Subject: POLITICO's Morning Score: Losing Dems eyeing 2016 comeback - Begich concedes in Alaska - NRSC cancels Week-2 ads in Louisiana
From: "Morning Score" <[email-masked]>
To: <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 18 Nov 2014 09:15:42 -0600

By Kyle Cheney

With James Hohmann

The following newsletter is an abridged version of Campaign Pro&#39;s Morning Score. For an earlier morning read on exponentially more races - and for a more comprehensive aggregation of the day&#39;s most important campaign news - sign up for Campaign Pro today. (
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SETTING THE TABLE - "Some Democratic runners-up ponder 2016 comeback," by Alex Isenstadt: "Only two weeks after a political blowout that left Democrats with their smallest House minority in more than 80 years, at least a half-dozen of the party's candidates who fell short are already being courted to run again in 2016. And some of them are seriously considering it ... While they recover from painful losses, aides to many of the ousted members say they're convinced they lost not because of any serious failure on their part but because of turnout dynamics that simply worked against them this year ... What's more, the strategists point out, Democrats won't have the Obama factor to deal with
 anymore; instead, they believe an open race for the White House, with Hillary Clinton potentially leading the ticket, could turbocharge the candidacies of down-ballot hopefuls." 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d76e0f1431d20e2c20d19cc44c7496d100129bb9283b40a171d0c60961398890 
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"Lujan, of New Mexico, to chair DCCC," by Alex Isenstadt, Kenneth P. Vogel and Lauren French: "New Mexico Rep. Ben Ray Lujan has been tapped to serve as the next chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi announced Monday. Lujan, who is 42 years old and completing his third term in the House, will succeed New York Rep. Steve Israel, who is departing the committee after two cycles. Influential liberals, including union leaders and wealthy donors, reacted with a mix of surprise and mild approval to the Lujan pick, which came after many of them had quietly mounted a campaign to pressure Pelosi to select Maryland Rep. Donna Edwards, a
 favorite of the party's progressive wing." 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d76e0f1431d20e2c81ebd8659c06620a5725c8bc56f0f8538e1694261fd6b643 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d76e0f1431d20e2c81ebd8659c06620a5725c8bc56f0f8538e1694261fd6b643 

UNFINISHED BUSINESS - "Begich finally concedes Alaska race," by James Hohmann: "Alaska Democratic Sen. Mark Begich finally conceded Monday night, phoning Republican Dan Sullivan 13 days after the election to congratulate him. The most recent tally on the board of elections web site shows that the incumbent lost by 2.84 percent, or about 7,700 votes. The Associated Press called the race last week for Sullivan, who has been in the Capitol for new-member orientation. But Begich said he was determined that every vote be counted ... The 52-year-old hinted in his concession that he might not be finished with politics. His 500-word statement listed a series of accomplishments, from expanding
 energy production to protecting military bases, during his six years." 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d76e0f1431d20e2cf51f335dc36b37d6d876a658526d3da4734b960d11fa0010 
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NRSC cancels ad buy, plans "significant" final week blitz: The National Republican Senatorial Committee has canceled its Louisiana TV reservation for the week starting Thursday, a source tracking the air war tells POLITICO. The buy of $613,985 was to be spread out across all six markets in the state from Nov. 20 -26 on broadcast television. The NRSC had no cable element to its reservation. With Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu being outspent by more than 10-to-1, including allied groups, national Republicans feel like it is overkill and they can scale back their investment. An NRSC strategist said the party is monitoring the runoff and has plans for a "significant buy for the last week."

With a familiar player considering a 2016 comeback and Ohio Democrats seeking new blood, here&#39;s POLITICO&#39;s Morning Score: your daily guide to the 2014 midterms.

