.
Europe
Denmark
30 June 2024 King Frederik and Queen Mary of Denmark have begun their trip to Greenland. The couple arrived on the royal yacht, Dannebrog, in north Greenland at the Pituffik Space Base. They then travelled to Qaanaaq to greet the townspeople who performed dances and songs at the sports hall. They also attended a reception at the Town Hall. King Frederik and Queen Mary next visited Aasiaat where they were greeted by Mayor Hansen and members of the municipal council. A reception at Aasiaat Museum and Niels Egedes Plads followed with a cannon salute and choral singing at the museum and music and dancing at Niels Egedes Plads. The King and Queen first visited Greenland 20 years ago while Crown Prince and Crown Princess. Greenland is part of the Kingdom of Denmark and is located in North America. It borders Canada. (Source: royal-news *)
*
France
30/06/2024 - 21:03 After France’s snap elections French President Macron and the 'leftist' union New Popular Front are urging voters to block the 'far right' in the decisive second-round elections on July 7. The “far right is at the gates of power,” said French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal today, adding that he would work to ensure the National Rally (RN) does not win an absolute majority. 'I would like to call on all French voters – not a single vote should go to the RN,' he said. (Source: france24 *)
* France 24, French international news television network based in Paris, owned by the French government.
30/06/2024 - 07:04 French voters are casting their ballots today in the first stage of the two-round legislative elections called by President Macron. A candidate can win in the first round by garnering 50 percent of votes cast if turnout represents at least 25 percent of the constituency's registered voters. In the case of a second round, anyone winning at least 12.5 percent of voters may stand. If no candidate garners the 12.5 percent required, the top two candidates compete in a second round. Some 49 million French are eligible to vote. Macron dissolved the National Assembly on June 9 after the 'far-right' National Rally hammered his centrist alliance in the European elections and called snap legislative elections for June 30 and July 7. Macron's decision sparked uncertainty in Europe's second-biggest economy. (Source: france24 )
30/06/2024 6:49 AM French voters begin casting their ballots in the first of the two-round legislative elections. Voters in the overseas territory of Saint Pierre and Miquelon began voting yesterday. Candidates securing more than 50% of the vote in the first round are elected, but that is rare. A second decisive round will be held on July 7. The top scorer wins. Four major blocks are competing for National Assembly's 577 seats. Macron's Renaissance party is part of the Ensemble (Together) coalition, the centrist, pro-EU and pro-NATO alliance, supporter of Ukraine's fight against Russian forces. The party was trounced by the 'far-right' National Rally (RN) party of Le Pen in the European Parliament elections earlier this month. It currently holds 250 seats. The New Popular Front (NFP), a coalition of 'left-wing' parties and the Greens was formed earlier this month after the snap elections was called by President Macron. Its platform includes overturning immigration and pension reforms, a wealth tax and increasing the minimum wage. It also wants to 'immediately recognize the Palestinian state" and stop "the French government's guilty support' for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government. It currently holds 149 seats. In polls, NFP alliance is in second place, while Macron's centrist alliance is trailing in third. Le Pen's 'far-right' National Rally, projected to win this election, is anti-immigration and anti-EU. Le Pen heads the RN's parliamentary group which currently holds 88 seats. It is unclear whether the party will secure the 289 seats needed for an absolute majority. NR's president, Bardella, has said that if chosen as prime minister, he would not allow French missiles to be delivered to Ukraine that can strike targets within Russia itself, let alone send troops to the conflict, an idea floated by Macron. The prime minister is responsible for domestic laws, while Macron 'will remain head of the military' and in charge of decisions concerning foreign policy. The center-right Republicans are pro-business, a party that has shrunk massively after ruling France for decades. Currently, they hold 61 seats. If there is no majority, the president can name a prime minister from the group with the most seats in the National Assembly. Pre-election polls put the National Rally ahead of Macron's centrist alliance. (Source: dw *)
* Deutsche Welle, the German public, state-owned international broadcaster, headquartered in Bonn, funded by the German federal tax budget.
