Subject: POLITICO's Morning Score: Rand battles doubts in his backyard -- Club for Growth endorses 5 presidential candidates
From: "Morning Score" <[email-masked]>
To: <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 11 Aug 2015 08:01:09 -0600

By Elena Schneider

With Kevin Robillard and Theodoric Meyer

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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RAND'S PLAN - "Paul faces emerging doubts at home," by Campaign Pro's Kyle Cheney and POLITICO's Manu Raju: Is Sen. Rand Paul's gambit to run for president and reelection to the Senate in serious trouble? "Paul has been furiously lobbying Kentucky Republican leaders ahead of an Aug. 22 decision to rewrite party rules so he can run for president and reelection to his Senate seat simultaneously, a hedge to hold onto power should his Oval Office aspirations falter. Running for the two offices at once creates tricky legal hurdles that are only surmountable with the assent of the Kentucky Republican Party's leadership and central committee. Though that approval once seemed assured, several
 members of the party executive committee told POLITICO they're seeing increasing trepidation, in part because of Paul's perceived fade from contention but also because he hasn't yet fulfilled promises to cover the cost of any changes." 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e21cc1b0866540cd1daa51adb7b338c6545261957456a02fbbb 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e21cc1b0866540cd1daa51adb7b338c6545261957456a02fbbb 

CALLING ALL BUNDLERS - Club For Growth, a conservative advocacy group, released a statement Tuesday, encouraging its members, for the first time, to donate five presidential candidates: Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush. "Five candidates are at the forefront of the Republican presidential field on issues of economic freedom, and the Club for Growth PAC is standing with them to help them stand out from the rest,"said David McIntosh, president of Club for Growth.

TODAY ON CAMPAIGN PRO - "Guinta's loyal donors 'don't want Frank to quit,'" by Campaign Pro's Theodoric Meyer: 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e21e81640794a65eb1a8872317faa63b6f037e693d7e6dbc1f5 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e21e81640794a65eb1a8872317faa63b6f037e693d7e6dbc1f5 

Days until the 2015 election: 84. Days until the 2016 election: 455.

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FIRST IN SCORE - PPP SURVEY HAS MISSOURI GOV, SEN RACES KNOTTED UP: A new poll from Democratic robo-pollster Public Policy Polling has both the Missouri Senate and governor&#39;s races very close. GOP Sen. Roy Blunt has a 5-point lead over Democratic Secretary of State Jason Kander in the Senate contest, with a quarter of voters undecided. Blunt&#39;s approval is underwater, with 47 percent disapproval and 30 percent approval. Kander&#39;s favorability rating is also upside-down, but 64 percent of voters don&#39;t have an opinion of him.

-- In the race for governor, Democratic Attorney General Chris Koster has small leads over a variety of mostly unknown GOP opponents. Despite his being in statewide office for two terms, 53 percent of voters aren&#39;t sure if they approve of his performance. Twenty-four percent approve and 23 percent disapprove. Of seven possible GOP candidates tested, only one - Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder - is known by more than 50 percent of voters. Koster leads all of the GOP candidates by between 4 and 8 percentage points, except Kinder, who draws 40 percent of the vote to Koster&#39;s 37 percent.

--The poll of 859 registered voters was conducted August 7 to August 9 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.3 percentage points. Full results here: 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e2179ffd30a0bcb408ad1c4c7cddb43861c1b32121e163fc3fd 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e2179ffd30a0bcb408ad1c4c7cddb43861c1b32121e163fc3fd 

FIRST IN SCORE - WOMEN IN DOWN BALLOT RACES - The Republican State Leadership Committee will put in $7 million for its initiative - Right Women, Right Now - with goals to train and recruit 500 women candidates to state-level office, then elect 150 of those women to office. The RSLC will launch a "Political Education Series" in Connecticut and Massachusetts, with plans to expand to six more states in 2016. "The Right Women Political Education Series will go a long way to build women's participation in the Republican Party from the ground up," said Iowa Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds, the group's co-chairwoman.

