Thread: 2024 US Presidential election

He’s got the black vote, has been given the senior vote and also has progressive backing (more about that later).

If he runs, he wins.

• Jill Biden indicates president will run for reelection: ‘He says he’s not done’

First lady Jill Biden indicated that President Biden will run for a second term, giving one of the strongest nods toward a 2024 bid from the president’s inner circle.

“He says he’s not done,” Biden told The Associated Press in an interview in Kenya on Friday. “He’s not finished what he’s started. And that’s what’s important.”

“How many times does he have to say it for you to believe it?” she added.

Biden has said that he intends to run for reelection but has not yet announced official plans. Biden’s former chief of staff Ron Klain, a longtime close confidant of the president’s, also gave a strong nod recently when he said he will be by the president’s side when he runs again.

When asked if she has the deciding vote on Biden’s 2024 plans, the first lady, who is considered one of his closest advisers, said “of course he’ll listen to me because we’re a married couple.”

“He makes up his own mind, believe me,” she added.

Biden is expected to make an official decision in the coming months but has made other nods to a reelection bid; in his State of the Union address, the president said about a dozen times that he wants to “finish the job.”

An official announcement in the spring would align with most of the president’s recent predecessors, including former President Obama who announced his reelection bid in early April 2011.

The first lady is on a five-day trip to Africa with her granddaughter, Naomi Biden. They arrived in Kenya on Friday after visiting Namibia on Wednesday and Thursday. Biden is the third U.S. official to visit Africa this year after Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield.

Her trip comes after the president announced at the end of the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit in December that he will travel to sub-Saharan Africa in 2023. He said at the time that there will also be visits to Africa from other officials, including his wife.

If he decides to run, he’ll win.

• Biden says he has ‘other things to finish’ before starting ‘full-blown’ 2024 campaign

President Biden said in a new interview that he has “other things to finish” before starting a “full-blown” 2024 presidential campaign.

“Well, apparently, someone interviewed my wife today, I heard. I gotta call her and find out,” Biden told ABC News’s David Muir when asked if he’s running again.

“No, all kidding aside, my intention … has been from the beginning to run, but there’s too many other things I have to finish in the near-term before I start a campaign,” Biden said.

The president has long said he intends to run for another four years in the White House, and first lady Jill Biden gave a strong indication last week that he’ll do so.

“He says he’s not done.” she said during a trip to Kenya.

“I meant what I said. I’ve got other things to finish before I get into a full-blown campaign,” President Biden said on ABC News.

Biden hasn’t formally announced any official plans to run for president, but the first lady and Biden’s former chief of staff, Ron Klain, have both hinted that an announcement could be soon.

Progressive Marianne Williamson entered the presidential race last week, making her the first high-profile Democrat who could face Biden in a primary showdown.

On the Republican side, former President Trump and his former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley have both announced presidential campaigns.

Trump overwhelmingly wins CPAC's Republican primary straw poll with DeSantis coming in a distant second

Former President Donald Trump topped the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) straw poll for the 2024 GOP nomination by a wide margin at the conservative conference Saturday.

Trump won 62% support in the poll, which was announced shortly before he was scheduled to speak to the crowd gathered at the Gaylord in Fort Washington, Maryland.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis came in as second choice with 20% support. The third-place pick at 5% support was long-shot GOP candidate Perry Johnson, a businessman who attempted to run for governor in Michigan but was blocked from participating in the Republican primary.

Kari Lake, the Republican Arizona gubernatorial nominee in 2022, received the most support for vice presidential candidate with 20%. DeSantis received 14% support for the 2024 vice presidential nominee in the CPAC poll. Over 2,000 attendees completed the poll, organizers said.

“And again, I can’t speak for anybody else. But what I have said is, if he runs, announces that he is going to run, I will support him.”

• Sanders: Biden a more progressive president than he was as senator

President Biden is much more progressive as commander in chief than he was as a senator, according to Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), with the left-wing lawmaker saying on Sunday he would support Biden if he runs for reelection in 2024.

“I think he is a much more progressive president than he was a United States senator,” Sanders said in an interview with CBS’s “Face The Nation.”

Sanders, who challenged Biden for the Democratic nomination for president in 2020, praised Biden for sitting down with Sanders and his team after the primary to put together a platform.

“I think as a result of the campaign and the task forces we did together, you recall, we had task forces during his campaign and my campaign,” Sanders said. “I think we came up with an agenda that was progressive.”

Sanders said that some of the early goals that the Biden administration and a Democratic Congress were able to accomplish in the first two years of Biden’s presidency were progressive victories, including the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan.

“I think the American Rescue Plan that we passed early in his agenda, in the midst of the terrible pandemic, the economic collapse, was, in fact, one of the most significant pieces of legislation for the working class in this country, in the modern history of America,” Sanders said.

Sanders also said that the Build Back Better plan, which failed to get enough Democratic support, would have been “transformational.”

