Subject: POLITICO's Morning Score, presented by Sinclair Broadcast Group: Conservative Democrats on display in governor’s races — Koch network attacks Clinton in Senate ad while putting millions into Ohio, Nevada — GOP House internals in Wisconsin, California
From: "Morning Score" <[email-masked]>
To: <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 24 Aug 2016 08:04:49 -0600

By Elena Schneider | 08/24/2016 10:00 AM EDT

With Theodoric Meyer and Kevin Robillard

The following newsletter is an abridged version of Campaign Pro's Morning Score. For an earlier morning read on exponentially more races - and for a more comprehensive aggregation of the day's most important campaign news - sign up for Campaign Pro today. (http://www.politicopro.com/proinfo)

TO THE RIGHT, TO THE RIGHT - "Meet the Democrats tacking right while their party shifts left," by Campaign Pro's Maggie Severns and Kevin Robillard: "Democrats are running as unabashed progressives to keep the White House and retake the Senate. But when it comes to expanding their thin ranks of governors, they're touting something else entirely: support for gun rights, fiscal conservatism, homespun rural values - even suing the Obama administration and criticizing Hillary Clinton. The Democrats in this year's top gubernatorial races are running in a red-state parallel universe compared to the blue-tinged presidential and Senate map. In Indiana, Missouri, Montana and West Virginia, their
 candidates are trying to outrun long-term political changes as well as 2016 polls where Donald Trump still holds a presidential advantage, despite his struggles nationally."

- "'I cannot be a supporter of Hillary Clinton,' said Jim Justice, the coal billionaire-turned Democratic candidate for governor of West Virginia, in a radio interview Monday morning. ... In Missouri, Democrats' nominee to replace term-limited Gov. Jay Nixon is Attorney General Chris Koster, a Republican-turned-Democrat eager to highlight his prosecutorial experience, an 'A' rating in the past from the National Rifle Association, and a historic endorsement from the Missouri Farm Bureau. ... Koster's own TV spots paint him as a defender of Missouri against federal overreach by his own party's president." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=c51270e6e6558b8298d6d6654dbf4ac429df21f23ae250dc21dd3617ddbd6e3e

OUTSIDE GROUPS ON THE AIR - "Koch network links Strickland to Clinton in Ohio TV ad," by Campaign Pro's Kevin Robillard: "Freedom Partners Action Fund is out with its first ad of 2016 linking a Democratic Senate candidate to presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, as part of a $2.2 million ad buy in Ohio and Nevada from the Koch brothers-backed super PAC. The Ohio ad, 'Josh,' features a coal miner attacking former Ohio Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland for standing with Clinton after the former secretary of state said at a forum that 'we're going to put a lot of coal miners out of business.' ... In Nevada, Freedom Partners is spending $1.2 million on digital and television ads attacking
 Democrat Catherine Cortez Masto, who is facing GOP Rep. Joe Heck in a close race." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=c51270e6e6558b829a28b06d5f15d9ff4b021ee83de148f01a22dd152d27deb2

Days until the 2016 election: 76.

Days until the Arizona and Florida congressional primaries: 6.

Thank for joining us. You can email tips to the whole Campaign Pro team at [email-masked], [email-masked], [email-masked], [email-masked] and [email-masked].

You can also follow us on Twitter, where we tweet a lot about campaigns and occasionally about JoJo: @politicoscott, @ec_schneider, @politicokevin, @theodoricmeyer and @maggieseverns.

** A message from Sinclair Broadcast Group: Sinclair Broadcast Group, the largest and most diversified television broadcasting company in the country today, delivers not only TV, the primary medium for reaching potential voters, but also targetable digital (mobile, video, email, social media and native) ad solutions. Contact Alan Brittan @ 703-236-9673. Sinclair, busy - Making Political Ads Work! **

CHECK PLEASE - "Ryan hosts major donor retreat in Wyoming," by POLITICO's Kenneth P. Vogel and Rachael Bade: "House Speaker Paul Ryan convened more than 100 of the Republican Party's biggest donors this week in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, to talk policy and 2016 congressional campaign strategy - including how Donald Trump would impact House races - according to several sources present or familiar with the retreat. ... Among the donors in attendance were TD Ameritrade founder Joe Ricketts, mutual fund pioneer Foster Friess and energy executive Joe Craft. Prominent Republican pollster Frank Luntz also attended." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=c51270e6e6558b82c1c0f27bc6ca08de80163d493f15942a400458f38a9f5b0e

