A new Rasmussen poll out Thursday gives Republican candidate Sharron Angle a seven-point edge over Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.).
Angle leads 48 percent to 41 percent. Eight percent of respondents prefer some other candidate and just two percent are undecided. The automated poll surveyed 500 likely voters, with a margin of error of plus or minus 4.5 percentage points.
One area of concern for Republicans is that the poll shows both candidates with unfavorable ratings near 50 percent. Reid's favorables stand at 48-49, while Angle's are 48-47.
The campaign of Reid and national Democrats have hit Angle hard over the past two weeks in an attempt to focus attention on what Reid's campaign has called Angle's history of "extreme statements."
Rasmussen's last poll, taken just after Angle captured the Republican nomination, gave her a 50-39 lead over Reid.
Utah Sen. Bob Bennett (R), who was denied a spot on the Republican primary ballot at the party's state convention in May, has some advice for the man who may replace him come November: Compromise is often a must in the U.S. Senate.
Bennett told the Salt Lake Tribune that if Republican Senate nominee Mike Lee does make it to Washington, he will find the reality of the Senate much different from the campaign trail.
"I know there are those among Mike's supporters who believe he will take the Senate floor, deliver a masterful speech on the Constitution and change the course of the republic. That is not going to happen," Bennett told the Tribune.
"For him to demand that the Senate vote a certain way based on his interpretation of the Constitution is not going to sway senators who have made up their own minds on that issue based on their interpretation of the Constitution," Bennett said.
On Tuesday, Lee defeated Tim Bridgewater in a close Republican primary. After his ouster at the state convention, Sen. Bennett endorsed Bridgewater in the primary.
Christie's brusque personality and insistance on spending cuts have earned him many conservative admirers, many of whom have speculated about his making a bid for the White House.
"Not going to happen," he told Cavuto. "I want to be governor of New Jersey. I ran for governor of New Jersey. I'm not Woodrow Wilson. You have to be in your gut and in your heart ready to be president if you decide to run for that. I simply do not have the desire to do it, nor do I think I'm ready."
Christie was less ironclad when asked about being a VP candidate, though he still seemed skeptical.
"Is there anybody around here who thinks I could be a No. 2 to anybody? It'd be kind of hard. It'd be tough for me to be No. 2 to anybody," he said.
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.
Republican Senate candidate Marco Rubio ripped Florida Gov. and Independent Senate candidate Charlie Crist Wednesday for his response to the Gulf oil spill.
On CNN's "The Situation Room," Rubio said the governor had not done enough to press the Obama administration on the federal government's response to the disaster.
Rubio said Crist was doing a great job of getting "press releases and press conferences and video time," in the wake of the Gulf spill. "But the other part is to get results," said Rubio. "And right now we're not getting results from the Obama administration."
On continued deep-water drilling, Rubio said there is evidence it can be done safely and that he would support it if that was indeed the case.
"I have always been a fan of alternative and efficiency improvements that allow us to become energy independent," said Rubio. "But in the short term, the truth is that America has to increase its domestic energy production. And part of that may have to be offshore drilling."
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.
House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) has pledged to contribute $1 million to congressional Republicans' campaign efforts this fall.
Boehner pledged the hefty sum as part of the National Republican Congressional Committee's (NRCC) "Battleground" effort, a push beginning this week to cull $20 million from sitting GOP lawmakers to help elect more Republicans this fall.
The money will come from Boehner's campaign account, and will be on top of the $755,000 he's already contributed to the committee, and in addition to the $30,000 from his PAC.
Boehner's contribution could be seen as setting an example for rank-and-file members to pony up for this fall's midterm efforts.
The top House Republican has said Republicans could compete in as many as 100 congressional districts this November, and the NRCC's support could be key in converting many of those opportunities.
Republican Meg Whitman's campaign released its first attack ad Wednesday in the race for California governor. The ad labels Democratic nominee Jerry Brown's decades in electoral politics a "failure."
The spot offers a retrospective of Brown's career through the eyes of the Whitman campaign. "In the '60s, Brown enters politics and later serves two terms as governor," the narrator says. "His big spending turns a surplus into a billion-dollar deficit."
The ad traces his career through his run for president in 1992, employing a clip of former President Bill Clinton attacking Brown during the presidential primary.
The release of the spot comes a week after an organized labor-backed independent expenditure effort began with an ad attacking Whitman for her voting record.
The ad offers some foreshadowing of what could be a record-breaking media spending campaign from Whitman over the course of the race. The spot was produced by Texas-based Republican media firm Scott Howell and Company.
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