IN CLOSING DAYS OF THE ELECTION, REPUBLICANS ON DEFENSE ON HEALTH CARE. With just 20 days until Election Day, vulnerable Senate Republicans are doubling down on their cycle–long effort to try to cover up their records of voting to gut the popular Affordable Care Act and its coverage protections for pre-existing conditions. Desperate GOP Senate incumbents and candidates who “spent the past decade trying to eradicate the 2010 law” are now telling voters “don’t worry about the ACA” even as they rush as they rush to confirm a Supreme Court nominee hostile to the health care law just in time for oral arguments on their party’s lawsuit. Republicans’ “empty promises” on health care – not a single GOP senator or candidate has articulated a plan that would keep pre-existing conditions protections intact if this lawsuit succeeds in overturning the ACA – show why health care remains a massive “political liability” for the GOP that “could help determine control of the Senate.”
GOP ADS MISLEAD ON REPUBLICANS’ RECORDS, AVOID TRUMP. A New York Times analysis of 48 television ads from Republicans in seven competitive Senate races found “none of the Republican incumbents in these seven states have directly tied themselves to the president as they have in the past,” in their ads – but they are attempting to rewrite their toxic records on health care with “a lot of talk about pre-existing conditions.” Despite their newfound efforts to distance themselves from the increasingly unpopular president and paper over their voting records, the reality is these vulnerable Republican incumbents have been full-time rubber stamps for the president and have voted repeatedly to gut protections for pre-existing conditions.It’s too late for their desperate election year makeovers. New York Times: G.O.P. Senators Have a Lot to Say in Ads, but Not Much About Trump
CORNYN GETS FOUR PINOCCHIOS FOR AD ON PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS. The Washington Post fact checker gave Senator John Cornyn “Four Pinocchios” for his new campaign ad that falsely asserts “preexisting conditions is something we all agree should be covered.” Cornyn’s record on health care “speaks for itself”: he’s voted numerous times to repeal the ACA, proposed alternative plans that “could saddle sick patients with higher, and possibly prohibitive, costs,” and just last month voted against a measure “that would have barred the Justice Department from arguing to strike down the entire health-care law in court.” Cornyn is not the first Republican incumbent to receive “Four Pinocchios” this cycle from the Washington Post for misleading claims on the ACA and pre-existing positions protections. Washington Post: Analysis | Another clunker: John Cornyn’s ad on preexisting conditions
REPUBLICAN GROUPS POUR NEARLY 100% OF THEIR SPENDING INTO DEFENDING GOP-HELD STATES IN FINAL DAYS. With just 20 days left until the election, the NRSC and Mitch McConnell’s super PAC network are pouring millions of dollars into defending GOP-held seats. These Republican groups are being forced to bail out candidates in states like Kansas, Alaska, and South Carolina––three seats that Republicans never anticipated being competitive at the beginning of this cycle. The last minute, frantic efforts from McConnell-aligned groups to bail out these vulnerable Republicans proves exactly what we’ve been saying: smart and aggressive Democratic campaigns have expanded and transformed the Senate map.
VAIL DAILY AND GRAND JUNCTION SENTINEL EDITORIAL BOARDS ENDORSE HICKENLOOPER FOR SENATE. Two more editorial boards endorsed John Hickenlooper for the U.S. Senate yesterday. The Vail Daily wrote that “Hickenlooper is exactly the kind of steady leader that Coloradans need in the Senate to cut through the partisan noise,” while the Grand Junction Sentinel cited “his pragmatic problem-solving” and “relentless optimism” in their endorsement. Both papers extolled Hickenlooper’s focus on bipartisan solutions to the problems Coloradans face like health care and climate change, while lambasting incumbent Senator Cory Gardner for his “unwillingness to answer tough questions,” like his votes to gut protections for pre-existing conditions and attempts to greenwash his environmental record.
GARDNER DEFENDS TRUMP’S MORALITY. In last night’s Colorado Senate debate, vulnerable incumbent Senator Cory Gardner defended President Trump as “moral and ethical.” Throughout the debate, Gardner refused to hold the president accountable — proving that despite his claims otherwise, he’s just a rubber stamp for Donald Trump’s toxic agenda.
