(Portland, OR)  --  Senator Jeff Merkley is keeping his options open as the race for the 2020 Democratic nomination plays out.  On NBC's Meet the Press, the Oregon Democrat, who endorsed Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders early on in 2016, said this time around it's a different set of cards.  Merkley says there's a lot of capable individuals running for President right now whereas before it was only Sanders and Hillary Clinton.  Merkley wrote in a New York Times op-ed in 2016 endorsing Sanders for his "kitchen table" issues that impact Americans.  He says many of the 2020 candidates understand those "kitchen table" issues.