2020 Elections

The Cedar Rapids Gazette reports: Candidates scheduled to appear are Elizabeth Warren, Cory Booker, Pete Buttigieg, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Julian Castro, Amy Klobuchar, Tulsi Gabbard, Joe Sestak and Marianne Williamson. This is the first public event of the 2020 election cycle to focus exclusively on LGBTQ issues. The forum will be hosted by “Pose” star and activist Angelica Ross …

The Rising reports: An official at the Working Families Party (WFP) said Friday that he — and many of his fellow staffers — have faced a deluge of violent, racist, and sexist attacks following the progressive group’s endorsement of Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). “There’s been good faith debate and conversations on the Internet — and I’m here for all of …

Politico reports: As Democratic presidential candidates barrel into the fall, they are still waiting for the party to write the rules for the most important events of the campaign. The candidates are bracing for another round of strict new debate criteria from the Democratic National Committee, which has already halved the list of candidates making the debate stage and could …

CNBC reports: New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has abandoned his long-shot campaign to win the Democratic Party’s 2020 presidential nomination. He announced his decision Friday morning on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” De Blasio’s withdrawal from the race came after months of failing to improve what was persistently ultra-low support in opinion polls tracking voters’ preferences for Democratic contenders vying …

Gothamist reports: A Queens community activist has just announced a primary campaign for Congress. You may have heard of her opponent: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the current incumbent. Plenty of Republicans have filed to run for Ocasio-Cortez’s seat representing New York’s 14th congressional district. Republicans do not care for AOC, unless you consider Fox News mentioning her 3,181 times in six …

The Washington Post reports: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell came out Thursday in support of providing states with an additional $250 million in election security funding, an abrupt turnaround after more than a year of opposition by the Kentucky Republican on the issue. McConnell, who has been derided by Democrats as “Moscow Mitch” for repeatedly blocking efforts to combat Russian …

The Hill reports: Matt Drudge declared that the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination is “Elizabeth Warren’s nomination to lose” in a rare commentary late Wednesday on Twitter to his more than 500,000 followers. The tweet from the reclusive Drudge also includes a photo of a Monday Warren rally in NYC’s Washington Square Park that drew an estimated 20,000 people. President Trump …

Fox News reports: Fifty-nine percent of voters are extremely interested in the 2020 presidential election. That’s a number typically only seen right before an election. It’s 27 points higher than around this same time in the last presidential cycle — and only one point off the record 60 percent extremely interested the week before Election Day in 2008. Joe Biden …

Real Clear Politics reports: Donald Trump wants to build the wall. A wannabe-Donald Trump in Arizona wants to annex Mexico. Ahead of a general election where the Grand Canyon State could be a bit of a problem for the president, the wealthy owner of a cosmetics company, Daniel McCarthy, is challenging incumbent Sen. Martha McSally in the Republican primary. His …

From Amazon’s corporate blog: Customers rely on Alexa to answer all sorts of questions throughout the day —from sports scores and state capitals to nutrition facts and the latest current events. During the midterm elections last fall, customers asked Alexa a multitude of questions, including “Alexa, when are the polls open?”, “Alexa, who is winning in New York?” and more. …

The Hill reports: Former Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) lead a new poll of likely Iowa caucus-goers by a wide margin as Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) fade. The poll was conducted for Focus on Rural America, a Democratic group run by former Lt. Gov. Patty Judge (D) and Iowa political strategist Jeff …

The Associated Press reports: Weeks shy of his 95th birthday, former President Jimmy Carter said he doesn’t believe he could have managed the most powerful office in the world at 80 years old. Carter, who earlier this year became the longest-lived chief executive in American history, didn’t tie his comments to any of his fellow Democrats running for president in …

The Huffington Post reports: Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) became the first woman to “Slow Jam The News” on “The Tonight Show” Monday and, oh baby, it was “Hot Girl Summer.” Host Jimmy Fallon joined Tariq Trotter of The Roots, and Harris rapped some sweet resistance. “Ever since Barack left, we’ve been off track. But Kamala is trying to get us …

She’s really trying to get into the next debate: Democratic 2020 presidential candidate and US Army Reserve officer Rep. Tulsi Gabbard doubled down in her fierce criticism of President Donald Trump, blasting him for “pimping out” the US military to protect Saudi Arabia and adding: “We are not your prostitutes.” In a two-minute video posted on Twitter, the Hawaii Congresswoman …

Indianapolis’s ABC affiliate reports: Josh Owens filed paperwork today to enter the 2020 Governor’s race. “I’m running for Governor now because I believe in an Indiana where teachers are paid what they deserve and where all are welcomed, respected and protected,” Owens said. “We need a leader who will ensure our state budget, policies and laws reflect a bold and …

Roll Call reports:  Four-term California Rep. Paul Cook is retiring from Congress to run for county office instead, continuing the stream of Republican House members heading toward exits. Cook’s chief of staff John Stoebel told the LA Times that Cook plans to run for the San Bernadino County Board of Supervisors. Stoebel did not immediately respond to a request for …

This is actually great news: Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez plans on Tuesday to announce her endorsement of Marie Newman, a progressive candidate seeking to oust Representative Daniel Lipinski, a conservative-leaning Illinois Democrat, marking her first move of the 2020 campaign cycle to back a primary challenger to an incumbent. Ms. Ocasio-Cortez’s high-profile support amounts to a powerful seal of approval, telegraphed …

Politico reports: The Working Families Party endorsed Elizabeth Warren for president on Monday — delivering both a victory for the Massachusetts senator and blow to her liberal rival, Bernie Sanders. “Senator Warren strikes fear into the hearts of the robber barons who rigged the system, and offers hope to millions of working people who have been shut out of our …

“I’ve given up on the Republican Party, the Republican party is a cult, right. They no longer stand for ideals. The Republican Party right now is all about washing their leaders feet every day, that’s what they do. We’re going to take our campaign directly to Republican voters — and I’ll add in all 50 states. “We’re gonna campaign in …

Axios reports: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will escalate her caucus’ anti-Mitch McConnell messaging this fall, testing a theory that this can be more effective than just continuing the party’s anti-Trump rhetoric, Democratic leadership aides tell Axios. Democrats are still divided over how much to focus on President Trump ahead of the 2020 elections — and they’re aware that “Trump fatigue” …