This is the DNC’s Battleground Brief — a weekly wrap-up of Trump’s broken promises and everything you need to know across the path to 270.

PROTECTING HEALTH CARE HAS NEVER BEEN MORE IMPORTANT — BUT TRUMP CONTINUES TO JEOPARDIZE CARE AND SPIKE COSTS. This week Democrats in Florida, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and across the battlegrounds called out Trump’s broken health care promises and held him accountable for hurting middle class families. Take a look:

IN FL:

BAY NEWS 9:

• “Democrats across the nation say they won back the House of Representatives in 2018 in large part by running on health care. It’s likely they’ll continue that messaging in 2020.

• “That’s why Florida Democratic Chair Terrie Rizzo was in West Tampa on Thursday morning, kicking off the party’s two-day ‘Fight for Health Care I-4 Corridor Tour.’

• “‘When Donald Trump was elected, he promised accessible health care for everybody,’ Rizzo said. ‘Well, he’s been in office for three years, pushing health care policies that range from ineffective to destructive.’ The top issue that Rizzo and her fellow panelists wanted to hone in on is the administration’s battle to repeal the Affordable Care Act.”

IN PA:

IN WI:

WISCONSIN DEMOCRATIC PARTY: “A new study conducted by Citizens Action and the non-partisan group the Altarum Healthcare Value Hub shows that health care is going to be the number-one issue voters care about heading into the November elections. 53% of those surveyed said they faced problems paying for their health care, while ⅘ people were worried about their ability to pay for their health care needs in the future.

“In 2016 and since taking office, Donald Trump has promised time again to lower health care and prescription drugs — but he’s done just the opposite. The average family is paying a record high of over $20,000 for health insurance while prescription drug costs continue to rise. House Democrats passed legislation that would allow Medicare to negotiate the prices on up 250 prescription drugs, but Senate Majority leader Mitchell McConnell refuses to hold a vote on similar bipartisan legislation at Trump’s direction.”

DNC CHAIR PEREZ IN FL: “If you’re a health care voter, the Democrats are the ones who have your back.” At a canvass kick-off in Oakland Park, FL  DNC Chair Tom Perez, Florida Democratic Party Chair Terrie Rizzo, and Broward County Democratic Party Chair Cynthia Busch spoke about Trump’s countless broken promises to Floridians and outlined their plans to organize voters across Florida and defeat Trump in November. Some highlights:

CBS: 

Watch the full clip here.

FLORIDA POLITICS: “Florida is one of six states the DNC is investing in as part of its ‘Battleground Build-Up 2020.’ That effort aims to help the eventual Democratic presidential nominee as well as down ballot candidates. The DNC says it’s aiming to increase on-the-ground field organizers, fund data and operations staff, and open additional offices in those six states.

“‘We are taking nothing for granted as we work to make Trump a one-term president and win up and down the ballot in 2020,’ Perez said in announcing that program. ‘These organizers, offices, and staff will help our eventual nominee grow their general election operation as quickly as possible and ensure Democrats are reaching out to every voter possible, starting right now. Donald Trump’s broken his promises, he’s hurt working families at every turn — and this program will help build the infrastructure we need to beat him.’”

SUN-SENTINEL: “Almost 100 paid workers. Millions of voters’ cell phone numbers. And ‘sub-ethnicity modeling.’ All are part of the efforts touted Monday by national, statewide and South Florida Democratic leaders as they outlined their efforts to mobilize voters for the 2020 election — even before the party has a presidential nominee.

“Perez outlined the party’s investment in people and technology for the 2020 elections during a visit to a storefront office in Oakland Park, where he spoke to a couple of dozen party workers hired to engage with potential voters, to get them registered to vote and, ultimately, to cast ballots in November.

“Perez said a joint effort by the state and national Democratic parties already has between 90 and 100 staffers in Florida. At a similar point in 2016, he said, there were about two dozen staffers.”

MIAMI HERALD: “Perez was in Broward County … to highlight the Democratic Party’s outreach in Florida, one of several battleground states in which Democrats are spending millions of dollars to register and engage voters. Perez said the state and national party together have hired more than 90 workers talking to voters across the state. The Florida Democratic Party continues to say it is on pace to meet its goal of registering 200,000 new Democrats by the summer.”

NV DEMS ARE BUILDING THE INFRASTRUCTURE TO BEAT TRUMP IN NOVEMBER. The Nevada Democratic Party isn’t taking anything for granted — but they know Donald Trump faces huge obstacles in Nevada. Take a look at their plans to beat Trump in November in the Las Vegas Sun:

• “The Democratic National Committee has started laying groundwork in Nevada for the eventual nominee to use during the general election campaign against President Donald Trump as part of its ‘Battleground Build-up 2020’ program designed to invest in competitive states.

• “‘We aren’t taking anything for granted,’ said John Weber, a spokesperson for the DNC. ‘Donald Trump is facing historic headwinds in Nevada, and by making early investments in our organizing infrastructure, we’re maximizing our eventual nominee’s capacity to build on that advantage and lead the way to victories up and down the ballot.’”

• “The groundwork also includes voter registration efforts. At the end of February, there were 611,355 Democrats registered in Nevada in comparison to 524,652 Republicans and 360,454 non affiliated voters.”

DEMOCRATIC “TURNOUT EXPLOSION” PROVES THE MOMENTUM TO BEAT TRUMP IN NOVEMBER IS THERE. The Democratic “turnout explosion” continued Tuesday night, with another wave of record-breaking turnout for Democrats who are energized and unified around defeating Trump as we head into the general election. Fresh polling shows “roughly 80% in each state say they will definitely vote for the Democratic candidate against Trump no matter who is nominated.” Some top-lines:

• Democrats are unified to defeat Trump: AP exit polling shows “roughly 80% in each state say they will definitely vote for the Democratic candidate against Trump no matter who is nominated.”

