Democrats trying to unseat each other

[lpetrich]

New York's troubles with absentee ballots suggest similar troubles in the general election if Boards of Elections are not well-enough prepared to count the avalanche of absentee ballots expected for then.

Voting-rights groups have also been alarmed by reports of thousands of disqualified ballots, raising the specter of widespread voter disenfranchisement.

Preliminary data obtained by The New York Times shows that about 20 percent of ballots have been invalidated in the Manhattan and Queens portions of the 12th District, for instance, and almost 30 percent in the Brooklyn portion of the district. Mr. Patel said he believed some ballots had been invalidated because voters dropped them off on June 23, the deadline to postmark ballots, but they weren’t postmarked until the following day by the Postal Service.

Data compiled by New Reformers, a Queens political organization, shows that election officials have invalidated at least 22,000 out of about 89,000 absentee ballots received in the borough, or about 25 percent, sometimes for minor issues like an envelope’s being sealed with tape or missing signatures on ballot envelopes.

 

[lpetrich]

Election 2020 - Jamaal Bowman topples US Rep. Engel in NY Democratic primary

Bowman declared victory in the race on June 24, a day after the primary election. The Associated Press was able to call the race Friday after obtaining an absentee vote count that showed Engel narrowly ahead among votes received by mail, but not by nearly the margin necessary to overcome Bowman’s Election Day advantage.

Bowman earned his extraordinary win in a campaign season upended first by the coronavirus outbreak, then by protests over the death of George Floyd.

“I’m a Black man who was raised by a single mother in a housing project. That story doesn’t usually end in Congress. But today, that 11-year old boy who was beaten by police is about to be your next Representative,” Bowman said in a statement. Bowman said his campaign was anchored in the fight for racial and economic justice “and it resonated in every part of the district.”

Jamaal Bowman, Progressive Insurgent, Defeats Eliot Engel in House Primary - The New York Times

Jamaal Bowman Wants Democrats to Be the “Party of Dismantling Mass Incarceration” - The Appeal -- VERY good interview. He proposes VERY sensible policies:

If we defund police and shift funding to things like healthcare, wellness, trauma centers, drug and alcohol treatment, peer support networks, and restorative justice programs, we won’t have a need for such a large, militarized police force. We can have fewer cops, and replace them with Crisis Care units of violence interrupters, social workers, and mental health intervention.

Like AOC, he won by unseating a long-time incumbent. Also like AOC, he proposes VERY sensible policies.

Jamaal Bowman Upsets Rep. Eliot Engel In NY-16 Race : NPR
Jamaal Bowman on Twitter: "I’m a Black man raised by a single mother in a housing project. That story doesn’t usually end in Congress.
But today, that 11-year old boy beaten by police is about to be your Representative.
I can't wait to get to DC and cause problems for those maintaining the status quo. https://t.co/ijaWpkcxvc" / Twitter

 

[lpetrich]

Jamaal Bowman ousts longtime Rep. Eliot Engel in New York Democratic primary - The Washington Post

Engel, 73, later conceded, saying “the numbers are clear” and wishing Bowman, 44, well “as he begins this new chapter in his life.”

In a statement, Engel also thanked his family and staff, as well as the voters of his district, “who 16 times decided to renew my two-year contract and send me back to Washington.”

“[W]hat an honor to be the longest-serving Congressman in the history of the Bronx,” Engel said. “I never for a minute thought of this as my seat. It’s the people’s seat, and it is a true honor that you put your trust in me to represent you in the greatest legislative body in the world.”

He was in the House for 16 terms or 32 years.

 

[lpetrich]

• Manhattan - AD 65, 66, 67, 69 () (68, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76)
• Bronx - AD 77, 78, 81, 82, 85, 87 (79) (80, 83, 84, 86)
• Brooklyn - AD 53, 55, 56 (50, 52, 57) (41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 51, 54, 58, 59, 60, 64)
• Queens - AD 38 (36, 37, 39, 40) (23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35)
• Staten Island - AD's done

Why only one Assembly district for Queens? Some Queens ones look unstarted. But the count looks like it is approaching completion. NY-16 and NY-17 are now called; both districts are Bronx-upstate ones. I'm not sure about the Queens-LI ones like NY-03 and NY-05 -- looks like the LI absentee votes have been counted by not the Queens ones.

