Jan 7, 2019

Biden reportedly thinks he has the best chance to beat Trump

Former Vice President Joe Biden. Photo: Scott Olson/Getty Images

Former Vice President Joe Biden will make a decision on whether he plans to run for president in 2020 soon and has told allies that he thinks he is the Democratic Party's best chance to defeat President Trump, the New York Times reports.

Why it matters: Biden is the Democrat that Trump fears most in 2020, believing that he could steal away Rust Belt voters in states like Pennsylvania, Axios' Mike Allen reported last year. But a centrist Biden run — from a 76-year-old white man — could prompt a schism in a Democratic Party that's increasingly influenced by progressive ideals, especially with multiple female and minority candidates expected to jump into the 2020 race.

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Axios
Updated 14 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

  1. Global: Total confirmed cases as of 1 p.m. ET: 6,309,107 — Total deaths: 376,885 — Total recoveries — 2,725,627 — Map.
  2. U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 12:30 p.m. ET: 1,812,742 — Total deaths: 105,475 — Total recoveries: 458,231 — Total tested: 17,340,682 — Map.
  3. Public health: Protests against police brutality threaten coronavirus response — Controlling the coronavirus in nursing homes won't be easy.
  4. Business: More than 1 in 6 black workers lost jobs between February and April.
  5. Climate: The alarm over climate financial risk gets louder because of coronavirus.
  6. Media: Interest in the George Floyd protests has soared past the coronavirus.
Other resources (<1 min. read)Arrow
Alexi McCammond
23 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Julián Castro endorses Joe Biden for president

Julián Castro introduces Sen. Elizabeth Warren at an event in February. Photo: Ronda Churchill/AFP via Getty Images

Julián Castro, who ended his presidential campaign in early January, endorsed Joe Biden today with a call for "real reform to address our broken policing system."

Why it matters: Castro’s endorsement comes as protests against police use of excessive force, especially in communities of color, have wracked the country for the past week, triggered by the death of George Floyd while in Minneapolis police custody. Throughout the primary, Castro made police reform a central part of his campaign.

Go deeper (1 min. read)Arrow
Axios
37 mins ago - Technology

Podcast: Social media maelstrom

Hundreds of Facebook employees yesterday walked off the job to protest the big blue app's refusal to pull certain posts from President Trump, days after Trump threatened to change the laws around social media in response to a Twitter fact-check. Dan digs into what comes next with attorney Stewart Baker, former Department of Homeland Security assistant secretary for policy.