Here’s how you know Democrats are feeling very good about their chances in November – CNN

In May 2019, in the days following his decision to run for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, Bullock said that he "was never going to run for the Senate ... I have great respect for the senators, but this is something that never really got me excited."In August, Bullock told CNN's Alisyn Camerota that a Senate bid was an "absolute no" for himIn December, Bullock reiterated his previous stance. "I said it before, I said it during, I said it when I got out. I am not running for Senate," he said.

"After hearing from Montanans and talking to Lisa and our kids, we decided now is no time to be on the sidelines, and that's why I'm running so we can make Washington work more like Montana," he said in a statement.

While there's no debate that Bullock's decision is a major boon for Senate Democrats hoping to win back the majority in the chamber this fall, it also occasions an obvious question: What changed his mind?

The answer to that question is, of course, not simple. Why people -- including politicians -- make the life decisions they make are often a mystery. It's what makes life so unpredictable and fascinating.

But there are a few clues as to why Bullock went from no-way, not-ever to "I'm running."

The second is a calculation all politicians make before leaping into another race: Can I win? While winning is never a guarantee, most ambitious pols -- and let's not forget Bullock ran for president, so he is definitely ambitious -- won't risk their political future on a race they don't think can be won.

Which brings us to Bullock and his change of heart. Put simply: If he did not believe the national political environment -- as well as the political environment in his home state -- hadn't moved into a place where he could beat Daines this fall, there is no chance he would run.

How did Bullock make that determination? My very strong supposition is that he was shown a bevy of private polls conducted for the Senate Democrats' campaign arm that showed him very much in the game against Daines and with Trump's numbers in the generally conservative state -- especially at the federal level -- not all that amazing.

But Bullock's decision sends a very clear signal about how Democrats are feeling about 2020, and it's this: Come on in, the water's fine!

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Here's how you know Democrats are feeling very good about their chances in November - CNN