(Bloomberg) — President Donald Trump will host a campaign rally for a New Jersey congressman who just crossed over to the Republican Party amid the impeachment furor.Trump’s campaign announced Monday that he’ll hold a Keep America Great rally on Jan. 28 in Wildwood, N.J., in the district of Representative Jeff Van Drew. Elected as a Democrat, Van Drew crossed the aisle last month, joining Republicans after voting against both articles of impeachment.Trump’s rally there could potentially fall in the middle of a Senate impeachment trial, giving him a venue to fire back at Democrats alongside the lawmaker who jumped ship. Democrats vying to run against Van Drew include Amy Kennedy, the wife of former Representative Patrick Kennedy.While Trump tries to blunt the impact of impeachment proceedings, his New Jersey event is unlikely to make a splash in this year’s election. The state is reliably Democratic, and Trump lost it in 2016 by 14 percentage points. Van Drew first won election in 2018 in a district that had long been in Republican hands.Deval Patrick Releases His First Ad (3:34 p.m.)Deval Patrick is launching his first paid ad of the campaign, set to begin running on cable outlets in four states on Wednesday.The campaign is spending about $245,000, according to Advertising Analytics, for ads that will run on cable and digital platforms in Iowa, South Carolina, Nevada and New Hampshire. Patrick, who served as governor in neighboring Massachusetts, is spending $100,000 on cable ads in the Granite State alone.Patrick’s campaign is running a 30-second spot featuring his wife, Diane Patrick, describing her battle with cancer and the decision they made for him to enter the race. It’s already started running the ad in online media.The former Bain Capital LP managing director joined the campaign in November. He tallied less than 1% support in the most recent WBUR poll of New Hampshire voters.Julian Castro Endorses Warren for President (10:38 a.m.)Four days after ending his own bid for the White House, Julian Castro announced his endorsement of Senator Elizabeth Warren for president.The former mayor of San Antonio, Texas, and Obama administration HUD secretary announced his endorsement in video released on Monday. He describes Warren as the most qualified candidate to win the nomination and beat Donald Trump. The move has led to speculation that Castro might be vying to be Warren’s running mate should she win the Democratic nomination.“There’s one candidate I see who’s unafraid to fight like hell to make sure America’s promise will be there for everyone,” Castro says in the video. “Who will make sure that no matter where you live in America or where your family came from in the world, you have a path to opportunity, too. That’s why I’m proud to endorse Elizabeth Warren for president.”Castro and Warren worked together when he was housing secretary and she served on the Senate Banking Committee, which oversees HUD. Castro will join Warren at an event in Brooklyn on Tuesday. — Misyrlena EgkolfopoulouJudge Judy Rules For Bloomberg (10:26 a.m.)Judy Sheindlin, who presides over the daytime television courtroom show “Judge Judy,” appears in a new campaign ad endorsing former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg for the Democratic presidential nomination.“I like to say you can judge someone’s character by what they’ve done,” Sheindlin says in the ad, which Bloomberg’s campaign said will run across digital channels and on television in 26 states. “Mike Bloomberg has done amazing things and will be a truly great president.”The campaign said Sheindlin, a New York City native and a former supervising judge of the Family Court in New York County, hadn’t ever endorsed a presidential candidate. In a USA Today opinion piece before Bloomberg announced his candidacy, Sheindlin encouraged him to run because “he represents our best chance to bring America together again and begin the long national process of healing.”Bloomberg is the founder and majority owner of Bloomberg LP, the parent company of Bloomberg News. — Mark NiquetteCOMING UP:Five Democrats — Biden, Buttigieg, Sanders, Warren and Klobuchar — have qualified for the next debate, on Jan. 14 in Iowa.President Donald Trump is scheduled to hold a campaign rally in Milwaukee on the same night as the debate, as well as a rally in Toledo on Jan. 9.The first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses will be held Feb. 3.(Michael Bloomberg is also seeking the Democratic presidential nomination. Bloomberg is the founder and majority owner of Bloomberg LP, the parent company of Bloomberg News.)–With assistance from Mark Niquette, Misyrlena Egkolfopoulou and Bill Allison.To contact the reporter on this story: Josh Wingrove in Washington at [email protected] contact the editors responsible for this story: Wendy Benjaminson at [email protected], Chelsea Mes, John HarneyFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
