All quiet on campaign trail with less than 7 weeks to go
There’s less than seven weeks to go until the Nov. 6 general election and things are relatively quiet in Alabama. That is, in terms of big, news-making headlines. The one exception would be Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Walt Maddox who’s continuing to beat the drum that current Gov. Kay Ivey is refusing to debate him. Otherwise, across the state, candidates are quietly making the rounds to events and campaign rallies. Here’s a look at what some of the candidates in the statewide races have been up to this week according to their social media posts: Governor Republican: Kay Ivey Tuesday: accepted an endorsement from our state’s small and independent businesses via NFIB Alabama. Tuesday: visited the Tuscaloosa Rotary Club Thursday: visited Monroeville Democrat: Walt Maddox Monday: kicked-off his statewide bus tour in Tuscaloosa. Went to Jasper. Thursday: Spoke with the East Alabama Code Officials about tornado recovery Thursday: Met with the Shelby County Democrats Friday: in Mobile, Ala. with bus tour. Lt. Governor Will Ainsworth Monday: spoke to an impressive crowd at the Lowndes Co. GOP Tuesday: attended the Limestone County GOP meeting Thursday: started out in Baldwin County then met with Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson, had lunch Montgomery, then went to Birmingham, and finished in Jasper. Democrat: Will Boyd Monday: On his way to Escambia County, I made a stop on the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail & met a gentleman playing the bagpipes. Tuesday: Met with the Eastern Shore Democrats Thursday: Fundraiser in Harvest, Ala. Attorney General Democrat: Joseph Siegelman Nothing posted Republican: Steve Marshall Monday: spoke to an impressive crowd at the Lowndes Co. GOP Tuesday: Met with University of Alabama College Republicans
Barack Obama returns to campaign trail for Dems in governor’s races
Former President Barack Obama is returning to the campaign trail to stump for Democratic gubernatorial candidates in New Jersey and Virginia as they gear up for next month’s elections. Thursday’s events mark the first time the former president is stepping back into the political spotlight since leaving the White House. Unlike more low-key appearances earlier this year, Obama’s foray into two states won’t be a one-and-done. He is planning more public appearances as the year closes, and preparation for the 2018 midterm elections begins. “Obama seems to be determined to be an engaged and active former president who’s playing a role in different issues and is involved in politics,” Rutgers University professor David Greenberg said. Obama is hoping to sway voters in New Jersey and Virginia, the only two gubernatorial races this year. Both Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, a Democrat, and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a Republican, are term-limited. Those Nov. 7 races will be considered a bellwether of Democrats’ strength in the face of President Donald Trump‘s victory last year. Obama will first drop in on campaign workers in Newark, New Jersey, for a private “canvass kickoff” for Democratic candidate Phil Murphy, who is running against Republican Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno. The former president will then head to Richmond, Virginia, to rally support for Democrat Ralph Northam in his campaign against Republican Ed Gillespie. At the end of the month, Obama will go to Chicago to head up his first Obama Foundation leadership summit on Oct. 31 and Nov. 1, bringing in speakers like England’s Prince Harry, former Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and artists like Gloria Estefan, Chance the Rapper and indie rock band The National. Obama’s popularity is still undeniable. In an August NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, 51 percent of Americans said they have a favorable opinion of Obama, while 35 percent had a negative opinion. In the same poll, 36 percent said they had a positive opinion of Trump and 52 percent had a negative opinion. In Richmond, thousands of people lined up on Tuesday to get tickets to Obama’s rally. Retired Richmond social worker Nancy Jackson, 67, said she missed Obama “tremendously” and wished he could serve a third, fourth and fifth term. She said black voters like herself have been despondent since Trump took office. “I think Obama will bring some light to the end of the tunnel,” she said. Obama never completely disappeared from public life, in part because of Trump’s constant criticism and efforts to undo much of Obama’s legacy after eight years in office. He has publicly defended his policies that Trump and the GOP-led Congress have set out to dismantle: the Affordable Care Act – or Obamacare – and the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which allowed immigrants brought into the country illegally as children to be temporarily shielded from deportation. Obama was forced to return “pretty quickly,” presidential historian Julian Zelizer of Princeton University said. “The current president has changed all the conventional assumptions about what to do,” Zelizer said. “There is a sense of urgency that makes this moment different than others and former President Obama has continued to be directly in Trump’s line of fire – both his policies and his legacy.” Republished with permission from the Associated Press.
