RUBIO’S RE-ELECTION CAMPAIGN GETS OFF TO ROCKY START. Senator Marco Rubio’s general election campaign probably didn’t start the way he wanted it to, with the coverage surrounding his primary win dominated by his refusal to commit to serving out a full six-year Senate term.
Tampa Bay Times: The ‘2020’ question will hang over Marco Rubio
Huffington Post: Marco Rubio Won’t Commit To Serving A Full Second Term In The Senate
Politico: Rubio won’t commit to serving six-year term
Independent Journal Review: Marco Rubio Won’t Commit to Serving a Full Six-Year Senate Term
TPM: Rubio Not Sure He’ll Stay In Office For Full Senate Term If Re-Elected
Morning Consult: Rubio Won’t Pledge to Complete Second Term if Re-Elected
Washington Times (Opinion): Marco Rubio won’t commit to a 6-year Senate term
Daily Beast: Rubio Won’t Commit to Serving Full 6-Year Senate Term
MUST WATCH: Morning Joe Slams Rubio for Refusal to Commit, Absentee Record
BONUS MUST WATCH: Even Republicans in Florida are criticizing Rubio for failing to commit to a full term
MCCAIN BEGINS GENERAL ELECTION WITH WEAK SUPPORT FROM OWN PARTY, DEADLOCKED WITH KIRKPATRICK IN ARIZONA. John McCain and his Washington allies spent millions to earn him a spot in the general election, but despite their influx of cash, McCain only won 51.65% of the vote. Now the first poll of the general election campaign shows a tied race between McCain and Congresswoman Ann Kirkpatrick, indicating that after 33 years in Washington, McCain is as vulnerable as he’s ever been. Here are a few must-reads from Arizona as the campaign kicks off in earnest:
Politico: Could McCain Lose? (Yes)
Arizona Republic: Montini: The making of a milquetoast maverick – John McCain (We like the new nickname)
Politico: Why McCain refuses to go maverick on Trump (Because his 33 years in DC have changed him)
Arizona Daily Star: Anti-McCain primary votes loom large
SHAMEFUL: MCCAIN REFUSES TO CONDEMN DISGUSTING AZ GOP CAMPAIGN TACTICS. The Arizona Republican Party delivered a shameful “Wanted” poster covered in mock bullet holes to Ann Kirkpatrick’s campaign office. The poster was slammed in Arizona, a state that saw the tragic assassination attempt on Rep. Gabby Giffords that killed six people, as “shocking and beyond the pale.” Gabby Giffords and Captain Mark Kelly have already condemned the poster and asked the Arizona Republican party to apologize. But instead, the party has only doubled down on their disgusting attack, and McCain has conspicuously remained silent–showing that he will do anything to keep his Senate seat.
Arizona Republic: Roberts: Bullet holes on a Kirkpatrick attack piece?
AP: GOP delivers wanted poster with bullet holes to Kirkpatrick
12 News: Giffords calls out Arizona GOP for gunshots on Kirkpatrick poster
Arizona Daily Star: Back to Bullets
Huffington Post: Arizona GOP Targets John McCain’s Re-Election Challenger With ‘Wanted’ Poster
SPECIAL INTEREST SENATOR FACING THE HEAT IN NORTH CAROLINA. Senator Richard Burr has a lot to think about over this holiday weekend. Recent polls continue to show an extremely tight race between Burr and Democratic challenger Deborah Ross, and Burr’s DC allies are hitting the panic button. Senate Leadership Fund reserved a whopping $8.1 million in North Carolina, a state they were not prepared to spend in, indicating just how worried they are about Burr’s re-election prospects. But that’s not Burr’s only problem. Ross is slamming Burr for being one of only three Senators to vote against the STOCK Act in 2012, highlighting his “DC insider status.” From CBS:
“On February 12th, 2012, the Senate voted on the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act, or STOCK Act, and Burr was one of just three senators to vote against the bill, which passed overwhelmingly in both houses of Congress.
