POLITICAL NEWS
- Trump postponing campaign events after positive test; Biden tests negative for coronavirus:President Trump is experiencing “mild symptoms” after he and first lady Melania Trump tested positive for the coronavirus, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows told reporters Friday. The first lady said on Twitter that she, too, has “mild symptoms” but is “overall feeling good.” Trump will postpone or make virtual all of his previously scheduled campaign events, his campaign manager said Friday. Democratic nominee Joe Biden’s campaign announced that Biden and his wife, Jill Biden, have both tested negative for the coronavirus. Read more at the Washington Post.
- The president’s infection has upended the campaign. A fundraiser in Washington and a rally in Florida were scrapped, and Trump plans to remain in self-isolation at the White House. His campaign manager said all previously scheduled events involving Trump or his family would be postponed or changed to virtual events.
- Democratic nominee Joe Biden wished Trump and the first lady a “swift recovery” in a morning tweet. He is scheduled to campaign in Michigan on Friday.
- Vice President Pence and his wife have tested negative, according to a spokesman.
- Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), who attended Trump’s announcement Saturday of his Supreme Court pick, said he has tested positive for the coronavirus and will self-isolate for 10 days.
- Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel disclosed that she had tested positive.
- Axios Reports: GOP super PAC will spend $10 million to help Lindsey Graham in South Carolina The Senate Leadership Fund, a Republican super PAC, plans to spend $10 million in South Carolina, hoping to boost Sen. Lindsey Graham's re-election campaign as the race has tightened considerably, McClatchy reports.
- Why it matters: The campaign has become unexpectedly competitive, with Graham's Democratic opponent, Jaime Harrison, having a massive financial advantage. Harrison was once thought to be a long shot against Graham in the typically Republican state, but the two are now tied 48%-48% according to a recent Quinnipiac poll.
- The state of play: Harrison's fundraising has surged through small-dollar online donations, and now a Democratic super PAC is dropping an additional $6.5 million. "Harrison’s campaign had reserved more than $15 million in ads in October and November, according to a GOP source tracking the ad data, compared with just over $6 million in reservations for Graham and his Republican allies," per McClatchy.
- The boost from SLF should balance the spending between campaigns, yet Harrison’s fundraising could still grow.
- Democrat Cunningham raises record $28.3M in third quarter for bid against Tillis Democrat Cal Cunningham raised more than $28 million in the third quarter of the year for his campaign to unseat Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), setting a record for the most raised in a single quarter by any North Carolina politician. Cunningham’s $28.3 million quarterly haul is nearly four times as much as the $7.4 million he raised in the second quarter. The massive fundraising sum likely puts Cunningham in a strong position heading into the crucial final month of his campaign. His campaign said that more than 40,000 North Carolinians had given to his Senate bid over the past three months, with many of them contributing more than once. Ninety-six percent of donations were under $100, the campaign said. Read more at the Hill.
- Trump’s Trade Wars, Covid Response Could Cost Republicans an Iowa Senate Seat President Donald Trump’s newfound struggle to keep Iowa in Republican hands, just four years after a comfortable win in the Midwestern state, could also prove decisive for control of the U.S. Senate. Joni Ernst is running behind in her quest for reelection on Nov. 3, after binding herself both to the president and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s leadership team in her first term. A member of the Judiciary Committee, she’s looking to the fight with Democrats over Trump’s pick to replace the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg to energize Iowa Republicans. Polls show Theresa Greenfield, a 56-year-old real estate executive contesting a statewide office for the first time, with a slight lead. A win over Ernst, 50, would give Democrats one of the three or four seats they need for their first Senate majority in six years, depending on whether Joe Biden beats Trump. Read more at Bloomberg.
- What’s in Trump’s ‘Platinum Plan’ for Black America? In his efforts to woo African-American voters before the election, on September 25 President Donald Trump unveiled a plan to shovel capital, jobs and opportunities into Black communities — a program that his campaign is calling the “Platinum Plan for Black America.” For Black communities, the Platinum Plan commits to unlocking $500 billion in access to capital, creating 3 million new jobs, and bridging historic disparities in health care and education. School choice, criminal justice reform and favorable trade deals for Black farmers and manufacturers round out the list of the president’s platinum promises. The campaign pledges that Trump will even make Juneteenth a national holiday if he is reelected, building on the credit that the president has taken for making Juneteenth “very famous.” Read about the plan here at Bloomberg.
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