Michelle Obama emerges as surrogate MVP
Hillary Clinton was always expected to get a late-campaign enthusiasm boost from the White House. The surprise is that it’s not coming from the president. On a star-studded team of campaign surrogates – including President Barack Obama – the most valuable player of 2016 is undoubtedly first lady Michelle Obama. During a divisive political year, the hugely popular first lady has wowed voters with her powerful rhetoric. And she can be the emotional center to a campaign whose candidate is not known for projecting warmth. Last week, in a searing indictment of Republican nominee Donald Trump that was broadcast live by cable news networks, Michelle Obama said his recorded boasts about making unwanted sexual advances toward women had “shaken me to my core in a way that I couldn’t have predicted.” With that, the first lady spoke in terms that Hillary Clinton rarely does, given accusations against her own husband that he’s long denied – but Trump has raised. “If Hillary Clinton were out there making these same arguments, we know how Donald Trump would respond, by attacking former President Clinton and bringing up old stories from the 90s,” said Democratic strategist Lis Smith. Michelle Obama also had one of the most memorable lines of the Democratic National Convention, saying her family motto is: “When they go low, we go high.” Clinton has repeated that line in public several times since. “Michelle Obama is seen as a truly authentic voice that whatever topic she speaks on, people feel that it’s really coming from her bones,” said Democratic strategist Mary Anne Marsh. To the Clinton campaign, Michelle Obama is a crucial asset who can connect with the Democratic base – particularly young people – but also reach independent and undecided voters. That was clear Monday, when the campaign signaled a push into traditionally Republican Arizona by announcing that the first lady would host an early-vote rally in Phoenix on Thursday. “There is no more powerful advocate for our campaign,” said Clinton communications director Jennifer Palmieri. “Because the first lady isn’t seen as a political figure, when she does speak out, it has a real impact.” Even among Clinton’s so-called “uber-surrogates” – the president, Vice President Joe Biden, former President Bill Clinton, Sen. Bernie Sanders and Sen. Elizabeth Warren – Michelle Obama has stood out. Once a reluctant campaigner, she has grown more comfortable after more than eight years on the national stage, promoting her childhood obesity and education initiatives, hosting her own events and showing a playful side on talk shows and in interviews. “Either she’s Meryl Streep, or she’s really genuine about this,” said Robert Watson, an American studies professor at Lynn University. “In this year of plastic candidates, Michelle just seems the most genuine one out there.” Still, political analysts said the intensity of her advocacy for Clinton is notable. “It’s unusual for a sitting first lady, or a sitting president for that matter, to campaign so enthusiastically for a presidential candidate. They usually take a lower profile approach. This is indicative of how important both Obamas think this election is,” said Katherine Jellison, chair of the history department at Ohio University who studies the first ladies. Anita McBride, a veteran of three Republican administrations, said Mrs. Obama’s schedule is more flexible at this stage of the administration because she has held the final events for some of her biggest initiatives. “It’s sort of wrapping up time where’s it’s never wrapping up time for the president,” said McBride, who was chief of staff to first lady Laura Bush. “He still has everything coming to his desk every day. Now it’s all about preserving the legacy and giving everything she can to the person she thinks can best reflect their values.” So far this fall, Michelle Obama has campaigned in Virginia, Pennsylvania, North Carolina and New Hampshire. She has done radio and television ads, including a television spot targeting early voters in Iowa, Ohio and Nevada. Arizona is up next, with more appearances expected after that. With three weeks until the Nov. 8 election, Clinton is leading in many national and battleground state polls as the race has been largely overwhelmed by Trump’s inflammatory rhetoric and past sexual comments. Clinton is still contending with the slow release of hacked emails that have raised questions about her relationship to Wall Street and inner campaign workings, and will likely be asked about it when she and Trump debate one final time on Wednesday night, but Trump has taken up much of the spotlight. Michelle Obama so far is one of the few to escape the wrath of Trump, who has spoken harshly about various voting groups, his own Republican leaders and, lately, the women who have accused him of sexual misconduct. “I can’t think of a bolder way for Donald Trump to lose even more standing than he already has by engaging the first lady of the United States,” said White House spokesman Eric Schultz. Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
