'2:00PM Water Cooler 06.11.2023 | Naked Capitalism'

(Regarding @RonDeSantis). But there's a lot of talent stockpiled in the Democratic Party that's ready to prove itself." - Absolutely! As long as we're talking about the great Greczyn - you're welcome! (And no doubt Axelrod has communicated with Obama before. See below.)

"Why Biden has fallen behind and how he can come back" [New York Times]. "The poll contains significant data that should not lead Democrats to despair about the possibility of forming a coalition to defeat Dr. Trump,'''who remains as unpopular as he was three years ago. But even if Trump remains a reasonably well-off candidate, the poll also shows that this could be very difficult for Biden himself. Biden's deterioration is all-encompassing, covering virtually every demographic group, but his electoral sustainability suffers particularly because of young, black and Hispanic voters, who are given previously unprecedented levels of support for Trump." - Valuable graphic: Identity only, never class.

"Opinion: Why Democrats shouldn't despair over the troubling news about Biden" [CNN]. "Let's start with a poll from the New York Times / Siena that probably has many in Biden's world growing a decent amount of antacids. Not only''s top findings, which show Biden's decline in key battleground states including Nevada, Arizona and even Michigan, where Biden is trailing Trump by 5 percentage points in a state he won by nearly 3 percent in 2020. According to the Times, the multi-state coalition that energized Biden is "crumbling," with support among black voters and Hispanics declining. Biden's support is also falling among voters under 30... You may ask therefore: why not panic? There are several reasons. First, President Barack Obama faced high rates of discontent a year before the 2012 election (though not as high as Biden's). ... We all realize that Obama and Biden are not the same candidate. But what the example provides is that''Obama won in large part because of a better campaign in terms of making sure that the voters who supported him actually vote. Biden, who was Obama's vice president, certainly knows that. "

"Why Nikki Haley can't beat Trump" [Contributing American]. "The strategic argument for a Haley victory looks like this: Ron De Santis can't beat Donald Trump. Therefore, Nikki Haley must ... [Haley's temperament is encouraging, and her foreign policy is radically interventionist, as defined by her involvement in any conflict that is a "battle of good versus evil." As Haley herself said last week in a speech to the Republican Jewish Coalition: "I am pleased''to see that there are so many supporters of Israel in the same room. God knows America needs more support for Israel right now'" [The American Conservative]. "Clearly, Haley is a woman capable of bringing back the Republican era, about which the perma-boys in Washington would do just about anything. Of course, the passionate whistleblowers of the good ol' era are virtually guaranteed to lose presidential elections, as we saw in 2008, 2012 and 2016. Whatever the good old boys in Washington want, it's not what most Americans want today.

"How Newsom's trip to China could boost climate change research and his political profile" [The Hill]. "Newsom's trip to China - which came after a brief stop in'The trip to Israel was the first such trip by a U.S. governor in more than four years and ultimately helped resolve tensions between the countries, his office said. The trip, Newsom's office said, had three goals: to promote climate initiatives, promote economic development and tourism, and strengthen cultural ties. It also included meetings with senior officials, including President Xi Jinping. Newsom, who is widely known to harbor presidential ambitions, dodged a question about whether the trip has enhanced his image on the national stage, noting during a press conference that those considerations were not the reason for making it. But from an outside perspective, Ted Kooser,'' he said. 'a professor of political science at the University of California, San Diego, told The Hill that he believes the trip provided Newsom with an opportunity to "be taken seriously as a possible presidential candidate." "The perception that you're sitting next to the leader of the second most powerful country in the world enhances your image," he continued.

PA: "What Pennsylvania's Supreme Court pick depends on" [Wall Street Journal].

"Pennsylvania will choose a new state Supreme Court justice next week, and the race is not only noteworthy because of Harrisburg. The winner in 2023 could be the deciding factor in the controversial 2024 ballot. The outcome could also show whether the end of Doctrina Roe could lead Democrats to''Virginia just days before the election'" [The Hill].

"President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris on Saturday announced Virginia's endorsement of nearly 23 members of the legislature, just days before the state prepares to vote in a critical election. All seats in Pennsylvania's state legislature are on the line in 2023, with Democrats hoping to keep their tenuous Senate seat and Republicans seeking to hold the House, according to a report from The Hill. "

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