3 Winners And 3 Loses From Elizabeth Warren’s 2020 Announcement

Last updated on September 25th, 2023 at 02:09 pm

Sen. Elizabeth Warren‘s (D-MA) announcement that she is running for president has set off the first chain reaction of 2020 Democratic candidate winners and losers.

Winners:

!). Elizabeth Warren – Her exploratory committee video announcement was powerful and well put together. It was the work of a deep and serious campaign team. Sen. Warren has the network to be a force in the 2020 primary. She also can fundraise, and has spent years building connections with Democrats at all levels, but is Warren four years too late?

She is an upper tier candidate who will keep the field from moving too far to the center.

Watch Warren’s video announcement:

2). Joe Biden– Former vice president Biden wrote in his book Promise Me, Dad that Sen. Warren would have been his choice for a running mate in 2016. Biden now gets to see Warren up close during a primary campaign, and the idea of Biden/Warren 2020 ticket is alive and well with Warren’s entry into the race.

3). Unions, the Middle Class, and Students – Sen. Warren has spent years on the national scene talking about labor and middle-class issues. She has also been a champion for students and fighting against the student debt and loan crisis. A lot of issues that were not talked about in 2016 are going to be brought to the debate by Warren in 2020, and that means that the voices of some key Democratic constituencies will be heard during the primary process.

Losers:

1). Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT)- It is not a coincidence that Sen. Sanders‘ 2016 campaign took off after Sen. Warren decided not to challenge Hillary Clinton. Roughly a third to half of Sanders supporters in 2016 would have supported Elizabeth Warren. Sen. Sanders isn’t going to have the progressive vote to himself this time, and he will also find it more difficult to win the New Hampshire primary. Sen. Warren is a progressive who is also a member of the Democratic Party.

It was already going to be difficult for Sanders to duplicate his 2016 success, but Elizabeth Warren’s presence might make 2020 impossible.

2). Donald Trump – If there is one Democrat who has gotten under Trump‘s skin more consistently than anyone else, it is Elizabeth Warren. Sen. Warren is the anti-Trump in every single way. Warren is going to drive Trump batty during the presidential campaign, as she will make the president a frequent target of pointed spot-on criticisms that will take aim at his lies and hypocrisy.

3). Any Other Progressive Democrat Considering A Run For President- Potential candidates like Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) might find themselves squeezed out of the primary race early because Sen. Warren is going to do everything in her power to consolidate progressive support for her candidacy.

There will be plenty of room in the field for Democratic voices, but if Democrats take back the White House in 2020, it is a virtual certainty that Sen. Warren will play a prominent role in the next Democratic administration.

For more discussion about this story join our Rachel Maddow and MSNBC group.

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Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

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