“Build Back Better would have been transformational,” Sanders said. “It would have finally addressed the crises that the working class of this country has faced for decades: revolutionized child care, revolutionized health care, dealt boldly with climate change, raised wages, and it would have done a whole lot. We got zero Republican support, and two Democrats decided not to support it.”

Sanders said he would support Biden if he ran for reelection in 2024, adding that he has done “a good job,” but said he wouldn’t speculate whether other Democrats would challenge the incumbent president.

“I think there’s a general consensus right now that President Biden has done, not everything we would like, he has done a good job,” Sanders said. “And again, I can’t speak for anybody else. But what I have said is, if he runs, announces that he is going to run, I will support him.”

• Pence goes where no 2024 contender has gone before

Former VP MIKE PENCE seized the spotlight at the Gridiron yesterday evening — but not for the reason speakers at the annual high-brow journalism dinner typically do.

Sure, Pence had the crowd roaring with self-deprecating dad jokes about his reputation as a deeply religious man, musing at one point that “I always wanted to be the bad boy, the rebel type, the hell-raiser. You know, someone like MITT ROMNEY” — and that he was late because he had to drop “a few more boxes off at the National Archives.”

But the big headline of the evening was Pence slamming former President DONALD TRUMP in what amounts to his strongest criticism to date of his former running mate.

“History will hold Donald Trump accountable for Jan. 6,” Pence said. “Make no mistake about it: What happened that day was a disgrace, and it mocks decency to portray it in any other way. President Trump was wrong. His reckless words endangered my family and everyone at the Capitol that day.”

The rebuke comes just days after Fox News host TUCKER CARLSON toed the Trump line, suggesting that the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol was a peaceful protest by “sightseers” — not “insurrectionists.”

Last night, Pence pushed back hard on that narrative. “Tourists don’t injure 140 police officers by simply sightseeing,” he said. “Tourists don’t break down doors to get to the Speaker of the House. Tourists don’t threaten public officials.”

The former veep did something else that caught the room by surprise: He praised the press — which Trump has routinely lambasted as the “enemy of the people” and “fake news” — and specifically applauded coverage of Jan. 6. “We were able to stay at our post in part because you stayed at your post,” he said of reporters who covered the attack in real time. “The American people know what happened that day because you never stopped reporting.”

________

She’s great!

• Doubts vanish as Democrats unite over Biden’s 2024 bid: ‘He will win’

With the 2024 election season already under way, Joe Biden has faced questions over whether he is best suited to represent the Democratic party at the top of the ticket next year. Surveys show that Americans fret over his age, as Biden would be 86 years old at the end of his second term.

Progressives have previously shied away from offering a full-throated endorsement of Biden’s re-election bid. But those whispers quieted to near silence at House Democrats’ issues conference in Baltimore, Maryland, this week. Rather than wringing their hands over the president’s anticipated announcement, House Democrats from across the party’s ideological spectrum embraced the idea of Biden’s re-election.

As Biden prepares to formally launch his campaign in the coming weeks, he appears set to enter the 2024 contest with the enthusiastic and unified backing of his congressional allies.

“I think he will win. I think he’s our strongest candidate,” Congressman Pete Aguilar, the House Democratic caucus chair from California, said on Thursday at an event with Punchbowl News. Aguilar added: “I think that he can and should run, and he’s going to have the support of the House Democratic caucus.”

That sentiment was echoed by progressive leaders in the House, who have occasionally clashed with Biden over policy matters. Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC), said on Thursday that she hopes Biden will announce his re-election campaign sooner rather than later. Citing Biden’s efforts to address the climate crisis and raise taxes on the wealthiest Americans and corporations, Jayapal complimented the president on delivering results for his supporters.

“He’s been faithful to his electorate that elected him – to progressives who turned out in key states like Georgia and Arizona, movements that did that and the ideas that drove them,” Jayapal said.

Jayapal’s praise was even more noteworthy because of some CPC members’ past comments about the 2024 race. Asked last June about the next presidential contest, progressive congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez declined to endorse Biden.

“We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it,” Ocasio-Cortez said at the time. “We should endorse when we get to it.”

But even Ocasio-Cortez appears to have shifted her tone in recent weeks. While saying that she will still closely watch the presidential primary as it unfolds, Ocasio-Cortez told CNN last month: “I would enthusiastically support [Biden] if he were the Democratic nominee.”

The results of the midterm elections appear to have shifted many Democrats’ thinking on 2024. Although Democrats lost the House in November, the widely expected red wave failed to materialize, leaving Republicans with a narrow majority in the lower chamber. In the Senate, Democrats even managed to gain a seat.

Multiple Democratic leaders said at the issues conference that they interpreted the midterm results as a vindication of Biden’s presidency and legislative achievements.

“We had unexpected results last November because we put people over politics and explained time and time again exactly what we were doing,” Congressman Jim Clyburn, the assistant House minority leader, said on Wednesday. “We are going to further that.”

