Buttigieg, Klobuchar Are In New Hampshire This Weekend: FITN 2020

NASHUA, NH — Two of the top-tier New Hampshire first-in-the-nation primary candidates for Democrats will be crisscrossing the state this weekend. South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg, who seemed to enjoy his time at the Iowa State Fair last weekend, will be in the Granite State for his ninth visit, according to the campaign, spending three-days visiting with voters. He will be in Merrimack and Nashua Friday and in the western and northern parts of the state for the rest of the weekend.

U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-MN, will also be in the state this weekend, hosting meet-and-greets and participating in events on Sunday and Monday. She will be in Rye and Nashua on Saturday and then Keene and Bedford on Monday. The Nashua event will be at State Board of Education member Helen Honorow's home. She endorsed the Senator in July.

Klobuchar was in the state last weekend, meeting with the Kent Street Coalition, a grassroots peace and justice organization in Concord, about firearm legislation.

Former VP Joe Biden's wife, Dr. Jill Biden, was also in the state last weekend, opening the campaign's field office in Nashua, meeting with NEA-NH in Manchester, and attending a house party in Bow with former U.S. Rep. Richard "Dick" Swett and his wife, Katrina Lantos Swett, a former candidate for Congress herself in 2002.

Governors Drop Out

First, it was Gov. John Hickenlooper, D-CO, considered to be one of the more moderate candidates this cycle, dropping out. He is pivoting himself into a Senate challenge against incumbent U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner, R-CO. Then, a week later, it was Gov. Jay Inslee, D-WA, who was focusing his entire campaign on climate change. That means that MT Gov. Steve Bullock is the only governor in the 2020 presidential race.

Bullock: Debate Rules Hurt Guvs

Bullock, one of the later candidates to enter the fray, was on MSNBC lamenting that the Democratic National Committee's debate inclusion rules are setup to harm candidates from outside the beltway – something that could harm the party later.

"Governor Inslee has been such an important voice in this race, both for climate, and also for being outside of Washington D.C. — as a governor who actually had to get things done," he said. "So, I think, as we're losing governors from this race, maybe we ought to think about: are these DNC rules for the debates disadvantaging folks who have gotten real things done?"

Next Debates: Sept. 12, 13

Yee-haw: The next Democrat candidate debates will be held at Texas Southern University, broadcast on ABC and Univision.

Ten candidates have qualified for the next round, according to press reports: Biden, Buttigieg, Klobuchar, businessman Andrew Yang, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-VT, MA U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, former TX U.S. Rep. Robert "Beto" O'Rourke, CA Sen. Kamala Harris, former HUD Sec. Julian Castro, and NJ U.S. Sen. Cory Booker.

Tom Steyer, a billionaire who has spent the last year attempting to have President Donald Trump impeached, and HI U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard are close to inclusion.

Gabbard, BTW, will offer her Politics & Eggs speech at St. A's in early September, according to Marc Fortier of NBC Boston.

Challenging Trump

A third candidate is now considering a primary challenge to the president. Joe Walsh,a former GOP Representative to Congress from Illinois, has moving toward a potential primary challenge. Walsh, a Tea Party activist who served a single term who was a previous Trump supporter, has since turned and become a furious critic of the president on Twitter. A potential announcement is expected.

If he jumps in, Walsh will join former Mass. Gov. Bill Weld, who ran for vice president on the Libertarian Party ticket with former NM Gov. Gary Johnson, a former Republican himself. The Johnson-Weld ticket received the coveted New Hampshire Union Leader endorsement before the 2016 general election and earned about 4 percent of the vote, siphoning off what were presumed to be thousands of Republican votes from the Trump-Pence ticket.

Another Republican considering a challenge is Mark Sanford, a former Representative to Congress and governor of South Carolina.

Buttigieg Schedule

Friday, Aug. 23

• 1:30 p.m. Remarks and Q&A at American Legion Henry J. Sweeney Post, 251 Maple St. in Manchester. RSVP here.
• 3:15 p.m. Town Hall with New Futures and the New Hampshire Medical Society, John O’Leary Adult Community Center, 4 Church St. in Merrimack. RSVP here.
• 6 p.m. Town Hall in Nashua, Nashua Community College, 505 Amherst St. in Nashua. RSVP here.

Saturday, Aug. 24

• 9:30 a.m. House Party with the Hancock Town Democratic Committee, 22 Cavender Road in Hancock. Parking information will be provided upon RSVP.
• 2:30 p.m. House Party Hosted by Peter Burling in Cornish. Location will be provided upon RSVP.
• 6 p.m. Town Hall in Hanover. Location: Hanover Inn, 2 E Wheelock St. in Hanover. RSVP here.

Sunday, Aug. 25

• 11:30 a.m. House Party in Ossipee. Location will be provided upon RSVP.

Klobuchar Schedule

Sunday, Aug. 25

• Seacoast Meet and Greet, 11 a.m. at the Seacoast Science Center, 570 Ocean Boulevard in Rye.
• House Party at the Home of Helen Honorow, 1:30 p.m. at Raymond Street in Nashua.
• Belknap County Democrats' Blue Bash, 4 p.m. at Leavitt Park, 334 Elm St. in Laconia.

Monday, Aug. 26

• Keene Farm Tour, 9 a.m.; Leader Discussion at 9:30 a.m.; Meet-and-Greet at 10 a.m. at Stonewall Farm at 242 Chesterfield Road in Keene.
• Bedford House Party, 5 p.m. at the home of John and Mitsu MacNeil, Puritan Drive in Bedford.

As with all political events, dates and times are subject to change.

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