What happened
Pressure mounted on Sen. Bernie Sanders
to exit the Democratic presidential race
this week, after Joe Biden accelerated his
march to the nomination with decisive
wins in three major primaries. The former
vice president trounced Sanders in Florida,
winning 62 percent of the vote to Sanders’
23 percent, and won by wide margins in
Illinois and Arizona. In Ohio, where Biden
was a heavy favorite, Gov. Mike DeWine
postponed the primary at the eleventh
hour over coronavirus concerns. The wins,
part of a three-week streak that has given
Biden a delegate lead of 1,132 to 817,
makes it all but impossible for Sanders to
reach the 1,991 delegates needed to secure the party nomination.
In Florida, Sanders failed to win even a single county; in Illinois,
where Sanders took nearly half the vote in 2016, he had won only
one out of 102 counties as The Week went to press. Still, Sanders
made no move to concede; his campaign manager, Faiz Shakir, said
in the coming weeks Sanders would be “having conversations with
supporters to assess his campaign.”The coronavirus loomed large over the primary contests, with
both candidates avoiding public appearances. Georgia, Louisiana,
Maryland, and Kentucky have all pushed back their primaries, and
a postponement is being sought in Puerto Rico, where the next
contest was to be held on March 29. The likelihood of the process
stretching through June, and the complications that the pandemic
poses at the ballot box added fuel to the calls for Sanders to quit.
“It’s over,” said Rep. Don Beyer of Virginia. “This is the adult
thing to do—knowing when it is time to disappear.”What the editorials said
Sanders is finished, said the Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Sun-Sentinel.
The numbers from this week’s primaries “make clear the breadth
and depth of Biden’s support against Sanders,” who’s being beaten
in nearly every demographic, from union members to suburban
women. The democratic socialist claimed he could energize the
young and bring disaffected voters into the fold, but the numbers
have proved him wrong again and again. He should now rally his
loyal base behind Biden and focus on getting President Trump outof office. “That change would be revolu-
tion enough.”Faced with inevitable defeat, most candi-
dates would gracefully quit, said the Wash-
ington Examiner. “Of course, Sanders is
no ordinary candidate.” He’s an ideologi-
cal crusader who “sees his campaign as a
vehicle to carry on his socialist message.”
But “such a campaign is harder to justify
now given that the nation is in the midst of
staving off a pandemic.” Is he really going
to urge people to come out and vote for
his losing candidacy when health experts
are urging them to stay home?What the columnists said
Sanders has a powerful reason to stay in the race, said Holly Otter-
bein and David Siders in Politico.com. Even if winning is hopeless,
by “amassing as many delegates as possible” he’ll be able to influ-
ence the party platform at the Democratic convention in July. And
the coronavirus crisis gives Sanders the perfect opportunity to spread
his political message, said Jason Linkins in NewRepublic.com. It
puts a spotlight on the “cracks in American society” he assails on
the stump, “from the yawning gaps in our health-care system to the
precariousness of America’s working class.”The pandemic offers Sanders another way to exert influence—by
returning to Washington, said Jeet Heer in TheNation.com. Con-
gress is racing to build an economic stimulus package, and with a
large national audience and a raft of substantial proposals, “Sand-
ers is well poised to take a leadership role.” The presidency may be
out of reach, but his policies for dealing with the crisis—free testing
and treatment, a moratorium on evictions, a suspension of mort-
gages and utility payments—“could be pushed through right now.”“What comes next is one giant question mark,” said Shane Gold-
macher in The New York Times. Restrictions on large gatherings
across the nation mean most future primaries “are in limbo.” Will
states allow mail balloting, as the Democratic National Committee
is urging? How will turnout be affected? For now, all Biden can
do is “hope that the next time voters go to the polls, he will be the
only candidate still running.”An elbow bump greeting for Biden and SandersNe
ws
co
m,
Jo
sh
ua^
A.^
Bic
kel
/Di
sp
atc
h
Biden extends his commanding lead over Sanders
... and how they were covered NEWS 5
It wasn’t all bad QHelena Schlam is in self-imposed quarantine at her Ohio
home, but the 78-year-old isn’t lacking for entertainment.
Taran Tien, 9, and his sister Calliope, 6, this week staged a
classical musical concert on their elderly neighbor’s front
porch. The siblings put on their best formal attire, picked up
their cellos, and played a
30-minute repertoire that
covered everything from
a Bach minuet to “Go Tell
Aunt Rhody.” Schlam sat
a safe distance away and
cheered after each song;
her grandchildren, who live
in Israel, watched the con-
cert over FaceTime. “This
was a delightful break for
all of us,” said Schlam. “It
was such a real gift.”QMichelin-starred chef José Andrés
is turning eight restaurants in New
York City and Washington, D.C., that
have been shuttered by the coro-
navirus outbreak into community
kitchens. To-go meals will be free for
those in financial difficulty and $7 for
customers who can afford it. The res-
taurants will be staffed by salaried
employees who volunteer for the
gig and will be open daily from noon
to 5 p.m. “People have to eat,” said
Andrés, who has previously set up
mobile kitchens in Puerto Rico, the
Bahamas, North Carolina, and else-
where following natural disasters.
“We need to prepare for the worst
and hope for the best.”QA customer left a hefty tip for staff
at his local watering hole in Ohio
this week, just hours before the
state’s governor ordered all bars and
restaurants to shut down amid the
coronavirus pandemic. Knowing
employees at the Coaches Bar and
Grill in Columbus would struggle in
the weeks ahead, the unnamed cus-
tomer tipped $2,500 on a $30 check.
“Please split this tab equally,” he
wrote. For someone to “care enough
about people that give him a beer
and a hamburger once in a while,
that means a lot,” said owner Benny
Leonard. “It’s humanity at its best.” Schlam enjoys the concert.