Impact2020: May 15, 2020
Welcome to your Impact2020 briefing for Friday, May 15. This is McClatchyDC Politics Editor Adam Wollner once again filling in for Meta Viers. Democrats see a narrow path to victory in the South Carolina Senate race, more members of Congress get caught up in stock-selling controversies, and there’s a rift among Republicans in Pennsylvania.
On the Ground
Narrow path
Jaime Harrison has captured the attention of national Democrats and shattered statewide fundraising records during his campaign against GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham.
But as Emma Dumain and Alex Roarty write for The State, there’s still a lot more that needs to go right for Harrison to have any chance of winning in reliably red South Carolina.
“For all the growing hype behind his candidacy, Harrison still faces long odds against … Graham, who has solidified his standing with the state’s conservative base for his embrace of” President Donald Trump.”Top campaign officials concede that without historically high voter turnout for Democratic candidates in 2020 — the kind Democrats saw in the 2018 midterm elections — Harrison can’t win.”
And given the conservative nature of the state, “a Harrison victory likely will depend on winning … alongside Trump. … It is ultimately this question of how split-ticket voting would work in South Carolina this year, and whether there would be enough of that to boost Harrison over the finish line, that presents perhaps the most stubborn obstacle standing in Harrison’s way.”
Dumain also reports that Graham, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, “is resisting mounting pressure from” Trump to force Barack Obama to give testimony on “whether he authorized the FBI to spy on … ex-National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, saying that it would create a dangerous precedent.”
Stock fallout
The stock-trading practices of several U.S. senators are under growing scrutiny after the FBI seized North Carolina GOP Sen. Richard Burr’s cell phone as part of an investigation into stock sales he made shortly before the coronavirus pandemic hit.
GOP Sen. Kelly Loeffler of Georgia, who is on the ballot this fall, “has supplied records about stock trading on her behalf to the Department of Justice, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Senate Ethics Committee,” Tia Mitchell reports for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
And Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California “was questioned by federal law enforcement in April concerning some stock trades made by her husband in January, as senators were receiving warnings about the impact of the … coronavirus,” Kate Irby reports for the Sacramento Bee.
The Burr probe could affect fellow North Carolina Republican Thom Tillis, who is up for re-election in November. The Charlotte Observer’s Jim Morrill writes that Tillis is trying to steer clear of the controversy.
“You’ve got obviously the active investigation going on,” Tillis said. “We just got to see where the facts lead and presume his innocence until otherwise proven.”
Burr is temporarily stepping down as chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, which means GOP Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida could be in line for a promotion. Alex Daugherty, Brian Murphy and Emma Dumain report for the Miami Herald that Rubio could be tapped to lead that panel or the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, depending on how the new pecking order plays out.
“I’ll do whatever they ask, but it’s not up to me,” Rubio said.
Pennsylvania push
The Allentown Morning Call’s Laura Olson and Michelle Merlin have a wrap-up of Trump’s visit to a medical supply distribution center in the Lehigh Valley Thursday.
The president “pressed Pennsylvania to loosen restrictions put into place to curb the virus’ spread. … Trump’s visit was part of his broader push to reopen the country and highlight his administration’s successes after initial stumbles in its response to the public health crisis.”
Trump said: “We have to get your governor of Pennsylvania to start opening up a little bit. You have areas of Pennsylvania that are barely affected, and they want to keep them closed. You can’t do that.”
Trump’s visit also highlights how critical the state is to his re-election prospects. But his campaign doesn’t appear to be getting along with the Pennsylvania GOP.
The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Chris Brennan reports that “Trump’s campaign and the Republican National Committee ‘walked away’ from the state party in late February. … The parting of ways includes the Trump campaign and the RNC moving out of the state party’s Harrisburg headquarters and renting their own offices.”
Listen Up
I joined McClatchy’s Alex Roarty and David Catanese on the latest episode of the Beyond the Bubble podcast to discuss why so many Democrats are giving unsolicited advice to Joe Biden’s campaign, and the state of play for control of the U.S. Senate.
Download: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts
Trail Mix
Battleground state watch
After the Wisconsin Supreme Court “struck down Gov. Tony Evers’ stay-at-home order, business owners and residents were left to navigate a patchwork of local health orders and weigh the risks and options of operating during the coronavirus pandemic,” Ashley Luthern reports for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Heather Cumberledge recaps Jill Biden’s virtual campaign events in Arizona for KNXV-TV.
Election disruption
South Carolina election officials are “preparing for a potential flood of mail-in absentee ballot requests after Gov. Henry McMaster … signed into law a bill to expand absentee voting in the June primary due to COVID-19,” Maayan Schechter reports for The State.
“As Philadelphia prepares for the June 2 primary, … neighborhoods with low-income residents and communities of color are requesting absentee ballots at rates that far lag other parts of the city,” Jonathan Lai and Julia Terruso report for the Philadelphia Inquirer.
A Texas appeals court “upheld an order by a lower court that allows election officials to temporarily expand mail voting to people whose only qualification is their fear of contracting the coronavirus,” James Barragán reports for the Dallas Morning News.
Battle for Congress
Michael Damiano has a deep dive into Joe Kennedy’s Democratic primary challenge to Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts in Boston Magazine.
Veepstakes
Stacey Abrams appeared on MSNBC Thursday night with Biden. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Greg Bluestein has more.
Number of the Day
6
Biden leads Trump by 6 points, 53% to 47%, in Florida, according to a new Florida Atlantic University poll. Trump was ahead 51% to 49% in the March survey.
For Planning Purposes
May 15
Pete Buttigieg hosts a virtual organizing training with Biden volunteers and supporters in Virginia
May 16
Amy Klobuchar hosts a virtual Biden campaign event in Colorado
May 19
Idaho and Oregon primaries
May 22
Hawaii primary
Mask Off
Yesterday we flagged New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s advice about wearing masks in public. Trump decided to go in the other direction during his Pennsylvania visit.
Did someone forward this email to you? Please sign up here for the daily rundown of 2020 election news from McClatchy’s 30 newsrooms and other local journalists.
