By
Today's installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* Just moments ago, Joe Biden's political operation announced that it raised over $364 million in August, which is a record-breaking monthly haul I hardly thought possible. The figure includes financial support for Biden for President, the DNC, and their joint fundraising committees.
* As you've probably heard, incumbent Sen. Ed Markey defeated Rep. Joe Kennedy with relative ease in yesterday's Democratic U.S. Senate primary in Massachusetts. It was the first-ever primary defeat for a member of the Kennedy family in the Bay State.
* In related news, several U.S. House Democratic incumbents faced primary rivals yesterday, but they each prevailed, including Rep. Richard Neal, who scored a double-digit win over Mayor Alex Morse.
* A new national USA Today/Suffolk University poll found Joe Biden leading Donald Trump, 50% to 43%. In June, the same poll showed the Delaware Democrat ahead by 12 points.
* On a related note, a national Grinnell College poll, conducted by Selzer & Company, found Biden ahead by a similar margin, 49% to 41%.
* A new Monmouth University poll showed Biden with a modest advantage over Trump in Pennsylvania, 49% to 45%. If the Republican ticket carries this key battleground state again, Biden's path to victory will narrow.
* Speaking of competitive 2020 battlegrounds, the latest Public Policy Polling survey in Michigan also found Biden leading Trump by four points, 48% to 44%. The same poll offered slightly better news for incumbent Sen. Gary Peters (D), who led John James (R), 47% to 39%.
* In North Carolina, the latest East Carolina University poll showed Trump narrowly ahead of Biden, 49% to 47%. The same survey showed incumbent Sen. Thom Tillis (R) tied with Cal Cunningham (D), with each garnering 44% support.
* And in Virginia, two of Kanye West's 13 electors have filed a new lawsuit, claiming they were tricked into signing an "Elector Oath" backing the rapper's candidacy.