6:00 AM CEST, June 30, 2024 French voters around the world are casting ballots today in the first round of an exceptional parliamentary election that could put France’s government in the hands of nationalist, 'far-right' forces. Voting began early in France’s overseas territories. Macron called the early election after his party was trounced in the European Parliament election earlier in June by the National Rally. The outcome of the two-round election, which will wrap up July 7, could impact European financial markets, Western support for Ukraine and how France’s nuclear arsenal and global military force are managed. A new coalition on the 'left', the New Popular Front, is posing a challenge to the pro-business Macron and his centrist alliance Together for the Republic. Huge public spending promises by the National Rally and especially the 'left-wing' coalition have shaken markets and ignited worries about France’s heavy debt, already criticized by EU watchdogs. Many French voters are frustrated about inflation and economic concerns, as well as President Macron’s leadership, which they see as arrogant and out-of-touch with their lives. Le Pen’s anti-immigration National Rally party has tapped and fueled that discontent, notably via online platforms like TikTok, and dominated all preelection opinion polls which suggest that the National Rally is gaining support and has a chance at winning a parliamentary majority. In that scenario, Macron would be expected to name 28-year-old National Rally President Bardella as prime minister in an awkward power-sharing system known as “cohabitation.' Macron has said he won’t step down before his presidential term expires in 2027. Cohabitation would weaken him at home and on the world stage. Support for Le Pen’s party has spread deep and wide. The party has questioned the right to citizenship for people born in France, and wants to curtail the rights of French citizens with dual nationality. Bardella says he would use the powers of prime minister to stop Macron from continuing to supply long-range weapons to Ukraine for the war with Russia.
(Source: apnews *)
* The Associated Press - American news agency headquartered in New York City.
(Sunday), June 30, 2024 0:42 AM Today, French voters will cast ballots in the first round of snap elections for the National Assembly, the lower house of parliament, that could lead to the country's first 'far-right' government since the World War II. 'Political, racial tensions are the backdrop'. Citing security concerns, notably in impoverished areas in French suburbs or "banlieues," the 'far-right' National Rally wants to give a specific new legal status to police. If police officers use their arms during an intervention, they would be presumed to have acted in self-defense. Currently police officers have the same legal status as all French citizens and have to prove they acted in self-defense. Yesterday several hundred family members, friends and supporters gathered in the Paris suburb of Nanterre to remember 17-year-old Merzouk, a French teenager with North African origins who was shot dead at point-blank range by a police officer at a traffic check on June 27, 2023. His mother led a silent march to pay homage to her son. For many across France, he was the embodiment of young French Black and North African men who face police checks and discrimination more frequently than their white counterparts. The officer who fired the shot cited self-defense, and an 'extreme-right' figure started a crowdfunding campaign for the policeman that drew $1.6 million. Fueled by TikTok, riots spread with unprecedented speed before a mass police crackdown. The unrest caused, according to French authorities, more than $1 billion in damage. 'My son was executed,' his mother, Mounia, told the crowd. She expressed fear that she might run into the police officer who killed her son and has been released pending further investigation. The march ended at the spot where Merzouk was killed, and an imam sang and read a prayer the day before France's parliamentary elections. (Source: voanews *)
* Voice of America, the state-owned news network and international radio broadcaster of the United States of America. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C.
Germany
29/06/2024 22:24 Members of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party congress in the western city of Essen reelected Chrupalla and Weidel for another two years as joint party leaders today. Around 600 delegates gathered at an indoor arena. In her opening speech to the conference ahead of the vote, Weidel attacked the governing coalition of Chancellor Olaf Scholz. "Dear government, finally get out of here and clear the way for new elections," she said, before adding that firewalls against the AfD were not necessary. Weidel was referring to the refusal by Germany's mainstream parties to work with the 'far-right' party. Chrupalla, meanwhile, said the AfD was "stronger than ever" after the two leaders had brought peace to the once-divided party. According to him, the AfD now has 46,881 members, 17,723 more than at the beginning of 2023. It's expected that the membership will exceed 50,000 by the fall, he added. Chrupalla was receiving 82.72% support, Weidel received 79.77% of the vote. The AfD is being monitored by the German domestic intelligence agency (BfV) as a suspected right-wing extremist organization. The agency has warned that the party poses a racist, antisemitic and anti-democratic threat to Germany. Earlier today, at around 5:45 AM police used pepper spray and batons to stop a group of protesters breaking through a cordon near where the congress was being held. A few hundred protesters temporarily blocked the exit ramp of a motorway, while others occupied streets and intersections near the congress center. As the delegates voted, crowds gathered outside to protest the party. Several thousand police officers were deployed as part of security measures to prevent civil disorder. In all, some 100,000 protesters were expected to take part in the demos against the AfD. Police feared violence from some 1,000 'leftist' extremists who also planned to demonstrate. Mostly, it was a peaceful protest by members of church congregations, the Fridays for Future [climate movement] and Grandmothers Against the Far Right [Omas gegen Rechts]. Demonstrators, some of them hooded, attacked security forces, injuring 28 officers, one of which was left in a serious condition, injured from kicks to the head, taken to hospital. Police said they made several arrests. 