Welcome to this week’s edition of the D.C. Memo. This week from Washington, Klobuchar drops out, Biden wins Minnesota, and what voters are saying. Let’s get on with this.
Amy Klobuchar has never lost an election
Monday marked a first for Sen. Amy Klobuchar: Minnesota’s senior senator lost an election.
A sixth place finish in South Carolina, which was widely expected, sealed the deal for the campaign. Exit polls show that Klobuchar only received one percent support from black Democrats, who make up the majority of Democratic voters in the state.
What went wrong? Klobuchar was never able to pull off a first place win in a primary or caucus, but in particular, she didn’t do well in Iowa where she bet most of her political capital and resources. Read more at MinnPost.
The Strib also took a look at the last days of Klobuchar’s campaign.
On Monday night, before Super Tuesday, Klobuchar endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden.
Joe Biden wins Minnesota
In an upset for Bernie Sanders, who was the runner-up before Klobuchar dropped out, Joe Biden swept the state. The final pledged delegate count is as follows:
- Joe Biden: 38 delegates
- Bernie Sanders: 27 delegates
- Elizabeth Warren: 10 delegates.
MinnPost’s Greta Kaul has a story on how suburban voters put Biden over the top. And MinnPost also talked to voters at the polls about who they hope to see elected.
Redacted study
A 61-page environmental assessment examining copper-nickel mining on the BWCA was blacked out when provided to Rep. Betty McCollum. She’s not happy.
The assessment was created by the U.S. Department of Agriculture after President Barack Obama placed a moratorium on mining in the region and likely contains crucial information about what impact mining could have on the region. The agency said they consider the document a draft and not a finalized version.
“Clearly, the Forest Service has completed a substantial amount of work on the environmental assessment before it was canceled, but the Department of Agriculture is refusing to let me have access for it, denying the public the ability to see the work that they paid for,” McCollum said at a recent hearing. The Duluth News Tribune has the story.
By the numbers
- 603: The number of pledged delegates Joe Biden has earned so far. Sen. Bernie Sanders has earned 538. The only other Democrat remaining in the race, Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, has one. Candidates need 1,991 to win the Democratic nomination.
- $2.7 million: The amount Kitchen Table Conversations, the pro-Klobuchar Super PAC, spent on their prefered candidate. No word yet on where most of the money came from.
- Seven: The number of pledged delegates Klobuchar received. Where do they go now? Read more from Greta Kaul at MinnPost.
In other news
- Minnesota state leaders outline state’s response to coronavirus
- Legislators look to make getting REAL ID a little easier
- Elizabeth Warren, Once a Front-Runner, Will Drop Out of Presidential Race
Quote of the week
“I will not be our party’s nominee, but I will not walk away from the most important political fight of my life,” former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said, after spending more than $500 million on his presidential run.
What I’m reading
Malcolm Harris for NYMag: Shell Has a Plan to Profit From Climate Change
Malcolm Harris, the author of “Kids These Days,” is invited to an oil company retreat in London. When Shell tells him he will not need to sign an non-disclosure agreement, he attends. The result is a story on what lengths fossil fuels companies will go to in order to survive — with or without us.
That’s all for this week. Thanks for sticking around. Until next week, feel free to send tips, suggestions, and sound advice to: gschneider@minnpost.com. Follow at @gabemschneider. And don’t forget to become a MinnPost member.
