| | | | What's Joe Biden's second act? |  | | Sometime tomorrow, Joe Biden will announce -- via online video -- that he's running for president. The former vice president will follow that announcement with an event in Pittsburgh on Monday and then trips to the early primary and caucus states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina.
Politics being politics and Biden (and his team) being old pros, I assume that rollout will go off, generally speaking, without a hitch. His speech will be solid. His campaign will unveil a series of major endorsements from across the political spectrum. Big crowds will show up to get a glimpse of him.
(It is worth noting, however, that Biden stepped all over his entry into the 2008 presidential race when he said this of then-Sen. Barack Obama: "I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy." He later apologized.)
My question for Biden in this race is not whether his announcement week goes well. It's what does he do AFTER the first week (or so) of the campaign is over?
The entire narrative around Biden -- for the better part of the last two years -- has been "will he or won't he run?" And even though it's become increasingly clear over the past few months that he was going to do it, the storyline remained because, well, until someone says "I'm in," they're not, well, in.
But as of tomorrow, that narrative goes away. Biden will be in the race, after twice unsuccessfully running for president and wanting to run again in 2016, before that plan was upended by the illness and death of his eldest son.
Now what? Does Biden position himself -- through a series of major policy addresses -- as the heir-apparent to the Obama legacy? Does he break with his fellow top-tier contenders in public ways on big issues like, say, impeachment? Or does he not engage with his fellow candidates at all in hopes of driving the idea that he is in a top tier all by himself?
The Point: We have no idea what a Biden campaign -- message-wise -- will actually look like. Now that the waiting is over, the hard work of defining why Joe Biden is the best candidate to represent Democrats against President Donald Trump begins for the former VP and his aides.
-- Chris | | "We also have a lot of dogs and they're great dogs and we cherish them."
-- President Donald Trump, on drug-sniffing dogs at the US-Mexico border. Speaking at a summit dedicated to tackling the opioid epidemic, he called working dogs "the greatest equipment in the world." | | | Bernie Sanders is number one in Chris and Harry Enten's newest rankings of the 2020 Democratic presidential field.
As Chris and Harry write: "As of late, for the first time in more than 1,000 days as an official (and unofficial) candidate, Sanders has climbed to the top of the mountain: He is, as of today, the leader of the Democratic 2020 pack, according to our updated power rankings." Read on for the rest of the Top 10...
Do you agree with our rankings? Email cillizza@cnn.com with your thoughts. | | | Phoebe Bridgers and Conor Oberst (aka Better Oblivion Community Center) played a "Tiny Desk" concert at NPR!!! | | West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin is "seriously and solidly" considering a run for governor of his home state (a job he also held from 2005 to 2010).
Manchin, a Democrat re-elected in 2018, has sided with Republicans and President Trump while in the Senate, including voting for Trump's Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.
The senator says he'll have a decision made by this fall. | |
LAUREN'S CAMPAIGN TRAIL LATEST | | Joe Biden: Was considering making his presidential bid official today, but he was advised against stealing the spotlight from today's "She the People" forum dedicated to women of color. Biden is expected to announce via video tomorrow.
Beto O'Rourke: Has denied trying to leave the scene of a DWI crash in 1998, but officers now say they believe he tried to flee.
Pete Buttigieg: Will have to continue to contend with questions around how he handled accusations of racism in the South Bend Police Department as mayor, after a judge has ruled a lawsuit over disputed tapes can move forward.
Kamala Harris: Said she would use the office of the presidency to pardon more nonviolent drug offenders than Obama.
Cory Booker: Vowed again to have a woman as his running made if he is the nominee for president. | | What's 2020's answer to the "Bernie bros" of 2016? Liz Lads, apparently.
The monicker has been bestowed by at least one writer on Elizabeth Warren's supporters who are (usually) younger and male.
"The conversation has subtly shifted from 'Why aren't we talking about Warren?' to 'Whoa, Warren is killing it lately.' Her plan to dissolve a gargantuan amount of student loan debt may be her splashiest policy proposal yet," writes MEL Magazine's Miles Klee. "And I guess, all of a sudden, we're calling her 'Liz' instead of Elizabeth? Sure, I can do that. Of course, to capitalize on this momentum, we'll need some social media branding. For the fellas on Team Warren, I'm thinking: Liz Lads." | | | | | | |
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