On the menu: Carry them back to old Virginny; Big mad mood; GOP senators fret about Musk; Liberian lingo; Reaching the checkered flag

There’s “testing the waters” and then there’s going off the high dive — for instance, announcing a visit to the Iowa State Fair by posting a video of yourself that begins with a crowd chanting your name over Queen’s “We Will Rock You.”

Arizona Sen. Ruben Gallego (D) is not acting bashful about the possibility that he may contend for his party’s 2028 presidential nomination, nor is he alone.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom campaigned in South Carolina this week, taking special pains to reach out to black voters, including those represented by Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.). Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D), meanwhile, was kicking off a new national effort funded by Democratic mega-donors in Philadelphia. And, perhaps sensing that ours is not a time for reluctant self-promoters, the previously bashful Andy Beshear, governor of Kentucky, kicked the door wide open to a potential run.

Having watched Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) soak up lots of limelight for her successful support of Zohran Mamdani in New York’s primary mayoral election last month, the rest of the Democratic field seems to be in a hurry to get into the conversation.

But where to begin? As the differing destinations of Gallego and Newsom suggest, there isn’t a great deal of clarity just now about where and in what order the Democratic nominating process will unfold. The party ripped up its primary calendar in 2024 in order to protect former President Biden, who was a vulnerable incumbent, pushing away progressive voters in New Hampshire and Iowa in favor of more moderate electorates in South Carolina and Michigan. This time, it’s very much an open question.

Gallego, Newsom, Shapiro and Beshear join Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg in the pool of Democratic water testers visiting potential early primary states and courting party power brokers. Former Vice President Kamala Harris and her 2024 running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz are both potential contenders, but one imagines Democrats will be very much in the mood for something new and different next time around.

Different like you-know-who.

After a springtime campaign swing that drew massive crowds in California and the rest of the West, Ocasio-Cortez was already looking formidable in her party. And, almost as impressive as the crowds, was the implicit........

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