Hot dish 07.31.24

By Ryan Faircloth

Good morning. Amid all the speculation about whether Gov. Tim Walz will become Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate, you might have forgotten that Minnesota’s primary elections are only two weeks away. Democratic U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar will rematch her DFL rival Don Samuels, whom she defeated by just over two percentage points in 2022. Her campaign is confident they’ll achieve a larger victory this time around.

Three Republican primary elections will also be closely watched. Former NBA player and Black Lives Matter protester Royce White will take on former Naval intelligence officer Joe Fraser for the chance to face Democratic U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar in November. White is the GOP-endorsed candidate but has a highly scrutinized past.

Former federal prosecutor Joe Teirab is seeking to win the GOP primary in Minnesota’s Second Congressional District and face Democratic U.S. Rep. Angie Craig in November. Conservative attorney Tayler Rahm was the GOP-endorsed candidate in the Second District and was favored by some to win the primary, but he announced in July he was suspending his campaign to serve as former President Donald Trump’s senior adviser in Minnesota. That appeared to clear the way for Teirab, though some Republicans in the district have said they still plan to vote for Rahm anyways.

GOP U.S. Rep. Michelle Fischbach is facing a primary challenge in deep-red western Minnesota. Her challenger Steve Boyd is a staunchly religious small businessman who some have called a Christian nationalist — a label he doesn’t reject. Fischbach was endorsed by Trump earlier this year and has one of the most conservative voting records in Congress.

SORRY ROYCE: The head of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, Sen. Steve Daines, still doesn’t think the Minnesota GOP-endorsed candidate White can win the Aug. 13 primary — or the general election, if he wins the primary.

Daines made this prediction during a roundtable with reporters at the NRSC headquarters in D.C. on Tuesday.

“I stand by that,” Daines said quickly before my colleague Sydney Kashiwagi could finish her question on whether he stands by his position from May that he doesn’t think White can win the primary or general election.

But even though Daines views White as a bad candidate, he indicated the NRSC likely won’t get involved in the GOP primary, even to back the other Republican primary candidate.

“We’ll wait and see how the primary shakes out in Minnesota,” Daines said when asked if the NRSC plans to play in the upcoming primary and potentially back Fraser. “I think Joe Fraser is going to be a more electable candidate. Certainly, in the general, we’ll see what happens.”

Daines also didn’t appear to be worried about White potentially harming Trump’s chances of flipping Minnesota if he wins the primary, because he thinks Fraser will win. However, he admitted he hasn’t “spent a lot of time analyzing” Minnesota’s GOP U.S. Senate race because he’s focused on other key races across the Senate map.

“I get the sense that Joe is probably going to win that primary,” he said.

THE AUDITION GOES ON: Walz headlined a fundraiser Tuesday evening in St. Paul for Harris. Tickets ranged from $100-$2,500 and the fundraiser, which was attended by as many as 200 guests at Urban Growler, appeared to be sold out, according to a copy of the invite provided to Sydney Kashiwagi.

The fundraiser comes as Harris appears to be closing in on her VP pick and Walz remains on her shortlist. It’s an event that could be a test of the governor’s fundraising capabilities and a chance to show off his connections as he auditions for VP in what could be the closing days of Harris’ decision making.

“Media and money are key elements of veepstakes auditions; who can praise and who can raise.” said Democratic U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips, a former presidential candidate who’s backing Walz for VP.

Some of the names that jumped out on the list of more than six dozen attendees who “cordially” invited guests to attend include DFL Chair Ken Martin; Penny Wheeler, former CEO of Allina Health; Stacey Mills, Harris’ co-chair of her Midwest Finance Team; Charlene Briner, interim director of Minnesota’s Office of Cannabis Management; and Erin Campbell, commissioner of Minnesota Management and Budget.

“It’s safe to say it’s a sign of enthusiasm in Minnesota! People are jumping out of their seats to donate and volunteer for Harris,” Walz spokesperson Teddy Tschann told Sydney when asked if the fundraiser was a sign Harris may be closing in on potentially tapping Walz or if it further highlights he’s trying to make a play for VP.

“This is the type of thing Gov. Walz will continue to do regardless of what happens next,” Tschann continued. “The momentum is building and he’s optimistic we’re going to win in November. We’ll do lots of events between now and then to make it happen.”

VEEPSTAKES: Harris is expected to hold her first rally with her yet-to-be-announced running mate on Tuesday in Philadelphia, Politico reports. She’s expected to announce her VP pick sometime before then.

My colleague Eder Campuzano took a look at the other candidates Harris could choose for the job, a.k.a. Walz’s competitors. Read his story to learn a little more about Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.

BERNIE SANDERS INCOMING: Democratic U.S. Sens. Bernie Sanders and Tina Smith will attend a GOTV (get out the vote) rally with Rep. Omar on Saturday in Minneapolis ahead of the Minnesota congresswoman’s Aug. 13 primary election against Samuels.

WHERE’S WALZ: Walz has no public events scheduled today.

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