SORRY, I AIN'T SORRY (ABOUT ANOTHER POLL) - In Missouri ... "Republican Sen. Roy Blunt leads Secretary of State Jason Kander, the Democratic candidate, by five points - 48 percent to 43 percent. Another 3 percent said they would vote for Libertarian Jonathan Dine, while 7 percent indicated that they are undecided. Attorney General Chris Koster, leads Republican candidate Eric Greitens by 11 points - 51 percent to 40 percent - in the race for governor. Another 3 percent said they would vote for Libertarian candidate Cisse Spragins, while less than 1 percent said they would vote for another candidate and 6 percent were undecided. Koster is seen by 37 percent as the gubernatorial candidate
 best equipped to handle race relations in the state, while 26 percent said Greitens would do a better job, 32 percent said they did not know and 5 percent volunteered that neither man would." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b5d5669a553f256086ee76b0d78d7dc5a99a5faa90510bf5b9630cc569703c81 

- GOP internal poll shows double-digit lead for Gallagher in WI-08: Republican Mike Gallagher is leading Democrat Tom Nelson by double digits in the race for an open swing seat in Wisconsin, according to an internal poll released by Gallagher's campaign. Among likely voters, Gallagher leads Nelson, 52 percent to 36 percent. Trump has a slight lead over Clinton in the district at the presidential level, 40 percent support to Clinton's 37 percent. The poll was conducted by Public Opinion Strategies for Gallagher's campaign and the NRCC and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.9 percentage points. It was first reported by The Green Bay Post-Gazette. Here's the full polling memo: 
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b5d5669a553f256018c42308900869e627e4b00e7f514afed1c7d7789674750f

- In CA-07 ... "Democratic Rep. Ami Bera and his Republican challenger, Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones, are essentially tied in a new internal poll of the Democratic-held battleground district conducted for Jones' campaign. Bera had 46 percent support to Jones' 45 percent in the survey." Hillary Clinton has a slim 41 percent to 38 percent advantage over Donald Trump. See the full poll from Public Opinion Strategies: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b5d5669a553f256036d705b6cc199452e8028038481f3f35cef5be1968a72738

ADS, ADS, ADS - In Iowa ... Democrat Patty Judge popped her first general election TV ads Tuesday, both featuring a cardboard cutout of Sen. Chuck Grassley. One spot shows her carrying the cutout, saying to the camera, "If you don't think Washington has changed Chuck Grassley, try and ask him." Then it shows several voters asking the cutout questions about defunding Planned Parenthood and congressional obstructionism, with no response. A child asks: "Are you even listening?" Watch the ad here: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b5d5669a553f2560acad74a174c58ec0becccffb1846e7cf8de27ba3d1dd4adb The second ad is a bit more of a biographical spot that plays up Judge's experiences as "a farmer and a nurse" who knows "Iowa works best when we work
 together." Judge, addressing the camera says: "Used to be, you could work with Chuck, I did plenty of times. But he's all politics and partisanship now." Watch the second ad here: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b5d5669a553f2560c80f73a77e761f923e4f9ecb95b13772d02dae6461204829 

- In New Hampshire ... "A new ad Democratic Gov. Maggie Hassan's Senate campaign aims to rebut ads from Republicans attacking her handling of the state's heroin and opioid crisis. ...The NRSC and the GOP non-profit One Nation have aired ads attacking Hassan over the epidemic, even though Ayotte has said the crisis shouldn't be the subject of political attacks." Watch the ad here: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b5d5669a553f25600bf0dd340a64f473ed5ac773a93676dfa6ea0021ae0d3aa6 http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b5d5669a553f2560d0c46afed5a1e7f15a78e5a6f05b1072d8396bc664b33aa2 

- In Louisiana ... GOP Rep. Charles Boustany is out with his campaign's first two ads in Louisiana's Senate race. The first ad opens with Boustany declaring: "Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton refuse to declare war on ISIS, but they're more than happy to wage war on Louisiana's economy," before noting his work to help the state's oil and gas industry. The second ad seems designed to draw a contrast with Rep. John Fleming, a competitor in the race and founder of the Hosue Freedom Caucus. "Washington's full of people who do nothing but shout," Boustany says. "I let my results do the shouting instead." Both end with the same tagline: "We can't beat liberals in Washington by out-shouting them.
 We've got to outsmart them." Watch the ads here: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b5d5669a553f2560ff34d766cf4853b7bdd20bd3c178a5aee31106b52519bd1e http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b5d5669a553f2560c2141478753570f7067be718066c131068f56e711b71e18a