FACT CHECK: GARDNER PUT MEDICARE AT RISK. The Colorado Times Recorder fact checked Senator Cory Gardner’s recent comments at an AARP event where he said “we have to make sure that we protect Medicare” and found that Gardner in fact “has a record of voting to privatize Medicare, putting the program as designed at risk.” The reality is that the vulnerable incumbent has voted repeatedly to privatize Medicare and even has “voted to raise the age of eligibility for Medicare and Social Security, even though he’d once promised not to.” And when asked “how he squares his votes to privatize Medicare with his promise to protect it,” Gardner’s Senate office did not respond. Colorado Times Recorder: FACT CHECK: Gardner Voted To Privatize Medicare, Putting the Health Care Program for Seniors at Risk
GRAHAM SHOULD HAVE “CRUISED TO AN EASY REELECTION THIS YEAR” BUT HARRISON “HAD OTHER PLANS.” A Business Insider deep dive of the South Carolina Senate race found that the state “has become part of the expanded Democratic calculus for winning a Senate majority” as “Harrison’s campaign has taken off, pushing Graham into the biggest political fight of his life.” Harrison’s campaign has “drawn a sharp contrast with Graham” focusing on local concerns while Graham plays Washington games. Public and private polling shows a virtual tie and multiple non-partisan analysts have moved the seat in Harrison’s favor in recent weeks. Now, Mitch McConnell’s super PAC has been forced to start dumping $10 million into South Carolina to prop up the increasingly vulnerable incumbent, while Graham himself sees the writing on the wall and has become an almost constant fixture on Fox News “begging for money” with desperate pleas for help. Read more about the tightening race here → Business Insider: In conservative South Carolina, Lindsey Graham should have cruised to an easy reelection this year. Jaime Harrison had other plans.
IRS COMPLAINT FILED OVER TUBERVILLE CHARITY ALLEGATIONS. Following a bombshell AP investigation that detailed how Alabama Senate candidate Tommy Tuberville may have lied on his charity’s tax forms, the American Democracy Legal Fund filed a complaint with the Internal Revenue Service demanding an investigation into the matter. The AP’s report revealed that according to tax records, the Tommy Tuberville Foundation “has given only a small portion of its money to charity while spending tens of thousands of dollars to stage annual golf tournaments.” The complaint documents how a subsequent review has found that “the expenses that the Tommy Tuberville Foundation claimed as being program expenses do not meet what the IRS defines as program expenses” and the evidence suggests Tuberville may have “knowingly submitted false information about the foundation’s expenses” and potentially “committed perjury.” Read the full IRS complaint here.
PETERS JOINS MADDOW TO DISCUSS PERSONAL EXPERIENCE WITH ABORTION. Senator Gary Peters joined MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow to discuss his decision to share his personal experience with abortion. On Monday, in a powerful interview with Elle, Peters discussed the “gut-wrenching and complicated” situation he faced with his first wife Heidi when they were pregnant with their second child and experienced complications that left the fetus with no chance of survival and endangered Heidi’s life. WATCH Peters and Maddow discuss what’s at stake as Senate Republicans rush to fill the Supreme Court vacancy with a nominee hostile to a woman’s right to choose:
DEM AD WATCH
GA – Reverend Raphael Warnock launched a new voter education ad aimed at helping Georgians find Warnock’s name on the ballot for the special election for Senate. Watch.
IA – The DSCC released a new TV ad in Iowa’s Senate race highlighting how Senator Joni Ernst has turned her back on Iowa seniors. Watch.
MT – In a new ad, Steve Bullock discusses the life-saving care his son received and how he’s worked to ensure Montanans have access to health care. Watch.
NH – Senator Jeanne Shaheen’s new ad talks about how her work on the Paycheck Protection Program has helped New Hampshire small businesses. Watch.
NC – Cal Cunningham released a new ad highlighting Senator Thom Tillis’ abysmal health care record and how Cal will fight for North Carolinians’ access to affordable care. Watch.
IN THE STATES
AK – WPSU: Senate Tracker: Alaska’s Race Tightens
CO – Summit Daily (Opinion): Opinion | John Hickenlooper: Let’s get Washington back on track
IA – The Gazette: Theresa Greenfield talks health care as she casts her vote
KS – Dodge City Daily Globe: Bollier meets constituents at Eisenhower Park
KS – The Hill: National Republicans will spend to defend Kansas Senate seat
KY – MSNBC: Amy McGrath: The Senate Mitch McConnell built can’t get the job done
MI – Detroit Metro Times: Sen. Gary Peters makes history by opening up about the life-saving abortion his former wife had in the ’80s
MS – WJTV: Mississippi Association of Educators endorses Mike Espy & Bennie Thompson
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