Barack Obama to campaign for Clinton, Ohio Dems as 2016 map narrows
President Barack Obama will try to rev up Democrats in Ohio during a two-day visit, as the number of states that could swing to either Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump narrows to just a handful. Obama heads to Columbus on Thursday to be the featured speaker at an annual dinner benefiting Ohio Democrats and Gov. Ted Strickland, who is running to oust incumbent Republican Sen. Rob Portman. On Friday, Obama will hold a rally in Cleveland for Clinton emphasizing early voting, a major focus for Democrats across the U.S. this year. This week Obama entered the final 100 days of his presidency, and he’s increasingly devoting his time to trying to push Clinton over the finish line in the presidential race. With Trump and Republicans threatening to undo much of what Obama has accomplished over the last eight years, campaigning for Democrats is the most productive way for Obama to try to protect his legacy. Before flying to Ohio, Obama planned to speak in Pittsburgh at the “White House Frontiers Conference,” where aides said he’d announce new funding for technology and research and tout innovations like self-driving cars and artificial intelligence. Obama, in an op-ed in the magazine Wired, said the U.S. needed to adapt its skills to address emerging threats like antibiotic-resistant “superbugs,” cybersecurity and climate change. “To accelerate that change, we need science,” Obama said. Ohio, with its diverse mix of cities and rural areas, is a coveted prize every four years, seen as a barometer for the shifts in the nation’s political climate. This year, it’s one of just four states that polls suggest are currently toss-ups between Clinton and Trump, along with Nevada, North Carolina and Florida. Trump, too, was setting his sights on Ohio on Thursday, with a speech in Columbus and an evening rally in Cincinnati. The shrinking of the political battlefield reflects demographic shifts that have benefited Democrats in several states and Trump’s struggles to expand his appeal to a broad cross-section of America. But Obama and Democrats have been wary not to take anything for granted, particularly as the final weeks of the campaign have taken a series of unpredictable turns. Obama and his wife, Michelle, are two of the country’s most popular Democrats, making them the most effective voices to vouch publicly for Clinton. White House press secretary Josh Earnest said that makes the first couple particularly useful in freeing up Clinton to focus her limited time elsewhere. “The real value of having somebody as high-profile as the president or the first lady on the stump campaigning for you is that you don’t have to also go there in order to get attention. You’ve got somebody else there who can make a forceful case in support of your candidacy,” Earnest said. Hoping that broad disdain for Trump will sink other Republican candidates, Democrats have been particularly bullish this year about retaking the Senate, which would significantly strengthen Clinton’s hand legislatively should she win the White House. Democrats had expected Strickland’s race to be one of their better prospects to win a GOP-held Senate seat, but he has been running consistently behind Portman in the polls. Yet in a sign of how toxic Trump has become for other Republicans, Portman revoked his support for Trump after video emerged of Trump making offensive comments about women. Portman has said he’s backing Trump’s running mate Mike Pence instead. Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
Rick Perry dials back Christian appeal in Iowa, cites job record
