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O’Rourke Leads Democratic Race In Texas

July 30, 2019 at 11:11 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A new University of Texas poll finds Beto O’Rourke leads the Democratic presidential field in his home state with 27%, followed by Joe Biden at 24%, Bernie Sanders at 15%, Elizabeth Warren at 11%, and Kamala Harris at 9%.

Key takeaway: “Independent Democratic-learners (especially women) are a key to O’Rourke’s success in our poll. When included, these voters expand his lead to 38% among primary voters (with Joe Biden receiving 19% support), though they are also the least likely to be enthusiastic about participating in the March primary (only 19% are “very” or “somewhat” enthusiastic about the race).”

GOP Sues to Stop Michigan Redistricting Commission

July 30, 2019 at 11:02 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Republicans are suing to stop Michigan’s new citizen redistricting commission before it begins, alleging the voter-approved amendment is ‘blatantly unconstitutional’ and discriminates against participants based on political service or family ties,” the Detroit News reports.

“The amendment to the Michigan Constitution prohibits participation by anyone who in the last six years was a partisan candidate, elected official, political appointee, lobbyist, campaign consultant and officer or member of the governing body of a political party. It also excludes a parent, child or spouse of any of those individuals.”

Democrats Unsure About Trump’s Race-Baiting

July 30, 2019 at 10:52 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“For three weeks President Trump has engaged in the sort of racial divisiveness unseen from a national political figure since the days of George Wallace, pushing forward with grievance-based attacks against Democrats of color that he is convinced will energize his base of rural white voters,” the New York Times reports.

“But Democrats who might otherwise be giddy about Mr. Trump’s inflammatory language — and the prospect that it would further alienate suburban white voters while provoking African Americans and Hispanics — instead appear uncertain of how to confront a president intent on recreating the unconventional playbook that won him the 2016 election.”

“Like with much of Mr. Trump’s political career and presidency, there’s no precedent for guiding their responses to his provocations, especially since his remarks appear to be divorced from any broader political strategy.”

CNN Won’t Air Any Live Rallies

July 30, 2019 at 10:43 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

CNN chief Jeff Zucker told the Washington Post that the cable news network won’t air any presidential candidate rallies live and unedited, as it did repeatedly for Donald Trump in 2016.

Trump Says Baltimore Residents ‘Living In Hell’

July 30, 2019 at 10:41 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Continuing his attacks on Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD), President Trump said that residents of Baltimore are “living in hell,” CBS News reports.

Trump then claimed, without evidence, that “thousands” of people have let his administration know they’re “thankful” he’s calling attention to Baltimore, saying African-Americans are “happy as hell” he’s highlighting the “corruption” there.

Quote of the Day

July 30, 2019 at 10:17 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“I’m the least racist person there is anywhere in the world.”

— President Trump, quoted by The Hill, expressing no regrets in attacking Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD) over the weekend.

Warren Surges In the Early States

July 30, 2019 at 10:13 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A new Firehouse/Optimus survey finds Elizabeth Warren basically tied with Joe Biden in Iowa with Biden still leading in New Hampshire and South Carolina.

Kamala Harris is in third place in all three of the early voting states.

Also interesting: “In each of the three states, likely primary voters reported Kamala Harris and Elizabeth Warren as their favored second choices. As we see in a closer look at Iowa, Warren remains a favorable second choice option to supporters of Sanders, Harris, and Biden while Harris is a popular second choice to Warren and Buttigieg voters.”

Big Majority Don’t Favor Impeachment

July 30, 2019 at 10:07 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A new Quinnipiac poll finds that voters by a 60% to 32% margin say that Congress should not begin impeachment proceedings against Trump.

Support for starting impeachment proceedings is 61% to 29% among Democrats and 66% to 23% among black voters, but every other listed party, gender, education, age and racial group is opposed.

Most Americans Think Trump Is a Racist

July 30, 2019 at 10:05 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A new Quinnipiac poll finds that American voters think President Trump is a racist by a 51% to 45% margin.

Said pollster Mary Snow: “While half of voters think President Trump is racist, religion shows an even bigger divide. Only 21% of white Evangelicals believe the President is racist. Compare that to 63% of voters who don’t affiliate with any organized religion.”

