Mornings on the Mall

Monday, February 3, 2020

Hosts: Mary Walter and Vince Coglianese

Executive Producer: Heather Hunter

5am – A/B/C IMPEACHMENT TRIAL: The Senate impeachment trial of President Trump continues on Monday, heading toward a historic conclusion.  House impeachment managers and Trump’s defense team make closing arguments in the trial, with a final vote set for Wednesday.  Senators are all-but-certain to acquit the President on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress after rejecting Democratic demands to summon witnesses

5am – D/E     SANDERS NEWS:

• A DARK HORSE FACE? REPORT: John Kerry Discusses Jumping Into 2020 Race To Oppose Bernie Sanders. Former U.S. Secretary of State and 2004 presidential candidate John Kerry fears Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders will win the 2020 Democratic nomination and reportedly discussed preparing to enter the race himself. According to an NBC News analyst who overheard Kerry having a conversation in Des Moines, Iowa, on Sunday, the former Massachusetts senator is worried that a Sanders nomination will take the Democratic party “down whole.” During the call, he allegedly admitted that in order to run he would have to resign from the board of Bank of America and forgo making paid speeches. “Maybe I’m fucking deluding myself,” Kerry allegedly said during the call before adding that Democratic donors could “raise a couple of million” since they “now have the reality of Bernie.” Kerry had previously endorsed Biden, making him the highest ranking member of the Obama administration to do so.
• Rashida Tlaib boos Hillary Clinton from stage at Bernie Sanders Iowa As they were about to wrap up, moderator Dionna Langford, an Iowa-based activist, brought up recent comments by Hillary Clinton that nobody liked Sanders. At the mention of Clinton’s name, scattered boos could be heard among the fired-up crowd. “We’re not gonna boo; we’re not gonna boo,” Langford said, attempting to calm the audience. “We’re classy here.” Tlaib interjected, “I’ll boo.” Then she booed from stage, leading the crowd in another chorus of boos. “You all know I can’t be quiet. No, we’re gonna boo,” she repeated. “That’s all right. The haters will shut up on Monday when we win.”
• BERNIE LEADS AS DEMS HEAD TO IOWA.. +4 IN RCP AVERAGE…
• Des Moines Register abruptly cancels release of Dem poll ahead of Iowa A glitch affecting a single computer monitor is responsible for the sudden canceling of the CNN/Des Moines Register poll — the pivotal ranking of Iowa’s Democratic presidential candidates that had been set to drop Saturday night just two days before the state’s caucuses. The highly anticipated ranking, set to be released at 9 p.m., was spiked at the last minute after the error was discovered by the campaign of candidate Pete Buttigieg, according to a source familiar with how the poll was conducted and produced. Pollsters found that the computer monitor — one of the “many dozens” used for live telephone surveys — was set with a font size that was too large, the source said. The erroneous setting meant only 11 of the then-12 candidates’ names fit onto the screen, which was accessed by telephone surveyors asking Iowa Democrats about their preferred next president. […] The backpedaling caused CNN to drop an hour-long special on the results.
• RULE CHANGE TO GET DEM MEGADONOR ON DEBATE STAGE… DNC overhauls debate requirements, opening door for Bloomberg. The Democratic National Committee is drastically revising its criteria to participate in primary debates after New Hampshire, doubling the polling threshold and eliminating the individual donor requirement, which could pave the way for former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg to make the stage beginning in mid-February. Candidates will need to earn at least 10 percent in four polls released from Jan. 15 to Feb. 18, or 12 percent in two polls conducted in Nevada or South Carolina, in order to participate in the Feb. 19 debate in Las Vegas. Any candidate who earns at least one delegate to the national convention in either the Iowa caucuses or New Hampshire primary will also qualify for the Nevada The new criteria eliminate the individual-donor threshold, which was used for the first eight debates, including next week’s debate in New Hampshire. Bloomberg, the self-funding billionaire, has refused to take donations from other individuals, which has thus far precluded his participation in any of the debates since he joined the race late last year.

