2020 Democratic contenders descended upon Iowa over the weekend, including Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), who made stops in Dubuque, Waterloo, and Independence.
“I followed the Mississippi River down from our snowy announcement and ended up in Dubuque! Great conversations with Iowans who are looking forward to 2020,” the Minnesota senator wrote on Twitter.
I followed the Mississippi River down from our snowy announcement and ended up in Dubuque! Great conversations with Iowans who are looking forward to 2020. pic.twitter.com/ut8V71DnKW
— Amy Klobuchar (@amyklobuchar) March 16, 2019
Politico’s Elena Schneider was on the ground following Klobuchar across the state and reported on a humorous gaffe Klobuchar made while visiting Dubuque.
“Everyone has to clap for that,” Klobuchar told a crowd gathered for the campaign stop, immediately prompting comparisons on Twitter to Jeb Bush’s infamous “please clap” moment.
Klobuchar started the day by stumping for Eric Giddens, the Democratic candidate in a Tuesday State Senate special election who was also joined by Democrat Beto O’Rourke Saturday.
.@amyklobuchar in Waterloo for canvass launch for Eric Giddens, State Senate special election candidate. pic.twitter.com/5DUraIogRs
— Elena Schneider (@ec_schneider) March 16, 2019
During a stop at a Pizza Ranch in Independence, Klobuchar was asked about the growing support of socialist policies in the Democratic Party, but told her supporters that she’s “a capitalist.”
She also squeezed in an interview with Chuck Todd of MSNBC’s “Meet the Press,” where she was asked about O’Rourke’s claim that he was “born” to run for president.
“I have a lot of respect for Beto, and it’s great to have some Texas in this race, but no, I wasn’t born to run for office. Just because growing up in the 70s in the middle of the country I don’t think many people thought a girl could be president,” she said. “I wasn’t born to run, but I am running.”
WATCH: Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) talked to Chuck Todd while campaigning in Waterloo, Iowa and responded to Beto O'Rourke's claim that he was "born to run."@amyklobuchar: "I wasn't born to run. But I am running." #MTP pic.twitter.com/gCVn47OLxS
— Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) March 16, 2019
Klobuchar said she didn’t start thinking about running for president until she “got to college,” saying that’s “not what girls thought they were going to do” when she was growing up.
“My parents, I think, thought it was a possibility, but I really didn’t,” she continued. “For me, it’s something that’s happened over time and as I’ve realized I can do things, I can get elected to the secretary-treasurer of my high-school class, I can move on from there. So I think it’s something that I didn’t have from birth.”
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Anthony Gockowski is managing editor of Battleground State News, The Ohio Star, and The Minnesota Sun. Follow Anthony on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo”Amy Klobuchar” by Amy Klobuchar.