Biden and congressional Democratic leaders repeatedly referenced the need to “finish the job” of the work done over the first two years of his presidency. The theme seems likely to play a major role in Biden’s re-election campaign messaging.

“As much as we’ve done, we have a lot of unfinished business as well to finish the job that needs to be done,” Biden told House Democrats on Wednesday. “But we’ve got more to do … We’ve just got to keep going.”

Although Biden declined to make his 2024 plans official this week, recent signs indicate that a formal announcement could come in the next several weeks.

“It’s Joe’s decision,” the first lady, Jill Biden, told CNN late last month. “And we support whatever he wants to do. If he’s in, we’re there. If he wants to do something else, we’re there too.” Asked whether there was any chance her husband may not seek a second term, the first lady replied: “Not in my book.”


Starts at 8:07 into the video

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Book sales might take a hit, during this book tour.

• Marianne Williamson’s ‘abusive’ treatment of 2020 campaign staff, revealed

The best-selling author Marianne Williamson has built a career preaching love and forgiveness. It is the cornerstone of her second Democratic campaign for president which she launched on March 4.

But those who have worked with Williamson as she has moved into the political realm say her public persona is at odds with her private behavior.

Interviews with 12 people who worked for Williamson during her 2020 presidential campaign paint a picture of a boss who can be verbally and emotionally abusive.

Those interviewed say the best-selling author and spiritual adviser subjected her employees to unpredictable, explosive episodes of anger. They said Williamson could be cruel and demeaning to her staff and that her behavior went far beyond the typical stress of a grueling presidential cycle.

“It would be foaming, spitting, uncontrollable rage,” said a former staffer, who, like most people that spoke with POLITICO, was granted anonymity because of their concern about being sued for breaking non-disclosure agreements. “It was traumatic. And the experience, in the end, was terrifying.”

Williamson would throw her phone at staffers, according to three of those former staffers. Her outbursts could be so loud that two former aides recounted at least four occasions when hotel staff knocked on her door to check on the situation. In one instance, Williamson got so angry about the logistics of a campaign trip to South Carolina that she felt was poorly planned that she pounded a car door until her hand started to swell, according to four former staffers. Ultimately, she had to go to an urgent care facility, they said. All 12 former staffers interviewed recalled instances where Williamson would scream at people until they started to cry.

Williamson would throw her phone at staffers

she pounded a car door until her hand started to swell. Ultimately, she had to go to an urgent care facility

Biden to launch three week travel blitz touting economic agenda

The White House on Friday announced plans for a three-week travel blitz to highlight President Biden’s economic agenda and investments through legislation passed last year.

The “Investing in America tour” will officially start next Tuesday when Biden travels to North Carolina to visit a chips manufacturer. Biden and other administration officials are expected to visit more than 20 states over the next three weeks, a White House official said.

The travel is intended to amplify legislative accomplishments from the past year such as the CHIPS and Science Act that boosted investment in semiconductor chip manufacturing and research domestically, as well as the Inflation Reduction Act, which lowered certain health care costs and created incentives for clean energy investments.

The tour will overlap with a two-week congressional recess, and the White House expects lawmakers to join administration officials at scheduled stops in Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Ohio, Oregon, Tennessee, Vermont, Wisconsin, North Carolina and elsewhere.

“The tour will reinforce what’s at stake for hardworking families across the country if Republicans in Congress get their way and repeal the Inflation Reduction Act and slash funding for manufacturing, research, and innovation,” a White House official said.

The effort to educate the public on the Biden administration’s accomplishments and agenda is similar to other travel the White House has done around the 2021 American Rescue Plan and the bipartisan infrastructure law signed in late 2021.

It also comes as the White House has made a concerted effort to draw contrasts between legislation Biden has signed during his first two years in office and efforts by House Republicans to claw back some of that funding or reform government programs.

In other news.

Christie pledges never to support Trump again

Hutchinson: Trump should drop out of White House race due to indictment

I have a feeling trump will not listen. It’ll be fun to watch him lose again.

Although, DeSantis might be just as fun to watch lose.

Reference DeSantis. Starts at 5:45

Ex Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson running for president

Former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson (R) will run for president in 2024, becoming the latest Republican to launch a campaign for the White House via an announcement on ABC's "This Week" on Sunday.

Driving the news: Hutchinson, who served as Arkansas governor from 2015 to 2023, is the fourth Republican to announce a campaign. Former President Donald Trump, former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley and venture capitalist Vivek Ramaswamy are already in the race.

What they're saying: " I'm going to run for President of the United States," Hutchinson told ABC News' Jonathan Karl. "The reason -- I've traveled the country for six months. I hear people talk about the leadership out of our country, and I'm convinced that people want leaders that appeal to the best of America and not simply appeal to our worst instincts."