- "Democrats blast GOP's use of hacked documents in attack ad," by POLITICO's Rachael Bade: "The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is calling foul on its Republican counterpart's use of information about one of its candidates posted online by a hacker believed to be connected to Russian intelligence services. The National Republican Congressional Committee released a digital ad Tuesday attacking Randy Perkins, a Democrat running in Florida's 18th District, as 'corrupt,' dubbing him 'Ripoff Randy.' ...DCCC Executive Director Kelly Ward accused the NRCC in a statement of 'stooping to a shocking new low.'" http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b5d5669a553f25606d8d7e1ee0ef59af42686925a9728fbf5a387f6fe8760bf1 

PRESIDENTIAL SPEED READ - "Hillary Clinton's run-out-the-clock strategy," by POLITICO's Annie Karni: "With 75 days until Election Day and new emails once again casting a pall over her campaign, Hillary Clinton aims to 'run out the clock,' confidants say, on the latest chapters of the overlapping controversies that have dogged her campaign since the start. According to allies and operatives close to the campaign, Clinton's team thinks 'they can ride out' any negative reaction to a set of new emails that show Clinton Foundation officials trying to set up State Department meetings for donors during her tenure as top diplomat." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b5d5669a553f25606ef2074ce21924b3c8226fc0a16beb9171e95b865e346d44

- "S.C. Democrats tout new poll showing Clinton, Trump in dead heat," by The Post and Courier's Emma Dumain: "A new poll shows Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump tied in the presidential contest in the Palmetto State. The poll, paid for by the South Carolina Democratic Party and conducted by the Feldman Group, found Clinton and Trump neck-and-neck at 39 percent in a state that hasn't voted for a Democrat for president since Jimmy Carter in 1976." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b5d5669a553f2560dc3b665a3e24f6fb4563d8c41bd26d10d600dee0d665ae85 

- "Clinton asks Romney's allies for cash to stop Trump," by POLITICO's Gabriel Debenedetti in Los Angeles: "Hillary Clinton's team is on the market for more millionaires. This time, Mitt Romney's millionaires. After successfully encouraging disaffected, high-profile Republicans to publicly disavow their party's nominee, Clinton's campaign in the last two weeks has launched a coordinated effort to convince conservatives to give money to the only woman standing in Donald Trump's way - and to get their friends to do the same. The effort began Aug. 12, when Clinton finance director Dennis Cheng wrote a 1,200-word email to the candidate's top fundraisers, describing how they could win over GOP
 and independent contributors. That email included a sample letter fundraisers could send Republican prospects and presents potential aisle-crossers the option to donate or raise either $10,000, $27,000, $50,000, or $100,000 for the Clinton operation." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b5d5669a553f2560eeecf77173ea8f1e98ea5edb97f9522c3a20a1f5c2862ec3 

- "Defense industry bucks tradition with donations to Clinton," by POLITICO's Austin Wright and Jeremy Herb: "The nation's top defense contractors have long been a bastion of support for Republican candidates for office. But this time, they're with Hillary Clinton. The Democratic presidential nominee is leading Republican rival Donald Trump by a ratio of 2-to-1 in campaign donations from employees working for defense giants like Lockheed Martin and General Dynamics. That's a sharp turnaround from 2012, when defense contractors gave more to then-Republican nominee Mitt Romney than to President Barack Obama. It's also a departure from recent decades, in which the industry overall favored
 Republican congressional and presidential candidates in eight of the past 10 election cycles, with Democrats getting more in 2008 and 2010." http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b5d5669a553f25605b89b664403ade6307706d875bc5da5e4e8a89d30d15f7e2 

CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY: "I'm not opposed to socks, I just choose not to wear them." - North Carolina Sen. Richard Burr, who notoriously chooses to go sock-less, on Twitter. http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=b5d5669a553f25601800f0843f67856027c4d28d183a08860db4bd6d0754c1bc 

** A message from Sinclair Broadcast Group: News, opinions, and entertainment surround us 24/7, yet a fundamental truth remains, whether for competitive races or impactful ballot measures, the TV commercial reigns as the medium for reaching potential voters. TV helps strongly at the margins. Television is also the easiest way to reach undecided voters. Those passive folks who don't show up at the rallies or ask for email updates, but will be there to pull the levers on Election Day. At the Sinclair Broadcast Group, one of the largest and most diversified television broadcasting companies in the country, we combine TV with targetable digital (mobile, video, email, social media and native) ad
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