FRIDAY, JUNE 24, 2016
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Trump’s image slips, Clinton steady: Poll Trump’s net favorable rating slipped to -33 for mid-June from -28 in the first week of May: Gallup IANS, WASHINGTON
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mericans’ views of presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump have drifted slightly more negative over the past month and a half, while his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton’s image remains steady, according to a Gallup poll. Trump’s net favourable rating slipped to -33 for mid-June, from 28 in the first week of May, according to the poll released on June 21. At the same time, Americans’ view of Clinton has remained significantly less negative and more stable, with a current -13 net favourable rating, Xinhua cited the Gallup as saying. By this point in an election cycle, when each party’s nomination has been clinched, candidates typically have had a more positive image than has been the case for Clinton and Trump. Since 1992, Gallup has tracked a few presidential candidates with a negative net rating in June and July of an election year, Gallup found. The last month and a half has been an eventful period for both candidates. Trump for instance secured the number of delegates he
US Senate rejects gun control measures WASHINGTON: The US Senate on June 20 failed to muster the votes to pass any of several competing bills aimed at making it more difficult for potentially dangerous individuals to purchase firearms. Popular revulsion over the deaths of 49 people in the June 12 mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, prompted lawmakers in both parties to put forward proposals. Republicans and Democrats submitted bills to restrict sales of guns to suspected extremists and to bolster the current system of background checks that applies to a substantial proportion of firearms purchases, EFE news agency reported. But none of the measures garnered the 60 votes necessary to move forward. Most Democrats rejected the Republican proposals as inadequate, while the majority of GOP senators found their rivals’ ideas —IANS too restrictive.
Briton ‘wanted to shoot Trump’ WASHINGTON: A Briton who tried to grab a police officer’s gun at presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump’s rally in Las Vegas said he wanted to shoot the the billionaire, court papers said. Michael Steven Sandford, 20, who is charged with an act of violence “on restricted grounds”, did not enter a plea when he appeared before a judge in Nevada and was remanded in custody until a hearing on July 5, BBC reported. Sandford had tried to seize the gun after saying he was seeking Trump’s autograph at June 19 rally. The man said he was planning and trying to shoot Trump for about a year but had decided to act now because he finally felt confident enough to do so, papers said. A federal judge found Sandford, who appeared in court in shackles,
needed to win the nomination. He also attracted a great deal of attention by questioning the impartiality of the federal judge who is hearing a case in which he was being sued by a former student
to be a danger and risk of nonappearance. When asked about Sandford’s arrest, a Foreign Office spokesman said: “We are providing assistance following an arrest of a British national in Las Vegas.” Earlier, Trump fired his campaign manager Corey Lewandowski who oversaw his triumph in the primary contests. —IANS
of Trump University who claimed he did not get his money’s worth. Both candidates also made highly publicised comments following the tragic shootings earlier this month in Florida, which underscored how
each might handle such an event as commander-in-chief. Americans’ views of Clinton improved modestly after she secured her party’s nomination early the month, but that basically represented a return to where her image had been in early May -better than Trump’s but still negative. On the other hand, Americans’ views of Trump began to worsen in the final weeks of May and have continued to slip since.
Importantly, the trend reflects a slow slide, rather than an abrupt change in response to any specific event of the past month and a half. Gallup has been tracking the US public’s views of Clinton and Trump since mid-July 2015. Since then, both candidates’ images have become more negative. Americans’ views of Clinton have consistently been more positive compared to Trump, with the exception of a brief period last August.
US urging NSG members to back India’s bid IANS, WASHINGTON
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mid China’s reluctance to back India’s NSG bid, the US said it will continue to urge countries in the 48-member bloc to support India’s membership application at the plenary session in Seoul this week. US State Department spokesperson John Kirby, answering a query regarding China’s stance on India’s membership, also said that the US reaffirms that India was ready for membership to the Nuclear Suppliers Group. Kirby said: “We continue to call on the participating governments of the NSG to support India’s application at the plenary session in Seoul.” He said that during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Washington this month, US President Barack Obama welcomed India’s application to join the NSG and reaffirmed that India is ready for membership”.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Barack Obama. (File Photo: IANS/PIB)
“And nothing’s changed about our position,” he said. Asked if the US has had any opportunity to take up the NSG issue with China, Kirby said: “This is something that we have - India’s application is something we have routinely talked to other NSG participating members. This is not a new topic of discussion that we’ve
had privately with the members.” China stated on Monday that the NSG was divided over admitting India and that New Delhi’s application for membership was not on the agenda of the June 2324 plenary. “The NSG is still divided about non-NPT (Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty) countries entry into
the NSG and under the current circumstances we hope that NSG will make thorough discussions to make a decision based on consultation,” China’s Foreign Ministry said. “The inclusion of non-NPT members has never been a topic on the agenda of NPT meetings. In Seoul this year, there is no such topic,” it said. China has been opposed to India’s membership to the bloc that controls global nuclear trade on the grounds that it is not a signatory to the NPT. Beijing has also said if New Delhi is admitted, then so should Islamabad, its all-weather ally. India, which finds the NPT discriminatory in nature, has been backed by the US, Switzerland, Mexico, Italy, Russia and Britain. Countries like New Zealand and South Africa oppose India’s entry. Consensus among member countries is essential to allow a new entrant.