Billionaire philanthropist George Soros believes that Elizabeth Warren is the top Democrat in the field vying to take on President Donald Trump in 2020, he told The New York Times in an interview published on Friday.

"She has emerged as the clear-cut person to beat," he said, according to the paper. "I don't take a public stance, but I do believe that she is the most qualified to be president."

Soros, a former currency trader and the target of a vast slate of right wing conspiracy theories, does not consider his position to be an endorsement. He said he will not endorse any candidate.

“I don't express my views generally because I have to live with whoever the electorate chooses," he said.

Financiers are divided on Warren, who has proposed a bevy of new taxes and criticized corporate greed. But Soros has previously expressed views in line with the progressive Massachusetts senator, and has long called for the government to increase his taxes.

More at https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/25/george-soros-elizabeth-warren-is-the-most-qualified-for-president.html

(CNN)Democratic Rep. Katie Porter of California, a first-term lawmaker who has gained wide notice for her forceful grilling of corporate executives in congressional hearings, plans to endorse Sen. Elizabeth Warren for president, two people familiar with the decision told CNN.

Porter, who captured a historically Republican district in 2018, is one of the highest-profile members of the freshman class, and just this week she conducted a scathing interrogation of Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, on Capitol Hill.

Her expected endorsement is a coup for Warren, whose rise in the polls has not yet been matched by support from Democratic elected officials. It would also be a blow to Porter's fellow Californian, Sen. Kamala Harris, who has been counting on her home state's primary to help her mount a comeback in the race.

Spokespeople for Warren and Porter declined to comment.

Both Warren and Harris are personally close with Porter, and both senators endorsed her in a competitive primary election last year. Porter is a former student of Warren's at Harvard Law School and, like Warren, is an expert on bankruptcy law. Porter worked closely with Harris when the senator was the attorney general of California, helping oversee a major legal settlement between the state and mortgage lenders.

Porter and Warren have a friendship dating back years. The congresswoman credits the senator with her decision to become a law professor herself.

More at https://www.cnn.com/2019/10/24/politics/katie-porter-elizabeth-warren-endorsement/

Elizabeth Warren has a simple response:
https://twitter.com/ewarren/status/1187124667376717824

Steps away from Sevierville's Dolly Parton statue, protesters with signs condemning homophobia greet picture-hungry tourists. It marks the merger of protest and tourism, a growing concern after a Sevier County Commissioner's offensive comments at a public meeting Monday.

Talking about the Democratic presidential race, longtime Commissioner Warren Hurst said "we got a queer running for president. If that ain't about as ugly as you can get."

Later, another commissioner confirmed to 10News, Hurst said "I'm not prejudiced, a white male in this country has very few rights and they're getting took more every day." Tina Storm is one of hundreds to tweet #BoycottSevierCounty.

"I don't know that I'll ever go back," she said. Storm lives in North Carolina and visits Gatlinburg twice a year with her daughter--or at least she used to. "A commissioner with those kinds of thoughts and opinions, it's not a place where I want to spend my money. Because it's the opposite of how I believe people should treat each other," Storm said.

Calls for a national boycott have business owners here worried.

"From a business standpoint, we are just recovering from the devastation of the 2016 fires," Vesna Plakanis, the co-owner of hiking tourism agency A Walk in the Woods, said. "We want our guests to understand that this does not represent us as a community, it does not represent us as a business."

10News reached out again Wednesday to Commissioner Hurst. He did not respond.

https://www.wbir.com/article/news/local/sevier-co-businesses-worried-about-calls-for-boycott/51-7d6ec6ac-95fb-45b8-b012-b93b303337ff

Also, Dolly's younger sister isn't holding back:

https://twitter.com/StellaParton/status/1186724804201762816

West Long Branch, NJ – Former Vice President Joe Biden remains the clear front-runner among likely Democratic voters in South Carolina. The Monmouth University Poll finds little has changed in overall presidential primary support, but there is evidence that black voters’ preference for the front-runner varies significantly when age and education are taken into account.

Biden currently holds 33% support among South Carolina voters who are likely to vote in the February 2020 Democratic primary. This is down slightly from his 39% support level in Monmouth’s July poll. Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren (16%) and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders (12%) are in the second tier of candidate preferences. Warren has improved on her 9% standing in July while Sanders was at a similar 10% then. California Sen. Kamala Harris has 6% support, which is down from 12% in July.

Other candidates registering at least 2% support in the poll are former hedge fund manager Tom Steyer (4%), South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg (3%), New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker (2%), Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar (2%), and entrepreneur Andrew Yang (2%). The remaining nine candidates included in the poll receive 1% support or less. Another 15% of likely voters say they are not yet leaning toward any candidate in this race.

