2010 Elections, Political News

An all-star list of downtown and Capitol Hill Republican heavyweights is holding a National Republican Congressional Committee fundraiser on Sept. 28. According to an invitation obtained by CQ Politics, Minority Leader John A. Boehner (Ohio) and Minority Whip Eric Cantor (Va.) are co-chairmen of the event, which is expected to include Conference Chairman Mike Pence (Ind.), NRCC Chairman Pete Sessions (Texas) and a half-dozen or more of their House Republican colleagues. Former Speaker Dennis Hastert (Ill.), a senior adviser at the firm Dickstein Shapiro, is also a co-chairman of the rooftop fundraiser, which will be held at the C2 Group’s Chinatown offices. The invitation urges potential donors to “please join in our efforts to ‘Take Back The House.’”

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GOP Heavy Hitters on K Street Line Up for NRCC Event

State Sen. Mick Mulvaney (R) is up with his second ad of his campaign against House Budget Chairman John Spratt (D). Republicans have been working hard this cycle to paint Spratt, an old-line Southern Democrat, as a man who has been changed by his 14 terms in Washington. The key line comes after Mulvaney ticks off a list of his conservative principals, including limiting government and reigning in spending. “There was a time when our Congressman used to believe those things as well,” Mulvaney says. “But those times have changed, and I think it’s time for us to change Congressmen.” Mulvaney TV Ad 2: There Was a Time from Mick Mulvaney on Vimeo . CQ Politics rates this contest Tossup . To follow all of this year’s House races, check out our election map .

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Mulvaney Hits Spratt for Losing His Way

With his victory in Tuesday’s primary, roofing contractor Reid Ribble will be the Republican nominee against Rep. Steve Kagen (D) in the northeastern Wisconsin 8th district this fall. He defeated state Rep. Roger Roth and former state Rep. Terri McCormick . With 63 percent of precincts reporting, Ribble had 50 percent of the vote to Roth’s 29 percent and McCormick’s 18 percent. Ribble has already been named to the lowest tier of the National Republican Congressional Committee’s Young Guns program and the NRCC is expected to target the race this fall. Kagen narrowly won an open seat race in 2006, when Republican Rep. Mark Green left to run for governor. In a tougher environment for incumbents and Democrats, Kagen may struggle against the Republican nominee. An American Action Forum poll taken about a month before the primary showed Ribble ahead of Kagen by 10 points. CQ Politics currently rates this race Leans Democratic .

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Wisconsin: Ribble to Face Kagen

In her first ad of the general election, Illinois Rep. Debbie Halvorson (D) targets her Republican opponent, former McLean County board member Adam Kinzinger , for his support of a tax break the ad says would mean shipping jobs overseas. “Politician Adam Kinzinger says one of his main goals is more trade agreements, deals that ship our jobs overseas,” a narrator begins the ad. Then it cuts to three workers who lost their jobs at the General Electric plant in Bloomington when it closed. Each talks about his or her work experience and chastises Kinzinger for their lost jobs. The ad is running on broadcast in the expensive Chicago media market. It follows a report in Hotline on Call that the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is cutting back on cable buys in that market. “We’ve been working with the DCCC for quite a while now,” said Halvorson communications director Anthony DeAngelo. “Their commitment to this race is unwavering, and we don’t expect that to change for the next 49 days.” Kinzinger is up on cable in Chicago with a biographical ad that touts his experience as a county official and as an Iraq War veteran. CQ Politics rates this race a Tossup .

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Illinois: Halvorson’s First Ad Hits Kinzinger on Jobs

In early August, CQ Politics traveled to Delaware to report on the race for Vice President Joseph Biden’s old Senate seat. At the time, Republican Rep. Mike Castle was comfortably ahead of his primary opponent, Christine O’Donnell. As you can see in this video interview, Castle was unconcerned about the impact of the tea party on tiny, moderate Delaware, and was looking ahead to the general election against Democrat Chris Coons. It just goes to show you what a difference a month makes in politics.

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What A Difference A Month Makes For Castle

Rep. Dan Boren , who holds one of the best performing districts for Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) still represented by a Democrat, led his Republican opponent by 34 points in a new poll funded by his campaign. The poll showed Boren ahead of Republican Charles Thompson , a veterinarian and Iraq War veteran, 65 percent to 31 percent. Myers Research and Strategic Services conducted the poll from Sept. 7-8, interviewing 400 likely voters over the phone. The poll had a margin of error of 4.9 points. Thompson became the Republican nominee after defeating student Daniel Edmonds in the Aug. 24 runoff. Edmonds has not yet endorsed Thompson. Thompson has yet to conduct any polls or pay for any advertising in the general election but said he plans to draw a contrast between the only Democratic member of Oklahoma’s delegation and himself. “Dan Boren portrays himself as a moderate or a conservative, but I beg to differ significantly,” Thompson said in a phone interview on Friday. “That’s not what he is.” Thompson said he plans to tell voters about Boren’s support for earmarks and his vote for Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). Though he agrees with Boren’s vote against health care reform, he said the Congressman should have done more to argue against it. CQ Politics currently rates this race Safe Democratic .

