Aside from coverage of former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush discussing on Thursday night the 2016 race, Friday’s CBS This Morning dedicated two segments to going after the Republican Party through the lens of presidential candidate Donald Trump in ruling that he’s “causing more angst” in the GOP and “burn[ed]” down the party’s “bridge” to Hispanics voters.
During the 7:00 a.m. half-hour, correspondent Julianna Goldman touted the protest at the site of a future Trump hotel in Washington D.C. (which was quite small in its turnout) and how they “call[ed] on the Obama administration to remove his name from the hotel his company is constructing in a landmark building on federal land.”
Goldman eventually transitioned to covering Trump’s candidacy and the GOP by explaining that the billionaire “is growing even more defiant and that's causing more angst among the Republican establishment, presidential candidates, and donors” as they “worry that his inflammatory language could set back efforts to build ties with the Hispanic community, an important constituency for anyone hoping to win the White House.”
Later, Republican pollster and CBS News contributor Frank Luntz joined the co-hosts in the show’s 8:00 a.m. half-hour to further discuss the effect that Trump has had on the presidential race. Fill-in co-host Anthony Mason teased the segment in the previous half-hour by remarking that “[t]he GOP is struggling to deal with Donald Trump.”
In one question to Luntz, co-host Norah O’Donnell wanted to know what the appropriate response to Trump should be by the other candidates and he views Trump as “a problem for the party in many ways”:
Well, if you look at the front page today and I've talked to Republicans that there's sort of this concern in the Republican Party, which is a swift response to denounce his comments or hands-off approach because they're worried about inflaming his supporters or distancing himself or that he may run on a third-party ticket. I mean, is this a problem for the party in many ways?
Bringing up the meager 27 percent of Hispanics that voted for then-GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney in the 2012 election, Mason entered the conversation to opening wondering: “Republicans have been trying to build a bridge to Hispanics, but is Trump effectively burning that bridge down before it's even finished?”
Luntz praised Mason’s point as “a good one” despite the fact that the election is “still a year and a half way” and further analyzed that:
Republicans cannot win without at least 35 percent of the Latino vote. It matters particularly in a state like Florida, which is the most important state in America and what Trump says is going to turn off those voters. There's no mistaking that.
The relevant portions of the transcript from July 10's CBS This Morning can be found below.
CBS This Morning
July 10, 2015
7:12 a.m. Eastern
[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: Targeting Trump; Critics Push Back Against Controversial Candidate]
JULIANNA GOLDMAN: The sign behind me says “Trump Coming, 2016,” and whether intended is a double meaning or not, it's pretty hard to miss. Now, protesters are saying Trump’s controversial comments have that sign into a symbol of hate and should be taken down. Protesters rallied against Donald Trump Thursday, calling on the Obama administration to remove his name from the hotel his company is constructing in a landmark building on federal land.
(....)
GOLDMAN: Trump is growing even more defiant and that's causing more angst among the Republican establishment, presidential candidates, and donors who worry that his inflammatory language could set back efforts to build ties with the Hispanic community, an important constituency for anyone hoping to win the White House.
(....)
8:05 a.m. Eastern
O’DONNELL [TO FRANK LUNTZ]: Well, if you look at the front page today and I've talked to Republicans that there's sort of this concern in the Republican Party, which is a swift response to denounce his comments or hands-off approach because they're worried about inflaming his supporters or distancing himself or that he may run on a third-party ticket. I mean, is this a problem for the party in many ways?
(....)
ANTHONY MASON: Frank, Mitt Romney won just 27 percent of the Hispanic vote in 2012, as you know. Republicans have been trying to build a bridge to Hispanics, but is Trump effectively burning that bridge down before it's even finished?
FRANK LUNTZ: Well, it’s still a year and a half way, but your point is a good one. Republicans cannot win without at least 35 percent of the Latino vote. It matters particularly in a state like Florida, which is the most important state in America and what Trump says is going to turn off those voters. There's no mistaking that.