Shifts, or lack thereof, in the fortunes of these candidates can be seen more plainly when both the first and second choices of voters are examined. Biden is a top-two preference for 46% of Palmetto State Democrats (down slightly by 4 points from 50% in July), Warren is at 35% (up 16 points from 19%), Sanders is at 23% (same as 23% in July), and Harris is at 13% (down 15 points from 28%). However, Biden’s position as either a first or second choice candidate has dropped by 10 points among black voters (52% from 62% in July). Warren’s position as a top-two choice has improved among black voters (26% from 11% in July). Harris has declined as a top-two choice among black voters (17% from 28% in July), while Sanders remains about the same (25% from 23% in July).

..."Biden is still in a pretty good position in South Carolina, but there are some signs that he might not have a true firewall among black voters. If he does not do well in the earlier contests in February, there may be potential for current preferences to shift here,” said Patrick Murray, director of the independent Monmouth University Polling Institute.

More at https://www.monmouth.edu/polling-institute/reports/monmouthpoll_sc_102319/

Mayor Jim Kenney is backing Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren in the 2020 Democratic primary race for president, the first big city mayor to endorse her. Kenney announced his endorsement in an early morning email.

“This is a critical election that will determine our nation’s future and our priorities. Elizabeth Warren is a tough and determined leader,” he said.

“Elizabeth Warren and I share a progressive Democratic agenda. She’ll focus on equality and equity of opportunity, lasting job creation, serious criminal justice reform, child care and pre-K education — along with secondary and post-secondary educational improvements and opportunities for all our children."

For Warren, the nod is a major show of support in a city where one of her biggest rivals, former vice president Joe Biden, has deep political ties, and his campaign headquarters. Biden has far outpaced his rivals in endorsements from elected Democrats in Pennsylvania.

...Warren said in a statement, “I’m honored to have Mayor Kenney’s support. He’s been a champion for working families in Philadelphia. With the Mayor’s support, we can win in 2020 and make the big structural change we need so our government, our economy, and our country works for every person, not just the wealthy and well-connected.”

https://www.inquirer.com/news/mayor-jim-kenney-endorses-elizabeth-warren-president-democrat-primary-2020-20191023.html

WASHINGTON — When a half-dozen Democratic donors gathered at the Whitby Hotel in Manhattan last week, the dinner began with a discussion of which presidential candidates the contributors liked. But as conversations among influential Democrats often go these days, the meeting quickly evolved into a discussion of who was not in the race — but could be lured in.

Would Hillary Clinton get in, the contributors wondered, and how about Michael R. Bloomberg, the former New York mayor? One person even mused whether Michelle Obama would consider a late entry, according to two people who attended the event, which was hosted by the progressive group American Bridge.

It’s that time of the election season for Democrats.

“Since the last debate, just anecdotally, I’ve had five or six people ask me: ‘Is there anybody else?’” said Leah Daughtry, a longtime Democrat who has run two of the party’s recent conventions.

With doubts rising about former Vice President Joseph R. Biden’s ability to finance a multistate primary campaign, persistent questions about Senator Elizabeth Warren’s viability in the general election and skepticism that Mayor Pete Buttigieg, of South Bend, Ind., can broaden his appeal beyond white voters, Democratic leaders are engaging in a familiar rite: fretting about who is in the race and longing for a white knight to enter the contest at the last minute.

...”There’s more anxiety than ever,” said Connie Schultz, a journalist who is married to Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio, another Democrat who some in the party would like to see join the race. “We’re both getting the calls. I’ve been surprised by some who’ve called me.”

“I can see it, I can feel it, I can hear it,” Mitch Landrieu, the former New Orleans mayor, said of the unease within the party. He said he thinks Mr. Biden is best positioned to defeat Mr. Trump but called the former vice president’s fund-raising “a real concern.”

Mr. Biden’s lackluster debate performances and alarmingly low cash flow — he has less than $9 million on hand, not even half of some of his rivals — has fueled the Democratic disquiet. But if the causes of the concern are plain to see, what exactly can be done about it is less clear.

More at https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/22/us/politics/democratic-candidates-2020.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage

https://twitter.com/revrrlewis/status/1186249422595854336

I think they'll have to come up with a better angle.

Facebook Inc. chief executive officer Mark Zuckerberg has privately recommended several potential hires to Pete Buttigieg’s presidential campaign, a rare example of direct political involvement from one of tech’s most powerful executives.

Earlier this year, Zuckerberg sent multiple emails to Mike Schmuhl, Buttigieg’s campaign manager, with names of individuals that he might consider hiring, campaign spokesman Chris Meagher confirmed. Priscilla Chan, Zuckerberg’s wife, also sent multiple emails to Schmuhl with staff recommendations. Ultimately, two of the people recommended were hired.

