DSCC FRIDAY TAKEAWAYS: GOP PANICS OVER WEAK SENATE CANDIDATES – DEMS POST BLOCKBUSTER FUNDRAISING HAULS – DESERT DUST-UP AS AZ INFIGHTING HEATS UP

AH GEEZ RICK – REPUBLICANS HIT THE PANIC BUTTON, CRITICIZE RICK SCOTT AS NEWS COVERAGE HIGHLIGHTS DEEPLY FLAWED GOP SENATE CANDIDATES. New stories this week are highlighting how the “GOP fears [a] Senate debacle” in 2022 “after nominating several deeply flawed candidates” in battleground states – “heightening pressure on Florida Sen. Rick Scott,“ the chair of the NRSC, as his performance “has drawn questions from fellow Republicans.”

• Washington Post: Candidate challenges, primary scars have GOP worried about Senate chances. “Four months from Election Day, Republicans are struggling in several of the marquee Senate races because of candidate challenges and campaigns still recovering from brutal Republican primaries.”

• Axios: GOP fears Senate debacle. “What’s happening: In several crucial Senate races, polling, fundraising and news coverage tell a similar story. The Republicans are on the defensive.”

• USA TODAY Network: Rick Scott leads the Republican bid to regain the Senate. Those candidates are struggling. “‘Rick Scott’s self-indulgent politics and his incompetence at the NRSC have been a gift to Senate Democrats this cycle,’ said David Bergstein, spokesman for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.”

• MSNBC Morning Joe (WATCH): GOP Struggling in Key Senate Races Ahead of Midterms. “Republicans are worried about some of their candidates, with GOP operatives growing increasingly nervous behind the scenes.”

$ CHA-CHING $ – SENATE DEMOCRATS POST MONSTER FUNDRAISING QUARTER, OUTRAISE GOP OPPONENTS.  “Massive second-quarter fundraising hauls.” “Raking in record sums. “The latest example of Democrats’ widening financial advantage.” That’s how the press is describing Senate Democrats’ blockbuster fundraising numbers. See for yourself: 

• POLITICO: Senate Dems, from Bennet to Warnock, post ‘blockbuster’ money ahead of midterms. “Democratic Senate candidates are posting huge second-quarter fundraising hauls, which they see as a sign of momentum after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.”

• The Hill: Senate Democratic candidates post massive second-quarter hauls. “Democratic candidates for Senate are posting massive second-quarter fundraising hauls as the race for the upper chamber’s majority heats up.”

• POLITICO Congress Minutes: Democratic Senate candidates are posting massive fundraising hauls. “Democrats are going to be incredibly well-resourced. That applies both to races incumbents hope to hold, as well as in places where they hope to expand the map, such as Ohio, North Carolina and Florida.”

• NBC News: Two Democratic Senate hopefuls post eight-figure quarters. “Florida’s Val Demings and Pennsylvania’s John Fetterman each raised more than $10 million in the second fundraising quarter.

BRNO DOESN’T BRING HIS NUNCHUCKS, BUT AZ GOP CANDIDATES STILL BRAWL – “DEBATE GETS HEATED BETWEEN BLAKE MASTERS, JIM LAMON.” Masters and Lamon “began throwing jabs in the opening minutes” and “exchanged sharp words throughout the hour-long debate” this week – all while “the ads have increasingly turned negative” in what has become “one of the most expensive primary campaigns of this cycle.”

• CBS News: Arizona GOP Senate candidates sharpen attacks in final debate. “Masters repeatedly mentioned his endorsement from Trump as he sought to fend off Lamon’s attacks. ‘We need to implement these America first policies,’ Masters said. ‘President Trump trusts me to do that. He met with Jim Lamon, he thought he was a bozo.’”

• KTAR: Arizona’s GOP US Senate debate gets heated between Blake Masters, Jim Lamon. “The two leading candidates began throwing jabs in the opening minutes of the hourlong debate, with Lamon accusing Masters of previously being for open borders.”