6am – A/B/C Trump, in Super Bowl interview with Sean Hannity, predicts fall of Pelosi: ‘Radical left is gonna take over’:

• In an exclusive interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity during the Super Bowl LIV pregame show, President Trump confirmed that the State of the Union address would go ahead as scheduled on Tuesday — just a day before the Senate is set to overwhelmingly acquit him after a months-long impeachment process.
• “I think she’s a very confused, very nervous woman,” Trump said, referring to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif, who reluctantly announced impeachment proceedings last year after months of resisting the progressive wing of her party.
• “I don’t think she wanted to do this,” Trump continued. “I think she really knew what was going to happen, and her worst nightmare has happened. I don’t think she’s gonna be there too long, either. I think that the radical left — and she’s sorta radical left too, by the way — but I think the radical left is gonna take over.” […]
• The president also asserted that the Democratic National Committee (DNC) was “rigging the election again” against “crazy” Bernie Sanders and candidates such as Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., after the DNC announced it would change debate rules in a way that would help Mike Bloomberg appear on stage. […]
• Asked what he felt about Bloomberg, Trump didn’t hold back. “Uh, very little. I just think of little,” Trump said. “You know, now he wants a box for the debates to stand on. OK, it’s OK, there’s nothing wrong. You can be short. Why should he get a box to stand on, OK? He wants a box for the debates. Why should he be entitled to that? Really. Does that mean everyone else gets a box? … I would love to run against Bloomberg.” […]
• On Bernie Sanders: “Well, I think he’s a communist. I mean, you know, look, I think of communism when I think of Bernie. You could say ‘socialist.’ Didn’t he get married in Moscow?” (Hannity then interjected that Sanders had, in fact, honeymooned in the Soviet Union.)
• “At least he’s true to what he believes,” Trump concluded, by way of contrast with Elizabeth Warren.
• On Warren, Trump said: “She’s not true to it. I call her ‘fairy tale.’ Because everything’s a fairy tale. That’s how Pochahontas got started. This woman can’t tell the truth.”

6am – D         INTERVIEW – Correspondent Clayton Neville in Miami – recapped highlights of Super Bowl 54.

• The Kansas City Chiefs battled it out with the San Francisco 49ers  at Super Bowl 54 on Sunday.  Clayton was there and has the most memorable moments of the big game.
• Patrick Mahomes leads Chiefs to comeback victory over 49ers in Super Bowl LIV. Patrick Mahomes threw two touchdown passes in the fourth quarter to lead the Kansas City Chiefs to a comeback victory over the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LIV, 31-20. Mahomes and the Chiefs were down 20-10 heading into the fourth quarter. The quarterback threw a 1-yard touchdown pass to Travis Kelce with 6:13 left to cut the score. Then, with 2:44 left, Mahomes found Damien Williams on a 5-yard touchdown pass to put the Chiefs ahead. Williams would then put the dagger into the hearts of the 49ers with a 38-yard rushing touchdown to put the game out of reach. It’s the first Super Bowl victory for the Chiefs in 50 years. Mahomes was named Super Bowl MVP.

6am – E         London stabbing attacker recently released from prison over extremist material. London (CNN) London police named have named a man they say was responsible for stabbing two people in south London on Sunday in what was described as a terror-related incident. The Metropolitan police said the attacker was 20-year-old Sudesh Amman, who had recently been released from prison for Islamist-related offences. He was being followed by surveillance officers who shot him dead at the scene, police said. “Although the suspect has not been formally identified, given the circumstances of the incident, we are confident that he was Sudesh Amman,” Metropolitan Police Deputy Assistant Commissioner Lucy D’Orsi announced. Police earlier called the attack a terrorist incident and said it was believed to be “Islamist-related.” Amman stabbed two people on Streatham High Road at about 2 p.m. local time before the surveillance officers caught up with him and shot him dead, D’Orsi said. She said he was wearing what was quickly established to be a hoax device strapped to his body. Three people were taken to nearby hospitals — two with stab wounds and another who police believe was hit by glass when Amman was shot. One of the victims who was initially described as having life-threatening injuries was out of danger on Monday, police said. A source in the UK government told CNN that the attacker had been released from prison in the last few days after serving about half of a three-year sentence for the possession and distribution of extremist material. Authorities had concerns about the man’s behavior, including language that suggested he continued to hold extremist views, but he had to be released under current laws, the source said. He was released with strict licensing conditions, including a curfew, and he was kept under surveillance. In apparent response to the attacker’s previous terror convictions, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that on Monday he would be announcing “further plans for fundamental changes to the system for dealing with those convicted of terrorism offences.”

