NBC News Entrance Poll: As caucuses began, Nevada Democrats were largely confident their votes would be counted correctly
As Democratic caucusgoers prepared to participate in Saturday’s Nevada contest, most expressed optimism that votes would be counted correctly, according to the NBC News Entrance Poll. More than 4 in 5 participants were confident in a correct count.
Those who were skeptical of an accurate count heavily favored Bernie Sanders: He won the support of more than half of these voters.
Voters’ confidence may end up being shaken by the fact that four hours after the caucuses began, few votes had been officially tallied by the state’s Democratic Party. Anecdotal reports indicated that confusion was delaying the reporting of results at several precincts across the state.
Trump tells 'Crazy Bernie' Sanders: 'don't let them take it away from you!'
President Donald Trump tuned into the Nevada Democratic caucuses on Saturday, tweeting that "Crazy Bernie" was doing well and telling the Vermont senator, "Don't let them take it away from you!"
"Looks like Crazy Bernie is doing well in the Great State of Nevada. Biden & the rest look weak, & no way Mini Mike can restart his campaign after the worst debate performance in the history of Presidential Debates," Trump tweeted, short before NBC News projected Sanders would win. "Congratulations Bernie, & don't let them take it away from you!"
Since the 2016 primary, Trump has frequently suggested that the Democratic National Committee is working against Sanders to keep him from winning the party's nomination.
More than 80 people participated in the caucus at Rancho High School near downtown Las Vegas, where Sanders appeared to be doing well.
"I feel great," said Mario Vivales, who cast his vote for the Vermont senator and said he believes the caucus process went smoothly. "I saw Bernie jumping ahead of everyone."
Most of the volunteers running the caucus there were high school students between 15 to 18 years old.
“This is the next generation,” said Yesenia Moya, 30, who was the temporary precinct chair. “I’m proud to be a part of this today.”
Glady Ayala,15, and Evelyn Pena, 16, volunteered in their first caucus this year. Both girls are Rancho High School students.
“I thought it was a really good opportunity to try something new,” Ayala said.
Pena said it was pretty stressful because participants wanted things to go faster.
“We were trying our best," she said. "We are new to this.”
The best part of the day, they said, was meeting Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak and first lady Kathy Sisolak.
NBC News entrance or exit polls find that Medicare for All is supported by large majorities of Democratic voters in Iowa (57 percent support to 38 percent opposition), New Hampshire (58 percent support to 37 percent opposition) and Nevada (62 percent support to 35 percent opposition).
That helps explain the strength of Bernie Sanders in all three states and indicates that rival candidates who staked their primary campaigns on opposing Medicare for All — most notably Joe Biden and Pete Buttigieg — may have miscalculated. Many Democratic voters in 2020 are less interested in candidates who talk about what is politically possible and more interested in candidates who seek to change what is possible.
NBC News Entrance Poll Desk
NBC News Entrance Poll: Support for Sanders and Warren divided along education lines in Nevada
An educational divide separates the Nevada supporters of Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, the two leading liberal contenders for the Democratic presidential nomination, results from the NBC News Entrance Poll show.
The Massachusetts senator drew her strongest support in Nevada from the most educated caucusgoers. She received 19 percent of the vote among those with an advanced degree. But at each step of the education ladder below this level, Warren did worse: She bottomed out at 8 percent among those who have never attended college.
Sanders did better than Warren among Nevada voters at every education level, but his pattern was the reverse of hers. Among Democratic caucusgoers who have never attended college, he was favored by nearly half. Sanders’ support was reduced at each additional level of educational attainment; he and Warren ran virtually neck-and-neck among those with an advanced degree.
Kevin Harvick Was 'So Darn Happy' To See A Photo Of Ryan Newman Doing Well
The NASCAR community is sending massive support to Ryan Newman after he was released from the hospital this week. Many were rightfully concerned for his well being following a terrifying crash on the last lap of Monday night's Daytona 500.
Among those sending their love is fellow NASCAR champ Kevin Harvick. He quote tweeted a photo of Newman with his daughters and wrote, "So darn happy to see this picture."
Fans were right there with him on that sentiment.
"What a beautiful picture! Sending positive thoughts and Prayers for a Speedy Recovery Ryan Newman!" one said.
"I opened up Twitter and this was the first image I saw and tears just started rolling down my face," another wrote.
"So good to see this. Thank you Dear God for watching over Ryan and May he be safe the rest of the season along with all the rest of the drivers," a third replied.
Roush Fenway Racing President Steve Newmark tweeted a message for the staff at the Halifax Health Medical Center where Newman was taken after the crash.
"We owe a debt of gratitude to many people for what transpired over the last few days but a special thanks to the incredible care and attention from the staff at Halifax Health Medical Center," he said, along side a photo of the hospital team.
Newmark previously released a statement when Newman was released from the hospital, and the team announced that he will be replaced this weekend by Ross Chastain while he recovers.
“First and foremost, our focus remains with Ryan and his family as he continues to recover,” said Newmark. “We also want to express our sincere gratitude to all of those who have offered support and taken the time to send their thoughts and prayers to Ryan, his family and everyone at Roush Fenway Racing.
“The NASCAR community has long prided itself on being a close-knit family,” added Newmark. “That is never more evident than during these types of moments, and we want to express our appreciation to everyone at Chip Ganassi Racing as well as Kaulig Racing for allowing Ross to fill in for Ryan in the No. 6 on such short notice.”
Despite Newman seemingly on the mend, the crash has some in the NASCAR community concerned. FOX analyst Mike Joy shared his thoughts on Twitter.