• "That inspires me when I see everyday Americans just saying, give us good leadership, give us common sense, consistent conservatism and optimism about our great country, and that inspires me. And I believe I can be that kind of leader for America," he said.
• Hutchinson added that a formal announcement for his campaign will come later this month in Bentonville, Arkansas.

Hutchinson previously served as a House Representative for Arkansas' 3rd congressional district from 1997 to 2001, and then as the director of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) from 2001 to 2003.

• He was the undersecretary in the Department of Homeland Security from 2001 to 2003.
• Hutchinson also served as a House Manager during President Clinton's impeachment trial in 1998.

Context: Hutchinson gave no hint of what his campaign platform will be, but called the current political environment in the U.S. one of the "most unpredictable" he's seen in his life.

• "My message [is] experience, of consistent conservatism, of hope for our future and solving problems that face Americans, I think that that resonates. "

Hutchinson believes Trump, who was indicted Thursday by a Manhattan grand jury, should also drop out of the 2024 race but that there's no constitutional requirement that Trump does so.

• "It's a sad day for America that we have a former president that's indicted. And so it's a great distraction. But, at the same time, we can't set aside what our constitution requires, which is electing a new leader for our country just because we have this side controversy and criminal charges that are pending," he said.
• "The office is more important than any individual person. And so, for the sake of the office of the presidency, I do think that's too much of a sideshow and distraction, and he needs to be able to concentrate on his due process. And there is a presumption of innocence."
• "The second reason is...I've always said that people don't have to step aside from public office if they're under investigation. But if it reaches the point of criminal charges that have to be answered, the office is always more important than a person," he added.

He’s a bit out there, but he will collect a few conspiracy theorists votes.

• Robert F. Kennedy Jr. files to run in 2024 Democratic presidential race

Anti-vaxxer RFK Jr. files to run for president as Democrat

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime anti-vaccine activist, filed paperwork Wednesday to run for president as a Democrat.

Kennedy filed a statement of candidacy on Wednesday to challenge President Biden, who has yet to formally announce his bid for reelection, in the 2024 Democrat primary, The Associated Press reported. Kennedy had launched a fundraising campaign last month on social media to help him “decide whether to run for President.”

“If it looks like I can raise the money and mobilize enough people to win, I’ll jump in the race,” he tweeted last month. “If I run, my top priority will be to end the corrupt merger between state and corporate power that has ruined our economy, shattered the middle class, polluted our landscapes and waters, poisoned our children, and robbed us of our values and freedoms. Together we can restore America’s democracy.”

Kennedy, who is the nephew of former President John F. Kennedy and son of former Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, heads the Children’s Health Defense, an anti-vaccine organization that often promotes unproven theories about the safety of vaccines. It has received strong criticism for its misinformation.

The organization also doubled its profits during the COVID-19 pandemic, when many people grew hesitant over the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines, according to The Associated Press.

Kennedy faced repercussions from social media platforms about his promotion of conspiracy theories about COVID-19 and vaccines. Instagram removed his account in 2021 after he shared “debunked claims about the coronavirus or vaccines.” Meta also took down the Children’s Health Defense Facebook page last August for “repeatedly” violating the platform’s polices on COVID-19 and vaccine policies.

extra

Steve Bannon spent "months" recruiting anti-vaxxer RFK Jr. to run against Biden as "chaos agent"

• GOP's stormy 2024 outlook

This week marked a low point for Republicans as they prepare for the 2024 elections: Former President Trump is once again the dominant force in the party, which is showing little indication of trying to appeal to swing voters.

Why it matters: By aligning with Trump's grievances and promoting tougher abortion restrictions, it's increasingly difficult for the GOP to win outside of deep-red strongholds.

Driving the news: Every potential Republican challenger to Trump (with the exception of former Govs. Asa Hutchinson and Chris Christie) has adopted the MAGA narrative that Trump is being treated unfairly by a politicized justice system — even when it's in their interest to criticize the GOP frontrunner.

• Trump won three new congressional endorsements after he was indicted — from Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.), Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) and Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.), who's running for a U.S. Senate seat.
• Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), one of the leaders of the MAGA movement in Congress, was featured on "60 Minutes" as one of her party's leading power players.

Zoom in: On the same day as Trump's arraignment, voters in swing-state Wisconsin decisively rejected a right-wing judicial candidate in favor of a progressive one.

• The election was fought predominantly over abortion rights, as Republicans continue to push for restrictions beyond what the public supports.
• In the run-up to his likely presidential campaign, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis — the leading Trump alternative in the GOP — is expected to sign a six-week abortion ban that just passed Florida's Senate.
• The Cook Political Report's David Wasserman noted that Democratic gains in pivotal swing states — namely Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania — have been driven by an uptick in support from white working-class voters over abortion rights.

Between the lines: To hold Republicans' narrow House majority, Speaker Kevin McCarthy will need to hang on to suburban districts where voters are open to backing Republicans but have grown tired of extreme politics.

