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2020 Presidential Election Tag

Ohio governor John Kasich (R) has been an outspoken critic of President Trump and his voters, so it's perhaps not surprising that he stated Sunday he is "very seriously considering" running for president in 2020. It's not clear if he plans to primary the president or if he believes he can win on a "centrist" third party, even bipartisan, ticket.

European leaders need to halt mass-immigration to curb the growing right-wing populist movement across the continent, Hillary Clinton warned in an interview with a British newspaper. Europe "must send a very clear message – "we are not going to be able to continue provide refuge and support" – because if we don’t deal with the migration issue it will continue to roil the body politic," she told The Guardian.

A recent Rasmussen survey of a hypothetical match-up between former First Lady Michelle Obama and President Trump has Obama victorious. From Rasmussen:
Michelle Obama has been making the rounds promoting her new book, prompting buzz about a potential presidential run, which she has vehemently denied. But with the midterms over and the focus on 2020, voters think she’d stand a chance.

Elizabeth Warren is one of the most contrived politicians I've ever covered, exceeded only by Hillary Clinton. She leaves little to chance or spontaneous encounters. That's why Warren abhors interacting with reporters other than in planned settings with sympathetic questioners. Her running -- literally -- away from reporters in the Capitol hallways is legendary.

Elizabeth Warren repeatedly has said that she is not running for president. Warren makes that statement, with the most earnest of faces, because she still has a November 2018 reelection to win, and her opponents are hitting her over the presidential plans. Republican candidate Geoff Diehl has made "Where's Warren?" one of his main campaign themes.

Starbucks has been plastered across headlines recently after the company closed all its stores last week for a social justice-oriented 'diversity' training. Now Starbucks Executive Chairman Howard Shultz, the man responsible for the well-known coffeehouse, has stepped down from his post. Word is that Shultz has decided to prepare a run for political office, possibly the presidency.

In my New Year's 2018 predictions, I wrote:

1. Republicans will pick up 4 net seats in the Senate, and hold the House with a reduced majority of 10-15. 2. Robert Mueller will bring criminal charges for obstruction (lying to federal investigators) or crimes pre-dating or unrelated to the Trump campaign against more people, but will not assert any criminal conduct with regard to “Russia collusion” or by President Trump. 3. Get ready. This is the BIG ONE. If as predicted Republicans hold the Senate and House, there will be a clamoring for a Democrat candidate who can unify and motivate the Democrat base and establishment sufficiently to defeat Donald Trump in 2020: Michelle Obama.

Oh, boy. How far left will the left go? I ask this because former President Barack Obama's HUD Secretary Julian Castro will visit New Hampshire to speak to the state's Young Democrats Granite Slate Awards dinner this month. Failed Democrat presidential candidate Hillary Clinton even considered him as her running mate. But is it wise for the left to prop up Castro? I'd say he's too far left for the Democrats, but Donald Trump is president so anything can happen.

There are a few Democrats who think that since President Donald Trump won in November 2016 then maybe they can, too. After all, how did a man with no political experience beat the all mighty Hillary Clinton?! So a handful of politicians that not a lot of people have heard of believe they have a chance to take on Trump in 2020, including mayors and congressmen "low on the seniority totem pole."

It's hard to find an apt comparison in U.S. media for the role that Haaretz plays in Israeli media. Haaretz is "far-left" in its opinion content, but also has some excellent straight news reporting, particularly on security issues. And when I say "far-left," I emphasize "far" in that equation. Reading some of Haaretz's opinion columnists makes it hard to distinguish the paper from anti-Israel Islamist polemicists. Haaretz has little readership in Israel precisely because it has tied its fortunes to the marginalized Israeli left. But Haaretz's English language website has outsized influence in the West, particularly among left-wing Jews in the U.S., who must imagine Haaretz represents a sustantial portion of the Israeli electorate.

When Newt Gingrich spoke at Cornell earlier this semester, he made a very important point. Trump doesn't attack his political opponents, he brands them. The brand for Jeb was "low energy." For Rubio, it was "little Marco." For Cruz, it was "lyin' Ted." Once branded, they could not shake the image. Just ask "Crooked Hillary." Which brings up Elizabeth Warren. As we posted earlier, while Warren is denying that she "is" running for president in 2020, she's making all the normal pre-presidential run moves.