Rick Perry bragged to an Iowa barbecue crowd about the strong economy in Texas, drew laughs comparing President Barack Obama to Jimmy Carter and won applause vowing to secure the U.S.-Mexico border. But in a state where evangelicals wield political influence, he didn’t mention religion until 25 minutes into his address, and only then when asked about it. “Nothing against golf, but on Sunday morning, you’re not going to see me at the golf course,” Perry quipped about his unwavering church attendance. The former Texas governor’s devout Christian beliefs were a centerpiece of his short-lived 2012 White House bid but are an afterthought in his second-chance campaign across Iowa. While Republican rivals Mike Huckabee, Rick Santorum and Ted Cruz are pushing hard to mobilize the conservative evangelical vote, Perry prefers to trumpet his 14 years of executive experience leading the second most populous state. In a field with few military veterans, he also speaks about his five years in the Air Force. Evangelicals helped catapult Santorum to a 2012 Iowa caucus win and had spurred Huckabee to an Iowa victory four years earlier. Perry’s super PACs, though, are broadcasting TV commercials in Iowa focused on security at the far-away border and Perry’s cotton farm upbringing — not on God. Perry said his faith is as important as ever; he just doesn’t need to talk about it as much while campaigning. “Nothing’s changed between me and the Lord,” he said between campaign stops. “I’m still planning on going to heaven.” He added: “I’m a different candidate, but I’m still the same person at my core.” Perry was active in both the Methodist and Baptist churches growing up but since 2011 has attended a nondenominational evangelical megachurch in Austin. Last year, he was baptized anew by a pastor from that church in the same rural creek where Texas icon Sam Houston was baptized. Perry’s religious beliefs were on much broader display four years ago, when he briefly became a presidential front-runner before his campaign flamed out. A week before entering the 2012 race, Perry headlined “The Response,” a seven-hour prayer meeting at a Houston football stadium where he declared before 30,000 believers: “Father, our heart breaks for America. We have forgotten who made us, who protects us, who blesses us.” Another signature moment of his first presidential bid was a television ad played heavily in Iowa in which Perry proclaimed, “I’m not ashamed to admit I’m a Christian.” But that all-out appeal to evangelicals fizzled. This time, Perry barely mentions Christianity in his stump speech. Although he’s frequently asked about his faith, his responses are usually limited to saying he opposes the Supreme Court’s decision legalizing gay marriage and that, as president, he’d protect religious freedom. That wasn’t enough for Sharon Elling, who was among those who filled nearly every seat when Perry visited a brew pub and cafe in Hampton, population about 4,000. She asked Perry whether he would defend businesses’ right to refuse serving gay couples for religious reasons. He responded by panning the high court’s gay marriage ruling, which struck her as tepid. “I wish he’d spoken more about that,” said Elling, a 71-year-old retiree. “I know that would be politically a little bit dicey. But we need some people who aren’t afraid and will voice that position.” Steve Scheffler, president of the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition, said Perry’s Christian beliefs can still be present in the campaign even if they aren’t as visible. “I don’t think it’s one or the other,” Scheffler said. “Even if you’re campaigning on your executive experience and policies, your faith drives the decisions in your life.” Cruz, another Texan, is focusing much more on evangelical support, though his advisers won’t say whether he’s trying to fill a void in the courtship of religious conservatives opened by Perry. The senator kicked off his campaign at Liberty University, founded by the late Rev. Jerry Falwell, and publicly embraces his Southern Baptist faith. “I would say Ted Cruz is trying to out-Huckabee Huckabee, and I think he’s actually doing a good job,” said David Lane, a California-based evangelical who has organized pastors across the country to be more politically active. A former Arkansas governor, Huckabee is also an ordained Southern Baptist minister. Perry’s playing down of his faith may widen his appeal with Iowa voters who think there is too much talk about religion in politics. “I remember him speaking about his faith before and he didn’t do well,” said Wynn Touney, a 75-year-old retiree who met Perry in 2011 and then again at a recent event in Fort Dodge, about 90 miles southwest of Clear Lake. “It’s nice to hear what else is on his mind.” Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