Jen Perelman For Congress FL 23 - Official Website

Lawyer Jen Perelman is running against Wasserman Schultz in the August 18 primary and hopes her grassroots campaign can propel her to a primary win in Florida's 23rd Congressional District, which includes parts of Miami-Dade and Broward counties.

But Perelman's campaign hit a snag earlier this month when she realized two websites that use her name — jenperelman.com and jenperelmanforcongress.com — had been purchased by someone else. The sites now forward to Wasserman Schultz's official House website.

It looks like the domain names were acquired back in September, but I have no idea when they began forwarding to her page," Perelman tells New Times. "For all I know, that just started last week. Whoever it was who bought them hooked it up."

Perelman says her staffers traced the domain registration to Panama.

Which was as far as they could go. It is not very clear who purchased these domain names. I checked, and both of them still redirect to Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz - DWS's official House site.

But jen2020.com wasn't bought by those redirecters: Jen Perelman For Congress FL 23 - Official Website

 

[lpetrich]

Jen Perelman For Congress on Twitter: "Debbie Wasserman Schultz‘s team bought the following domains:
jenperelman.com jenperelmanforcongress.com
You think they’re concerned about us yet?
#JENerationalChange #FL23" / Twitter

• August 4: AZ (Eva Putzova), KS, MI (Rashida Tlaib*), MO (Cori Bush), WA (Pramila Jayapal*, Rebecca Parson)
• August 6: TN
• August 8: HI
• August 11: CT, MN (Ilhan Omar*), VT, WI
• August 18: AK, FL (Jen Perelman), WY
• September 1: MA (Ayanna Pressley*, Ihssane Leckey, Alex Morse, Ed Markey*)
• September 8: NH, RI
• September 15: DE (Jessica Scarane)

 

[lpetrich]

• Manhattan - AD 65, 66, 67, 68, 69 () (70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76)
• Bronx - AD 77, 78, 79, 87 () (80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86)
• Brooklyn - AD 50, 56, 57 (52) (41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 51, 53, 54, 55, 58, 59, 60, 64)
• Queens - AD 36, 37, 39, 40 () (23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 38)
• Staten Island - AD's done

Looks like the canvassing of the NYC State Assembly is reaching the end of unexamined districts, with only one remaining. Also, the counting is skipping the upcoming Sunday, as if they want to take a break. There are still several districts in the middle of counting, however. Looks like they could finish all of them by the end of the week.

 

[lpetrich]

Ilhan Omar vastly outraised by primary rival ahead of August election | Fox News
Omar rallies to fight back against primary challenge | TheHill

Omar’s campaign released the results of an internal poll on Thursday that showed her leading Melton-Meaux by 37 points. Former Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor (DFL) Party Chairman Mike Erlandson told The Hill he’s seen two private polls that show Melton-Meaux is “within striking distance.”

The AOC campaign's internal poll was in close agreement with her in-person vote, and that gives some ground for optimism for IO. Opponent Antone Melton-Meaux:

Melton-Meaux said that Omar had “lost the trust of the Jewish community by her insensitive and harmful tropes.” The Democratic-controlled House voted on a broad resolution condemning hate and bigotry last year after Omar came under fire for remarks about the influence of Israel.

Melton-Meaux criticized Omar for breaking with Democrats when she declined to support bills recognizing the Armenian genocide or implementing sanctions on Turkey. Omar was also one of 38 Democrats who voted against the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which had union support.

And Melton-Meaux criticized Omar for missing about 40 votes, saying she had prioritized her national status ahead of the concerns of her constituents.

I don’t want to be a celebrity, I just want to support the people,” he said.

Sort of like MCC vs. AOC -- MCC claimed that AOC was more interested in being a celebrity more than helping the people of her district.

The Omar campaign blasted back, calling Melton-Meaux's criticisms “nonsense designed to divide the Jewish community.”

