NEW POLLS CONFIRM TEXAS IS A DEAD HEAT. New data confirms MJ Hegar has made the Texas Senate race competitive: a poll conducted for the DSCC found MJ down just one point to Senator John Cornyn, a vulnerable three-term incumbent who is well under 50% support and getting mixed reviews from voters; and Morning Consult released its own poll that found a single-digit race. The DSCC is making a historic seven-figure coordinated investment in Texas that will include spending on TV advertising, polling, field organizing and data support, and other resources. Read more here.
TIMELINE: HOW SENATE GOP LET EMERGENCY RELIEF RUN OUT. Senate Republicans had months to extend the expiring emergency unemployment relief that was a lifeline for millions of hardworking Americans — but Mitch McConnell wanted to take a “pause.” Their inaction has left millions of Americans without the lifeline they depend on to put food on the table and keep a roof over their heads as the coronavirus continues to surge across the country. Now Senate Republicans are playing the blame game instead of taking responsibility. Check out the timeline of their failure to act here.
“THE GOP TRAINWRECK IN KANSAS WON’T END.” The “slow motion disaster” that is the GOP primary in Kansas comes to an end tonight but this “Republican nightmare” will continue all the way to November. Republicans are admitting that even if establishment-backed Congressman Roger Marshall emerges from the primary, he could still lose the general election. Dr. Barbara Bollier has built a “strong” campaign, has outraised the entire Republican field combined, and is in a dead heat with all of the GOP candidates according to a recent poll. One top McConnell aide even admitted “the Democrat has run totally unopposed right up until [now]. No matter what the state looks like, if that’s the situation you’ve got to keep an eye on it.”
PRESIDENT OBAMA ROLLS OUT FIRST WAVE OF ENDORSEMENTS INCLUDING #COSEN, #IASEN, #MESEN, #NCSEN, #SCSEN. Former President Barack Obama issued his first wave of endorsements for 2020 which included Democratic Senate candidates John Hickenlooper, Theresa Greenfield, Sara Gideon, Cal Cunningham, and Jaime Harrison. The former president wrote in a Medium post announcing his endorsements that the candidates make him “optimistic not just about our party’s chances in November, but about our country’s future long after that.”
GEORGIA DEMOCRATS FILE ETHICS COMPLAINT AGAINST COLLINS FOR IMPROPER USE OF HOUSE FOOTAGE. The Democratic Party of Georgia announced today that it is filing a complaint with the Office of Congressional Ethics against Congressman Doug Collins for his misuse of footage from the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives. Collins has repeatedly used footage of House floor proceedings by featuring it in his campaign materials, including most recently in a new ad that attacks his opponent Senator Kelly Loeffler, who has had her own ethical lapses throughout her campaign. The use of House footage for political purposes is a direct violation of House rules. AJC: Georgia Democrats to file ethics complaint against Doug Collins
“RINGO IS A STAR”: THERESA GREENFIELD RAISES SIX FIGURES ONLINE AFTER SENATOR JONI ERNST ATTACKS HER RESCUE DOG. After vulnerable Senator Joni Ernst took a desperate shot at Theresa Greenfield for taking selfies with her rescue dog Ringo (a very good boy), the hashtag #IStandWithRingo went viral and Ringo quickly became a star, helping bring in $132,000 in online donations for what became the Greenfield campaign’s best online fundraising day of the month. Senator Ernst is clearly struggling to find a re-election message, but attacking Theresa’s beloved pet dog is only making matters worse for an incumbent who’s getting outraised and trailing in every recent poll in this Toss-Up race.
NEW POLL: #SCSEN IS “NECK-AND-NECK”. A new Morning Consult poll shows that “South Carolina’s 2020 U.S. Senate race is neck-and-neck.” Jaime Harrison has “significantly narrowed the gap” and Senator Lindsey Graham now leads Harrison “by just a single percentage point” – well within the margin of error. This new poll is just the latest example of Harrison’s momentum – Jaime has shattered fundraising records thanks to his grassroots “small-dollar army”, raising a historic $14 million in Q2, and has outraised Graham in the past two quarters. Charleston Post & Courier: Poll: Graham, Harrison neck-and-neck in SC’s U.S. Senate race while Trump leads Biden
DEM AD WATCH
IA – Theresa Greenfield’s latest ad highlights her successful small business career and commitment to caring for her workers. Watch.
NM – Congressman Ben Ray Luján’s campaign launched a new ad about his father’s fight with cancer, and why it drives Luján’s work to defend Medicare, expand Medicaid, and protect people with pre-existing conditions. Watch here.
IN THE STATES
AZ — ABC 15: Arizona on target to have record turnout for primary election; Democrats take the lead returning ballots
GA – Albany Herald: Jon Ossoff: Georgians want leaders who will heal our country
GA – Forbes: Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler Defends TV Host Accused Of Ties To White Supremacy
KY – Louisville Courier Journal (Opinion): Amy McGrath: McConnell’s latest COVID-19 relief bill shows he wants to make it hard for people to vote
ME – Bangor Daily News (Opinion): Why Susan Collins’ evasion on support for Trump is problematic
MI – Washington Post: Yet another GOP Senate candidate uses ‘Ranger’ label despite Army caveat
MT – Bozeman Daily Chronicle (Letter): Bullock, not Daines, will protect our health care
TX – Rio Grande Guardian: Hegar: Abbott has not displayed crisis management skills during pandemic
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