Good evening, I’m Ben Jacobs with the latest from Washington and beyond. If you’re not already receiving the midterms minute by email, sign up.
Adelson invests more in GOP before midterms
Billionaire Sheldon Adelson gave tens of millions of dollars to the two major Republican Super Pacs, the Senate Leadership Fund (SLF) and the Congressional Leadership Fund (CLF), this week.
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Will this help Republicans?: It certainly can’t hurt. However, funneling money into Super Pacs is of diminishing value as the election draws closer. Super Pacs can’t directly coordinate with candidates and pay a premium for television time.
Beto’s big fundraising quarter
Democrat Beto O’Rourke raised $38.1m in the past quarter. This is an all-time record for any candidate and will give more than enough money to flood Texas’s airwaves with ads over the next few weeks.
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So he’s going to win? Probably not. He is still running in red state Texas and O’Rourke has consistently lagged behind Ted Cruz in the polls. But it does signal the strength of the grassroots network that O’Rourke has built.
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Does this do anything at all then? It will be very helpful for Democrats running down ballot. Even though O’Rourke is not likely to make it over the top, his strength will help…