Omar has held regular roundtable discussions with members of the Minneapolis Jewish community and voted in favor of House resolutions condemning anti-Semitism after the Poway synagogue shooting in 2019.

Omar missed some votes in 2019 due to the death of a family member and during the Muslim holiday of Eid. But her campaign says that she leads the entire Minnesota delegation in amendments passed and in total number of bills and amendments introduced.

...
There have been reports of Republicans contributing to Melton-Meaux’s campaign.

Like for MCC -- she got big money from Wall Streeters and Republican donors.

“While right-wing interests funneling millions into her opponent's campaign are willing to do anything and say anything to stop her, we're confident that voters in Minnesota's 5th district will stand with Rep. Ilhan Omar in this primary just as she's always stood with them,” said Neil Sroka, a strategist with the progressive group Democracy for America, which is working to get Omar reelected.

Melton-Meaux says that the national donations have been driven by fundraisers from groups like Pro-Israel America and NorPAC that support members of both parties.

 

[lpetrich]

2020 Election United States House - Minnesota - District 05 | FEC

Candidate, party, money raised, money spent, cash on hand:

• OMAR, ILHAN DEMOCRATIC-FARMER-LABOR $3,868,929.39 $2,811,897.20 $1,111,861.46
• MELTON-MEAUX, ANTONE DEMOCRATIC-FARMER-LABOR $3,729,676.52 $1,713,007.15 $2,016,669.37
• JOHNSON, LACY REPUBLICAN PARTY $3,173,443.09 $2,616,070.77 $557,372.32
• KELLEY, CHRIS MR. INDEPENDENCE PARTY $249,787.84 $249,787.84 $0.00
• AL-AQIDI, DALIA REPUBLICAN PARTY $181,199.69 $173,132.85 $8,066.84
• STELLA, DANIELLE REPUBLICAN PARTY $136,380.78 $133,720.68 $2,660.10
• MASON, JOHN DEMOCRATIC-FARMER-LABOR $108,224.00 $5,563.05 $102,660.95
• WATERBURY, ALLEY REPUBLICAN PARTY $6,168.30 $5,159.60 $0.00
• VOGEL, LUCIA MARINA MRS. REPUBLICAN PARTY $539.09 $690.11 $0.00
• WHALEY, BRENT ALLEN REPUBLICAN PARTY $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
• ADAN, (LEILA)SHUKRI BASHIR MS DEMOCRATIC-FARMER-LABOR $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
• TURNER, LAVERNE C MR REPUBLICAN PARTY $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
• LESTER, LESLIE L. DEMOCRATIC-FARMER-LABOR $0.00 $0.00 $0.00

Dalia Al-Aqidi is running as a token Middle-Eastern Muslim.

IO gets most of her campaign money from California, an even greater fraction than what AOC gets. Most of AMM's is from Minnesota, much like how most of MCC's money comes from New York.

 

[lpetrich]

2020 Election United States House - Michigan - District 13 | FEC

• TLAIB, RASHIDA DEMOCRATIC PARTY $2,873,532.71 $1,662,308.55 $1,278,879.45
• LEMMO, ALFRED C MR. REPUBLICAN PARTY $640,978.56 $575,180.11 $65,798.45
• DUDENHOEFER, DAVID ANTHONY REPUBLICAN PARTY $356,297.03 $248,159.86 $108,137.17
• JONES, BRENDA DEMOCRATIC PARTY $135,249.31 $126,260.41 $12,381.49
• EASON, DONALD INDEPENDENT $500.00 $8.60 $491.40
• PATTERSON, STEPHEN MICHAEL DEMOCRATIC PARTY $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
• SAWYER, LINDA REPUBLICAN PARTY $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
• BOMER, ARTICIA REPUBLICAN PARTY $0.00 $0.00 $0.00

Here also, most of RT's money comes from California, while most of BJ's money comes from Michigan.

