Hot on the Trail

Contradictions abound as Iowa prepares to caucus

Prince of concern

Ohio Governor John Kasich is all smiles in New Hampshire, calling himself the “prince of light and hope.” But he can’t help fretting over what Donald Trump will do in the White House, saying the front runner’s rhetoric recalls the Salem witch trials. “I’m concerned about negativity rising in America,” he told TIME.

Hillary insurance

Former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg is planning a turnkey third-party campaign in case Hillary Clinton falters. The billionaire doesn’t want to see Bernie Sanders or Trump win. One Bloomberg aide told TIME it’s “still possible” that he would run against Clinton but “significantly less likely.”

Faith in Trump

Religious-right insiders hoped to christen Ted Cruz as their chosen one, but Liberty University’s Jerry Falwell Jr. upset those plans with a Trump endorsement on Jan. 26. A Pew poll shows that white evangelicals see Trump as the least devout in the field, but more than half say he would be a good President.