"We've become so accustomed to cars flipping, sliding in a shower of sparks at these big tracks, then the drivers climb out and wave to the crowd... because THEY ALWAYS CAN," he wrote on Twitter. "Monday's finish was a jarring wakeup call to everyone who loves the sport."
He continued in a second tweet, "Nascar's writers and broadcasters are (thankfully) a very diverse group of talents, opinions and attitudes. In times like this we ALL pull together.. to stem the flow of misinformation, spike rumors, and respect the process. We are hopeful and cautiously optimistic. We're good."
There's a lot to love about what Romeo Langford is doing defensively for Celtics
No matter what Brad Stevens does from here on out, he'll be remembered as one of the winningest coaches in Boston Celtics history.
At 309 victories (and counting) after Friday’s 127-117 win over Minnesota, only three men — Red Auerbach (795), Tommy Heinsohn (427) and Doc Rivers (416) — have won more games pacing the Celtics sideline than Stevens.
Making the milestone even more impressive is that Stevens came directly from the college ranks, where success has been a rarity.
The most recent college-to-the-pros coach to struggle with the adjustment is Cleveland’s John Beilein. The former Michigan coach stepped down as the Cavs' head coach to assume a yet-to-be-determined job within the franchise.
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Figuring out the secret sauce to Stevens’ success isn't easy.
He’ll be the first to tell you that a number of factors have come into play that allowed him to find success where so many of his college-to-the-pros brethren struggled.
One of the reasons college coaches get opportunities to lead NBA teams is because of the track record of success they build up at the college level. Stevens led the Butler Bulldogs to a national runner-up finish in back-to-back seasons (2010 and 2011), a remarkable accomplishment for a mid-major program.
For Stevens, preparing for the worst when it comes to wins and losses, was challenging at first. The lack of success Cleveland (15-40) has experienced this season was a major factor in Beilein’s decision to no longer coach the Cavs.
“I find losing very challenging and this year has taken a much bigger toll on me than I expected,” Beilein said in a statement. “I grew concerned for the consequences this toll could potentially take on my own health and my family's well-being down the road. I was not certain I could be at my best for the remainder of the season and in the future. That would not be fair to the players, coaches and support staff."
Indeed, Stevens recalls how difficult dealing with all the losing in that first year was for him.
As a rookie head coach with the Celtics, Stevens’ squad finished 25-57. To put that in perspective, Stevens won more games at Butler in five of his six seasons than he did in Boston as a rookie, and did so in less than half of an 82-game NBA season.
“That first year was hard,” Stevens told NBC Sports Boston. “I remember being miserable because I never lost like that. But that’s part of it. You learn a lot about yourself, so when you get to that second year you feel a lot different.”
Those early struggles did not catch Stevens off-guard.
“Our first year was expected to be really hard,” Stevens said. “It was expected to be hard for a couple years.”
But a series of trades during the 2014-2015 season gave Boston just the jolt of confidence and talent needed to make a late-season charge. That ended with them getting the eighth and final playoff seed, where they swept in the first round by the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers.
Sure, getting swept was disappointing. But that balanced out with the fact that Boston had found a brand of basketball that would serve as the foundation for the team’s future success.
“We found a team that competed well together,” Stevens said. “We were able in year two to find our way, at least establishing a little bit with that group, how we wanted to play.”
Stevens is quick to credit the Celtics’ front office, ownership and his assistant coaches for providing the kind of support on and off the court, that a college coach making a jump of this magnitude, absolutely has to have. But maybe more than anything, a college coach making the jump to the NBA has to trust that the process of establishing a comfort level and a culture takes more than just one season.
For Stevens, that’s the great disappointment in how things have played out with Beilein. While there’s a certain element of uncertainty that comes with making the jump to the pros, Beilein did his research in advance. Stevens was among the coaches he spoke with prior to taking the Cavs job.
Beilein also spoke with Oklahoma City’s Billy Donovan, who also made the jump from a successful career in college to the NBA.
"I talked to Billy the year before at length," Beilein told reporters earlier this season. "For like an hour on the phone. He encouraged me that he really liked (the NBA). He liked the pace of it. He really liked the coaching. He also said, ‘It’s a long season. You gotta be able to stay in there and hang through the tough times and just keep coaching.’ He encouraged me to do it."
So did Stevens, who felt Beilein’s strength in working with young players, coupled with his innovative style of play, would make him an ideal head coach for a young Cavaliers squad.
There’s a fairly high amount of trial and error that first year as well.
“When I first got the job, I’m watching film of the Celtics from the year before and nobody is going to be back. This doesn’t make sense,,”Stevens recalled.
Shortly before Stevens accepted the job, the Celtics traded away cornerstone players Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett, leaving Rajon Rondo as the only starter with the team at that time, from the 2008 NBA title squad.
But with each passing season, Stevens became more comfortable with the NBA.
“You are in front of the media, in front of the cameras and you have to answer and do that every single day while preparing your team to play their best,” Stevens said. “It’s just a really challenging gig.”
And now in his seventh season, there’s little doubt that Stevens is comfortable with the league, its players and his role in moving Boston closer towards Banner 18.
I asked Stevens if there were one or two tips he had for a college coach who was contemplating a move to the NBA as a head coach.
“What I always tell the college guys that are interested is, the summers are great,” Stevens said. “The middle of the season is going to throw a bunch of storms at you. That’s part of it. But that’s ... it’s a lot of fun if you keep the right perspective.”
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