• Of the 33 GOP-held seats that the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee announced as top targets, two-thirds are in urban and suburban areas. President Biden carried 18 of those 33 House districts in 2020.
• The GOP's path to a Senate majority runs through redder turf, but some Republicans already are concerned that far-right candidates (such as Rep. Matt Rosendale in Montana or Rep. Alex Mooney in West Virginia) could hurt the GOP's prospects against vulnerable Democratic incumbents.

What we're watching: Other top swing-state Republican Senate contenders have avoided weighing in on Trump, knowing it's a lose-lose situation. If they distance themselves from Trump, it hurts them in a Republican primary. But tie themselves too closely to the former president, and they'll shed independents.

• In Ohio, two potential Republican Senate candidates are clashing over Trump. After Trump's indictment, businessman Bernie Moreno tweeted: "It’s time [for] all Republicans to coalesce around President Trump, especially those that just got elected to serve four years in office for a different and important position."

• That was seen as a shot at Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, who said in February: "When it comes to who’s going to be my party’s standard-bearer in 2024 ... it’s not something I’m going to weigh in on anytime soon."
• Asked last month whether he'd support Trump in the primary, potential Pennsylvania Senate candidate Dave McCormick said: "I’m excited about the primary. There appears to be a number of great people that are going to jump into the arena, and I have not made a decision to support anybody."
• He faces a possible primary challenge by Doug Mastriano, who badly lost last year's governor's race with a right-wing message and Trump's backing.
• "These moderate types, they can’t win either the primary or general election without the grassroots of Pennsylvania. And right now, they don’t have them," Mastriano said this week. (Mastriano's extreme message led to a landslide 15-point defeat in swing-state Pennsylvania.)

The bottom line: We're a deeply divided and polarized country, split closely between left and right.

• But Trump's legal predicament combined with the GOP's exposure on abortion is giving the Democrats a small but important advantage heading into a pivotal election year.
• Biden holds historically low approval ratings himself. Democrats are vulnerable on the economy, crime and immigration. But they have shown an ability to moderate when necessary.
• Until Republican voters show they're capable of doing the same, Democrats will hold the edge in 2024.

Extra:

• Biden says he plans on running in 2024

President Biden on Monday said he plans on running for reelection in 2024, but he’s not yet ready to make an official announcement.

Biden spoke with NBC’s Al Roker for a “Today” show segment on the White House Easter egg roll. Roker asked the president if he had plans to host more of the events in the future, a nod to his reelection plans.

“I plan on at least three or four more Easter egg rolls. Maybe five. Maybe six, what the hell? I don’t know,” Biden said with a smile.

“Are you saying that you would be taking part in our upcoming election in 2024? Help a brother out, make some news for me,” Roker said.

“I plan on running, Al, but we’re not prepared to announce it yet,” Biden responded.

Biden has for months said he intends to run for a second term, but the timeline for an official announcement has repeatedly slipped. Advisers first indicated the president may announce his plans around February’s State of the Union address, but when that didn’t happen, reports suggested Biden would announce in the spring.

The latest reports are that Biden may wait until the summer to announce, with those around him arguing there is no major rush and a delayed announcement would allow him to focus on the job of being president and promoting his agenda to the public.

Biden, who would be 82 at the start of a second term, has yet to draw a major primary challenger despite some concerns about his age. Author Marianne Williamson, who ran an unsuccessful campaign in 2020, has declared she is running for the Democratic nomination.

Little more:

• Senate GOP wants Trump to stay away from 2024 races as his legal woes mount

Chicago selected site of 2024 Democratic National Convention

Chicago has been selected the host of the 2024 Democratic National Convention, a huge economic and prestigious boon to the city, national Democratic Party officials announced Tuesday.

Chicago was selected over Atlanta and New York among the finalists to host the anticipated re-nomination of President Joe Biden. Though the choice was announced by the Democratic National Committee, the selection rested with Biden.

The convention is tentatively scheduled to run from Aug. 19 through Aug. 22 next year.

In announcing Chicago as the host city, the DNC cited the Midwestern “blue wall” of states — Illinois, Michigan and Minnesota — as crucial to Biden’s 2020 victory and to Democratic midterm victories last year.

”Chicago is a great choice to host the 2024 Democratic National Convention,” said Biden said in a statement.

”Democrats will gather to showcase our historic progress including building an economy from the middle out and bottom up, not from the top down,” he said. “From repairing our roads and bridges, to unleashing a manufacturing boom, and creating over 12.5 million new good-paying jobs, we’ve already delivered so much for hard working Americans — now it’s time to finish the job.”

The selection came after months of both intensive public and private lobbying by the cities that focused not only on promoting their particular city’s hosting abilities but also by taking shots at how the others lacked the ability to showcase Democratic values.

Hosting a national in-person political convention remains a big economic prize even though it lacks the luster of past history-making gatherings. Conventions now more than ever resemble little more than highly scripted TV productions, particularly the most recent duo of during the pandemic 2020 presidential year when in-person contact was avoided by both Democratic and Republican gatherings.

