With less than three months to go before the Iowa caucus kicks off the 2020 race, the field may be getting some new competition. Former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg is said to be preparing to enter the race, which would make him the 18th Democratic candidate.
But some of the remaining contenders may think an expanding field of candidates is a move in the wrong direction. Cory Booker’s press secretary, Sabrina Singh, told Cheddar on Friday, “I don’t know that the campaign needs another Democrat in the race.”
But another Democrat it may have, and a very wealthy one. Bloomberg, worth about $52.4 billion, according to a Forbes estimate, could be a major threat to former Vice President Joe Biden.
Singh said, “We really need someone out there that can unite the country, that can build a multiracial coalition.” Some, including Singh, question if Bloomberg is the man for that job.
Bloomberg had toyed with the idea of a 2020 run earlier this year but seemed to bow out due to Biden’s strength. As Biden falters, Bloomberg may see a chance.
Singh said the Booker campaign is mainly focused more on running a successful campaign, whether or not another contender enters the mix.
”What Cory [Booker] brings to the stage is very different than what Bloomberg brings,” said Singh. Booker “is the only candidate in this race that still lives in a low-income community: Newark” she added.
“We’re not going to mold our message to Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg, Elizabeth Warren,” she said. “We’re going to keep running a race that we believe, that we are very confident in and see our way through Iowa and beyond.”
Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson told Cheddar he tried to stop a ban on transgender treatment for youth, as written, because of its broad language and failure to grandfather in patients already receiving hormonal treatment.
After a sleepy couple of weeks, by Washington standards, it’s back to business as usual with Congress back in town.
Mayor-Elect Tishaura Jones joined Cheddar to discuss her historic victory and what to expect of her priorities for the city of St. Louis going forward.
In President Joe Biden's first notable gun control measures, he has announced executive actions aimed at addressing what the White House calls a “gun violence public health epidemic.
Many hope that part of Biden’s latest $2 trillion infrastructure plan would help fund construction for a decades-old proposal for a 200 mph high-speed line that could take passengers from Boston to New York City in 100 minutes.
The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose last week to 744,000, signaling that many employers are still cutting jobs.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen called on the world's most powerful nations to pass a global minimum corporate tax of 21 percent to create "a more level playing field."
President Joe Biden is drawing a red line on his $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan. He says he is open to compromise on how to pay for the plan but inaction is unacceptable.
Lee Wong, West Chester Township Board of Trustees chairman from Ohio, made waves during an on-camera meeting when he lifted his shirt to display scars he received during his service in the U.S. Army.
Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos is endorsing President Joe Biden’s focus on building up the country’s infrastructure and says the company even supports a corporate tax rate hike to help pay for it.
