Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* In New Hampshire, the latest poll from Saint Anselm College found former Vice President Joe Biden (D) leading the Democratic 2020 pack with 21%, followed by Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) with 18%. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) is a competitive third with 17%, followed by Mayor Pete Buttigieg (D) with 12%. In a bit of a surprise, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is fifth in this poll, with 10%, despite easily winning the New Hampshire primary in 2016.
* We’ve now seen second-quarter fundraising tallies for all of the 2020 presidential candidates, and former Rep. Beto O’Rourke’s (D-Texas) $3.6 million haul is among the most notable. The Texas Democrat’s total is a sharp drop-off from the $9.3 million he raised in the first quarter, and this will do little to quiet concerns about the direction of O’Rourke’s campaign.
* Speaking of fundraising, Alabama’s Roy Moore (R) may have caused a stir when he launched his latest U.S. Senate campaign, but donors appear to be ignoring him: the right-wing Republican’s latest FEC filing shows he raised less than $17,000 in the last quarter.
* Among the policy proposals unveiled yesterday by 2020 presidential hopefuls are Kamala Harris’ plan to boost domestic workers like housekeepers and nannies who are excluded from federal labor laws, and Sen. Cory Booker’s (D-N.J.) blueprint for improving long-term health care.
* In a dynamic we may be seeing more of next year, Rep. Jim Costa (D) is going to face a primary challenge from Fresno City Councilmember Esmeralda Soria (D) in California’s 16th congressional district. * On a related note, if Rep Seth Moulton (D) falls short in his presidential campaign and runs for re-election instead, he’ll face a primary challenge from Salem State University Trustee Jamie Zahlaway Belsito (D). * And speaking of primary campaigns, former Rep. Mark Sanford (R-S.C.), long rumored to have presidential ambitions, told the Charleston Post & Courier this week that he’s considering taking on Donald Trump in a GOP race. “Sometimes in life you’ve got to say what you’ve got to say, whether there’s an audience or not for that message,” Sanford, who’s also a former governor, said. “I feel convicted.”
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