6am – F         Groundhog Day 2020: Here’s what Punxsutawney Phil’s prediction is for the rest of winter. (Fox News) — As light snow fell early Sunday in western Pennsylvania, the Keystone State’s most famous groundhog revealed that warmer days are apparently ahead. At sunrise on Groundhog Day, members of Punxsutawney Phil’s top hat-wearing inner circle revealed the groundhog declared: “Spring will be early, it’s a certainty.” “It’s not very often that Phil predicts an early spring, but the groundhog, my friends, predicted an early spring,” Fox News Senior Meteorologist Janice Dean said Sunday on “Fox & Friends” while in Miami for Super Bowl LIV. Dean added that Phil “does not predict Spring very often” and Sunday’s prediction may be the 21st time in over 100 years the cuddly oracle has called for an early end to winter. Over the past five years — from 2015 through 2019 — Phil has predicted six more weeks of winter thrice and an early spring twice. According to records dating back to 1887, the Pennsylvanian prognosticator has predicted more winter more than 100 times, making this year’s forecast a rare one overall. “I don’t know that this has happened two years in a row. This is epic. This is historic right now,” Dean said on “Fox & Friends,” adding, “The groundhog has spoken and we are going to experience an early spring, everybody.” Awoken by the crowd’s chants of “Phil!” the groundhog was hoisted in the air for the assembly to hail before making his decision. He then grasped the glove of a handler as a member of his inner circle announced that spring would come early this year. This prediction was his 134th, according to the Pennsylvania Tourism Office. The annual event has its origin in a German legend that says if a furry rodent casts a shadow on Feb. 2, winter continues. If not, spring comes early. Phil’s track record has only been correct about 39 percent of the time, but the discrepancy in poor forecasting is apparently because his wording gets lost in translation, according to Dean.

7am – A         INTERVIEW – JOE DIGENOVA – legal analyst and former U.S. Attorney to the District of Columbia

• IMPEACHMENT TRIAL: The Senate impeachment trial of President Trump continues on Monday, heading toward a historic conclusion. House impeachment managers and Trump’s defense team make closing arguments in the trial, with a final vote set for Wednesday.  Senators are all-but-certain to acquit the President on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress after rejecting Democratic demands to summon witnesses
• SENATE SETS SCHEDULE TO END TRIAL: Senate approved a resolution outlining how the rest of trial will play out. On Monday, Trump’s defense team and House prosecutors will give closing arguments. Senators then will be allowed to give statements up to 10 mins each. Senate leaders struck an agreement to hold the final vote to acquit Trump on the two articles of impeachment at 4 p.m. ET on Wednesday. Trial will resume on Monday.

7am – B/C SANDERS NEWS:

• A DARK HORSE FACE? REPORT: John Kerry Discusses Jumping Into 2020 Race To Oppose Bernie Sanders.
• Rashida Tlaib boos Hillary Clinton from stage at Bernie Sanders Iowa event.
• BERNIE LEADS AS DEMS HEAD TO IOWA.. +4 IN RCP AVERAGE…
• Des Moines Register abruptly cancels release of Dem poll ahead of Iowa
• RULE CHANGE TO GET DEM MEGADONOR ON DEBATE STAGE… DNC overhauls debate requirements, opening door for Bloomberg.

7am – D         INTERVIEW – DR. MARC SIEGEL  – Professor of Medicine at NYU and  Fox News medical correspondent @DrMarcSiegel doctorsiegel.com — shared his medical analysis on the spreading of Coronoavirus.

