THE FOREMAN FORECAST: BRACE FOR IMPACT

Here are my three things to watch this week in politics.

CALIFORNIA HERE WE COME – While the Golden State primaries do not happen until June 7, this week all eyes will be on the West Coast. Many Dems hoped it would be a formality for their party like it will be for the Repubs. But Hillary Clinton is once again struggling to shake off a strong surge by Bernie Sanders, and if she stumbles the fault lines in the Democratic Party could grow even deeper. But she needs to tread carefully: Sanders’ loyal followers seem to dig in harder every time a Clinton supporter takes a swipe at them, and I repeat what I’ve said before – she needs them all if she’s going to take the nomination and survive Typhoon Trump.

I FOUGHT THE LAW – It’s becoming a pattern. Republican Donald Trump books an arena, thousands of admirers show up, and the whole shebang is met by scores of angry protestors. So far most of the clashes with lawmen trying to keep the peace have been relatively benign. But I’ve been around this kind of thing, and I fear the growing violence between protestors suggests one of these affairs could get way out of hand. Whichever side you’re on, watch yourself kids. Pretty much everyone is fine with a peaceful protest, but broken noses aren’t Democratic or Republican – they just hurt.

WARMING THE LEFTOVERS – If you think you’ve heard the last of Clinton’s email troubles, or the kerfuffle about a possible Trump/Sanders debate (which, as of this writing, is dead) well…you haven’t. We’re entering that part of the campaign where every potentially damaging item will be paraded through the streets beneath torches and pitchforks as long as possible. Get used to it. The only thing that will push one scandal out of the headlines between now and November will be the next one. Sigh.

CNN’s Tom Foreman is the author of My Year of Running Dangerously.