Democrats bet big against Trump in fall races: The Note

Trump isn’t on the ballot this fall, but some Democrats are acting like he is.

The TAKE with Rick Klein It's not just Republicans depending on former President Donald Trump for messaging and motivation. While Trump, of course, isn't on the ballot this fall, the Democrats in the most closely contested statewide races of 2021 are acting as if he basically is. In Virginia, where early voting in the governor's race starts next week, former and would-be-future Gov. Terry McAuliffe is portraying his Republican opponent as something of a Trump clone. A sampling of recent campaign fundraising appeals warns of "Trump's comeback," and asserts that Republican candidate Glenn Youngkin would "do to Virginia what Donald Trump did to our country."