Trump walks back on abortion

Donald Trump
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump walks off stage after speaking at a campaign event at St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wis., Wednesday, March 30, 2016. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky) Photograph: Patrick Semansky/AP

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1. Trump recants on abortion

Reacting to outrage from conservatives and liberals alike, the Republican frontrunner retracted his statement that “there has to be some form of punishment” for women who have illegal abortions.

Three positions in three hours

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Summary

The woman is a victim in this case as is the life in her womb. My position has not changed – like Ronald Reagan, I am pro-life with exceptions.

– Donald Trump

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Summary

.@realDonaldTrump said women should be punished for having an abortion.

We can't let him be president.https://t.co/hC8CuMC8xu
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) March 31, 2016

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2. The party abides

The businessman went to Washington DC to meet with Republican leaders, likely to discuss his abandoned pledge to support any nominee and the plans of his rivals to broker the convention.

How a convention could foil Trump

The US Capitol. Photograph: Xinhua/Rex/Shutterstock

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3. John Kasich gets angry

The Ohio governor said Trump’s comments on abortion, nuclear weapons, torture, the Geneva conventions, and supporting an aide charged with battery prove the businessman is “not prepared”.

Retired officers denounce Trump

John Kasich. Photograph: Richard Drew/AP

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“I want to offer myself up as a new vessel,” he told Trump voters, speaking to their frustrations. He insisted the race will become “less Kardashian, more who’s gonna be president”.

Trump and supporter. Photograph: Nam Y Huh/AP

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Or not.

Enjoyable @CNN chyron moments ago: pic.twitter.com/CpgCA3PyT8
— Julie Bykowicz (@bykowicz) March 31, 2016

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4. Sanders goes east

Bernie Sanders readied for a rally in the Bronx and campaigned in Pittsburgh, where he mocked Hillary Clinton for high-paying speeches to Wall Street. “It must be a speech written in Shakespearean prose.”

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Summary

And Hillary Clinton saw off “Bernie people” who disrupted a rally in New York. “As they’re leaving, I want to say,” she told them, “I have two and a half million more votes than Bernie Sanders.”

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5. Cruz takes aim at everyone

The senator belittled Kasich to Wisconsin voters after joking: “If I were in my car and getting ready to reverse and saw Donald in the back-up camera, I’m not confident which pedal I’d push.”

Ted Cruz. Photograph: Randy Holmes/Getty Images

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6. Past candidates return

Chris Christie defended his decision to pour a bag of M&Ms into a box of M&Ms – “it’s easier to hold the box than to hold the bag” – and Rand Paul hyped an imminent endorsement.