The emails between Zuckerberg and Buttigieg have come to light as Zuckerberg faces unrelenting attacks from politicians from both parties over such issues as misinformation, privacy, election meddling and bias. Zuckerberg is scheduled to testify Wednesday before the House Financial Services Committee on Facebook’s impact on the financial services and housing sectors.

... The staff recommendations from Zuckerberg are the first evidence of the Facebook CEO actively assisting a presidential campaign. A number of other high-ranking Facebook executives, including David Marcus, the executive leading Facebook’s cryptocurrency efforts, Naomi Gleit, one of Facebook’s longest-tenured executives, and Chris Cox, former chief product officer who is close friends with Zuckerberg, have donated to Buttigieg.

In recent weeks, Democrats have escalated their criticism of Facebook for its refusal to moderate political ads...Buttigieg, meanwhile, has become somewhat of a darling of Silicon Valley Democrats, repeatedly returning to San Francisco for high-dollar fundraisers. He’s been more apprehensive about breaking up big tech companies than some of his Democratic counterparts, saying the issue of monopolies extends beyond tech. But he’s also raised concerns about tech companies having too much power and has floated regulation, including fines and the blocking of new mergers, for Facebook and other big tech companies.

...Zuckerberg needs friends in Washington, where Facebook is under unprecedented attack. His company is being investigated for possible antitrust violations by two federal agencies and Congress. It’s also trying to get skeptical regulators and lawmakers on board with its goal of launching a cryptocurrency.

More at https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-10-21/zuckerberg-offered-advice-in-hiring-to-buttigieg-in-rare-move?srnd=premiumo

NORFOLK, VIRGINIA—“I have to tell you all: running for president, it’s just an extraordinary experience,” Elizabeth Warren said on stage Friday night under the Old Dominion scoreboard at Chartwell Arena in southern Virginia. This was after she’d been speaking for about an hour to the crowd of about 4,000 who’d turned out waving banners reading “Dream Big, Fight Hard” and wearing shirts with the scolding phrase once directed at her that has become a feminist rallying cry, “Nevertheless, she persisted.”

Just then, a man toward the back of the floor shouted out: “We love you Elizabeth Warren!” and the cheering in the crowd swelled up. “I am just gonna say, it’s extraordinary. It’s extraordinary because this is the moment. This is our moment...”

“So many of my friends are diehard Trump supporters,” says Virginia Trager, who lives in Westmoreland County, about two hours’ drive north, standing with her daughter and her grandson. “I just don’t understand how they can support somebody that is flaunting illegal behaviour. Throwing the emoluments business down the tubes. I just don’t understand. These are people that say they support our troops. And when you have the Kurds being abandoned,” she said, “I don’t know what’s happening. So we’ve got to make a change.” In pursuit of that change, Trager says next year she’s voting “blue no matter who” (in reference to the Democratic party’s traditional colour) but has been impressed by Warren. “I love her. She’s great. She’s got a lot of plans. She knows your business. She’s done her homework.” She said of being in this arena hearing Warren and seeing the crowds, “Feels like democracy is still working. I’m not sure how long, but it feels like it’s working.”

...“Fairly progressive-minded Liberal” Tim Roth, a local man in his 60s who remains undecided in the primary race, decried the level of nasty polarization in the rhetoric. “I’m kind of as disgusted as at any time in my adult life. America, obviously, we’re polarized. I think it’s going to be challenging. Let’s put it this way. If one of the most progressive and open-minded candidates in my opinion was president for eight years, Barack Obama, and he couldn’t really move the needle much in terms of polarization, like, good luck. That said, I think Warren has the strongest chance so far of breaking through that lockdown because she’s proposing some ideas that are truly on paper bipartisan,” he said. “I think that’s kind of out-of-the-box thinking we’re going to have to have.”

...Cara, a 17-year-old from Virginia Beach and a Warren supporter from the beginning of the campaign who cited struggles with health insurance for her ailing mother as one of the motivating factors in her political viewpoint, summed up the emotion of being in this arena with a crowd cheering a surging Warren campaign. “I feel very at peace. I think that I feel very calm right now being in the presence with all these people that I feel similar to how I do.”

After the speech, after questions from the audience, when the arena lights came up, the night wasn’t over for the candidate or for many of those who’d come to see her. As is her campaign tradition, Warren vowed to stay and take selfies (“the core part of democracy,” she joked) with as many people as wanted them. The line contained hundreds waiting, at this moment that the candidate spoke of, for their moment beside her.

More at https://www.thestar.com/news/world/2019/10/19/elizabeth-warren-is-finding-her-moment.html