'We need strong democratic forces and peaceful protest against right-wing extremism and racism,' Interior Minister Faeser wrote on X, adding that violence "cannot be justified by anything." The protest had calmed down by mid-afternoon. Despite a series of scandals, the AfD party came second in Germany in the European Parliament elections on June 9 and even took first place in the five eastern states. It's also expected to become the strongest party in September elections in three of those eastern states - Saxony, Thuringia and Brandenburg - amid fears other parties will not be able to form a governing coalition. The AfD's leaders are also looking to seize on the party's rising popularity, as Germany prepares for federal elections in the fall of 2025. (Source: dw)
June 29, 2024 8:00 PM The nationalist, Eurosceptic AfD party came second with 15.9% in the European vote this month, ahead of the three parties in Scholz's coalition. AfD membership had grown by 60% to 46,881 members since January 2023, co-chief Chrupalla told nearly 600 delegates at a party convention in the western city of Essen. Some 22,000 people had joined while 4,000 had left. The AfD is on course to form a new political group in the European Parliament - a move which would require 23 MEPs from at least seven EU countries - after being expelled from the Identity and Democracy grouping last month, Weidel said. The congress was held despite resistance from city authorities - marked by the rainbow and EU flags flying on flagpoles outside the convention center - and protesters who sought to prevent AfD delegates from making it there, carriing at an anti-AfD march through the city. The interior ministry estimated some 20,000 people participated in the demonstration. The party congress will run until tomorrow, the same day neighboring France holds the first round of a snap parliamentary election that could bring 'the far right' to power. In discussing the party's policy platform, Weidel said AfD's future allies in the European Parliament should oppose the disbursal of taxpayer money to the "debt states" of Europe - a reference to countries such as Italy and Greece - and the idea that Ukraine belongs to the European Union, after it opened membership talks this week. (Source: voanews / Reuters)
European Union
Sun, 30 Jun, 2024 - 01:00 Just five years ago, young Europeans voted for parties advocating climate action, social justice, and democratic reform. But this may no longer be a viable political strategy. June’s European Parliament elections showed that many young voters have shifted to the 'far right', enabling eurosceptic, anti-immigrant, and anti-establishment parties to make significant gains. This movement is often anti-status quo, serving as a powerful warning to politicians about the need to reconsider both their message and their medium in appealing to disaffected young voters. These voters’ rightward shift is apparent across the European Union. After overwhelmingly supporting the Greens in 2019, 16% of German voters under 25 voted for the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) in this year’s European elections, putting the party in second place behind the center-right Christian Democrats and well ahead of chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democrats. By contrast, the 'far-right' Sweden Democrats came in fourth, despite winning 10% of voters aged 22-30. In France, 30% of the youth vote went to Le Pen’s 'far-right' National Rally. This outcome was in line with the 2022 presidential election runoff, when Le Pen won 39% of voters aged 18-24 and 49% of those aged 25-34. 21% of Italian voters aged 18-34 helped prime minister Giorgia Meloni’s Brothers of Italy win a strong mandate to pursue its agenda. In Spain, the ultra-conservative Vox party increased its share of the youngest voters (under 25) to 12.4%. Europe’s swing to the right has led many politicians to harden their positions on issues like immigration. Young Europeans grapple with a cost-of-living risis and dwindling economic prospects. The growing frustration can be partly attributed to EU politicians’ failure to ensure stable, well-paid jobs for young people. Youth unemployment among Europeans aged 15 to 24 reached 13.8% in 2023. In Spain, the rate was 27.9%, compared to 27.7% in Greece, 20.7% in Italy, and 18.9% in Sweden. Youth unemployment in France was 15.7% in 2023; in the Netherlands 8.7%; in Germany 6%. Support for the 'far right' has increased across the bloc amid growing evidence that no matter how hard they work, most young people will end up poorer than their parents. In many European countries, young people are also navigating a housing crisis, overcrowded classrooms, and struggling healthcare systems. In the face of rising rents, exorbitant tuition fees, and stagnant real wages, young voters are increasingly asking themselves who will address their concerns. 'Far-right' politicians, while blaming immigration, at least recognise that there is a problem, and they are doing so in ways that resonate with younger voters. In the age of platforms like TikTok, veteran politicians mistake social media for a broadcast medium, fail to understand that it can be a powerful tool for fostering engagement, bonding, and identity formation. 'Far-right demagogues' tailor their messaging to young people just as dangerous as those who ignore those platforms entirely. As a generation of young voters spends much of its time on platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram – in the United States, teens spend an average of 4.8 hours per day on social media – the result could be a toxic political cocktail. Many EU policymakers feel increasingly isolated as they try to do their jobs while online groups mobilise against them. To win back disaffected young people, political leaders must offer them a future they can believe in and embrace the media platforms where young people live. (Source: irishexaminer *)
by Woods, Dean of the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford.