Still, an estimated 50,000 people — including 5,000 nominating delegates as well as media members and party high rollers — are expected to attend the 2024 event, filling restaurant and entertainment venues and contributing an estimated $200 million to the economy.

“It’s about the show. It’s about putting on the best show possible on the ground, but also on television, painting the picture and demonstrating that it’s about the story of why Democrats need to be in leadership,” Jaime Harrison, chair of the Democratic National Committee, said during the DNC’s Chicago site visit on July 26.

“I want to go to a city and I want to select the city for the president who’s going to help put on the best showcase for the Democratic Party and to showcase the diversity and inclusion and the opportunity that this party creates and presents,” Harrison said.

Atlanta had been viewed as Biden’s sentimental favorite for hosting the convention due to the role Georgia played in helping secure his election as president as well as the recent pivotal Democratic victories in the state for U.S. Senate. Biden previously approved moving Georgia into the early state presidential primary nominating calendar.

On March 20, the Atlanta City Council unanimously approved a resolution allowing Mayor Andre Dickens to enter into contracts for facilities, housing and transportation for the convention. It offered State Farm Arena, the home of the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks, as the principle convention location.

Atlanta was the site of the Democratic convention in 1988, when Gov. Michael Dukakis of Massachusetts was nominated for president. Dukakis lost to Republican nominee, then-Vice President George H.W. Bush.

As Georgia made its bid to host the 2024 Democratic Convention, it came under fire from organized labor, a powerful Democratic constituency, for having few hotels operating with a union workforce and for the state’s “Right-to-Work” laws, which do not compel union membership for jobs.

Major labor unions, New York’s congressional delegation and the Chicago Federation of Labor each lobbed criticism at Atlanta, with the CFL running a digital ad promoting Chicago as “the hometown of the American labor movement.”

The Chicago effort was especially intensive, with billionaire Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker and city business and labor leaders in March pledging they could underwrite the estimated $100 million in convention costs to avoid passing expenses along to the Democratic National Committee or local taxpayers.

Later, in a March 22 letter to Biden and Harrison, Pritzker touted support from Midwest governors, congresspersons, mayors and other elected officials backing Chicago as representative of the “blue wall” of states that have been key to past Democratic presidential victories.

“The combination of Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Illinois has voted to send a Democrat to the White House since 1992 with only one exception: In 2016, Donald Trump’s unexpected victory relied upon 80,000 votes in just three states, including fewer than 34,000 votes combined in Michigan and Wisconsin,” the letter said. “That single exception proves the rule: When the future of the country hangs in the balance, we cannot afford to overlook the Midwest.”

In addition to Pritzker, letter signatories included Govs. Tony Evers of Wisconsin, Tim Walz of Minnesota, Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth of Illinois, Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, Illinois’ Democratic congressional delegation and mayors from Kansas City, St. Louis, Minneapolis, St. Paul, Detroit and Louisville.

Pritzker, in welcoming the DNC’s site selection committee to Chicago last July, said the Democratic Party’s national agenda was a “policy alignment that we share in the state of Illinois and among Democrats.”

Pritzker, who stirred speculation that he was available if Biden did not seek reelection, said Illinois and Chicago under Democratic leadership was “critical for the story that the DNC must tell in 2024, and especially about our great president and vice president, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.”

Chicago is offering the United Center, home of the Chicago Bulls and Blackhawks, as the principle convention location. It also offered the Wintrust Arena for ancillary events. The United Center was the home of Chicago’s last presidential convention in 1996 when Democrats re-nominated President Bill Clinton, who ended up defeating Republican U.S. Sen. Bob Dole of Kansas.

New York made pugnacious pitches to get the convention, including a seven-minute video released March 11 and narrated by actress and talk show host Whoopi Goldberg that appeared to take a few jabs at Chicago.

Goldberg called New York “one of the safest big cities in America,” a pointed shot at Chicago’s crime problems, and said Mayor Eric Adams and Gov. Karen Hochul provide “great stability in the lead up and through the convention,” while Chicago’s mayor remains undecided. Both finalists for Chicago mayor, Brandon Johnson and Paul Vallas, signed pledges to support a Chicago convention.

New York offered discounted theater and museum tickets, restaurant prices and inner-city travel as part of its pitch to bring the convention to Madison Square Garden as well as using the Jacob Javits Center. Madison Square Garden hosted the re-nomination of President George W. Bush in 2004.

At a Times Square rally on March 18, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine tossed a dart at the food scenes in Chicago and Atlanta.

“If you want to go out to dinner at Cracker Barrel, you can go to one of the other host cities. If you want to enjoy the best restaurants on Earth, you come to New York City,” Levine said.

Republicans are scheduled to hold their convention in Milwaukee next year. Democrats selected Milwaukee for the 2020 convention but it was severely curtailed by COVID mitigation preventing in-person events.

