Obama: I 'don't buy' idea that a woman or minority can’t beat Trump in 2020

Former President Obama says he doesn’t believe that Democrats would be making a mistake by selecting another woman or person of color for their presidential nominee in 2020.

“That kind of stuff, I don’t buy," Obama said during a podcast interview with David Axelrod, a CNN political commentator and his former top strategist, when asked if Democrats need a candidate of a certain gender or race to defeat President Trump.

“With respect to going forward, the idea that there’s some demographic or profile of a particular candidate that is the optimal one or the ideal one, that’s just not how I’ve seen politics work,” Obama continued.

“I think people respond to candidates who speak to the moment in some fashion."

His remarks come a month after lawyer Michael Avenatti said in an interview with Time magazine that he believes the 2020 Democratic nominee "better be a white male," though he also added at the time that he wishes it weren't so.

“When you have a white male making the arguments, they carry more weight,” he said. “Should they carry more weight? Absolutely not. But do they? Yes.”

Obama’s remarks also follow comments made by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) earlier this month when he said there are “a lot of white folks out there who are not necessarily racist who felt uncomfortable for the first time in their lives about whether or not they wanted to vote for an African-American.”

[SOURCE: THE HILL]

Barack Obama surprises Chicago food bank volunteers

Here's a reminder of how a real United States President carries themselves with dignity, humility, graciousness, and a genuine willingness to helps others.

Former President Barack Obama paid an unannounced visit Tuesday to the Greater Chicago Food Depository, where he helped bag potatoes for Thanksgiving meals.

Wearing a Chicago White Sox hat, Obama arrived with bags of donated food and donned latex gloves to work side by side with volunteers at the nonprofit, which helps provide meals to more than 700 food pantries and shelters across Cook County, Illinois.

Thank you to ⁦@BarackObama⁩ and ⁦@ObamaFoundation⁩ for joining our volunteers today at the Food Depository. We believe no one should go hungry, especially this time of year, and that’s why we’re working to address the root causes of hunger in Chicago and Cook County. pic.twitter.com/d6YfBjvJl2

— Chicago’s Food Bank (@FoodDepository) November 20, 2018

Rep. Hakeem Jefferies to challenge Rep. Barbara Lee for a democratic leadership position

Two members of the Congressional Black Caucus are in direct competition for a Democratic leadership position, including a young upstart who is bypassing the unwritten rule to wait his turn.

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries’ (D-N.Y.) late entrance into the race for House Democratic Caucus chair pits him against Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), a former CBC chairwoman who announced her candidacy in June.

The competition is a sign of the CBC’s growing power and the challenges it faces as it expands. But it’s also a symptom of the leadership bottleneck threatening to shake up the entire Democratic Caucus in January.

While relatively obscure, especially compared to the high-profile speaker role, the caucus chair is an important position. In addition to being a launchpad for the future, the job puts the chairperson in the room where decisions are made, giving that member a say in the strategy the Democrats will use as they figure out how to take on President Donald Trump and Senate Republicans in 2019.

Lee and Jeffries represent opposite sides of the country and different generations of the party. Lee, 72, has paid her dues, playing the waiting game before seeking a jump into leadership. But Jeffries, 48, a rising star in the Democratic Party, is already ready to soar. A number of Democrats point to him as a potential future speaker.

That two African-American colleagues are going head to head may be unusual, members say, but it shouldn’t be unexpected within an increasingly diverse Democratic Caucus.

“There’s never a problem when two whites run against each other or two Hispanics run against each other or two Asians run against each other,” Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) said. “So don’t ask me about that.”

Read more: Dem chairman fight pits old guard vs. new generation of black leaders

Rep. Mia Love loses to Democrat in Utah

Final vote counts Tuesday showed that Democrat Ben McAdams did not jump the gun when he declared victory a day earlier over two-term Republican Rep. Mia Love.

He won by 694 votes, or a margin of 50.129 percent to 49.871. That margin of 0.258 was just barely outside the 0.25 percent that would have allowed Love to request a recount.

Love, the only black female Republican in the House, was expected to issue a statement later about the race. Her staff said she is out of state for Thanksgiving, and would not give any interviews until after the holiday.

McAdams’ victory means House Democrats will hold at least 234 seats as the majority party in January when the new Congress is sworn in.

Marcia Fudge endorses Nancy Pelosi for Speaker

Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio) endorsed Democratic leader Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) for Speaker in the next Congress in a surprise move Tuesday, abandoning the idea of challenging her.

Fudge, who huddled with Pelosi in the Capitol on Friday, said Pelosi has offered to restore a defunct subcommittee on elections, and to make Fudge the chairwoman.

The issue of voting rights has been a top priority of members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC), which Fudge used to lead, particularly since a 2013 Supreme Court decision scrapped key protections previously provided under the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Fudge is vowing to use her new gavel to restore those protections.

"Leader Pelosi has granted me the opportunity to create the record necessary to satisfy the 2013 Supreme Court decision in Shelby County v. Holder, so that the protections of the Voting Rights Act will be reinstated and improved,” Fudge said in a statement.

“She has also assured me that the most loyal voting bloc in the Democratic party, Black women, will have a seat at the decision-making table," she added.

"I am now confident that we will move forward together and that the 116th Congress will be a Congress of which we can all be proud. I now join my colleagues in support of the leadership team of Pelosi, [Steny] Hoyer and [James] Clyburn."

[SOURCE: THE HILL]