2020 Election United States House - Massachusetts - District 07 | FEC

• PRESSLEY, AYANNA DEMOCRATIC PARTY $1,541,013.04 $1,238,727.80 $388,385.02
• CAMPBELL, RAYLA REPUBLICAN PARTY $3,881.00 $1,167.28 $2,713.72

Most of AP's money comes from Massachusetts.

 

[lpetrich]

2020 Election United States House - California - District 45 | FEC

• PORTER, KATHERINE DEMOCRATIC PARTY $8,199,531.54 $1,530,141.17 $6,753,136.90
• SEDGWICK, DONALD M REPUBLICAN PARTY $895,705.07 $895,705.07 $0.00
• RATHS, GREGORY GERARD REPUBLICAN PARTY $751,558.12 $416,606.09 $334,919.43
• SPARKS, LISA REPUBLICAN PARTY $519,919.43 $519,919.43 $0.00
• HUANG, PEGGY REPUBLICAN PARTY $491,951.38 $491,560.83 $390.55
• GENNAWEY, RAY REPUBLICAN PARTY $77,674.00 $77,674.00 $0.00
• GONZALES, CHRISTOPHER JOHN REPUBLICAN PARTY $37,892.00 $36,050.88 $1,841.12
• PAI, ADITYA DEMOCRATIC PARTY $34,823.20 $34,823.20 $0.00
• WOOLWORTH, BRENTON REPUBLICAN PARTY $10,559.00 $10,559.00 $0.00
• FORDE, BRIAN DEMOCRATIC PARTY $954.00 $5,453.71 $223,072.91
• WALTERS, MIMI REPUBLICAN PARTY $909.85 $51,044.42 $0.00
• FURIN, RHONDA DEE REPUBLICAN PARTY $0.00 $0.00 $0.00

Nearly all of KP's money comes from California. She's now up against Greg Raths in the main election. Most of his money is also from California.

For IO and RT, their biggest Republican opponents' money mainly comes from Texas, and in some cases, also California and Florida.

 

[lpetrich]

Jeremy Slevin on Twitter: "NEWS: @IlhanMN has massive support heading into her reelection race.
74% job approval
70% favorability
37 point lead over closest challenger (her lead actually *increases* to 43 points after they hear his message).
Organized people > organized money via @ChangePolls" / Twitter
He describes himself as "comms/strategy for @ilhan. Amateur everything else."
PDF page

So is AMM essentially going the way of MCC? Mostly running against IO without much of a platform of his own.

self depreciating omar on Twitter: "@jeremyslevin @IlhanMN @ChangePolls Im confident ilhan will make it. Im more worried about Tlaib" / Twitter

Sean S on Twitter: "@expiredomar @jeremyslevin @IlhanMN @ChangePolls If someone like Antone was against her, I think she would probably be toast. But Brenda Jones can’t raise money and has her own controversies to deal with. I think Tlaib will survive." / Twitter

 

[lpetrich]

David Mark: In New York, AOC's candidate won the primary. Nationally, progressives are losing. - seems like a clickbait title. It mentioned the defeat of Jessica Cisneros but not the victory of Marie Newman, for instance.

Let's see how Brand New Congress and Justice Democrats have fared, between 2018 and now. I'll add AOC's leadership PAC Courage to Change.

• BNC 2018 D 28, won primary 9, won general 1
• BNC 2018 R 1
• BNC 2018 I 1
• BNC 2020 41, had primary 31, won primary 6, likely general winners: 2
• JD 2018 72, won primary 19, won general 7
• JD 2020 16, had primary 10, won primary 7, likely general winners: 5
• CTC 2020 11, had primary 11, won primary 6, likely genreal winners: 4

Success rate 2018, estimated success rate (safe seats) 2020:

• BNC 2018: 1/30
• BNC 2020: 1/16
• JD 2018: 1/10
• JD 2020: 1/2
• CTC 2020: 1/2

 

[lpetrich]

The primaries in Missouri is coming up on August 4, and at least one battle is heating up there, the battle for MO-01.

