The Washington Post - 13.03.2020

A4 eZ re the washington post.friday, march 13 , 2020

election 2020

BY MICHAEL SCHERER

Former vice president Joe
Biden named Jen O’Malley Dillon
as his new campaign manager
Thursday, a major shake-up that
comes as the p arty’s l eading candi-
date plans an organizational ex-
pansion to prepare for t he general
election.
The move is intended to quell
concerns r aised in recent weeks by
senior Democratic strategists
about the leadership structure of
the Biden campaign, which has
been beset by underwhelming
fundraising, scant staffing re-
sources and organizational mis-
cues during the early nominating
contests.
“She will be a tremendous asset
to a campaign that is only growing
and getting stronger as we prepare
to take the fight to Donald Trump
this fall,” Biden s aid in a statement

accompanying the announce- ment. The campaign shuffle is an ac- knowledgment that while Biden has had a remarkable recent run of victories — at least 15 o f the past 21 contests — his operation was not up to the challenge posed by President Trump if Biden were to win t he nomination. After Biden performed well be- low expectations in the Iowa caucuses, Anita Dunn, a senior adviser who previously worked for President Barack Obama, took o p- erational control of t he c ampaign, sharing responsibilities with Biden’s o riginal campaign manager, Greg S chultz. Dunn, who helped Biden prepare for a possible 2016 run for president, will also continue with the campaign, returning to her role as a senior adviser to Biden. Schultz, who prepared and built

the Biden campaign and oversaw initial hiring and delegate strate- gy, will stay o n in a new role. “ I will value his continued input on this campaign,” Biden said in the an- nouncement. “I look forward to building out the Biden coalition and doing the necessary preparations for a possible general election and making sure we coordinate with the local, state, and national Democratic in- frastructure,” Schultz said in a statement t o The Washington Post. In the wake of multiple victories in Tuesday’s presidential primary contests, Biden’s advisers ac- knowledged taking steps to ex- pand virtually a ll p arts of his s hoe- string campaign operation, from finance, field and communica- tions departments to the senior leadership team, answering the concerns o f senior Democrats who are bracing for a new wave of

assaults from Trump. “Jen is in a league of her own,” said Guy Cecil, the chairman of Priorities USA, a super PAC that has committed to helping Biden. “She is smart, strategic and a ter- rific team builder. I c an’t i magine a better person to lead us into No- vember.” Robby Mook, who managed Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign, also praised the new leadership structure. “She comes to this with all the different pieces of the tool kit,” Mook said of O’Malley Dillon. “The best campaign managers are talented and prepared, and she is coming with both.” He also favored Schultz’s new role as one of the point people for coordinating w ith the Democratic National Committee. “You want someone h eading up that operation who has the deep

trust of the candidate and of the inner circle,” Mook said. “And you want someone with deep experi- ence running the state operations, and G reg has both of those things.” Biden’s n ew c ampaign manager also has deep ties across the party. O’Malley Dillon, 43, served as bat- tleground states director for Obama’s 2008 campaign and dep- uty campaign manager for his 2012 reelection effort. She was also executive director for the Democratic National Committee during his first term, putting her in the inner circle of Obama’s political advisers. More recently, she helped to lead an early 2019 Democratic effort to create a new for-profit data exchange to allow for greater in- formation sharing between Dem- ocratic campaigns and affiliated groups, an effort party leaders see a crucial for catching up with the

Republican d ata program. O’Malley Dillon later served as the p residential c ampaign m anag- er for former congressman Beto O’Rourke (D-Tex.), relocating to El Paso. After O’Rourke’s campaign ended, she volunteered as a campaign adviser for Biden before the Nevada caucuses, and then continued on as an informal a dviser to senior Biden c ampaign officials in recent w eeks. O’Malley Dillon w ill work out of the c ampaign’s P hiladelphia h ead- quarters. “Vice President Biden is turn- ing out voters at record levels and building the broad coalition we need to ensure Donald Trump doesn’t get a second term,” O’Mal- ley Dillon said in a statement. “It’s an honor to help make him the 46th President and I’m ready to get to work.” [email protected]

