House races

Democrats in West Virginia are making House Minority Leader John Boehner's (R-Ohio) record on trade an issue in the race for the state's 1st Congressional District. 

Boehner will headline a fundraiser for Republican nominee David McKinley this Saturday in Morgantown, W.Va. McKinley faces state Sen. Mike Oliverio (D) in November in the race to fill the seat of Democratic Rep. Alan Mollohan. Oliverio defeated Mollohan in a May primary.   

A release blasted out Thursday by state Democrats calls Boehner "a long-time advocate for companies outsourcing jobs including supporting NAFTA and CAFTA." 

Outsourcing has already cost the state 17,800 jobs, state party executive director Derek Scarbro said in the release. “John Boehner has been leading the charge to make it easier for companies to send West Virginia jobs to China and India."

The Troubadour Reunion Tour that folk legends James Taylor and Carole King are currently on stopped at Washington's Verizon Center on Wednesday. 

The tour, named after the famed Los Angeles nightclub where the duo first played, has raised more than $1.5 million for charity so far. And last night it helped at least six Democratic lawmakers raise thousands for their reelection campaigns.

Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.), for instance, was selling tickets for the concert for $2,500 per PAC and $2,400 for an individual, according to the Sunlight Foundation, which tracks lawmakers' fundraising.

Maloney, who opted not to challenge to Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) this year, isn't a GOP target. But she's facing a tough primary against New York attorney Reshma Saujani (D) and could use all the campaign cash she can get to sure up her position.

The attendees who shelled out were treated to quite a show, according to reviews.

To help set the scene, here's a clip from Taylor and King's performance in Boston last week.

A Democratic candidate challenging Rep. Joseph Cao (R-La.) accused the GOP of pulling a South Carolina-style political ploy by convincing black candidates to run as Independents.

Business groups are using a variety of tactics to pressure House members to vote against pending campaign finance legislation.

One of those tactics is offering their endorsement ahead of the vote.

The Chamber of Commerce announced Wednesday it's supporting Rep. Dan Boren (D-Okla.) for reelection — one of only a handful of Democrats it has backed this cycle.
 
"On issues ranging from competition in the health care industry, to lowering taxes, to reducing energy costs, Oklahoma's businesses and workers have a tireless advocate in Dan Boren," Bill Miller, the Chamber's political director, said in statement.
 
The statement of support didn't note Boren's position on the Disclose Act, the legislation that would bolster disclosure requirements for corporate and union spending. But observers saw it as a sign the Chamber is using the offer of an endorsement to get members to vote against the bill.

Boren is expected to vote against the legislation.

A spokesman for the powerful lobbying group said the act is one piece of legislation that it considered during its endorsement process.
 
"We weigh a variety of factors when considering endorsements of candidates," J.P. Fielder, a Chamber spokesman, told The Ballot Box. "The unconstitutional Disclose Act is certainly going to be one of them." He noted the group also considers members' positions on issues like healthcare reform and cap-and-trade legislation.

Boren, through his spokesman, declined to comment about the endorsement.

A senior Democratic leadership aide described the business group's tactics as "borderline thuggish."
 
"The Chamber has threatened [multiple vulnerable members] with ads against them if they vote for the bill," the aide said. "The tactics have been borderline thuggish."
 
Fielder declined to discuss the characterization but noted the group is only up with a print ad in the Washington area and has not started airing TV spots against the Disclose Act or specific members.

Meanwhile, the Chamber and a coalition of 305 business organizations sent members a letter Wednesday expressing their opposition to the bill.
 
"The legislation places onerous restrictions on corporate free speech while ignoring unions' immense political influence," the letter stated. "Like the ‘card check’ bill, this legislation changes election rules to give one side the upper hand."
 
The National Federation of Independent Business sent a similar letter on Tuesday.
 
"A vote against final passage of H.R. 5175 may be considered an NFIB key vote for the 111th Congress," their note stated.
 
A "key vote" means the group will factor the member's vote into their decision on whether or not to endorse. The Chamber will also score the vote.
 
The Disclose Act is the Democrats' answer to the Supreme Court's decision in the Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission case. The court's ruling removed campaign finance restrictions for business groups and labor organizations.
 
House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.) told reporters on Wednesday the legislation would be voted on this week, possibly as early as Thursday. A source in the leadership said the "whip count is looking really good," meaning they are confident of passage.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce announced its support on Wednesday for a Democratic incumbent in Congress.

The business group, which has allied itself with Republicans more often than Democrats on major legislative initiatives this Congress, backed Rep. Dan Boren (D-Okla.) for reelection.

“We’re endorsing Dan Boren because he has a record of standing up for the people of Oklahoma in these challenging economic times,” Chamber VP and political director Bill Miller said in a statement. “As a leader of the Blue Dog Democrats, he is an invaluable lawmaker who has a common sense approach to job creation and getting America back on the road to recovery."

Boren's been one of the most conservative lawmakers of the centrist Blue Dog coalition in the House, breaking with his party on healthcare, climate legislation and a whole host of other issues.

The Chamber has vowed to spend big in this year's elections on behalf of their agenda this fall.

Both parties are having problems with their base in North Carolina's 8th district.

Businessman Tim D'Annunzio (R) pointedly refused to endorse former broadcaster Harold Johnson after he lost to him in the GOP House runoff on Tuesday.

"I will say first and foremost that I cannot endorse Harold Johnson and his underhanded campaign tactics," D'Annunzio said in a statement. "What he's done is a continuation of politics as usual, and for that I will not be supporting him."

Johnson, who will face Rep. Larry Kissell (D-N.C.) in November, had called D’Annunzio "a troubled man" in TV ads that describe "a history of drug use and time in prison."

The Democratic incumbent has his own problems.

Kissell had a mediocre showing in his May primary. And earlier this month, the Service Employees International Union qualified an independent candidate to run against him. Kissell angered unions and progressive Democrats by voting against the healthcare reform bill in March.

Arizona Democrats facing tough reelection races are distancing themselves from the Obama administration as it prepares to file a lawsuit against the state over its controversial immigration law.

Rep. Jim Matheson (D-Utah) successfully beat back a primary challenge from his left Tuesday.

Republican Tim Scott earned a landslide victory against Paul Thurmond in a South Carolina House primary runoff.

The South Carolina Republican became the third House member to lose a primary this cycle.