• Newsmax: Lamon, Masters Slug It Out At Newsmax Arizona Debate. “‘We cannot have someone who is inexperienced, someone who is young, who has not gone through the rigors, someone who is a global capitalist from California who, by the way, never answered the question of why did he write what he said about having open borders,’ Lamon told the crowd.”

HE DOESN’T EVEN GO HERE – KEYSTONE STATE MAYORS SLAM OZ, CALL FOR A CANDIDATE WHO “UNDERSTANDS THE COMMUNITY.” Mayors from Western Pennsylvania came together to slam Oz for running in a state he has barely lived in. The Mayors highlighted that Fetterman “grasps the issues they face better than Republican Dr. Mehmet Oz.”

• PennLive: Democratic mayors say Fetterman knows their struggles better than Oz. “Several Democratic Pennsylvania mayors – including a few from struggling former industrial cities – argued on Thursday that U.S. Senate candidate John Fetterman, a former mayor, grasps the issues they face better than Republican Dr. Mehmet Oz.”

• WTAJ (WATCH): State College Mayor Calls Out Oz. “Pennsylvania Mayors…called Oz a carpetbagger and showed their support for Democratic challenger John Fetterman.”
  
  

THE BUCK STOPS HERE – MEHMET OZ LIED ABOUT HIS HUNTING LICENSE. New Jersey fraud Mehmet Oz bragged about hunting in Florida during the primary, but new reporting from Florida Politics revealed that Oz never had a hunting license in the Sunshine State.

• Florida Politics: Mehmet Oz bragged about hunting in Florida, but he’s never held a license. “Television personality Mehmet Oz spent months in a Pennsylvania Senate race touting a history of hunting in Florida. But the state Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has confirmed Oz never had a license to hunt in the Sunshine State legally. The vast majority of property Oz owns in Florida remains unsuitable for hunting.”

• Wonkette: Dr. Oz Very Hunty, Very Shooty, Very Real True Resident Of Pennsylvania, USA.

HEY MEHMET, CABS ARE HERE! SNOOKI HAS A MESSAGE FOR NEW JERSEY RESIDENT OZ: THE MOVE IS ONLY TEMPORARY. Jersey Shore star “Snooki” Nicole Polizzi poked fun at Oz and his move to Pennsylvania. Polizzi was called on by Fetterman’s team to highlight Oz’s ties to the Garden State asking “why anyone would want to leave Jersey, because it’s like the best place ever,” and promising Oz not to worry as he’ll be “back in New Jersey soon.”

NBC: Pa. Senate candidate Fetterman turns to Snooki to mock opponent Dr. Oz for Jersey ties. “‘Hey Mehmet! This is Nicole ‘Snooki’ and I’m from ‘Jersey Shore.’ I don’t know if you’ve seen it before, but I’m a hot mess on a reality show, basically, and I enjoy life,’ Polizzi said in a video posted by Fetterman on Twitter.”

• New York Times: ‘Snooki’ Is Enlisted in John Fetterman’s Campaign Trolling Dr. Oz. “The campaign of John Fetterman, the Democratic candidate for the open Senate seat in Pennsylvania, has been repeatedly nagging his Republican opponent, Mehmet Oz, for living in New Jersey before announcing his campaign in the Keystone State.”

→ RELATED READ: HUFFPOST: ‘I’M FROM NEW JERSEY’: DR. OZ SHOWED JERSEY PRIDE AT 2019 NEW JERSEY HALL OF FAME AWARDS

FOR HERSCHEL WALKER, BAD PRESS PROVES TO BE AS UBIQUITOUS AS… AIR.   Walker’s latest viral gaffe is just the “latest misstep for a campaign seeking to overcome an avalanche of negative stories and his penchant for controversial statements.” Now, the Georgia Recorder is reporting Walker is “facing scrutiny over a finance disclosure” as the negative headlines pile up.