Newsom Opens His Donor Network to Kamala Harris

July 30, 2019 at 9:58 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Ever since California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) endorsed Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA), he’s been actively reaching out to his influential donor network in an effort to give her 2020 campaign war chest a boost,” CNBC reports.

“Newsom has been ramping up his efforts to court wealthy donors, who are mainly from his and Harris’ home state of California, since at least the start of the second quarter… Newsom was prolific fundraiser when he ran for governor in 2018 and finished the election cycle raising $50 million.”

Fed Will Try to Save the Economy from Trump

July 30, 2019 at 9:25 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Politico: “Central bank officials are expected to cut interest rates for the first time since the global financial crisis not because Trump demanded it. Instead, they will move in part because the president’s bruising trade policy has helped fuel a global manufacturing slowdown and injected deep uncertainty into executive suites around the world.”

“Fed Chairman Jerome Powell won’t directly say it directly after his meetings Tuesday and Wednesday. But the central bank will reverse course at least in part to save the Trump economy from Trump.”

Another GOP Congressman Calls It Quits

July 30, 2019 at 8:57 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Rep. Rob Bishop (R-UT) told the Deseret News that he will not run for re-election next year.

First Read: “Remember, a party that’s out of power starts seeing retirements like these — because it’s not fun being in the House minority.”

When Amateurs Run for President

July 30, 2019 at 8:32 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Jonathan Bernstein: “One thing that reliably gets me angry is amateurs jumping into politics at the highest level without having learned how the U.S. system works. Another is mindless Congress-bashing. Tom Steyer, an activist and former hedge-fund manager now running for president, is managing to do both.”

Top GOP Senator Warned Trump About Spy Chief Pick

July 30, 2019 at 8:26 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

In naming Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-TX) to be Director of National Intelligence, President Trump ignored a warning from Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC), the chairman of the intelligence committee, Time reports.

“Burr told the White House last week that the move would inject more partisan politics into the work of the intelligence agencies.”

“In a sign of how dysfunctional President Trump’s relationship with the intelligence community has become already, some senior spies and analysts say having a political ally as DNI may not make much of a difference at this point. Trump pays only sporadic attention to his daily briefings, routinely ignores analysis that contradicts his own views, and in many cases pursues policies that analysts have concluded are fruitless or misguided.”

A Long History of Denying Racism

July 30, 2019 at 8:20 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Michael Tesler: “To understand this debate about Trump and racism, it’s important to put it in historical perspective. First, it is but one episode in a long history of American denials of the extent and consequences of prejudice, racial discrimination, segregation, disenfranchisement and persecution. Whites have done so even when the racism was virtually undeniable.”

“Second, this debate illustrates the more recent and growing partisan polarization on the question of what constitutes racism. That polarization makes it unsurprising that so many Republican leaders would not condemn Trump in these terms.”

House GOP Fears Retirement Wave

July 30, 2019 at 8:12 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“House Republicans plotting to win back their majority in Congress fear they are on the brink of a massive wave of retirements that could force them to play defense in a high-stakes presidential election year,” The Hill reports.

“Three House Republicans said last week they would not seek another term next year, catching party strategists off guard. Those announcements came earlier than in a typical election cycle, when members who are ready to hang up their voting cards usually wait until after the August recess or after the Christmas break.”

Biden Still On Top Nationally

July 30, 2019 at 7:58 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A new Emerson poll finds Joe Biden leads the Democratic field with 33%, followed by Bernie Sanders at 20%, Elizabeth Warren at 14%, Kamala Harris at 11%, Pete Buttigieg at 6% and Beto O’Rourke at 4%.

Key finding: “Sanders re-established his lead among 18-29 year olds receiving 36% support among that age group.”

What If the Titans Don’t Want to Clash?

July 30, 2019 at 7:36 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Rick Klein: “Two progressive powerhouses will be center stage for night one of the second Democratic debate on Tuesday. The party will be watching for Sen. Bernie Sanders and Sen. Elizabeth Warren to mix it up, knowing that they’re treading in the same ideological territory.”

“But the two New England senators are longtime allies who don’t actually disagree on very much. The real action in Detroit could come from podiums closer to the wings, where a group of relative moderates — including several who are unlikely to qualify for future debates, minus a big splash — stand ready to bring the fight.”