Its incumbent, William Lacy Clay, has been in office there for 20 years, and he succeeded his father, who had been in office there for 32 years. Source: William Lacy Clay - Ballotpedia

Challenging him is Cori Bush, a registered nurse and Black Lives Matter activist. She had challenged him back in 2018, with WLC getting 56.7%, CB 36.9%, and the others 3.4% and 2.9%. CB's 2018 run was documented in "Knock Down The House". AOC campaigned for her back then, though she is rather quiet now. Part of the reason may be is that WLC is in the same committees that AOC is in: Oversight and Financial Services. So she might not want to pick a fight with someone who outranks her there.

Cori Bush Seeks to Be a Congresswoman Organizer - The American Prospect

Nurse, pastor, and community organizer Cori Bush, of St. Louis, Missouri, stands at the center of the COVID-19 pandemic, international protests against police brutality, and a national struggle of working-class people. She has been a boots-on-the-ground activist since the 2014 Ferguson mobilization, and brought her life experiences to a run for Congress in 2018. Now she’s returned for a rematch against 20-year incumbent Democrat Lacy Clay.

As a Medicare for All advocate and survivor of COVID-19 during the public-health pandemic, as a Ferguson activist who’s protesting during another moment of national reckoning on systemic racism, and as a mother of two and an active member of her community focused on poverty in her area and the transition to online learning, Bush believes this is the moment to address the issues most important to her.

“My message is the same. It’s the times that have changed,” says Bush in an interview with the Prospect. “I’ve been true to myself since Ferguson … I didn’t change, and with me not changing people were able to grab ahold of this message, this message of equity and equality for our community and ending all of these racist practices in our communities.”

Fight Corporate Monopolies on Twitter: "After being lobbied by Wall Street, William Lacy Clay opposed legislation that would have benefited working families.
In return, he received tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions.
It’s time to hold him accountable. https://t.co/gur8Iv0s9F" / Twitter
With a video of an ad attacking Rep. Clay for being in the pay of Wall Street.

The creator of that ad is Fight Corporate Monopolies a "progressive political advocacy institution devoted to breaking up the economic and political concentrations of corporate power." It also has ads against Rep. Richard Neal MA-01, the head of the Ways and Means Committee, also with a progressive primary challenger: Alex Morse.

 

[lpetrich]

Missouri Rep. Fight Against Obama Wall Street Reform Resurfaces

A clash between Rep. William Lacy Clay Jr. and the Obama administration over a key Wall Street reform rule is set to reemerge as a flashpoint in the final weeks of the St. Louis congressman’s fight for an 11th term, courtesy of a six-figure ad buy from an anti-monopoly group.

...
The Obama administration proposed a rule that would require financial advisers to have the best interests of their clients in mind, the so-called fiduciary rule. Lobbyists for the investment industry immediately began an assault from all sides on the proposed rule, leading a drawn-out, six-year battle. Central to that strategy was allying with key Democrats on the House Financial Services Committee, who could give a bipartisan gloss to the effort. Clay, a senior member of that committee, played a leading role in the effort. In return, he was flooded with campaign cash from donors in the investment industry, many of whom hadn’t given to his campaign previously.

...
Among other efforts, Clay organized his Democratic colleagues to join Republicans around a 2015 letter asking the Obama administration to scrap its rule and start over. He signed a similar letter in 2013, arguing that the new rule would drive investment advisers simply to stop working with some clients, disproportionately hitting Black savers.

...
Clay is locked in a rematch with nurse and Black Lives Matter leader Cori Bush, a would-be member of the so-called Squad who lost the 2018 Democratic primary to Clay by a 20-point margin.

...
Ahead of the Missouri primary on August 4, significant firepower is headed for St. Louis in support of the insurgent Bush, according to sources familiar with the planning. Sunrise Movement, fresh off an election victory in Texas and a near miss in Kentucky, is placing its next big bet on St. Louis, throwing in behind Bush. The youth-led climate group also has a well-funded independent expenditure arm that may spend on the race. The advent of such big money outside spending from the left is a relatively new feature of congressional primary politics, making incumbents less safe than they otherwise would be.

That's Mike Siegel TX-10 and Charles Booker KY-SEN.