• CORONAVIRUS: VIRUS OUTBREAK: WHO Declares ‘Global Emergency,’ Confirmed Cases Jump ‘Tenfold’ Worldwide. The World Health Organization officially declared the coronavirus outbreak a “global emergency” Thursday after cases of the deadly disease spiked “tenfold” across the planet. “The World Health Organization declared the outbreak sparked by a new virus in China that has been exported to more than a dozen countries as a global emergency Thursday after the number of cases spiked tenfold in a week,” reports the Associated Press.
• US travel restrictions go into place Sunday evening to combat coronavirus spread. (CNN)The United States began implementing stringent travel restrictions Sunday evening in an effort to contain the novel coronavirus outbreak that has so far killed more than 300 people in China and infected more than 16,600 worldwide. The plan, which went into effect at 5 p.m. ET, includes temporarily denying entry to foreign nationals who visited China in the 14 days prior to their arrival to the United States, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said Friday. Restrictions also apply to US citizens who have been in China’s Hubei province, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak, in the two weeks prior to their return to the United States. Upon their return, those citizens will be subject to a mandatory quarantine of up to 14 days, he said. US citizens returning from the rest of mainland China in the 14 days prior will undergo health screenings at selected ports of entry and face up to 14 days of self-monitored quarantine.
• US and Australia close borders to Chinese arrivals. Countries around the world have closed their borders to arrivals from China, as officials work to control the rapid spread of the coronavirus. The US and Australia said they would deny entry to all foreign visitors who had recently been in China, where the virus first emerged in December. Earlier, countries including Russia, Japan, Pakistan and Italy announced similar travel restrictions.
• Russia may deport any foreigners found with coronavirus, prime minister says. Foreigners could be deported from Russia if they test positive for the coronavirus, the prime minister said Monday, according to country’s media outlets. Newly appointed Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said a national plan to prevent the spread of the infection in Russia has been signed.
• Coronavirus: 75,000 people infected in Wuhan, experts now believe. The University of Hong Kong says the average person will infect 2-3 people and the epidemic is doubling in size every six days. More than 75,000 people are now infected with coronavirus in Wuhan alone, academics have calculated, with the epidemic doubling in size every six days.  Experts at the University of Hong Kong, have modelled the spread of the virus and believe that each patient has infected between two and three people and the full scale of the epidemic has been ‘undercounted.’ They also warn that epidemics will soon emerge in other Chinese cities, which are seeing a time-lag behind the Wuhan outbreak of between one and two weeks, and have called for schools to be closed and staff to be allowed to work from home.
• New report on first US case of novel coronavirus details mild symptoms followed by pneumonia. (CNN) Doctors have shared new details about the first case of Wuhan coronavirus in the United States in a paper published Friday in the New England Journal of Medicine. In the new report, doctors describe how the man progressed from initially mild, nonspecific symptoms to pneumonia on the ninth day of his illness. The patient — a 35-year-old resident of Snohomish County, Washington, with no history of major health problems — had returned from visiting family in Wuhan on January 15. He had not visited the seafood market where a number of early patients were initially linked, nor did he have any known contacts with sick people during his visit. Still, the man had seen a health alert by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and decided to visit an urgent care clinic on January 19, at which point he had been coughing for four days. Doctors initially found nothing abnormal on chest X-rays, but sent swabs to the CDC because of his recent travel to Wuhan. By the following day, on January 20, they confirmed the man had the novel coronavirus. At that point, the man was admitted to Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett, Washington, and placed in an airborne-isolation unit. Throughout his illness, he experienced a range of symptoms including fever, cough, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and runny nose. But it wasn’t until his fifth day in the hospital — day nine of his illness — that doctors saw signs of pneumonia on his chest X-ray, in the lower lobe of his left lung. On the following day, his chest X-ray showed “stable streaky opacities in the lung bases … indicating likely atypical pneumonia.”
• Face masks offer little protection against coronavirus, flu, experts warn. CINCINNATI – As a new virus attacks the human population, people are reaching for face masks. Some stores across the nation are selling out. But infectious-disease experts say a face mask can offer only slight protection against airborne illness. A more effective defense against a virus is washing your hands thoroughly with soap and warm water after using the restroom and before eating. “The regular surgical masks that you might buy at the drug store probably are effective for half an hour, and after that, they become wet from your breath, then they’re much less effective,” said Dr. Stephen Blatt, medical director for infectious diseases at TriHealth. “The longer you wear them, the less effective they become.” Dr. Senu Apewokin, an infectious-disease specialist at UC Health, said that while face masks can provide a temporary barrier against viruses, “we worry more about influenza than the coronavirus. The things we would do to prevent against the coronavirus are the very things we would do against influenza, washing hands, using alcohol-based hand sanitizers, avoid others who are ill, if you are sick, stay home.”

7am – E         POLITICAL SUPER BOWL ADS:

