Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* Though Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti (D) made no secret of his interest in the 2020 presidential race, he announced yesterday that he will instead “finish the job at home.”
* Georgia’s Stacey Abrams (D), whom Democratic leaders are pushing to run for the Senate next year, has agreed to deliver the party’s official response to Donald Trump’s State of the Union address next week. California Attorney General Xavier Becerra (D), a former member of Congress, will deliver the Democrats’ Spanish-language response.
* Rep. Tulsi Gabbard’s (D-Hawaii) longshot presidential campaign already appears to be in real trouble. The 37-year-old congresswoman will officially kick off her candidacy this weekend, at which point, her campaign manager will reportedly quit.
* There were two state legislative special elections in Texas yesterday, and both went Dems’ way. In one state House race, a Democratic candidate easily prevailed, and in another state House race, two Dems are poised to face off in a runoff election. These two seats were previously held by Democratic incumbents.
* Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), who’s likely to face a competitive re-election fight next year, was asked on PBS last night whether she intends to support Donald Trump’s re-election. “I’m not prepared at this point to make that decision,” the Maine Republican replied. * In 2016, Trump became the first Republican presidential candidate since 1984 to win Wisconsin. In 2020, he may struggle to do it again: a Marquette Law School poll released this week found 49% of Wisconsin voters definitely planning to vote for someone else, while only 27% definitely plan to vote for him. * And while House Democrats made significant gains in the 2018 midterms — more than enough to reclaim a majority in the chamber — they apparently believe their majority in the next Congress can be even larger. The DCCC released its opening 2020 target list yesterday, featuring 33 U.S. House seats currently represented by Republicans.
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