Biden appoints new campaign manager in preparation for general election

Gulf Coast. Under pressure from Demo- cratic activists, Obama denied the permit in 2015, citing concerns over its impact on climate change. But President Trump gave the project a greenlight in 2017. Sanders co-authored the first “keep it in the ground” bill in 2015 aimed at blocking any new fossil fuel extraction from federal lands or waters. He helped craft the Green New Deal resolution, which would spend trillions of dollars in an effort to bring the nation’s n et g reenhouse gas emissions to zero within a decade, and proposed eliminating the frack- ing of oil and gas nationwide. None of those efforts have gained traction among Republi- cans needed for passage. Since Trump took office, Sand- ers has routinely skipped hearings of the Environment and Pub- lic Works Committee, on which he serves. Of 82 hearings in the past three years he has attended two, according to committee records. Sanders’s aides said he has focused on mobilizing grass-roots opposition to Trump in recent years. Left-leaning climate groups such as the Sunrise Movement and Extinction Rebellion have endorsed Sanders, saying that he is more committed to their cause than Biden. While Biden has endorsed “keep it in the ground” and the idea of rejoining a global climate agreement aimed at cutting the world’s carbon output, his climate plan costs a fraction of Sanders’s and imposes fewer re- strictions on natural gas produc- tion. “Leading with half-baked solu- tions that don’t e nergize the base, and might fully rely on market mechanisms that do not solve the crisis, can actually further alien- ate the people we need to win transformative economic climate policy,” said Lauren Maunus, legislative manager for the Sunrise Movement. [email protected]

Jose a. Del real contributed to this report.

tee vote. Chelsea Henderson, Warner’s senior policy adviser for climate change, said that Sanders compli- cated negotiators’ task in forging a compromise. While the bill made it to the Senate floor, it failed to overcome a Republican filibuster. “We had anywhere between 10 and 15 Republicans willing to do something on climate change, and the something wasn’t enough,” said Henderson, who now serves as a consultant to Republicans seeking to address climate change. “I understand wanting to advance the most in- tense bill, but I never really felt like he was willing to broker a deal.” Sanders’s aides noted that he offered four amendments to the ill-fated bill that were adopted, including one to support domes- tic manufacturing of renewable energy equipment and technolo- gy. Sanders did score his biggest climate victory in 2007, working

with other Democrats to help make buildings and transporta- tion systems on the state and local level more energy efficient. The program received $3.2 billion during the Obama administra- tion as part of the American Re- covery and Reinvestment Act, though it has not gotten addition- al funding since. Bill McKibben, a c limate activist and a fellow Vermonter, said in an interview that Sanders consis- tently challenged the idea that the United States could not wean itself off fossil fuels. To uting the idea of “10 million solar roofs,” Sanders helped launch a federally funded program in Vermont aimed at improving solar panel efficiency in cold-weather cli- mates. B ut by the time Obama took office in 2009, Sanders had fully distanced himself from bipartisan efforts to address climate change. In June that year, the House narrowly passed the Amer- ican Clean Energy and Security Act, which would have created a

cap and trade system to reduce emissions. Joseph Aldy, who served as special assistant to the president for energy and environment between 2009 and 2010, said the White House and its Senate allies were focused on getting Midwest- ern Democrats and centrist Re- publicans to produce a measure that could be reconciled with the House bill. “I remember meeting with staff from a lot of different offic- es,” Aldy said. “I don’t remember Sanders’s staff being that en- gaged.” Sanders was focused at the time on passing the Affordable Care Act, according to current and former Hill staffers. The legislation never came to the Senate floor for a vote. The Senate abandoned its effort to pass a climate bill in mid- 2010, and Sanders joined McKib- ben and others in fighting a federal permit for the Keystone XL pipeline, slated to transport tar sands oil from Canada to the U.S.

salwan georges/the washington Post A supporter in a bear suit cheers as S en. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) speaks in Spartanburg, S.C., in February. Sanders has viewed global warming as a top priority for years.

