“Stacey Abrams, a rising star in the Democratic Party, said Monday it was possible she could seek her party’s presidential nomination next year,” CNN reports.
“Abrams’ comment came after an interview at the South by Southwest conference in Texas, where Abrams reportedly said she previously thought 2028 would be the earliest she could run for president, but over Twitter, she clarified: ‘Now 2020 is definitely on the table.'”
New York Times: “The flash of enthusiasm for Ms. Abrams came as no surprise to Georgia Democrats, who rallied behind her run to become governor there last year, which would have made her the first black women to lead a state. And her well-received speech Tuesday evening will most likely intensify the current efforts by national party leaders to recruit Ms. Abrams to run for Senate in 2020.”
“But some of her supporters and other Democrats are also asking whether she should be running for an even bigger position — and why the clamoring has been louder for some white male politicians to run than for her.”
Atlanta Journal Constitution: “She told supporters she was ‘terrified’ of squandering the chance to rebut Donald Trump’s address, like so many from both parties had done before, with a miscue that ruins the opportunity… What followed was a 10-minute speech Tuesday that combined tales of her upbringing in Mississippi, the merits of bipartisanship in Georgia and biting criticism of Trump and Republican policies.”
“And she steered clear of the gaffes or awkwardness that tripped up so many of her predecessors — like Marco Rubio’s gulping of water, or Joe Kennedy’s too-glistening lips — and kept the focus instead on her competing political vision.”
“That meant her critics seized on the substance of her message rather than the optics around it.”
The Atlantic: “In a brief speech lauded by Democrats, Abrams succeeded in elevating an event that is often awkward and anticlimactic by nature.”
“We were sitting around thinking about this three weeks ago, and her name came up. Immediately, everyone in the room said, ‘Let’s do it.’ She’s an amazing person with an amazing story.”
— Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY), quoted by the Atlanta Journal Constitution, on picking Stacey Abrams to deliver the Democratic response to President Trump’s State of the Union address.
Stacey Abrams will deliver the Democratic response to President Trump’s State of the Union address next week, Politico reports.
Abrams drew national attention last year when she ran for governor of Georgia.
“Her campaign for governor may be over, but Stacey Abrams is not going away.”
“She told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution she’s not ruling out a run for another public office, perhaps as early as 2020. But before she considers a new campaign, she is throwing her energy behind a new federal lawsuit alleging mismanagement and malfeasance at nearly every level of Georgia’s electoral process.”
“Stacey Abrams’ campaign and legal team is preparing an unprecedented legal challenge in the unresolved Georgia governor’s race that could leave the state’s Supreme Court deciding whether to force another round of voting,” the AP reports.
“The Democrat’s longshot strategy relies on a statute that’s never been used in such a high-stakes contest. It is being discussed as Georgia elections officials appear to be on the cusp of certifying Republican Brian Kemp as the winner of a bitterly fought campaign that’s been marred by charges of electoral malfeasance.”
Atlanta Journal Constitution: “Abrams is fast running out of options to close a deficit in the race for Georgia governor.”
Molly Ball: “Describe someone as ‘commanding the room’ and you generally conjure an image of gravitas — a man, likely white, in a suit, emitting soaring oratory. Abrams is a big-boned, natural-haired, youthful-looking woman with a quizzical smile and a gap between her front teeth. She’s as likely to geek out about tax policy or Star Trek as she is to summon the spirit of justice.”
“Yet when she speaks, all kinds of people — from black folks in rural communities to yuppie ‘resistance’ moms around Atlanta to this crowd of rough-handed electrical workers — go quiet and listen. In a Democratic Party divided and desperate for fresh faces, Abrams is already becoming a national star.”
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
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