* Irish Examiner, an Irish national daily newspaper, headquartered in Cork, Republic of Ireland.
Russia
(Saturday ), 29/06/2024 - 22:16 Russian officials reported Ukrainian attacks. The Russian Defense Ministry said that six Ukrainian drones had been shot down overnight over the country’s Tver, Bryansk and Belgorod regions, as well as over the Crimean Peninsula. It didn't give information on the reported strike in the Kursk region where a strike was killing five people in the village of Gorodishche on the Russian-Ukrainian border. The Belarusian military was saying it had increased its forces along Ukraine’s northern border in response to what it described as security threats - Belarus’ border agency claimed its troops downed a Ukrainian drone that had flown across the border to gather intelligence. Kyiv denied the accusations. The Ukrainian air force said today that it had downed 10 Russian drones overnight. Russia continues to stretch out Ukrainian forces in several areas along the 1,000-kilometer front and has stepped up airstrikes in a bid to drain Ukraine’s resources. Rescuers in the city of Dnipro dug through rubble after a Russian strike ripped through a nine-story residential building, leaving one dead and 12 wounded. The strike destroyed the top four floors of the apartment building yesterday evening. Several residents remained missing. Seven people were killed today afternoon in Russian shelling on the town of Vilniansk, ten people were wounded, while infrastructure was also damaged. The shelling of the village of Niu-York in the Donetsk region also wounded five people. (Source: france24 / AP)
North America
United States
(Sunday), 07:15 BST, 30 June 2024 Allies within the Democratic Party acknowledged the difficulty Biden had in getting words out at this week's event in Atlanta, Georgia, some warning there was "panic" in the party as others suggested it was time for change. Biden, 81, refused to stand down after his performance on Thursday night, urging that in spite of his age he still knew how to do the job and would defend American democracy. Trump, 78, has threatened to cut spending, raised questions over the future of NATO and ominously said he could end the war in 'one day' if elected. Biden, has backed Ukraine with billions of dollars in military and humanitarian aid since 2022. 'As far as Russia and Ukraine, if we had a real president, a president that knew – that was respected by Putin, he would have never – he would have never invaded Ukraine,' Trump claimed during the debate. He said Biden had given '$200 billion now or more to Ukraine'. Reuters reported earlier this week that two advisers close to Trump have presented him with a plan to end the war that involves threatening to withhold weapons unless Ukraine enters into peace talks with Russia. 'European allies call on Democrats to axe Biden following disastrous debate amid fears a win for Trump could impact support for Ukraine'. There is growing concern that if Trump is re-elected, support for Ukraine may too dry up. 'American democracy killed before our eyes by gerontocracy!' said Verhofstadt, a member of the European parliament and a former prime minister of Belgium. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz previously cheered on Biden's prospects for re-election. A spokesperson for Scholz did not comment on the specifics of the debate, but said the chancellor valued Biden highly and had never spoken to Trump as their terms did not overlap. 'Biden can't do it,' said Matteo Renzi, a centrist who was close to the Democrats while serving as Italy's prime minister. 'It's important to manage one's ride into the sunset,' foreign affairs minister for Poland, Sikorski, wrote in a cryptic reflection on legendary Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius' 'screwed up' succession, 'starting Rome's decline'. /videos/ (Source: dailymail *)
* Daily Mail, a British daily newspaper, published in London.
