Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre issued a written statement this morning on Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema becoming an independent: “We understand that her decision to register as an independent in Arizona does not change the new Democratic majority control of the Senate, and we have every reason to expect that we will continue to work successfully with her.”
* Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, meanwhile, issued a written statement of his own a couple of hours later. “Senator Sinema informed me of her decision to change her affiliation to Independent,” the New York Democrat said. “She asked me to keep her committee assignments and I agreed. Kyrsten is independent; that’s how she’s always been. I believe she’s a good and effective Senator and am looking forward to a productive session in the new Democratic majority Senate. We will maintain our new majority on committees, exercise our subpoena power, and be able to clear nominees without discharge votes.”
* Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel is facing rivals, but NBC News reports that the incumbent has apparently run a successful campaign to “lock down” the votes she needs from party officials.
* On a related note, however, McDaniel’s intra-party critics appear undaunted: The executive committee of the Arizona Republican Party approved a resolution yesterday calling for the RNC chair’s resignation.
* HuffPost reports that Republican Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina has launched a provocative fundraising campaign that warns prospective donors, “Your heat will be turned off. Emergency Notice.” Their heat, in reality, is not poised to be turned off; it’s just a scheme to get their attention. * An interesting statistic from a Washington Post analysis: “For the first time since 2010, more Americans live in states with full Democratic control (141 million) than full GOP control (131 million).” * In the two weeks that followed his 2024 announcement, Donald Trump’s main campaign fundraising committee raised more than $4.1 million online, which is good, but not as good as the former president’s previous fundraising tallies. * And in case there were any doubts about Sen. Angus King’s 2024 plans, the Maine independent is moving forward with his re-election plans.
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."
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