FIRST IN SCORE - OHIO GOP READIES FOR STRICKLAND FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE: The Ohio Republican Party has some questions for former Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland, running against Sen. Rob Portman, ahead of the release of his personal financial disclosure next week. They&#39;ll reveal the full list in release out later today. Among their queries: How much Strickland made and who his clients were while he worked at Midwest Gateway Partners, a consulting firm he started with Democratic lobbyist Steve Ricchetti; how much he was paid for his work at Innovation Ohio, a public policy nonprofit; if he did work with clients who won government contracts while he was governor; and how much he was paid for
 his job at the Center for American Progress.

PRESIDENTIAL SPEED READ - STAFFING UP - "Trump prepares to bolster depleted staff," by POLITICO's Ben Schreckinger and Cate Martel: "Donald Trump is ready to move on. After a weekend of controversy and campaign infighting, Trump made peace with Fox News on Monday as his camp prepared to bulk up a depleted staff and flesh out specific policy proposals. But questions remained about how far his campaign would go to build up a first-rate political operation and whether the moves were announced simply to change the conversation. ...Ironically, the tension that led to Stone's departure stemmed in part from his desire for the campaign to release policy specifics and bulk up its staff, according to
 a Trump insider. Following Stone's departure, the campaign has telegraphed its intention to do just that." 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e216257bbc2bc8d4d29a7a92ebd0e121de26daadf3f5e8dd411 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e216257bbc2bc8d4d29a7a92ebd0e121de26daadf3f5e8dd411 

-- Trump's got a friend - "Cruz: 'Foolish' for GOP to criticize Trump," by POLITICO's Katie Glueck in Franklin, Tenn.: "Texas Sen. Ted Cruz on Monday warned that the Republican presidential candidates who are slamming Donald Trump do so at their political peril. Cruz's remarks, which came during an interview with POLITICO as he swings through the South on a bus tour, are among the most detailed comments to date regarding his reluctance to criticize the real estate mogul, who is currently leading the polls in the GOP primary." 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e21b63ce82921856583bd3c2979a3b0567b576ea3ac9992d104 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e21b63ce82921856583bd3c2979a3b0567b576ea3ac9992d104 

MENDING FENCES - "Trump and Fox strike a truce," by POLITICO's Dylan Byers: "A truce has been struck between Donald Trump and Fox News, as both parties chose to avert a path that could have threatened the summer ratings blockbuster the real estate mogul's presidential campaign has become. On Monday morning, after 72 hours on the brink, Fox News Chairman and CEO Roger Ailes called Trump to assure him that he would be treated fairly by the network. And Trump, who, according to a source with knowledge of the situation confirmed to POLITICO, had threatened to boycott Fox News altogether, agreed to appear on 'Fox & Friends' and 'Hannity.'" 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e217e85d526d5ed451042f682c1172a0be1e7f868badb46052f 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e217e85d526d5ed451042f682c1172a0be1e7f868badb46052f 

SIMI, FEEL ME - "Jeb Bush to assail Clinton, Obama on Iraq," by POLITICO's Eli Stokols: "Jeb Bush will blast Hillary Clinton and the Obama administration for their failure to preserve a hard-won peace in Iraq in a policy speech Tuesday night in California. Bush, who will speak at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley on Tuesday evening, will argue, as he often does on the campaign trail, that Clinton and Obama are to blame for the spread of ISIL across Iraq and Syria and for the broader instability in the Middle East." 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e21cfd4861e43b02fa07dd852ed3fc0b91f3201d175c67343cf 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e21cfd4861e43b02fa07dd852ed3fc0b91f3201d175c67343cf 

THAT WOULD BE SIX - "Harvard Law professor Lessig exploring White House bid," by POLITICO's Nancy Scola: "Another Democrat is stepping into the presidential ring. Harvard Law professor Lawrence Lessig is exploring a bid for the White House, according to a 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e21641a8a743c7cfc1fef6ae88ad38a5639e9f2786ee26eab6f 
website  announcing the plan. He aims to crowdsource enough money on the Internet to "mount a credible campaign" in the Democratic primary, the website says." 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e21f6cabec1a19d7c3a1f2c3ae67037235c52feafc3d090ae3d 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e21f6cabec1a19d7c3a1f2c3ae67037235c52feafc3d090ae3d 