Back in 2018, Justice Democrats had initially planned to back a slate of candidates, but they decided on an all-out push behind AOC, and when AOC beat Joe Crowley, they decided to support Kerri Harris for DE-SEN and Ayanna Pressley for MA-07. Cori Bush was left in the lurch, and she succeeded in raising only $177,000. She lost by 20%.

JD is supporting CB again, even if not as much as it supported Jamaal Bowman. But it has raised some $40,000 for her campaign. Checking on 2020 Election United States House - Missouri - District 01 | FEC, I find:

• 2020: WLC $730,752.84, CB $488,862.02
• 2018: WLC $663,728.62, CB $177,038.34

This has given her the ability to send $85,000 worth of mailers so far, with another $33,000 budgeted for radio and digital ads in the final weeks, on top of a planned TV ad buy of $50,000 this week. Drivers in St. Louis are also more likely to learn who she is: The campaign has eight billboards around the region, plus 50 4-by-8-foot signs.

Nothing remotely similar happened in 2018, as her campaign was unable to spend on digital ads, direct mail, billboards, or TV, scrounging enough together for some two weeks of radio ads. Toppling a 50-year dynasty without name recognition is effectively impossible, which puts a different gloss on the 37 percent she managed to pull.

Her campaigners plan a two-part strategy: convince voters for WLC to vote for her, and seek out new voters. AOC's campaigners used that strategy to great effect, getting something like 63% extra turnout for her first primary election.

Next up for SM are the re-election of Ed Markey MA-SEN and supporting Alex Morse in his bid to unseat Richard Neal MA-01.

 

[lpetrich]

• Manhattan - AD 66, 67, 68, 69, 73 () (65, 70, 71, 72, 74, 75, 76)
• Bronx - AD 77, 78, 79, 87 () (80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86)
• Brooklyn - AD 50, 52, 57 () (41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 51, 53, 54, 55, 56, 58, 59, 60, 64)
• Queens - AD 36, 37, 39, 40 () (23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 38)
• Staten Island - AD's done

No unexamined districts.

The rate of district counting is roughly one district per day, and that means that State Assembly canvassing will be mostly done by the end of this week.

 

[lpetrich]

Tlaib, Omar face insurgent primary challengers: Can ‘Squad’ survive? | Fox News

Rashida Tlaib on Twitter: "The #13thDistrict is just getting started. We are part of a movement to fight against injustices fueled by racism and corporate greed. We never back down and will always stand up for what is right. #RootedInCommunity https://t.co/VbOInam6gl" / Twitter

Brenda Jones on Twitter: "The people of the 13th Congressional District know & trust me. I WILL bring home the bacon to the people of the 13th Congressional District! Will you please support my campaign by making a donation today at (link) (Pt 4/4)" / Twitter
Bringing home the bacon? All bacon is pork.

HOME - Return Brenda Jones

When Conyers stepped down in 2018 amid accusations of sexual harassment, Jones briefly held the seat after narrowly edging Tlaib in a special election to fill the rest of Conyers’ term.

But Tlaib won a separate election for the new two-year term, starting in 2019. That election included six candidates. Jones, who is Black, now enjoys the support of the other four candidates from the 2018 election. Tlaib is Palestinian-American — and she made history alongside Omar in 2018 as the first two Muslim women elected to Congress.

...
But Tlaib – a talented campaigner and fundraiser – has a massive campaign cash advantage over Jones, who was sidetracked from fundraising after contracting the coronavirus.

“Tlaib has a lot of advantages, between money and incumbency. It’s frankly just so difficult to campaign during a pandemic, to that gives incumbents even more of an advantage,” Demas highlighted.

...
Jones argues that Tlaib has ignored her district as she’s become too preoccupied with national issues.

“You can be vocal, but the things that were being done — like calling the president a ‘MF’ or booing Hillary — every time something like that happened, I was getting calls from people saying ‘You’re more professional than this,’” Jones told The New York Times. “I’m not interested in being a rock star. I’m just interested in bringing home the money, working for the people of the 13th district and uniting the community.”

