INTERVIEW – ROBERT “BOB” COSTA – National political reporter, Washington Post and Moderator for Washington Week on PBS
- Discuss the results of the Alabama special election: Former Alabama Supreme Court Justice Roy Moore and Sen. Luther Strange advanced to a Republican primary runoff in Alabama’s special Senate race, which will put President Donald Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s political clout on the line in September. Moore had 40 percent of the vote and Strange — who was backed by Trump and McConnell — had 32 percent after The Associated Press called the race. Rep. Mo Brooks trailed at 20 percent. Alabama election laws call for the top two primary finishers to compete in a runoff if no candidate gets a majority.
- Trump’s feuding base faces showdown in Alabama Senate race. (Washington Post / By Robert Costa August 13) — “On the eve of the first round of voting, Trump is clashing with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) over the stalled GOP agenda, and Strange, despite the Trump bump, is unlikely to win the nomination outright Tuesday. A bruising one-month runoff campaign looms for the top two finishers, and Trump’s die-hard supporters in the state are divided. For Republicans, the Alabama contest is a snapshot of the party’s churning base at this moment in the Trump presidency. In a deep-red state, the dominant squabbles are not over ideological purity — that GOP test of old — but over loyalty to Trump and over who has the most visceral connection with his core voters.”
- PALACE INTRIGUE: Costa’s thoughts on the rumors about Steve Bannon possibly leaving the White House. Trump addressed it yesterday
