Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* This is the week in which North Carolina’s State Board of Elections will consider evidence of alleged misconduct in last fall’s election the 9th congressional district. The declaration of a new vote is a distinct possibility.
* On ABC News yesterday, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), one of Donald Trump’s loyal far-right allies, said the president’s emergency declaration was in part about fulfilling a “campaign promise.” I’m pretty sure that’s not a line endorsed by the White House or its lawyers.
* Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) hasn’t made his 2020 plans official, but he’s reportedly recorded a campaign video in which he says he’s launching another presidential campaign.
* It’s not clear whether Democratic officials can talk former Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-Texas) into running for the Senate again next year, but a Public Policy Polling survey shows incumbent Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) leading O’Rourke by just two points, 47% to 45%, in a hypothetical match-up.
* The gubernatorial race in Mississippi, one of only three states to hold statewide elections this year, just got even more interesting: Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves (R), generally seen as the likely GOP nominee, is now poised to face retired state Supreme Court Chief Justice Bill Waller Jr., the son of a former governor, in a Republican primary. * Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz said he’s prepared to walk away from a possible independent presidential campaign, but only if Democrats nominate someone who meets his vague definition of “centrist.” * And Sen. Kamala Harris’ (D) presidential campaign continues to pick up high-profile support from her home state of California. “I’m very enthusiastic about Kamala Harris,” Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) told MSNBC’s Chris Hayes on Friday. The California governor added, in reference to the senator, “I think the American people could not do better.”
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
