Check out Five Things for Your New Day, CNN's morning newsletter. Give us five minutes, and we'll brief you on all the news and buzz people will be talking about. | | | Get the Nightcap, a comprehensive summary of the most important political news, delivered to your inbox daily. | | | | | |
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