Monday Briefing | March 7
Senator Ted Cruz of Texas speaking at the 2013 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in National Harbor, Maryland. Gage Skidmore.
Gage Skidmore.
Stories to Follow:
Cruz Maintains Suspense In GOP Race
After Super Saturday, Ted Cruz proved to be Donald Trump’s most dangerous (and soon-to-be only?) rival in the Republican presidential primaries. Texas Sen. won the Kansas and Maine GOP caucuses with large margins, while the real estate mogul prevailed in Kentucky and Louisiana. The two other Republican contenders, Marco Rubio and John Kasich, performed poorly and lag far behind in the delegate count.
In the Democratic camp, Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton had a tight finish. While Vermont Sen. dominated the caucuses in Maine, Kansas and Nebraska, former Secretary of State easily took Louisiana, confirming her popularity among African-American voters.
Lula Suspected In Corruption Scandal
Last Friday, Brazilian federal police questioned and searched the house of former president Lula da Silva, whom they suspect to have accepted bribery from the oil company Petrobras while in office. Investigators believe that the semi-public multinational laundered large amounts of money to the leftwing leader and other prominent Brazilian politicians in exchange for lucrative contracts – allegations that Lula, who left power in 2011, has vehemently denied. He was visited on Saturday by his successor and ex-protégé Dilma Rousseff, who is herself facing impeachment proceedings for misuse of public funds.
Benin Holds Presidential Elections
Beninese citizens voted on Sunday to elect their new president. They could choose between 33 candidates – a historical record – to succeed Thomas Boni Yayi, who stepped down after serving two consecutive terms. While polling stations closed in the evening with no major incident reported, the final results should not be known before Wednesday. Frontrunners include Franco-Beninese PM Lionel Zinsou, businessman Patrice Talon and former PM and economist Pascal Irénée Koupaki.
Happening This Week:
Japan Week 2016
Thursday March 10 to Saturday March 12, 7pm | 89 E 42nd St.
Shakespeare in the Square NYU Presents AS YOU LIKE IT
Saturday March 12, 1pm | Washington Square Park
Celebration of Norouz – the Persian New Year
Saturday, March 12, 1pm – 5pm | Asia Society
Drunk JEB! Talks: Short and Sweet Meditations on the Nature of Failure
Saturday, March 12, 10:30pm- 11:30pm | Videology Bar & Cinema
In Your Free Time:
The Internet seems to be an inexhaustible source of Trump-bashing. If you haven’t watched them yet, check out these two gems (among many many others): John Oliver’s segment on Last Week Tonight and SNL’s campaign spoof which, somehow, sounds quite realistic.
Oh, and by the way, Neflix just released the fourth season of House of Cards. Ready for binge-watching?
This Monday Briefing brought to you by Daniel Hoffman.