Tlaib pushed back against such arguments – saying her opponents are highlighting just a few high-profile moments and overlooking her legislative achievements. This year she’s teamed up with fellow lawmakers to shield constituents from high water bills and water shutoffs, which many argue disproportionately hurt people of color.

Rashida Tlaib on Twitter: "Folks at the city level continue to downplay water shutoffs. Since 2014, there have been close to 130,000 service lines turned off.
All this while residents went to Detroit City Council repeatedly urging help and protection.
We shouldn't have to file lawsuits to get help." / Twitter

 

[lpetrich]

About Ilhan Omar,

Former Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor (DFL) Party Chairman Mike Erlandson told Fox News that “there’s no question that the elevation of the race in the 5th Congressional District to a national race has clearly helped Omar, and Ellison before her, with the national fundraising base. But now we are seeing that it is also having an impact on a challenger.”

“He’s a very strong candidate. He has a very compelling story, just as congresswoman has a very compelling story. I think that has brought people into his camp, in addition to a number of people not being too excited about their current congresswoman,” Erlandson said.

...
Melton-Meaux argued in an interview with The Hill that Omar had “lost the trust of the Jewish community by her insensitive and harmful tropes.”

Omar has worked to repair any potential damage – holding regular discussions with the Minneapolis Jewish community – and supported House resolutions condemning anti-Semitism amid the shooting last year at a Poway, Calif., synagogue.

Report: 'Right-leaning' groups funding Ilhan Omar's DFL primary challenger - Bring Me The News

On his campaign website, Melton-Meaux vows not to get "distracted fighting with Donald Trump on Twitter," and says he's "dedicated to service, not celebrity."

These would seem to be swipes at Omar's high-profile feuds with the Trump family as well as her outspokenness, which has earned her national recognition — not all of it friendly — as a progressive firebrand.

AMM's campaign page: Antone Melton-Meaux For Congress - Focused On The Fifth

 

[lpetrich]

Willpower v kindness: could Judith Collins crush Jacinda Ardern at the New Zealand election? | Grant Duncan for the Conversation | World news | The Guardian

But Collins can be charming, too, though often with an edge. She was quick to compliment Ardern as an accomplished communicator – with a back-hander that “communication is not execution”.

This suggestion that Ardern is all appearance and little substance is part of the well-worn attack line National employs against a government it wants to brand as “failing to deliver”.

So AOC, RT, IO, and JA are all attacked for allegedly wanting to be celebrities.

 

[Derec]

Linda "Cockroach" Sarsour says that E-1 Private Jamaal Bowman should take orders from Cpl. Sandy's "squad" and should not ask any questions:
Sarsour: Jamaal Bowman should follow orders from The Squad

 

[lpetrich]

Cockroach???

Sarsour: Jamaal Bowman should follow orders from The Squad

Rebecca Katz, a spokeswoman for Bowman, told JI that Bowman “plans to work alongside the members of the Squad and all his colleagues.” Katz added: “As you will soon see, he will definitely ask plenty of questions.”

Detroit City Council president Brenda Jones narrows gap with Rashida Tlaib in new MI-13 poll

• June 2019: RT 56%, BJ 19%
• April 2020: RT 43%, BJ 34%

RT is way ahead of BJ in fundraising, now having some 10 times as much money in the bank.

Ties to Farrakhan: Jones has previously expressed praise for Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, who has been frequently criticized as an anti-Semite. When Farrakhan addressed the Detroit City Council in 2014, Jones said at the time that he offered “awesome words.” When Farrakhan spoke in Detroit earlier this year, Jones issued a statement that she was “so excited” to welcome Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam to the city. And at a speech in Oct. 2018, which Jones attended, Farrakhan singled her out for praise and applause from the audience.

Stephen Grady, Jones’ chief of staff in the city council’s office, spoke at an event featuring Farrakhan in Detroit in March, telling the crowd that Jones supports the Nation of Islam. He also said in separate remarks at the same event that Jones sponsored a resolution praising The Final Call, the Nation of Islam’s newspaper, for its “truthful reporting and “courageous journalists,” according to the ADL. The newspaper also publishes antisemitic and racist content.

This could be fun.