• In Idaho: 107,000 voters participated, five times the 2008 turnout and quadrupling turnout from 2016.

• In Michigan: In a “turnout explosion,” voter turnout hit almost 1.6 million surpassing 2016 turnout by 30 percent and far exceeding 2008.

• In Mississippi: Voter turnout increased by more than 20 percent compared to 2016.

• In Missouri: Democratic turnout surpassed 2016 turnout by tens of thousands.

• In North Dakota: Almost 15,000 voted, quadrupling the turnout from 2016.

• In Washington: With 67 percent reporting, Democrats have already quadrupled 2008 and 2016 turnout, while CNN found 9 in ten of those surveyed in the state “would vote for the Democrat in November regardless of who the nominee is.”

MANDATORY WEEKEND READING ON MI & TX: DEMOCRATS ARE ENERGIZED AND TURNING OUT 

Politico: Democrats smell blood in Texas after sky-high primary turnout.

• “Staggeringly high Democratic turnout in the Texas suburbs last week has the party bullish about capturing a half-dozen seats that slipped through its grasp in the 2018 midterms.”

• “Democratic primaries in six GOP-held districts saw a roughly 100 percent increase in voters compared to 2016, according to a POLITICO analysis of turnout data. The spike indicates that a lethal recipe might be brewing for Republicans in the run-up to November: President Donald Trump’s unpopularity in the suburbs, combined with rapid demographic change and an amped-up Democratic base.”

Michigan Shelton Herald: Democrats buoyed by high turnout in Michigan primary.

• “Michigan Democrats are hoping the record turnout in the state’s presidential primary portends well for their efforts to defeat President Donald Trump in November.”

• “Nearly 1.6 million people cast ballots on the Democratic side Tuesday. That was almost 380,000 more than four years ago, a 31% increase.”

• “State Democratic Party Chairwoman Lavora Barnes on Wednesday called it a ‘turnout explosion’ and said it showed that Democratic voters want to hold Trump ‘accountable’ for ‘broken promise after promise’ after he flipped Michigan to his corner — the first GOP nominee to have done that in 28 years. ‘With the statewide, grassroots organization we’ve built, I know we’re ready to turn every corner of Michigan blue this November,’ she said.”

TEXAS DEMS ANNOUNCE LARGEST-EVER VOTER REGISTRATION DRIVE IN 2020 FLIP EFFORT. 

• “The Texas Democratic Party announced Monday that it is launching the largest voter registration campaign in its history, building up a team of organizers to try to bring millions of new voters into the party ahead of the November election.”

• “Texas Democrats say they have identified nearly 2.6 million people who would vote Democratic if they were registered. The state party says they are using money from the Democratic National Committee to launch an organizing team focused on registering minorities in rural and suburban areas, groups that have often been underrepresented in Texas’ electorate.”

• “‘It’s basically night and day,’ state party spokesperson Abhi Rahman said of the DNC’s investment. ‘This is the first time in history that the Texas Democrats are running an organization at this scale.’”

• “‘The DNC is making historic, early investments to build strong, multiple pathways for our eventual nominee to win in November and support Democrats at every level of the ballot,’ DNC Chair Tom Perez said in announcing the placement of Texas on the list.”

• “Part of the DNC’s program is aimed at increasing the number of possible pathways to the 270 electoral votes needed to win the presidency. Democrats, who have long dreamed of turning delegate-rich Texas blue, argue that the state’s rapidly growing and diversifying electorate could make 2020 the year for that to happen.”

CENTER FOR AMERICAN PROGRESS: How Trump Has Undermined the Wisconsin Economy. Donald Trump has spent the past three years making promises to Wisconsinites to create jobs and strengthen the economy, but he’s broken those promises and instigated a trade war that has made the lives of Wisconsin families far worse. The Center for American Progress breaks down how Trump has undermined the Wisconsin Economy. Take a look:

• “Yet nearly three years after Trump’s inauguration, the data increasingly show that the administration has not helped working-class Wisconsinites; in fact, its policies have only exacerbated economic issues in Wisconsin—especially in areas that supported Trump in the 2016 election.”

• “2018 started with a trade war prompted by the Trump administration levying tariffs on countries across the globe, from European, Asian, and North American allies, to China, an economic rival. Estimating the costs of tariffs to consumers is difficult, but based on the most recent policy announcements from the White House, one study suggests that the average family paid an additional $1,315 in 2019 alone. Many working-class Americans will surely notice tighter budgets if they haven’t already. “

• “In the two years leading up to the start of the trade war, 15,154 workers were affected by mass layoffs in Wisconsin. In the two years following, that number jumped to 18,949 workers—a 25 percent increase.”

• “Moreover, Wisconsin’s overall seasonally adjusted unemployment rate had been steadily decreasing for the four years prior to Trump’s election and continued to do so until almost immediately after the trade war began.”

CONTINUE READING HERE.

**Donald Trump’s Reckless Trade Policies Are Still Wreaking Havoc on Working Families. Check Out These Headlines**

FactCheck.org: Eric Trump Wrong About Michigan Manufacturing Jobs

Newsweek: Donald Trump Failed to Revive Michigan’s Manufacturing Recession Like Obama Did—nd voters Might Take That To The Polls

Axios: The trade war could weaken U.S. coronavirus response

Charleston City Paper: Trump’s trade war threatens S.C.’s economy and workers — Democratic presidential candidates should vow to end it

VIDEO OF THE WEEK:

MSNBC: MI Dem Party Chair: “Our ultimate goal is that prize in November.”

Make sure to follow the DNC’s War Room (@DNCWarRoom) to get real-time updates on Trump’s abuses of power and broken promises.

Happy Friday!

The DNC Comms Team