• Georgia Public Broadcasting: Herschel Walker’s ‘bad air’ comments the latest in series of policy gaffes. “Walker’s dubious claims about air pollution and China were not one-off remarks, but rather a regular feature of his stump speech. According to a review of audio from more than a dozen recent campaign events, Walker regularly discussed ‘rotation’ of air that the U.S. can’t ‘control’ and blamed China and India for ‘bad air.’”

• Georgia Recorder: Walker latest to get flagged for campaign filing omission as Georgia Senate race heats up. “Republican senate candidate Herschel Walker is once again facing scrutiny over a finance disclosure originally filed in December.”

• WABE: As Herschel Walker’s controversies mount, some Republicans start to worry. “‘Everyone acknowledges the problems,’ says conservative radio host Erick Erickson. ‘They’re curled up in the fetal position trying to make sense of it all.’”

BOLD STRATEGY, COTTON – RON JOHNSON TOUTS HIS ROLE IN TAKING AWAY REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH CARE FROM WISCONSINITES.  In a new interview, Ron Johnson bragged about his role in stripping reproductive rights from Wisconsinites, saying  “I’m fully supportive of what the Supreme Court did. I obviously confirmed the justices that handed down that correct decision.”

• WLUK (WATCH): Ron Johnson Touting Role in Overturning Roe v. Wade

GETTING ROCKY IN THE GRANITE STATE – TWO GUYS NEW HAMPSHIRE VOTERS HAVE PROBABLY NEVER HEARD OF TRADE BLOWS.  Infighting in the NH GOP Senate primary ramped up between the b-tier competitors after U.S. Senate candidate Kevin Smith’s campaign accused primary rival Chuck Morse of “instigating” a report alleging that Smith mishandled a harassment lawsuit and called his female employee “pork chop.”

• Union Leader: Senate GOP hopeful Smith accuses rival Morse of spreading ‘smear’ story.“Republican U.S. Senate candidate Kevin Smith’s campaign charged primary rival Chuck Morse with instigating a report in the liberal HuffPost that Smith mishandled a harassment lawsuit while serving as Londonderry town manager. Campaign manager Seb Rougemont called ‘flat-out false’ the harassment lawsuit claims and he accused David Carney, Morse’s campaign consultant, of spreading the story on social media last month.”

BUILD THE WALL? O’DEA IS A MILE HIGH OUT OF TOUCH WITH COLORADO VOTERS. Colorado Times Recorder reported that O’Dea’s campaign texts included a video where O’Dea doubles down on supporting Trump’s border wall and touts endorsements from Trump officials. O’Dea’s staunch support for the border wall, his belief that Trump bears no blame for the Jan. 6th insurrection, and his pledge to support Trump in 2024 puts him at odds with a majority of Coloradans that reject the MAGA Republican agenda.

• Colorado Times Recorder: O’Dea’s Pro-Trump ‘Build the Wall’ Stance Out of Step With Voters’ Immigration Views. “This position puts him at odds with most Americans, who didn’t support Trump’s wall proposal when he made it the centerpiece of his first presidential campaign and of his term in office. A recent national poll shows 59% of the public is in favor of either increasing immigration levels or keeping them where they are, while just 41% want less immigration.”

THORNY WEEK FOR BUDD – CALLED OUT FOR TAKING BIG PHARMA CASH, TRAVELING ON SPECIAL INTERESTS’ DIME. A new report reveals that Congressman Ted Budd opposed legislation that would lower prescription drug costs and while being rewarded with thousands of dollars in corporate Pharma donations within days of the vote.

• American Independent: GOP Senate nominee Ted Budd voted against a bill to lower drug prices as he took Pharma cash. “Budd received a $2,500 contribution from the political action committee of pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline. …  Five days later, Pfizer’s PAC gave him a $1,000 check. By the end of 2020, he had received a total of $3,500 from each company’s PAC.”