(Sunday), Jun 30, 2024 09:44 IST Biden expected to discuss campaign future with family today, NBC News reported. A person familiar with the situation said he will ultimately listen only to his wife, Jill, 'who has ultimate influence with him'. White House denies Biden dropping out of race. And the family gathering is not a formal discussion about the campaign's future. Biden reassures supporters, campaign sees surge in fundraising. His campaign has reported a surge in fundraising, with over $27 million raised by Friday evening, including $3 million at a New York City fundraiser focused on the LGBTQ+ community. (Source: indiatoday *)
* India Today, a weekly Indian English-language news magazine, based in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India
Jun 30, 2024 08:26 AM IST First Lady Jill's public support for President Biden has sparked controversy among Democrats. She is now under scrutiny from Democratic donors for not advising the President to withdraw from the 2024 race. They are now advocating for a change in presidential candidacy. Seemingly joining the chorus of people slamming her for pushing the prez for rerun, now Jill's ex-husband, Stevenson, expressed disappointment, suggesting that she has changed a lot. 'The Dr. Jill I've seen on TV in the last five years is not the same person I married or even recognize,' Stevenson remarked. Stevenson who was married to the First Lady from 1970 to 1975 added: “She’s matriculated into a completely different woman”. 'I just don’t understand why she is so adamant about defending him and keeping him in the race since it appears that he’s struggling.' After praising his ex-wife’s former abilities and recalling how he watched her grow, he expressed his disbelief to see her 'front and center in the middle of this battle.' 'People say she’s the one who wants to be president now,' he said. In 2020, as Biden embarked on his campaign for the presidency, he leveled allegations against Biden, accusing him of being a ‘home wrecker.’ The First Lady's ex-husband once supported Biden in his bid for a seat in the US Senate in 1972. He previously alleged that Jill and Biden's relationship began while she was still married to him in 1974. (Source: hindustantimes *)
* Hindustan Times, an Indian English-language daily newspaper based in Delhi.
(Sunday), 30 Jun, 2024 06:43 Private call of top Democrats fuels more insider anger about Biden’s debate performance. In the Friday’s debate the president, who already faced serious concerns about his physical and mental stamina, offered a performance punctuated by repeated stumbles, uncomfortable pauses and a quiet speaking style that was often difficult to understand. Democratic National Committee (DNC) chairman Harrison and Biden campaign manager Rodriguez largely ignored Biden’s weak showing and the avalanche of criticism that followed when they held a call which spanned roughly an hour with dozens of committee members across the country, a group of some of the most influential members of the party. The call may have worsened a widespread sense of panic among elected officials, donors and other stakeholders, multiple committee members on the call said. Harrison offered what they described as a rosy assessment of Biden’s path forward, the people said. The chat function was disabled and there were no questions allowed. Biden’s closest allies insist he remains well-positioned to compete against Republican Trump and have given no indication they will push him to end his campaign. Those best positioned to replace him - US Vice-President Harris, California governor Newsom and Michigan governor Whitmer among them - reiterated their support for Biden after the debate. After Saturday’s DNC call, the Biden campaign released a memo from senior adviser O’Malley Dillon insisting the debate had no tangible impact on the election. “On every metric that matters, data shows it did nothing to change the American people’s perception, our supporters are more fired up than ever, and Trump only reminded voters of why they fired him four years ago and failed to expand his appeal beyond his Maga base,' O’Malley Dillon wrote. “If we do see changes in polling in the coming weeks, it will not be the first time that overblown media narratives have driven temporary dips in the polls,” she added. 'This should not be a close race,' Salazar, an elected DNC member from Colorado who was on the call said, pointing to Trump’s criminal record and long history of falsehoods. 'They’re the ones who should be looking for a new nominee, not us. And unfortunately for us, because of our president’s performance on Thursday night, that is now an open discussion.' (Source: nzherald *)
* The New Zealand Herald, a daily newspaper, headquartered in Auckland, New Zealand