HARD TIMES IN HILLARYLAND - "Clinton's cruel summer," by POLITICO's Gabriel Debenedetti in Exeter, N.H.: "Hillary Clinton unveiled a wide-ranging and meticulously planned $350 billion higher education proposal at an energetic, jam-packed event at an early-state high school. ...Yet it was easy to miss amid the day's wall-to-wall Donald Trump media coverage and news that the 185,000-member National Nurses United union endorsed Bernie Sanders for the Democratic nomination. Welcome to Clinton's summer, a season chock-full of rough national headlines about her slipping poll numbers, her email controversies, Sanders' surging popularity, Joe Biden's presidential ruminations - and Donald Trump." 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e2107cfc82d5338f8aa8c2e773dd15612952ab17aed8e0097de 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e2107cfc82d5338f8aa8c2e773dd15612952ab17aed8e0097de 

ON SECURITY - "Clinton email certification released," by POLITICO's Josh Gerstein: "Hillary Clinton&#39;s first official legal statement about her handling of her email records was released Monday, triggering an immediate response from critics who said it failed to resolve questions swirling around her use of a private email account and server while she served as secretary of state from 2009 to 2013. The one-page declaration, signed 'HR Clinton' and
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e21998c8cfb04b26b51350cdbdeb5d64a60b68c9110c7347604 
 first reported by POLITICO on Saturday , was filed Monday afternoon in federal court in Washington in connection with a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit seeking records about the employment arrangements of one of Clinton&#39;s top aides, Huma Abedin." 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e21b67124fcf07213b6245420d445470e8ffc397a6b7de61c7b 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e21b67124fcf07213b6245420d445470e8ffc397a6b7de61c7b 

PROGRESSIVE PROTESTS - "Bernie's Black Lives Matter problem," by POLITICO's Daniel Strauss: "Bernie Sanders has a Black Lives Matter problem, and it doesn't look like it's going away anytime soon. Sanders makes an appealing target for the grass-roots movement - the surging presidential candidate has been drawing monster crowds on the campaign trail, giving protesters high-impact moments when they disrupt his events. And the activists say that since he holds himself out as the most progressive candidate, he is the logical champion for their cause. But for Sanders, the headlines of hijacked events risk casting further doubt that the self-described democratic socialist can make it all the way
 to the White House." 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e21b5bb6997c679c994a2b50a10dcb0978b84f9fdfff9c84d82 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e21b5bb6997c679c994a2b50a10dcb0978b84f9fdfff9c84d82 

UNION NOD - "Nurses union endorses Sanders," by POLITICO Pro Labor and Employment's Brian Mahoney: "Hillary Clinton lost her first national labor endorsement Monday when the 185,000-member National Nurses United endorsed Bernie Sanders. ...The nurses group is the second AFL-CIO member union to issue an endorsement; the first, the 1.6-million member American Federation of Teachers, endorsed Clinton in June. The endorsement isn't a surprise: The NNU has long been an
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e217a21c7145ba64d133711b1f55a14272dd93a5dd509239853 
 militant outlier  among labor unions." 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e216cac84f0c08af1eab057d5a698761492a1f6ef4e20bcd7c6 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e216cac84f0c08af1eab057d5a698761492a1f6ef4e20bcd7c6 

SLIMMING DOWN - POLITICO's Eliza Collins reported: "GOP presidential candidate Rick Perry is no longer paying his staff in South Carolina. ...It is unclear how long the pay freeze, which was first reported by 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e21af649e371df6c571b9e5446347048d3d2a28bd788a8fd487 
National Journal , will last. But South Carolina State Director Katon Dawson isn't concerned. He said a group of staffers, including two top Perry operatives, will continue to work whether or not there is pay." 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e21db4cfbefce1a6340815ca9b91c31da1d7b2519fd0e8901bc 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e21db4cfbefce1a6340815ca9b91c31da1d7b2519fd0e8901bc 

CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY: "Why is @RandPaul allowed to take advantage of the people of Kentucky by running for Senator and Pres? Why should Kentucky be back up plan?" - Trump, in a tweet Monday night 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e219061137bfafd7ca639c1caf6a9d465e1e0bf69dc681baf51 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0a1ce3b623775e219061137bfafd7ca639c1caf6a9d465e1e0bf69dc681baf51 

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