The Daily Populous Saturday August 3rd, 2024 day edition
Authored by newrepublic.com and submitted by thenewrepublic

Plummer, a dentist by trade, touted her support from labor and her City Hall record focusing on “quality of life issues” for underserved communities—a common touchstone for Houston politicians, given the repeated and intensifying environmental crises plaguing the city. When asked, she also said she would support a permanent cease-fire in Gaza and oppose all military funding to Israel, a major departure from her predecessor. “I do believe I would be the only one [in this race] that would take that level of hard stance,” she told The New Republic. “I obviously am against any level of terrorism, but we cannot continue to kill innocent people.” Two hours after this article was published, she backtracked, saying she didn’t hear the full question, and clarified that she believed Israel needed military support for defense and “release of the hostages and the establishment of a permanent ceasefire are both necessary.” *

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has yet to call for a special election for Jackson Lee’s seat, so instead, per Texas law, the race will be decided in a few weeks by just 88 Democratic Party precinct chairs representing parts of the 18th congressional district, a truncated process meant to fill the seat in a crunch. In seeking the party’s nomination, Plummer has chosen her words carefully so as not to jeopardize her current city hall position; local precedent says officeholders can technically “seek” the nomination to become the party’s candidate but can’t “announce his or her candidacy,” which would trigger the state constitution’s provision for automatic resignation. Adding Plummer to the list brings the total number of potential nominees up to five, with likely more to come.

Foremost among the potential nominees is Houston’s former mayor Sylvester Turner, a Bloomberg type, who on July 23 told a local TV station he was “seriously considering” throwing his hat in the ring before quickly backtracking—deeming it may be in bad taste to campaign before Jackson Lee’s funeral. Plummer, Turner’s erstwhile adversary in city hall, described her potential nomination in opposition to his: “Although his intentions may be good, I believe that this position not only needs someone that can carry on the legacy [of Jackson Lee] but also can create a new vision for CD-18, and I’m the only candidate, in comparison obviously, that has the record of doing the work in the overarching community,” she told The New Republic.

Virtual-Squirrel-725 on August 2nd, 2024 at 20:47 UTC »

I'm genuinely surprised by how scared Trump is of this debate.

The excuses of polls and not being officially endorsed are so weak that it reveals a real underlying fear of facing her.

I know there are a lot of people on the Trump subs who think it makes him look weak, and that's saying something.

twovles31 on August 2nd, 2024 at 20:38 UTC »

That's weird, Why do the polls matter if they should debate or not?

thenewrepublic on August 2nd, 2024 at 20:35 UTC »

> Harris’s campaign has insisted that she will be attending the presidential debate hosted by ABC News, which is scheduled for September 10, regardless of whether her opponent deigns to appear.

“She’ll be waiting there to see if he shows up,” the statement said.