(Saturday), 29 June 2024, 13:22 Supporters - party donors and congressmen - have called on the 81-year-old Biden to abandon his run for re-election to the presidency after appearing frozen and muddling his words multiple times during the first head-to-head TV debate of the 2024 election campaign against his opponent Trump, who was widely acknowledged the winner of the debate. He is facing calls from a number of Democratic strategists, donors and politicians to suspend his campaign in favour of a younger candidate at this year’s party convention in August. Biden given 'one week to stand down' by Democrats despite Obama defending US President. One congressman told Yglesias, a US political blogger: 'I think the president has one week to prove he is not dead.' Axelrod, who was a top White House and campaign official for former President Obama, said: 'How his voice sounded. He seemed a little disoriented. There are going to be discussions about whether he should continue.' Buell, a well-known Democratic donor, said: “Do we have time to put somebody else in there?” Current Democrat officials and politicians have publicly rallied around Biden despite his poor performance. Addressing Thursday’s debate, Mr Biden went on the offensive as he told the crowds: “I don't know what you did last night, but I spent 90 minutes on a stage debating with a guy who has the morals of an alley cat.' The President has clapped back at criticism and taken to the stand at a rally in North Carolina. Mr Biden was met with chants of “four more years” - less than 24 hours after his presidential debate had been labelled ‘disastrous’. He then hit out at Mr Trump's conviction from last month's hush money trial, as he said Trump isn't just a convicted felon, 'Trump is a one-man crime wave." He has 'more trials coming up', he then added. The US president also addressed concerns expressed by voters about his age after some of his recent appearances. He had been told he has a week to win over the Democrats before they try and get rid of him in the first presidential debate. He said: “Folks, I don't walk as easy as I used to, I don't speak as smoothly as I used to. I don't debate as well as I used to. "But I know what I do know. I know how to tell the truth, I know right from wrong. “I know like millions of Americans know - when you get knocked down you get back up.” He also added: “I wouldn’t be running again if I didn’t believe with all my heart and soul I can do this job because the stakes are too high.” It comes after Mr Biden appeared to forget what he was trying to say on several occasions during the debate, and at times spoke incomprehensibly. It did not take long for Mr Biden to lose his train of thought, as he suddenly started speaking about Medicare as he made a point about taxing billionaires before appearing to freeze. Former President Obama has also weighed in on the matter saying "Bad debate nights happen. Trust me, I know." "It would be difficult and very unusual for the Democrats to find a new nominee ahead of the convention, which begins on August 19". The convention is when the party officially chooses its nominee ahead of the actual election in November. (Source: lbc *)
* LBC News, a rolling news radio station based in the United Kingdom.
06/29/2024 07:00 AM EDT Amid all of the Democratic panic-texting prompted by President Biden’s shaky debate performance Thursday, one name was curiously absent from many of those conversations: Vice President Harris. Names including California Gov. Newsom and Michigan Gov. Whitmer trended online as potential replacements for Biden on the Democratic ticket, while Harris - by several measures the most obvious and best-positioned candidate - was left to publicly defend Biden at the single worst moment of their four-year-old political partnership. Some allies of the first Black and South Asian woman to be vice president fumed Friday about the lack of attention Harris drew as a possible replacement - not a surrogate - for Biden, passed over in the Beltway chatter for the likes of Newsom, Whitmer and even Govs. Pritzker of Illinois and Shapiro of Pennsylvania. Her best strategy is to internally just be an amazing VP. She quickly made clear to her staff that they shouldn’t try to sugarcoat how badly her running mate had performed. Harris told her advisers her role was simple: project confidence as quickly and clearly as possible as a leader of the party, while preserving credibility by recognizing how weak the debate had been. Harris’ other two objectives were to zero in on attacking Trump and move the conversation away from the debate and toward Biden’s record. Harris, despite a rocky couple of years in the polls, still has the highest name ID of any plausible Biden replacement. A recent poll found that 41 percent of Democratic voters chose Harris as a hypothetical 2028 nominee. The next closest was Transportation Secretary Buttigieg, with 15 percent, and Newsom, with 14 percent. Were Biden to leave the presidential race, only Harris would have access to the coffers of the campaign she’s already a part of. Any other candidate would be faced with the tall task of building an infrastructure in a matter of months. Harris’ allies are not shy about pointing out the optics of substituting any other candidate (likely White, possibly male) for Harris — a move that they suggest would upset not only Black delegates at the convention but also Black voters with whom the Biden campaign is already on shaky ground. Still, she faces skepticism from the Democratic rank-and-file, who have been repelled by Harris’ weak polling numbers and see any of the more-popular-if-lesser-known governors as preferable - someone up who would not only be a good president, but be a good candidate. (Source: politico*)
* Politico, an American political digital newspaper. Headquarters Arlington County, Virginia, U.S.
.4 6 30 13:14