BY JULIET EILPERIN

As Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.)
stays in the race for the Demo-
cratic nomination, he’s identified
climate change as a top issue for
young voters and argued that his
rival, former vice president Joe
Biden, is not willing to take the
dramatic steps needed to save the
planet.
B ut in his nearly three decades
in elected office, Sanders’s all-or-
nothing approach means he has
sometimes forgone legislative ef-
forts to make near-term progress
on climate.
Sanders has viewed global
warming as a top priority for
years, pressing for major cuts in
the nation’s emissions of green-
house gases and a switch from
fossil fuels to wind, solar and
other renewables.
S anders’s approach to climate
change suggests how he would
govern as president. While he’s
occasionally found common
ground with like-minded Demo-
crats, he has often rejected incre-
mental steps toward potentially
durable, bipartisan compromise.
A nd when bipartisan talks cra-
tered a decade ago, Sanders con-
cluded that the only o ption was to
mobilize a grass-roots movement
to demand a sweeping shift in
how the United States produces
and consumes energy.
The collapse of legislation in
2010 passed by the House that
would have imposed a national

cap on greenhouse gas emissions “even after significant compro- mises had been accommodated, only underscored for the senator the limits of politics as usual,” Sanders spokesman Keane Bhatt wrote in an email. In doing so, Sanders has effec- tively moved the Democratic Par- ty to the left on climate change. Nearly every major 2020 candidate — including Biden — has called for steeper carbon cuts than President Barack Obama endorsed and has backed the idea of banning all new oil and gas drill- ing on public lands and offshore. But it also raises questions on how he would enact sweeping policies to curb carbon emissions if he occupied the Oval Office. Bipartisan Policy Center Presi- dent Jason Grumet said Sanders considers himself a “big idea progressive” but he’s not been focused on achievable, short-term goals. The closest Congress came to passing major climate legislation came in the late 2000s. O ne of the most promising measures was a bill, co-sponsored by Sens. Joseph I. Lieberman (I-Conn.) and John W. Warner (R-Va.), which by mid- century would have cut the Unit- ed States’ carbon output 63 percent compared with 2005. Sanders preferred legislation he co-sponsored w ith Sen. Barba- ra Boxer (D-Calif.) that would have reduced U.S. greenhouse gas emissions 80 percent by 2050. Still, some centrists wanted to forge a bipartisan deal more quickly and they lined up behind the Lieberman-Warner bill. Sand- ers opposed it during a key sub- committee vote, arguing it was not stringent enough, though later backed it during a full commit-

Sanders is big on

climate advocacy,

but not c ompromise

Senator has eschewed bipartisan efforts in favor of grass-roots ones

In all, at least 16 groups uncon- nected to the campaign have spent money to promote Sanders by running ads and holding get- out-the-vote campaigns. These groups include the nine organiza- tions in People Power for B ernie. Although some of the groups in the coalition are newly formed and have little paper trail, others have existed for a few years and have cash to spend. For instance, the Center for Popular Democracy had about $22.6 m illion in 2017, according t o the group’s latest tax filing. Peo- ple’s Action, a nonprofit organiza- tion, received $7 million in grants in 2017. It is unknown how much most of these groups have raised to support Sanders in the 2020 cycle or where they are getting their money because they are not re- quired to disclose their donor li sts. A dvocates for more transpar- ency in political donations — pre- dominantly on the left — refer to this type of funding as “dark money.” The groups reject that label, saying they have internal measures to vet the sources of their donations so that they are not taking money from billionaires or special interests that would un- dermine their mission. They said they are respecting their donors’ desire to remain private. “Being an openly socialist orga- nization, f or us, it feels very impor- tant to protect the privacy of our members while also making it very clear that we don’t accept corporate funding,” s aid Sean Es- telle, one of the leaders of the Democratic Socialists of Ameri- ca’s national campaign to support

Sanders. On Biden’s side are some of the most well-funded super PAC operations, whose donors are made public. These groups have spent more than $9.8 million t o support Biden, mainly through Unite the Country, a super PAC started by Biden’s a llies. Bloomberg, who dropped out of the presidential race after Super Tuesday, is starting a group to run independent expenditures to support Biden. On Wednesday, Bloomberg’s campaign published copies of its anti-Trump ads for public use — worth $275 million in ad spending — as the campaign shifts the billionaire’s resources to help defeat President Trump in November. Priorities USA Action, the main pro-Democratic super PAC, is shifting its advertising messaging to defend Biden — a sign that the establishment considers him the li kely nominee. American Bridge, another major Democratic super PAC, on Wednesday also shifted its general-election messaging to support Biden. It began running $2.2 million in ads in Pennsylvania, aimed at boosting Biden through televi- sion, radio and digital a ds. “The voices of Democratic voters are loud and clear: they want Joe Biden to be our s tandard-bear- er,” American Bridge President Bradley Beychok said in a statement. “That’s why we are rallying behind his candidacy and will de- ploy every resource a t our disposal from now until November to ensure Joe Biden is the next Presi- dent of t he United S tates.” [email protected] [email protected]

