November 8, 2019: Michael Bloomberg is expected to file for the Alabama Democratic presidential primary before the filing deadline on Friday. Andrew Yang is airing his first television ad in Iowa as part of a $1 million ad buy. 

     Each Friday, we highlight a presidential candidate’s key campaign staffer.

Emmy Ruiz is a Democratic campaign staffer with experience in California, Nevada, and Texas. Ruiz is a partner at consulting firm NEWCO Strategies. She graduated from the University of Texas at San Antonio with a degree in English language and literature in 2006.

Previous campaign work:

• 2016 Hillary Clinton (D) presidential campaign, Colorado and Nevada state director
• 2012 Barack Obama (D) presidential campaign, Nevada general election director
• 2008 Hillary Clinton (D) presidential campaign, canvass director and regional field director

Other experience:

• 2019: NEWCO Strategies, partner
• 2013-2014: Annie’s List, political director
• 2013: Organizing for Action, comprehensive immigration reform campaign manager
• 2012-2013: Obama Inaugural Committee Office of Public Engagement, deputy director
• 2011-2012: Organizing for America, Nevada field director
• 2009-2011: Democratic National Committee, Texas field director
• 2011: U.S. Agency for International Development, Yes Youth Can field consultant
• 2008-2010: Young Democrats of America, national field manager
• 2006-2007: American Red Cross, development coordinator/grant writer

Notable Quotes of the Day

“As a former business magnate and mayor of New York City, Bloomberg has the two qualities essential to enter the presidential race at this late stage: money and name recognition. For that reason, I think Bloomberg can immediately become a heavyweight in the Democratic primaries. Beyond the attention he’d garner with his announcement, there’s plenty of space for Bloomberg to position himself as a moderate voice, especially with Joe Biden’s candidacy stuck in neutral.”

– Thomas Gift, University College London

“It’s tough in Iowa. It’s tough with 90 days away. If he does this, this is not going to be an Iowa-centered campaign. If he does this, this is going to be a very unorthodox campaign.”

– Matt Paul, 2016 Clinton Iowa state director

Democrats

• Michael Bennet is touring flood-damaged communities and attending a climate change discussion in Iowa on Saturday. Bennet also joined the Climate Solutions Caucus this week.
• Joe Biden will campaign in New Hampshire Friday and Saturday, including filing for the state primary. 
• Cory Booker will campaign in South Carolina on Friday and Saturday.
• In an interview on Slate’s Gist podcast, Steve Bullock discussed climate change and energy.
• Pete Buttigieg is launching a four-day bus tour of New Hampshire on Friday. He also issued a series of plans on childcare, affordable housing, and college costs. Among Buttigieg’s proposals are investing $1 trillion in childcare and affordable housing and eliminating public college tuition for families earning less than $100,000.
• Julián Castro spoke at the Annie’s List dinner in San Antonio on Thursday night.
• John Delaney criticized Medicare for All in an interview on Fox News’ America’s Newsroom.
• In an interview on Breitbart News Daily, Tulsi Gabbard discussed China, Syria, the Democratic Party, and the Trump administration.
• Kamala Harris will attend a town hall in Las Vegas on Friday and tour the Veterans Village in Nevada on Saturday.
• Amy Klobuchar is speaking at Iowa Central Community College on Friday.
• Wayne Messam gave a speech at the Miramar Comcast Center on Thursday.
• Bernie Sanders will campaign across Iowa Friday through Monday, including a rally with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.) in Council Bluffs on Friday.
• The Sanders campaign is expected to spend $30 million on advertising in Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Nevada, and California, The New York Times reported.
• Sanders also released his immigration plan on Thursday, which includes reinstating DACA and eliminating Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement and redistributing their duties to other agencies.
• Joe Sestak will speak at Winthrop University in South Carolina on Friday.
• Tom Steyer aide Pat Murphy allegedly offered local Iowa political figures compensation in exchange for an endorsement of Steyer, according to an Associated Press report. Press secretary Alberto Lammers said no officials in Iowa had received contributions and the campaign did not authorize Murphy’s actions. 
• Elizabeth Warren will participate in a town hall focused on Latino issues in Raleigh, North Carolina.
• Marianne Williamson posted a video requesting donors contribute $1 million more to her campaign to fund television ads.
• Andrew Yang is airing his first ad in Iowa, “New Way Forward,” as part of a $1 million ad buy in the state.

Republicans

• The Conway Daily Sun editorial board in New Hampshire is interviewing Mark Sanford on Friday.
• Donald Trump is launching a black voter outreach initiative in Atlanta on Friday called “Black Voices for Trump.”
• Bill Weld wrote an op-ed in The Boston Herald calling for Trump to be impeached and removed from office.

On the Cusp: Tracking Potential Candidates

• Michael Bloomberg reportedly will file for the Alabama Democratic presidential primary before the filing deadline on Friday. He has not yet made a final decision on whether to run for president.

What We’re Reading

• Bloomberg: Sandberg Says U.S. 2020 Election Is Facebook’s Highest Priority
• FiveThirtyEight: What Virginia, Mississippi and Kentucky Can Tell Us About 2020
• Politico: Bloomberg makes preparations for 2020 run

Flashback: November 8, 2015
 Joan Kato replaced Jim Farrell as Bernie Sanders’ Nevada state director.