In more evidence that the 2020 presidential campaign is about to start heating up, new reporting shows that two rising Democratic stars spoke by telephone about possible presidential plans.
According to NBC News, Beto O’Rourke and Andrew Gillum discussed their desire to have a young progressive candidate lead the Democratic Party against Trump in 2020 and going forward.
The report noted, “One source, granted anonymity to describe a private conversation, said the pair discussed their mutual preference that someone ‘young and unapologetically progressive’ lead the Democratic Party going forward.”
NBC News notes that O’Rourke’s call with Gillum comes as the Texas Democrat is shoring up support among African-American leaders ahead of a potential presidential candidacy.
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More from the report:
Beto O’Rourke hasn’t made up his mind about a possible presidential run in 2020, but behind the scenes he’s speaking to potential kingmakers among a constituency whose support he’ll need in a Democratic primary: African-Americans.
In the last two weeks, the soon-to-be-former Texas congressmen met with former President Barack Obama at his Washington office, a source familiar with the meeting confirmed to NBC News, and spoke by phone with the Rev. Al Sharpton and fellow 2018 progressive darling Andrew Gillum. The O’Rourke-Obama meeting was first reported by The Washington Post.
…
Sharpton, an MSNBC anchor and civil rights activist, told NBC News that he invited O’Rourke to a Martin Luther King Jr event in January, and that O’Rourke called him on Friday to say he could not attend but wanted to keep lines of communication open.
Democrats want to be inspired again
The fact that rising progressive stars like Beto O’Rourke and Andrew Gillum are increasingly being looked at as possible 2020 candidates shows just how much Democrats want to be inspired again in the next presidential campaign.
That should worry Trump as he continues to be deeply unpopular among the majority of the American people. According to a new Gallup poll released on Monday, a whopping 56 percent of the country doesn’t approve of the president’s job performance.
When challenged by a likable, inspiring candidate – somebody like O’Rourke or even Andrew Gillum, among many other potential Democratic candidates – it will be very difficult for Donald Trump to win a second term.
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Sean Colarossi currently resides in Cleveland, Ohio. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and was an organizing fellow for both of President Obama’s presidential campaigns. He also worked with Planned Parenthood as an Affordable Care Act Outreach Organizer in 2014, helping northeast Ohio residents obtain health insurance coverage.