BY MICHELLE YE HEE LEE AND ANU NARAYANSWAMY

A scrappy coalition of activist
groups supporting Sen. Bernie
Sanders plans to intensify its
fundraising and organizing ef-
forts against the Democratic es-
tablishment, which is coalescing
around former vice president Joe
Biden after recent presidential
primary wins.
The sprawling network of so-
cialists, climate-change activists,
millennial organizers and other
liberal advocates, who raise mon-
ey from millions of members and
have knocked on many doors in
support of Sanders ( I-Vt.), say they
plan to cite the coronavirus out-
break and the uncertain economy
to advance him as the only candi-
date who can enact broad eco-
nomic and environmental
change.
Their efforts come even as ma-
jor Democratic super PACs line up
to spend millions for Biden as the
candidate they consider b est posi-
tioned to win the party’s nomina-
tion.
Sanders, a prolific fundraiser in
his own right among donors giv-
ing in smaller amounts, defied
expectations to win early nomi-
nating contests before falling be-
hind in delegates in recent weeks.
“It really looked like Bernie

Sanders was winning, and now we’re back into something that’s a little more familiar: being the un- derdog,” s aid Alan Minsky, executive director of Progressive Demo- crats of America, one o f the g roups in the People Power for Bernie coalition. “The progressive left has not come this close t o winning in America i n my l ifetime.” Since Super Tuesday on March 3, the landscape of independent groups supporting the two candi- dates has changed significantly. On Biden’s side, many of the party's wealthiest donors have embraced his candidacy after sit- ting on the sidelines or previously supporting other moderates in the primary. They are directing donations to the campaign and to the super PACs that raise and spend unlimited amounts to boost his chances. These donors — including fi- nancier Donald Sussman, one of the party’s most generous givers, and billionaire Mike Bloomberg, who dropped o ut of the r ace — are newly supporting Biden and giv- ing at an overwhelming clip, according to donors and fundrais- ers. “I’ve never experienced any- thing like it,” said Alan Kessler, a longtime Biden donor and fundraiser, of the onslaught of donor interest. Fundraising for Biden

Activist groups on left

still push for Sanders

even as Biden surges

“was a really tough slog two weeks ago. It’s n ot tough now.” Meanwhile, People Power for Bernie said it is prepared for the long haul for the democratic socialist, who still has a narrow path to victory. Among those in the coalition are activists working to elect socialists to city councils; housing advocates who want every person in the country to have access to affordable housing; youth activists rallying around combating climate change; protesters who camped outside the Florida g over- nor’s office in the wake of Trayvon Martin’s death; and undocument- ed immigrants pushing for immi- grant rights. These groups have held events nationwide promoting Sanders, have filmed viral videos attacking moderate Democrats and have knocked on countless doors on

behalf of Sanders. They are sharing talking points on Google Docs and stocking up on print fliers a nd snacks for door-knocking as they try to mobilize younger and mi- nority voters for Sanders in up- coming c ontests. Some activists are less optimis- tic. At least one group, the Center for Popular Democracy, said that it will remain supportive of Sand- ers’s campaign m essage but t hat it is shifting national messaging to be more focused on progressive values b ecause it is “realistic about the c hallenges in the road ahead.” “We always understood that t he establishment was never going to be okay with someone as radical and progressive as Sen. Sanders to be the heir apparent to the Demo- cratic nomination for president,” said Natalia Salgado, political director of Center for Popular De- mocracy.

John McDonnell/the washington Post A ngel Romero, right, and William Renderos worked the phones for Sanders’s campaign in Woodbridge, Va., on Super Tuesday.

UPLOADED BY "What's News" vk.com/wsnws TELEGRAM: t.me/whatsnws

The Washington Post - 13.03.2020

Get our desktop app

Company

Features

Documentation

Resources