• RFK Jr.'s family likely won't support his 2024 presidential run

With his just-declared bid for the US presidency, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. sees himself at the forefront of “a new revolution to resurrect American democracy” — but the anti-vaccination crusader will likely have his work cut out for him in convincing Democrats and even members of his own family to vote for him in 2024.

“Most of the Kennedys are disgusted with his attitude,” said Kennedy family biographer Laurence Leamer, referring to Robert’s recent anti-vaccination activism. “They still care about him, but he’s an embarrassment.”

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• Pence says he will decide on 2024 bid in ‘weeks and not months’

Former Vice President Mike Pence on Friday hinted a decision over whether he will run for president in 2024 is coming soon, telling Fox News he will make his plans known in a matter of weeks, not months.

Pence said on “Fox & Friends” that he’s been listening to voters as he makes frequent trips to early primary states like Iowa, South Carolina and New Hampshire and receiving encouragement about what to do next.

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• Tim Scott launches exploratory committeem for 2024 presidential bid

Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) announced Wednesday that he is launching an exploratory committee to run for president, becoming the latest Republican to enter the 2024 contest.

Why it matters: Scott's potential presidential bid sets up a match-up with fellow South Carolina Republican Nikki Haley — who recently launched a bid — as the two candidates will each look to carve out their own niches within the party's traditional wing.

• Former President Trump was the first Republican to launch a presidential bid for 2024.
• "I will never back down in defense of the conservative values that make America exceptional," Scott tweeted along with a video. "That's why I'm announcing my exploratory committee for President of the United States. This fight is personal. I want every American to have the same opportunities I had."

The big picture: Scott, who is the only Black Republican in the Senate, had been inching toward an official campaign launch.

• He has hired former Colorado GOP Sen. Cory Gardner and longtime Republican operative Rob Collins to co-chair a super PAC to support his political efforts. His Senate campaign had nearly $22 million on hand at the end of last year.
• "Today our country is once again being tested. Once again, our divisions run deep and the threat to our future is real," Scott said in the video which opens with footage of Fort Sumter in South Carolina's Charleston Harbor, where Scott notes the first shots of the Civil War were fired.
• "Joe Biden and the radical left have chosen a culture of grievance over greatness," he added, not mentioning any Republican rivals.
• He accused Democrats of using race to "divide us." "They called me a 'prop,' a 'token,' because I disrupt their narrative," he said.

State of play: Asked how he plans to defeat former Trump during an appearance on "Fox and Friends" Wednesday, Scott avoided mentioning Trump by name and spoke of wanting to share the power of his personal story with Americans.

• "The field of play is focusing on President Biden's failures. What Americans want to see is the contrast between the radical left and the blueprint to ruin America and why our policies actually work," Scott said.
• "As opposed to trying to have a conversation about how to beat a Republican, I think we're better off having a conversation about beating Joe Biden," he added.

The backdrop: Scott during a keynote address earlier in February at the Charleston County GOP dinner promoted messages of unity and optimism for America.

• "The story of America isn’t the original sin, it’s about redemption," Scott said earlier this month. "We have to stop buying the lie that this is the worst time in American history."
• Growing up in North Charleston, South Carolina, Scott was raised by a single mom. He overcame poverty to become a businessman before running for elected office.
• Scott has spent more than a decade in Congress. He first served as a representative in the House before becoming a U.S. senator in 2013, after then-Gov. Haley appointed him to a vacant seat.
• He helped craft the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act in 2017, including a provision that created tax incentives for businesses that invested in struggling communities.
• During the Trump administration, he balanced the role of privately educating his GOP colleagues on the racism that he's experienced and speaking on race relations, while trying to keep his relationships, including with Trump, intact, the Washington Post reported in 2020.
• Scott supported criminal justice and police reform in the wake of George Floyd's death.

What to watch: The rest of the Republican field has yet to take shape.

• Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) is unlikely to make an official announcement on his plans until at least May.

Go deeper... The Republicans who endorsed a Trump challenger in 2024

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In other news

• 'New York hates you': Trump motorcade gets hostile greeting in NYC

Joe Biden Says Ireland Trip ‘Reinforced’ Plans to Run in 2024

As President Joe Biden left a raucous rally in his ancestral home in Ireland on Friday night, he told reporters that the journey abroad has “reinforced” his plans to run for re-election in 2024. Asked if the “last few days have changed your calculus on when you'll make an announcement on your plans for 2024,” the president replied, “No, no, no, no. I've already made that calculus. We’ll announce it relatively soon. But the trip here just reinforced my sense of optimism about what can be done.” Pressed further on whether he has made a “decision” to run, Biden shot back, “I told you my plan is to run again.” The president took the stage on Friday night in the town of Ballina, where his Irish ancestors were born, to wild cheers and the strains of the Dropkick Murphys’ “I’m Shipping Up the Boston” and exclaimed, “Mary, I see the light!” as he waved to the crowd. “Our world today stands at an inflection point where the decisions we make today are going to affect our futures for decades to come,” he said in his speech. “And it’s in these moments where we need hope and courage more than ever.”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/joe-bi...to-run-in-2024
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In other news

Pompeo won’t run for president in 2024

Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday evening said he was opting out of the 2024 presidential race, putting to rest speculation that he would challenge his ex-boss, former President Trump.