• Indy Week: Op-Ed: Ted Budd Travels on the Special Interest Dime. “The more we learn about Congressman Ted Budd, the more clear it becomes that he is a corrupt politician who plays by his own rules to help himself and his wealthy donors—at the expense of North Carolina families.”

…AND BEASLEY “BLASTS BUDD IN NEW CAMPAIGN AD.” In the new spot, Cheri calls out Congressman Ted Budd for repeatedly voting “against legislation that would lower drug prices.”

• Axios: Exclusive: Beasley blasts Budd in new campaign ad. “In the ad, Beasley accuses Budd of voting against legislation that would lower drug prices, a signal that Beasley will make the issue central to her campaign.”

JUST THIS WEEK, THANKS TO SENATE DEMOCRATS.

→ Warnock Leads Call For Passage Of China Competitiveness Bill. Senate Democrats like Senator Warnock are fighting to address working families’ most pressing priorities like lowering costs by easing supply chains and ensuring America can outcompete countries like China.

• Atlanta Journal Constitution: Warnock to congressional leaders: Don’t let China competition bill fall apart. “The Senate should not allow partisan bickering to derail negotiations on a China competitiveness bill, U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock says in new letter to the chamber’s highest-ranking members. … Warnock said he and others have spent almost a year working on legislation that would address the semiconductor shortage and other supply chain issues while also boosting American research and innovation.”

IN THE STATES

AZ – Arizona Republic: ‘Republicans for Kelly’ announce support for Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly’s reelection. “Sen. Mark Kelly’s campaign on Friday kicked off “Republicans for Kelly,” a group of approximately 50 Republicans and independents who are supporting the Arizona Democrat’s reelection bid.”

FL – Florida Politics: Val Demings, Marco Rubio square off over attendance records. “Rubio’s attendance has been one of the worst in Congress, and in an ad released Wednesday, Demings says Floridians are worse off because of it.”

CO – Colorado Politics: U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet aims to expand Denver’s alternative policing program nationwide. “U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet sees the potential for Denver’s alternative policing program, which responds to low-level emergencies with paramedics and mental health clinicians, to become a nationwide model.”

NV – Nevada Current (Opinion): Nothing shows respect for the rule of law like chumming with Trump. “Alas, Trump, predictably, foiled the best laid plans of what passes for the area GOP brain trust by calling Nevada a ‘cesspool of crime’ while Lombardo, the leader of the largest law enforcement organization in the state, and Laxalt, a former if accidental Nevada attorney general, were sitting just a few feet away on the same stage as Trump.”

OH – Ohio Capital Journal: Planned Parenthood backs Tim Ryan in U.S. Senate Race.“‘We need somebody in the Senate like Tim,’ she said. ‘It’s more important than ever that we elect leaders who will be unequivocal in their support for reproductive freedom.’”

PA – GoErie (Opinion): Fetterman: To fight inflation, let’s make more stuff in America. “I doubt that my opponent, millionaire celebrity Mehmet Oz, feels a change in price when he’s filling up his gas tank — if he even pumps his own gas at all (they don’t let you do that in Oz’s native New Jersey). I don’t think he has to worry about his gas or grocery bill, and probably doesn’t even notice if it’s more than it used to be.”

WI – Wisconsin State Journal: Ron Johnson’s $280k cash gifts to chief of staff and wife draw U.S. Senate ethics complaint. “U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson and his wife paid his former chief of staff and his wife $280,000 in cash gifts while they worked together, an arrangement Democrats say is a breach of Senate rules, according to an ethics complaint filed Monday.”

TWEET OF THE WEEK

David Bergstein
@DavidABergstein

Amanda Sherman
@asherman89

Pat Burgwinkle
@Burgwinkle

Nora Keefe
@norakatekeefe

Freedom Murphy
@F_AlexanderM

Eli Cousin
@elicousin

Claire Berry
@claireliseberry

###