Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) made a little news with Rachel last night, saying on the air that she’ll announce her 2020 presidential plans at an event in Minneapolis on Sunday.
* In related news, though we don’t yet know for sure what the Minnesotan will say on Sunday, Klobuchar has scheduled an event in Iowa on Feb. 21.
* And speaking of Minnesota, there was a state Senate special election just south of Duluth yesterday, in a district Donald Trump won by 13 points, but which had a Democratic incumbent, State Rep. Jason Rarick (R) prevailed, which means the Republican Party’s narrow majority in the chamber remains intact. (Minnesota is the nation’s only state in which the state legislative chambers are controlled by different parties.)
* “I can’t go back,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) told the Washington Post yesterday in reference to her previous claims of Native American ancestry. “But I am sorry for furthering confusion on tribal sovereignty and tribal citizenship and harm that resulted.”
* Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam (D), who still hasn’t resigned, has reportedly “toyed with the idea of leaving the Democratic Party and governing as an independent.” With so many Dems calling for his ouster, it’s hard to imagine the party objecting. * Mississippi is one of only three states holding gubernatorial races this year, and a new Mason-Dixon poll shows Jim Hood (D) with a narrow lead over Tate Reeves (R), 44% to 42%. There’s still some question, however, as to whether retired state Supreme Court Justice Bill Waller Jr. will run in the same race as an independent. * As part of her 2020 presidential campaign, Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) appeared on MSNBC this morning and said Syria’s Bashar Assad “is not the enemy of the United States.” Pressed on whether Americans should see Assad as an “adversary,” the congresswoman didn’t answer directly. * And former Massachusetts Gov. William Weld has changed his party registration back to Republican ahead of a possible presidential primary campaign against Donald Trump. In 2016, Weld was the Libertarian Party’s vice presidential nominee.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past." Recommended