• TRUMP ADS: Trump Super Bowl ad shows Alice Johnson thanking president Trump and notes Trump’s work on criminal justice reform. His Super Bowl LIV commercial takes credit for Kim Kardashian West’s work advocating for Alice Marie Johnson—now a criminal justice reform advocate—to be released from prison. West enlisted the help of a team of lawyers to work on Johnson’s case, which led to an Oval Office meeting with Trump in 2018. Johnson served 21 years of a life sentence in prison after she was convicted on charges of conspiracy to possess cocaine and attempted possession of cocaine, according to the nonprofit Can-Do. President Trump granted clemency to Johnson a week after West pleaded her case during the 2018 Oval Office meeting. “Thanks to President Trump, people like Alice are getting a second chance,” Trump’s 2020 reelection campaign commercial reads. “Politicians talk about criminal justice reform. President Trump got it done. Thousands of families are being reunited.”
• BLOOMBERG AD: Bloomberg’s $10M Super Bowl ad posts misleading stat on child gun deaths. In the raw and emotional one-minute spot, Calandrian Simpson Kemp recalls her son’s death: “On a Friday morning, George was shot. George didn’t survive. I just kept saying, ‘You cannot tell me that the child that I gave birth to, is no longer here.’ Lives are being lost every day. It is a national crisis.” A statistic immediately appears on the screen: “2,900 CHILDREN DIE FROM GUN VIOLENCE EVERY YEAR.” The number is not attributed to any source. However, a recent report from the Bloomberg-founded group Everytown for Gun Safety came up with that same number — but only when it included teenagers ages 18 and 19 in the calculation. Bloomberg’s advertisement makes no mention of older teenagers and suggests that the statistic is referring to younger children only. Washington Free Beacon reporter Stephen Gutowski found that once adults were removed from the calculation, the number dropped by nearly half. Additionally, court documents from a Texas state appellate court reviewed by Fox News show that the victim referenced in the advertisement, George Kemp, was 20 years old at the time of his death.

8am – A         INTERVIEW – CAROL MALONEY – host of The Carol Maloney Show on ESPN 630 (in studio) — recapped the Super Bowl.

• SUPER BOWL: Patrick Mahomes leads Chiefs to comeback victory over 49ers in Super Bowl LIV. (Fox News) – Patrick Mahomes threw two touchdown passes in the fourth quarter to lead the Kansas City Chiefs to a comeback victory over the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LIV, 31-20. Mahomes and the Chiefs were down 20-10 heading into the fourth quarter. The quarterback threw a 1-yard touchdown pass to Travis Kelce with 6:13 left to cut the score. Then, with 2:44 left, Mahomes found Damien Williams on a 5-yard touchdown pass to put the Chiefs ahead. Williams would then put the dagger into the hearts of the 49ers with a 38-yard rushing touchdown to put the game out of reach. It’s the first Super Bowl victory for the Chiefs in 50 years. Mahomes was named Super Bowl MVP.
• NATIONAL ANTHEM: Demi Lovato performs national anthem at Super Bowl LIV, receives praise online
• SUPER BOWL HALF TIME:
  • Lady Gaga says she ‘better hear no lip-syncing’ during Super Bowl LIV halftime show: report
  • Jennifer Lopez’s 11-year-old daughter sang with her at the Super Bowl halftime show and people were super impressed.
  • JLo Brought A Stripper Pole To The Super Bowl And The Internet Lost It. Also, remember she’s 50.
  • Here’s What Shakira Was Actually Doing With Her Mouth During Her Super Bowl Halftime Show. Before Jennifer Lopez joined her on stage for the halftime show, there was one particular highlight: the, um, very interesting thing she did with her mouth.

8am – B/C  BUSY WEEK AHEAD!

• Sunday night: Super Bowl, Monday: Senate trial, Monday night: Iowa caucuses, Tuesday: Senate trial, Tuesday night: State of the Union, Wednesday afternoon: Senate conviction/acquittal vote, Friday night: Another Democratic debate
• .. CNN HOSTS 8 TOWNHALLS WITH DEMS IN NEW HAMPSHIRE WEDNESDAY & THURSDAY… The town halls will air in primetime from the campus of Saint Anselm College on February 5 and 6 and provide the candidates an opportunity to deliver their closing arguments to the “first-in-the-nation” primary voters. The candidates will appear in back-to-back hours and take questions directly from the audience and a CNN moderator.
• TRUMP DELIVERS SOTU TUESDAY… ABC: Trump speech to project optimism at time of bitter division: Senior administration officials were tight-lipped about the extent to which Trump would mention his impeachment, which he has denounced as a “witch hunt” orchestrated by Democrats to try to undo the results of the 2016 election and harm his reelection chances this November. They stressed this his prime-time speech was still a work in progress. But they said Trump sees the speech as an opportunity to talk about moving the country ahead, contrast his vision with Democrats’ and try to make the case to voters that he deserves four more years in the White House. “We’re really looking to giving a very, very positive message,” Trump told reporters Sunday during a Super Bowl watch party. “This has been a very partisan process and this is an opportunity for him to unify the country around opportunities for all Americans,” added White House spokeswoman Jessica Ditto. Trump will spend much of the speech highlighting the economy’s strength, including the low employment rate, stressing how it has helped blue-collar workers and the middle class. A focus will be the new trade agreements he has negotiated, including his phase-one deal with China and the United States-Mexico-Canada agreement he signed last week.