…Ross unveiled an “Ethics and Accountability Plan” this week, specifically citing Burr’s vote on the STOCK Act.
…Chesapeake Energy, Devon Energy, Loews Corp. Waste Management Inc., Transocean Ltd., and Nucor Corp. are all companies that Burr held stock in while these companies were lobbying for several energy and regulatory bills being debated in Congress that Burr cosponsored.
…Four of these companies – Chesapeake Energy, Devon Energy, Loews Corp., and Waste Management Inc. – also contributed $22,500 to Burr’s PAC’s between 2010 and 2016. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, the oil and gas industry alone has donated over $380,000 to Burr’s PACs between 2003 and 2016.
…Burr’s average estimated net worth has increased more than fivefold since he joined the Senate, from a little more than half a million dollars in 2004 to $2.6 million in 2014.
Analysis by the Center for Responsive Politics found that this growth over the decade was due in part to “a relatively aggressive management strategy” of Burr’s personal stock holdings.”
ALL YOU NEED TO WATCH FROM KELLY AYOTTE’S NH PRIMARY DEBATE: “I agree with Donald Trump.”
NEW ADS SLAM GOP, TOUT STRONG DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATES. New ads went on the air this week featuring our strong Democratic candidates and hitting Republican Senators and Senate candidates for their out-of-touch records.
ILLINOIS – A new ad released by the Duckworth campaign highlights the differences between Tammy Duckworth and Senator Mark Kirk’s positions on trade. Meanwhile, Duckworth knows how important it is to keep jobs in Illinois, and speaks about how her father was laid off in his 50s. Watch “Granite City” here.
NEW HAMPSHIRE – The Hassan campaign released a new ad highlighting Maggie’s bipartisan record as Governor. The ad features testimony from various Granite Staters speaking about the work Maggie’s done for them. Watch “Get Things Done” here. Additionally, Senate Majority PAC released an ad hitting Senator Kelly Ayotte for voting to cut Pell Grants and raising student loan interest rates. The ad makes clear that Ayotte sides with her special interest backers, not New Hampshire students. Watch “Backpack” here.
NEVADA – The DSCC went up with its first ad in Nevada, highlighting Congressman Joe Heck’s record of putting Wall Street ahead of hard-working Nevadans. In Washington, Heck has collected over half a million dollars from Wall Street and in return supports their reckless agenda to privatize Social Security. Watch “Fix It” here. End Citizens United also launched a new ad hitting Heck for opposing efforts to limit dark money in campaigns, while benefiting from millions of dollars in anonymous spending. The Cortez Masto campaign released two ads, one Spanish language ad, “Riesgo,” slamming Heck for his four votes to end DACA and put more than 10,000 Nevada DREAMERs at risk of deportation, and one ad “Doctor” highlighting Heck’s ten votes to defund Planned Parenthood.
PENNSYLVANIA – Senate Majority PAC released a new ad hitting Senator Pat Toomey for flip-flopping on trade deals. Toomey’s voted for seven separate trade deals, but recently announced his opposition to TPP, showing just how worried he is about his re-election prospects. Watch “Hasn’t Been” here.
WISCONSIN – The Feingold campaign released a new ad this week highlighting Russ’s support for paid family leave and equal pay. Feingold has built a record of fighting for opportunities for women and families, while Senator Ron Johnson has repeatedly voted against commonsense solutions for Wisconsin women while in the Senate. Watch “Good Call.”
SABATO MOVES FIVE RACES TOWARDS DEMS. Sabato’s Crystal Ball released new race rankings this week, moving five Senate races towards Democrats. Indiana, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania all moved from “Toss-Up” to “Leans Democratic,” while Illinois and Wisconsin moved from “Leans Democratic” to “Likely Democratic.” Taken together, Sabato finds that Democrats “hold a narrow edge in the race for a majority,” showing that our candidates are on offense heading into the fall.