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Oklahoma: Boren Way Ahead of Thompson in New Poll

Rep. Leonard Boswell led his Republican challenger by 9 points in a poll taken Aug. 31 to Sept. 3. Conducted for the conservative American Future Fund, the Voter/Consumer Research poll found 48 percent of respondents preferred Boswell, while 39 percent chose Republican state Sen. Brad Zaun . Three hundred people were surveyed, and the poll had a margin of error of 3.6 points. “Polls are always just a snapshot of a race, but what makes this poll different is it was commissioned and released by a conservative group known for doing hatchet jobs on Democrats in Iowa and across the country,” Boswell campaign manager Grant Woodard said in a statement. “It also shows that more and more Iowans are choosing Congressman Boswell as they learn about Zaun’s character and lack of solutions for our state and our country.” Boswell’s re-elect numbers weren’t as favorable: Only 42 percent of respondents thought he deserved re-election; 49 percent thought it was time for a change. The AFF also surveyed the 1st and 2nd districts. In those races both Democratic incumbents were leading their Republican challengers, too. Rep. Bruce Braley led Republican Ben Lange 50 percent to 39 percent, and Rep. Dave Loebsack led Mariannette Miller Meeks 47 percent to 39 percent. Boswell’s race is the most competitive in Iowa this cycle. CQ Politics rates it Leans Democratic .

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Iowa: Boswell Leads Zaun in New Poll

According to pre-primary funraising reports filed in Hawaii’s 1st district on Tuesday, Democrat Colleen Hanabusa reported raising $333,000 from July 1 to Aug. 29. That far outpaced Rep. Charles Djou’s (R) $206,000 take during the period. Both candidates, who faced off along with former Rep. Ed Case (D) in a May special election, are expected to easily win their respective Sept. 18 primaries. Hanabusa has $404,000 left in the bank to spend on the general election against Djou, who has slightly more with $428,000. Along with Louisiana’s 2nd district and Delaware’s at-large district, political handicappers believe this Honolulu-based district is one of the three GOP seats most likely to flip back to Democrats in November. However, Republicans in Washington have privately expressed confidence that Djou will be able to hold the seat despite the heavy Democratic lean of the district. In May, Djou won the special election with 39 percent, as Hanabusa and Case split the Democratic vote with 31 percent and 28 percent. CQ Politics currently rates Hawaii’s 1st district race as a Tossup. To see how the 2010 House races are shaping up, check out the CQ Politics’ election map .

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Hawaii: Hanabusa Outraises Djou

Republican Tim Burns holds a 5 point lead over Rep. Mark Critz (D) in Pennsylvania’s 12th district, according to a poll conducted for the Burns campaign and the National Republican Congressional Committee. In the survey, obtained by CQ Politics, Burns leads Critz 48 percent to 43 percent in a rematch of the May special election that was held to fill out the remaining term of the late Rep. John P. Murtha (D). In that contest, Critz defeated Burns 53 percent to 45 percent. Public Opinion Strategies, a GOP polling firm, conducted the poll with 400 likely voters from Aug. 23-24. The survey has a 4.9 point margin of error.**

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Pennsylvania: Burns Leads Critz In Internal GOP Poll (Updated)

A shadowy Republican-leaning 501(c)4 group that goes by the name of the Committee for Truth in Politics shelled out more than $320,000 this week for ads in the Cleveland market targeting Democrats in tough races and appears set to go after another Democrat in the Columbus market. When you click on the ad above, you’ll hear a narrator complain that “Washington won’t balance the budget. Washington took three months to fix an oil leak. Washington won’t secure our borders.” The ad then tries to connect Washington’s failures to the targeted individual. Democratic trackers say an ad against Rep. Zack Space (D) will cost $189,000 and pegged the price of another cable ad targeting Rep. John Boccieri (D) at $133,000. It’s still unclear exactly who the group is going after with a $62,000 cable buy in Columbus media market, but the most likely target probably is freshman Rep. Mary Jo Killroy (D), who is facing a tough fight this fall in her battleground district.

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Ads Go After Ohio Democrats