8am – D         INTERVIEW — JOE SIMONSON – Covering 2020 Dems for the Washington Examiner – located in Iowa – discussed the Iowa caucuses.

• Iowa Democrats will be the first Americans to officially weigh in on who will be the Democratic Party’s nominee to face President Trump. All political eyes will be on the Monday caucuses.
• SIMONSON: ‘Like he’s not even in the race’: Low Biden enthusiasm sets stage for Sanders surge: OSCEOLA, Iowa — On paper, Joe Biden’s campaign infrastructure in Iowa is exactly what to expect from a prominent Democratic primary contender, with a large number of field offices and campaign aides spread throughout the state. But a closer look there and in New Hampshire reveals a lack of enthusiasm and cracks in the operation that could stifle his turnout efforts and give his closest competitor, Bernie Sanders, the upper hand in a tight race. “I don’t know anybody who’s showing any interest in Biden. It’s like he’s not even in the race,” said Heather Titus, 47, a medical secretary from Osceola, Iowa who attended a town hall for former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg on Wednesday. Biden, 77, is perceived by some voters as part of a corrupt, failed Democratic establishment that caused Hillary Clinton to lose in 2016 to President Trump.
• SIMONSON: ‘He’s a communist’: Trump trashes Sanders ahead of Iowa President Trump called Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders a “communist” during his pre-game Super Bowl interview. Fox News personality Sean Hannity asked Trump, 73, to do a “lightning round” interview game on Sunday, during which the president said the first word that came to mind after hearing an individual’s name. When Hannity said Sanders’s name, Trump said, “Communist.” “I think he’s a communist,” Trump said. “Look, I think of communism when I think of Bernie. You could say socialist, but didn’t he get married in Moscow? That’s wonderful. Moscow’s wonderful.”
• SIMONSON: Tlaib, in booing Hillary Clinton, speaks for Bernie Sanders’s voters when Bernie can’t. CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — Bernie Sanders’s supporters love him because they say he speaks for them on all sorts of issues. When it comes to the issue of Hillary Clinton, though, Sanders is leaving it to Rashida Tlaib to speak for his voters. Tlaib, a Democratic congresswoman from Michigan, booed Hillary Clinton’s name from the stage at a Sanders rally outside of Des Moines, Iowa, on Friday night. Sanders has generally avoided locking horns with Clinton or Democratic leaders, but Sanders’s base wants someone to punch back.
• Sanders calls for solidarity before Iowa caucuses amid reported concern in Democratic Party establishment about his possible nomination. Bernie Sanders took to Twitter on the eve of Monday’s momentum-building Iowa caucuses to call on supporters to fight for solidarity as the Democratic establishment reportedly worries about his possible nomination. Sanders made a final appeal Sunday to potential supporters to join his movement that he says will fight for social causes and for “human solidarity.” He plea came as he was either leading in polls from the state or near the top. There is reportedly some concern in the Democratic Party of the possibility of the self-described democratic socialist becoming the party’s standard-bearer.

8am – E         MEDIA COVERAGE OF IOWA CAUCUSES:

• The liberal media has been so focused on impeachment coverage, they’ve been neglecting covering the 2020 Democrats running in Iowa.
• .. CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER JOHN HARWOOD: of 51 Republican senators who voted to block John Bolton’s testimony in Trump impeachment trial, 25 represent states of the Confederacy during the Civil War the old Confederacy represents the bulwark of the 21st century GOP (NOW DELETED TWEET)
• DAN MCLAUGHLIN: Given that only 11 states seceded from the Union, it would be sort of astounding if they were currently represented by more than 22 Senators. How did you count 13? Please, please tell me, @JohnJHarwood, that you don’t think your native Kentucky was a Confederate state.
• JOHN HARWOOD: deleted a tweet because I made a tabulation mistake. 23 of 51 Senate GOP votes to block Bolton testimony came from states of the old Confederacy, not 25. apologies for the error
• CHARLES COOKE: Still completely wrong. There were 11 states in the Confederacy. Each state has two senators. Virginia has two Democratic senators and Alabama has one. That’s 19 Republicans, out of a total of 51 who voted against witnesses (and 53 Republicans in total).