IN THE STATES
PENNSYLVANIA – Three polls released this week show Katie McGinty leading Pat Toomey in Pennsylvania. A Monmouth University poll shows McGinty up by 4, a Franklin and Marshall College poll shows her up by 5, and a PPP poll shows her leading by 6, confirming that McGinty’s summer momentum is continuing into the fall.
MORE PENNSYLVANIA – Katie McGinty published an op-ed in the Lehigh Valley Live speaking about the importance of manufacturing in Pennsylvania. She highlights how in the Senate, she will fight to create new opportunities for workers in state and will work to support small businesses and manufacturers. Read the piece here.
WISCONSIN – Two polls continue to show Russ Feingold with a strong lead over Ron Johnson in Wisconsin. One of the polls, conducted by Monmouth University, shows Feingold leading by a whopping 13 points.
MORE WISCONSIN – Senator Ron Johnson proposed a “strange” idea for reducing poverty and unemployment, saying that single mothers should be allowed to work in the day cares their children are in. The Huffington Post noted that the glaring issue with Johnson’s proposal is that child care workers receive few benefits and are poorly paid.
MISSOURI – The Associated Press looked at Jason Kander’s records from his time serving in Afghanistan and found that Kander was praised as an “outstanding” leader who was “repeatedly recommended for promotions.” Read more about Kander’s military record and how he will bring that same leadership to the Senate here.
MORE MISSOURI – Senator Roy Blunt has previously voiced his support for TPP, including voting to fast track it in 2015, but now Blunt is indicating he may oppose the deal. This is just the latest sign of how panicked Blunt is about his re-election prospects.
NEW HAMPSHIRE – Governor Maggie Hassan raised over $2.1 million in the pre-primary period from July 1 – August 24 in her race for Senate. More than 5,200 Granite Staters have now donated to Hassan’s campaign and she’s raised $9.7 million since entering the race last October.
MORE NEW HAMPSHIRE – A new poll in New Hampshire shows Maggie Hassan leading Senator Kelly Ayotte. More troubling for Ayotte is that she and her Washington allies’ onslaught of negative ads against Hassan haven’t worked – Hassan’s favorability has improved to +15, compared to only +4 for Ayotte.
IOWA – Instead of the positive coverage he was expecting from his Jones County town hall, Chuck Grassley was instead met with intense criticism about his refusal to hold public meetings in eight of the state’s 10 largest counties. Read more about the “Fake Grassley” here.
OHIO – A desperate ad from the NRSC attempting to smear Ted Strickland was rated “Pants on Fire” by PolitiFact. The Strickland campaign called on Senator Rob Portman to demand the “blatantly untrue” ad be taken off the air.
INDIANA – Todd Young refused to say whether he trusts Donald Trump with the nuclear codes, even though he supports him for President. Though repeatedly pressed on the question, Young refused to give a clear answer.
MORE INDIANA – An analysis from Morning Consult revealed that Congressman Todd Young has spent more than any other lawmaker from Indiana on privileged mail. He’s spent more than $275,600 on sending mail without postage, a benefit given to members of Congress. The Bayh campaign has pointed out how Young’s frequent franking usage directly contradicts with the “fiscal conservative” image being pushed by the Young campaign.
COLORADO – Senator Michael Bennet spoke with the Daily Sentinel, highlighting his record of working across the aisle in the Senate. He highlighted legislation he worked on with Republican Senator Lamar Alexander to pass changes to the No Child Left Behind Act, and legislation with Colorado Republicans to clean up old mines in the state.
TWEET OF THE WEEK – This week’s Tweet of the Week goes to Patrick Murphy, for doing what Marco Rubio refuses to – committing to serving out a full six year Senate term: “@PatrickMurphyFL: I can. twitter.com/JoePerticone/s…”
Enjoy the Long Weekend!
Sadie Weiner
@sadieweiner|
Lauren Passalacqua
Sam Lau
Lara Sisselman
