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Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand officially enters 2020 Democratic race

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NEW YORK TIMES

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) speaks to a crowd during a campaign stop at Dartmouth College, her alma mater, in Hanover, N.H., on Feb. 16.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York officially joined the 2020 presidential race today, declaring in an announcement video that America needs “a leader who makes big, bold, brave choices,” and that she is that leader.

There was little drama about whether Gillibrand would officially enter the presidential race ever since she had announced she was exploring a run in January on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.” She has spent the last two months traveling the country and raising money, in Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, California and Texas.

The video announcement kicks off a busy week for Gillibrand that will culminate in what her campaign is billing as her first speech as a presidential candidate next Sunday in Manhattan, which she will deliver, pointedly, outside one of President Donald Trump’s properties.

While some candidates have shied from making Trump a centerpiece of their campaigns, the location of the speech signals that Gillibrand has no such hesitation. She has voted against Trump’s nominees at a faster clip than any other senator — a talking point for her on the campaign trail.

In her announcement video, Gillibrand uses the lyrics of “The Star-Spangled Banner” as a jumping-off point to her campaign.

“It asks, ‘Will brave win?’” she says of the national anthem. “Well, it hasn’t always. And it isn’t right now.” As Gillibrand narrates, the imagery of the video turns from paeans to patriotism to clips of Trump and the violence spurred by white nationalists in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Gillibrand lists some of her top policy priorities in the video, including universal health care, paid family leave for all, ending gun violence, a Green New Deal and getting “money out of politics.” Gillibrand has put her advocacy for women at both the center of her political career and her coming presidential campaign.

Gillibrand has gained little traction in a crowded Democratic race with more than 15 candidates, including six senators (four of whom are women). Polls show her drawing around 1 percent support.

One advantage for Gillibrand is that she stashed away more than $10 million in her uncompetitive 2018 re-election that can now be spent on her presidential run.

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