Never quite hitting more than 1 percent in any national poll, former two-term Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper has officially dropped out of the 2020 race, slimming the Democratic field to just over two-dozen.
Two debates and many trips to early primary states like Iowa and New Hampshire later, Hickenlooper is the most recent Democrat to depart. California Congressman Eric Swalwell exited the race after the first Democratic debate in Miami.
In a video message posted on YouTube Thursday afternoon, Hickenlooper said many Coloradans want him to open up a Senate run. The state is key stomping grounds as Democrats try to take over the majority in the Senate come 2020. He told supporters he intends to "give that some serious thought."
A recent poll shows Hickenlooper could have a real shot at a 2020 Senate nomination. He is favored by 61 percent of Democratic primary voters, according to a poll from Garin-Hart-Yang Research Group. His rival in the race would be Sen. Cory Gardner (R) who has been listed as occupying one of the most vulnerable seats in Congress.
After Hickenlooper's announcement Thursday, Colorado Senator, and still-standing 2020 presidential candidate, Michael Bennet released a statement that said, "[John Hickenlooper] provided a valuable voice in this primary, bringing the ideas and solutions he successfully championed in Colorado to the national debate."
Bennet is also struggling in the polls and has yet to qualify for the third round of Democratic debates in Houston.
Since the inception of Hickenlooper's 2020 run, his campaign has faced an uphill battle. According to a report from POLITICO in early July, staffers said the campaign raised just over $1 million in the second quarter with 13,000 donors, making it nearly impossible to qualify for the third debate. At that point, five staffers had departed the campaign.
And who could forget the boos Hickenlooper got after he decried socialism in America at the California Democratic Convention, saying "If we want to beat Donald Trump and achieve big progressive goals, socialism is not the answer."
Hickenlooper caught up with Cheddar after that event, and backed up his decision to call out socialism saying, "I think that the Democratic Party is a big tent, and I've always loved that, but, I do think it's important that we draw a clear line and differentiate ourselves that we're not socialists, that we're not supporting massive expansions of government."
So, who knows what is next for the craft beer enthusiast turned "progressive pragmatist," but it definitely is not President.
President Donald Trump said he has decided to lower his combined tariff rates on imports of Chinese goods to 47% after talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on curbing fentanyl trafficking.
The Federal Reserve cut its key interest rate Wednesday for a second time this year as it seeks to shore up economic growth and hiring even as inflation stays elevated. The move comes amid a fraught time for the central bank, with hiring sluggish and yet inflation stuck above the Fed’s 2% target. Compounding its challenges, the central bank is navigating without much of the economic data it typically relies on from the government. The Fed has signaled it may reduce its key rate again in December but the data drought raises the uncertainty around its next moves. Fed Chair Jerome Powell told reporters that there were “strongly differing views” at the central bank's policy meeting about to proceed going forward.
U.S. and Chinese officials say a trade deal between the world’s two largest economies is drawing closer. The sides have reached an initial consensus for President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping to aim to finalize during their high-stakes meeting Thursday in South Korea. Any agreement would be a relief to international markets. Trump's treasury secretary says discussions with China yielded preliminary agreements to stop the precursor chemicals for fentanyl from coming into the United States. Scott Bessent also says Beijing would make “substantial” purchases of soybean and other agricultural products while putting off export controls on rare earth elements needed for advanced technologies.
A new poll finds most U.S. adults are worried about health care becoming more expensive.
The White House budget office says mass firings of federal workers have started in an attempt to exert more pressure on Democratic lawmakers as the government shutdown continues.
President Donald Trump says “there seems to be no reason” to meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping as part of an upcoming trip to South Korea after China restricted exports of rare earths needed for American industry. The Republican president suggested Friday he was looking at a “massive increase” of import taxes on Chinese products in response to Xi’s moves. Trump says one of the policies the U.S. is calculating is "a massive increase of Tariffs on Chinese products coming into the United States." A monthslong calm on Wall Street was shattered, with U.S. stocks falling on the news. The Chinese Embassy in Washington hasn't responded to an Associated Press request for comment.
Most members of the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate setting committee supported further reductions to its key interest rate this year, minutes from last month’s meeting showed.
From Wall Street trading floors to the Federal Reserve to economists sipping coffee in their home offices, the first Friday morning of the month typically brings a quiet hush around 8:30 a.m. eastern, as everyone awaits the Labor Department’s monthly jobs report.
The Supreme Court is allowing Lisa Cook to remain as a Federal Reserve governor for now.
Rep. John Moolenaar has requested an urgent briefing from the White House after Trump supported a deal giving Americans a majority stake in TikTok.