Days until the 2016 election: 721

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FIGHTING WORDS - "Johnny Isakson, Georgia's 'known commodity,' announces re-election bid," by Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Greg Bluestein and Daniel Malloy: "Gov. Nathan Deal called him the 'stable conservative' in the Senate. Rep. Jack Kingston said the throng of Republicans standing behind him sent a 'tremendous' signal to possible usurpers. And Sen. Johnny Isakson dubbed himself the 'known commodity' in Georgia politics. Isakson unveiled his third-term bid on Monday with a promise to boost federal infrastructure spending on Savannah's port and Atlanta's airport, reduce the federal deficit and a pledge to pursue muscular foreign policy to deter the Islamic State and other terrorist
 threats. But the underlying symbolism - a long list of Georgia Republican officials and activists joined Isakson at the statehouse event - was also meant to send a message to any potential Republican challengers who could seek to outflank Isakson on the right in 2016." 
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2016 WATCH - Santorum sees June decision on second White House bid, by Campaign Pro's Kyle Cheney: "Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, who nipped at Mitt Romney's heels in the 2012 Republican presidential primary, says he's eyeing mid-2015 for a decision about a second White House bid. 'Four years ago, we ended up announcing in June of 2011. If past is a portent of the future, that's probably a ballpark,' he said in a phone interview. Santorum said he's actively engaged with party donors and activists to assess whether he has a path to the nomination." 
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-- Ohio Dems eyeing new party chair: Ohio Democrats are grasping for new leadership in the wake of their Election Day rout, and several names have begun to surface. WFMJ, a local NBC affiliate, reports that among the Democrats who have made known their interest in chairing the state party are state Rep. Bob Hagan, as well as the losing candidates for state attorney general and secretary of state. The eventual appointee will likely be in place in the run-up to the 2016 elections. It's a critical role in the perennial swing state: 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d76e0f1431d20e2cb560b4b1007354479b8acabc26a11df6f29a13628087ec42 
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ACROSS THE MAP - Quick takes from races across the country:

SENATE--

Louisiana runoff: Bloomberg Politics's Dave Weigel reports on the "mild race war" ensuing in the contest. 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d76e0f1431d20e2c7d3d3f75ef2898000f293aae915374ed70479b666930d917 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d76e0f1431d20e2c7d3d3f75ef2898000f293aae915374ed70479b666930d917 

HOUSE--

DCCC: Newsday takes a look at Rep. Steve Israel's transition out of the DCCC leadership and into a newly created post on Leader Nancy Pelosi's team. 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d76e0f1431d20e2c3925e16a4ac32cc098e6b69ac07a72e0d724f9c682bcf0ed 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d76e0f1431d20e2c3925e16a4ac32cc098e6b69ac07a72e0d724f9c682bcf0ed 

GOVERNOR--

RGA: The Wall Street Journal reports on Gov. Chris Christie's plans to hand over the reins of the RGA at a conference in Florida this week that's also expected to feature attendance from other potential 2016 contenders: 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d76e0f1431d20e2c4ca1cd42cdf21660b43fd188d722cb344e5af43b7cc84b49 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d76e0f1431d20e2c4ca1cd42cdf21660b43fd188d722cb344e5af43b7cc84b49 

Texas: POLITICO Magazine zooms in on Democrat Wendy Davis' huge loss against Republican Greg Abbott and what it means for the party's future in the GOP-dominated state. 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d76e0f1431d20e2c735099f76c3bc2037a13998ea2a780201d66feabc5adb7c5 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d76e0f1431d20e2c735099f76c3bc2037a13998ea2a780201d66feabc5adb7c5 

DOWNBALLOT--

Chicago: A poll commissioned by the Chicago Teachers Union suggests Cook County Commissioner Jesus "Chuy" Garcia could force Mayor Rahm Emanuel into a runoff - and win, the Chicago Sun-Times reports: 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d76e0f1431d20e2c3a55ee4dbffa9cc12c19cca674b8214b20213449cb75b132 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=d76e0f1431d20e2c3a55ee4dbffa9cc12c19cca674b8214b20213449cb75b132 

CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY: "I thought I'd be long gone by now.' - House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi to the Washington Post on her plans to remain Democratic leader until the party retakes the majority.

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