“We’re not going to join the race in 2024,” Pompeo told Fox News’ Bret Baier when asked about his decision.

“We came to the conclusion that this wasn’t the moment for us,” he added, referencing his wife, Susan.

As if………

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Nikki Haley’s fuzzy fundraising math

When Nikki Haley’s presidential campaign announced its first quarterly fundraising haul earlier this month, the figure sounded impressive.

The former U.N. ambassador’s campaign said it had raised $11 million between her mid-February launch and the end of the quarter on March 31. It got that figure by saying Haley’s campaign had $5.1 million in receipts, along with $4.4 million for Team Stand for America, a joint fundraising committee, and $1.2 million for Stand for America PAC, a Haley-launched leadership PAC.

But after Haley filed her first-quarter report to the Federal Election Commission late Saturday, an altogether different story has emerged. Her campaign’s math didn’t add up.

What Haley’s campaign and two affiliated groups actually raised was about $8.3 million. The discrepancy between the Haley campaign’s public statements and the numbers on the filings appear to be a case of double-counting.

Haley’s campaign alone raised $5.1 million. But $1.8 million of that total came in a transfer from Team Stand for America, and SFA Fund, Inc., a hybrid PAC that can send limited amounts of money directly to candidates but is prohibited from coordinating its independent expenditures with the campaign. But that’s not the only double counting that appears to have happened. Haley’s leadership PAC also received a $886,000 transfer from her joint fundraising committee — a total that the campaign seeks to count twice in the quarterly total across all three vehicles.

The web of campaign finance laws around various committees is complicated, especially after the Supreme Court’s Citizens United case last decade. And in a statement, Haley’s campaign insisted that it was simply sharing the three vehicles’ total receipts, without sharing that those figures included transfers between them.

“We reported $11 million, the sum of entities,” Ken Farnaso, Haley’s campaign press secretary, wrote in an email, adding that other presidential candidates also have multiple fundraising vehicles.

Had they counted those transfers only once, Haley’s $11 million becomes about $8.3 million. That’s still a strong sum for her first six weeks as a candidate, but it’s not quite what was touted in the media over the past two weeks.

^Still upset you’re never ever going to get that 1,000.00/month?




Dreaming

Chris Christie: Trump investigations make GOP primary win ‘uncertain’

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) said the various investigations into former President Trump make a hypothetical GOP presidential primary win “uncertain.”

“No, I don’t think that the field [is] starting to look like Trump,” Christie said on ABC’s “This Week.” “In fact, you know, when you’re indicted in one place, and you’re facing investigations [in] two others, it makes you at least an uncertain winner. But again, he’s the former president. So of course he’s going to be the frontrunner. He has the best name ID in the race, of anybody else running, but you already have four other candidates now who are announced in.”

Christie has not announced his plans regarding a possible 2024 White House run.

“This is not going to be a 2016 field,” the former governor said on Sunday, adding that there are “going to be six to eight candidates that are going to be running.

“It’ll be a normal-type sized field. But certainly it’s not going to be a field that Donald Trump has cleared,” he said.

Hutchinson and Haley are “substantial people who are going to have something to say,” Christie added.

In other news…

Trump 2024 fundraising hits $34M with bump after indictment

Originally Posted by S Landreth

Wait a second.
What 1,000.00 a month? They are giving away $1000 a month and no one told me?

^^^
Oh wait.
Is that USD or THB? (Either way, I want it)

^never going to get it

Originally Posted by S Landreth

Still upset you’re never ever going to get that 1,000.00/month?

Originally Posted by Buckaroo Banzai

Unless it's a choice between Biden and trump , I will not vote for Biden.
His mishandling of the Russia /Ukraine issue that has caused the death of so many innocents and has pushed Russia into the Erms of China is a monumental blunder whose repercussions I certainly will not live long enough to see end, and I am afraid my children will have to live for a long long time.

And what do you think would have been the correct approach?

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

And what do you think would have been the correct approach?

That's the story for another thread. My opinion has been consistent , The Ukraine should had remained neutral.

Originally Posted by Buckaroo Banzai

That's the story for another thread. My opinion has been consistent , The Ukraine should had remained neutral.

Well perhaps it would have if Putin hadn't put a lackey in charge to bring it under his control.

Have you not been following events or something?

"Ukraine war follows decades of warnings that NATO expansion into Eastern Europe could provoke Russia"

Fvck Russia and fvck anyone else who has a problem with any nation that would like to join NATO.

Biden: 'Ukraine Will Never Be a Victory for Russia. Never'