The Trump campaign told the AP on Sunday that it raised more than $30 million in the first quarter of 2019, bringing its total cash on hand to $40.8 million.
Why it matters: The AP notes that this is "an unprecedented war chest for an incumbent president this early in a campaign," especially with the Republican National Committee also raising $45.8 million in the first quarter — bringing the pro-Trump effort's total cash on hand to $82 million. 99% of donations were $200 or less, with an average contribution of $34.26.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on CBS' "60 Minutes" Sunday night that it's an ongoing Republican theme to characterize Democratic policies as "socialist" — even dating back to Ronald Reagan and Medicare — but that she ultimately rejects socialism as an economic system and that it is "not the view of the Democratic Party."
Why it matters: Pelosi has frequently sought to downplay divisions within the House Democratic caucus, especially as some progressives like freshman Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez have pushed democratic socialism toward the mainstream. Pelosi dismissed the Ocasio-Cortez' wing of the party as "like five people," but it's worth noting that avowed democratic socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders — though he's technically an independent — is among the favorites to win the Democratic nomination for president in 2020.
In a closed-door meeting with members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee last month, King Abdullah II of Jordan said the White House had given him zero visibility into the most fraught part of their peace plan: how it proposes to divide Israeli and Palestinian territory.
Behind the scenes: The king seemed dissatisfied with the level of consultation and was pessimistic about the plan's prospects, two sources in the room told Axios. King Abdullah has privately told people he is frustrated by the fact that despite having numerous meetings with senior Trump administration officials, he's never been given any detail about the core political issues, in which Jordan has a huge interest.
Pete Buttigieg officially launched his 2020 campaign in South Bend, Indiana, on Sunday, declaring: "We live in a moment that compels us each to act. The forces changing our country today are tectonic — forces that help to explain what made this current presidency even possible. That's why this time it's not just about winning an election. It's about winning an era."
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday demanded President Trump remove a video he tweeted Friday that shows footage from 9/11 spliced in between comments from Muslim Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), claiming that the president's "hateful and inflammatory rhetoric creates real danger."
"Following the President’s tweet, I spoke with the Sergeant-at-Arms to ensure that Capitol Police are conducting a security assessment to safeguard Congresswoman Omar, her family and her staff. They will continue to monitor and address the threats she faces. The President’s words weigh a ton, and his hateful and inflammatory rhetoric creates real danger. President Trump must take down his disrespectful and dangerous video."
Donald Trump wants to politicize the Fed. One White House source explained his thinking to the WSJ:
"Mr. Trump has selected candidates like Messrs. [Stephen] Moore and [Herman] Cain in recent weeks because he believes they have the interests of his presidency in mind, the person said.
Describing Mr. Trump’s views, the person said, 'I want people who care about me and my presidency and economic growth…because that’s important to the health of the country and his re-election chances.'”
The big picture: Ken Rogoff, one of the most respected technocrats in the economics profession, warned this week that Trump is effectively pushing at an open door. Giving a lecture at the IMF this week under the auspices of the G30, Rogoff warned that the world might be facing "the beginning of the end of central bank independence." None of his four main reasons had anything to do with Trump.
2020 Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders sent a letter to liberal think tank Center for American Progress accusing it of "smearing" him and other progressive candidates, the New York Times reports.
What he's saying: "Center for American Progress leader Neera Tanden repeatedly calls for unity while simultaneously maligning my staff and supporters and belittling progressive ideas. I worry that the corporate money CAP is receiving is inordinately and inappropriately influencing the role it is playing in the progressive movement."
Details: Kelly did not disclose the number of donors or donations Gillibrand's campaign received, but said the average online donation was $25 and that 92% of contributions were under $200. Two-thirds of donations came from women. Gillibrand also has $10.2 million in cash on hand — which Kelly says puts the campaign in the top 4 of Democratic candidates running in 2020.
Olivia Nuzzi,in a New York Magazine cover story that posted Sunday morning, briskly captures why Pete Buttigieg — who formally declares his candidacy at 2 p.m. today in South Bend, Indiana, — checks "so many boxes relevant to this moment."
Staffers from past Democratic presidential campaigns are more likely to have gone to an Ivy League college than staffers from Republican campaigns, a new study from North Carolina at Chapel Hill shows.
Why it matters: The student bodies of Ivy League schools are less representative of the U.S. overall, and campaigns with less diversity run the risk of failing to reach voters from different ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds. The study warns that if Democrats want President Trump out of office, they should "reach far beyond the hallowed halls of the Ivy League and other elite education institutions to help them craft their appeals to voters."
South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg, who has gained more social media engagement on a per article basis than any of his potential 2020 rivals, has endorsed debt-free college over tuition-free college.
2020 presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) released 15 years of her tax returns on Sunday, joining fellow Democratic candidates Sens. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.), Kirsten Gillibrand (N.Y.), Amy Klobuchar (Minn.) and Gov. Jay Inslee (Wash.), the Washington Post reports.
Details: Harris and her husband earned almost $1.9 million in 2018, including about $320,000 in net profit from her memoir and $157,352 from her Senate salary. The 15 years of records cover Harris' time as district attorney of San Francisco (2004–2011) and attorney general of California (2011–2017), during which her income was "relatively consistent," according to the Post.
Nothing stirs President Trump’s most radical ideas like immigration. And nothing so stirs his willingness to entertain what some consider illegal or wrong.
Between the lines: People who know Trump well say his obsession is fueled by a combination of goading from Fox, the president's recognition that his signature campaign promise is unmet, and his frustration with restrictions on his power.
Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) kicked off his 2020 presidential campaign in his hometown of Newark, New Jersey, Saturday with a pledge to fix the justice system and legalize marijuana.
Details: Booker said his administration would also look at closing the racial wealth gap and tackle climate change. He invoked the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr when he said the U.S. couldn't wait for social and economic reform. "We are here today to say, we can't wait," he said.
Following President Trump's tweet about Rep. Ilhan Omar's September 11 commentary, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi criticized Trump for his response.
Flashback: The criticism from Trump came after Omar spoke to the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) about Muslim Americans feeling like they were constantly having to defend themselves and their freedoms. Omar received criticism for describing 9/11 as "some people did something."
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) thanked supporters Saturday and said she has "unwavering love for America" in response to President Trump's video retweet of remarks she'd made about the 9/11 attacks, edited without the full context.
What she's saying: "I did not run for Congress to be silent," she said in one of a series of Twitter posts. "Thank you for standing with me — against an administration that ran on banning Muslims from this country — to fight for the America we all deserve."
