Notable Quote of the Day

“Michigan has nearly every ingredient going into the 2020 stew. It is a classic swing state that had been reliably Democratic blue in presidential politics until President Trump turned it Republican red in 2016. Now, Mr. Trump trails in polls there. Michigan has a Democratic governor, Gretchen Whitmer, who is on the shortlist of potential Democratic vice presidential nominees.

More immediately, Michigan has become a case study in the cultural and political divide that has opened up over the coronavirus crisis. It has been hit hard by the virus, and Ms. Whitmer has responded with aggressive orders to limit public movement and business activity. …

On top of all that, Michigan even has the nation’s newest potential presidential contender, Rep. Justin Amash, a former Republican who has left the party and voted to impeach the president. He now says he is considering running for the White House as a member of the Libertarian Party. Democrats worry that run could siphon away anti-Trump votes, in Michigan and elsewhere, that presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden will need.

Michigan’s 16 electoral votes may not, by themselves, prove decisive. But the state looks increasingly like a canary in the 2020 coal mine.”

– Gerald F. Seib, The Wall Street Journal 

Election Updates

• Joe Biden’s campaign hired three senior aides: Natalie Quillian as deputy campaign manager, Saloni Multani as chief financial officer, and Deanna Nesburg as senior adviser for financial operations. According to The Washington Post, upcoming hires “will include an initial doubling of Biden’s 20-person digital staff; new hires in fundraising and organizing; and the appointments of senior officials from the shuttered campaigns of former congressman Beto O’Rourke (D-Tex.), Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Sen. Kamala D. Harris (D-Calif.).”

• California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) endorsed Biden at a virtual fundraiser on Friday. He said, “You get it, and you’ve gotten it done over the course of decades. … You’ve been on the front lines of fighting against poverty, ignorance and disease. You have a deep compassion and empathy, you see the world from other people’s eyes.”

• Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said on Friday regarding the Democratic National Convention, “My suggestion to Mr. Perez was get a gigantic stadium and put people six feet apart. So instead of having 80,000 people there you would have 16,000 people there and just do it all in one day.” The Democratic National Convention is scheduled for the week of August 17 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

• On Saturday, Donald Trump’s re-election campaign announced “Moms for Trump,” a coalition that says it will “mobilize and empower mothers, aunts, grandmothers, and nanas across the nation to re-elect President Donald J. Trump by sharing their stories and experiences of the President’s Pro-Family and Pro-America agenda.”

• Trump commented on the shooting of Ahmaud Arbery on Friday. He said, “So I saw the tape, and it’s very, very disturbing, the tape. … And I will say that that looks like a really good, young guy.” He also said, “You know, it could be something that we didn’t see on tape. There could be a lot of — you know, if you saw things went off tape and then back on tape.”

• Republican National Convention officials hired Dr. Jeffrey Runge, a former Department of Homeland Security medical director, as the senior advisor for health and safety planning for the convention. The Republican National Convention is scheduled for the week of August 24 in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Flashback: May 11, 2016

After Bernie Sanders won the West Virginia Democratic primary on May 10, Trump tweeted, “I don’t want to hit Crazy Bernie Sanders too hard yet because I love watching what he is doing to Crooked Hillary. His time will come!”