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By James Hohmann (
mailto:jhohmann@politico.com
jhohmann@politico.com ; Twitter: @jameshohmann)

NORTH CAROLINA DEMOCRATIC SCANDAL ESCALATES -

PARTY CHAIRMAN REFUSES TO RESIGN:"The state Democratic Party chairman is defying the odds and refusing to resign under the weight of a political controversy involving allegations of sexual harassment and a secret settlement agreement with a former staffer," the News and Observer reports. "In a letter Wednesday to the state's party's executive committee, David Parker said he has the 'strong support' of the party's executive council for his chairmanship...He called for a June 17 referendum on his chairmanship at an executive committee meeting." The governor, Bev Perdue, responded with this statement: "The process laid out by the chairman in his email late today to Executive Committee members
is totally unacceptable. The chairman needs to go."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58aa34bbdf5145c4c14e261ff159f4d68a7231639233a21696
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58aa34bbdf5145c4c14e261ff159f4d68a7231639233a21696

SALACIOUS NEW DETAILS EMERGE:"Documents obtained Wednesday by WRAL News detail allegations of sexual harassment lodged against the North Carolina Democratic Party's former executive director by a junior staffer." Story:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5806ac6ef05764c16e7416baefd2b8495b8c7a6845657b22c9
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5806ac6ef05764c16e7416baefd2b8495b8c7a6845657b22c9 . The two-page letter:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5839fb96a5a9ed671730be0cbb558df35ed8ad00c929f57246
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5839fb96a5a9ed671730be0cbb558df35ed8ad00c929f57246 .

NATIONAL DEMS TRYING TO SHOVE HIM ASIDE:Jonathan Martin reports that they are trying to head off an embarrassing story in their host convention state. "David Parker is a man without a party," said a senior national party official of the North Carolina chair. "He's operating out of a hotel in Raleigh outside of the party structure and without the support of staff, the national party or any significant party official or elected official. He's isolated and that isolation will only increase until he makes the decision that is not in his best interest but in the best interest of the party. The status quo in untenable. He needs to step aside." More from JMart: "The shove from Washington
comes as the harassment charges engulf the state party and threaten to distract from President Obama's visit early next week to North Carolina's Research Triangle."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58d4111b44113697923622d821386a76c315a116c8f509ceab
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58d4111b44113697923622d821386a76c315a116c8f509ceab

CHARLOTTE OBSERVER FAULTS PERDUE FOR SLOW RESPONSE:"A profile in courage it is not," the paper's editorial board writes. "Gov. Bev Perdue was a day late and a dollar short expressing concern about sexual harassment allegations at N.C. Democratic Party headquarters. Make that four months late, and party leaders would rather not mention dollars...Perdue finally broke her inappropriate silence late Tuesday and revealed that she had known about the allegations since December."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58dbe21d803bb942222f9012ba7aad42db148379fd97881968
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58dbe21d803bb942222f9012ba7aad42db148379fd97881968

OUT THIS MORNING - RESURGENT HIGHLIGHTS HISPANIC GROWTH:The 2010 census put hard numbers to one of the most important demographic trends of our new century: the size and growth of the Hispanic community in this country. There are more than 50.5 million Hispanics now living in America, with enormous policy and political implications. That's why the Republican-linked groupResurgent Republic has produced a very cool interactive infographic to show how the American electorate is changing. You can slice and dice hundreds of data points about Hispanics in America: their demographic composition, their policy positions and their political preferences. Consider this remarkable state: Every month for
the next two decades, 50,000 Hispanics will turn 18. Check out the new microstie in English:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5813937723731e5ece11293368bee7b5e1edc2b74957a751d4
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5813937723731e5ece11293368bee7b5e1edc2b74957a751d4 . Or Spanish:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58cb93ab8ceb1c9d25f75baee40572273a2860b5b77e2eac35
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58cb93ab8ceb1c9d25f75baee40572273a2860b5b77e2eac35 .

SNEAK PEEK - CHAMBER TO ENDORSE BRUNING:The U.S. Chamber of Commerce will announce its endorsement of Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning's candidacy for the U.S. Senate today. Rob Engstrom, the U.S. Chamber's senior vice president and national political director, cites his opposition to the federal health care law as the state's attorney general. Bruning is locked in a Republican primary battle with State Treasurer Don Stenberg.

FIRST IN SCORE - MASSACHUSETTS REPUBLICANS HIT WARREN ON TAXES:The state Republican Party is releasing a new web video that hits Democrat Elizabeth Warren for refusing to answer whether or not she voluntarily pays the higher 5.85% tax rate offered as an option to Massachusetts taxpayers who believe they should pay more in taxes. "Professor Warren is the nation's preeminent advocate for higher taxes," said Alleigh Marre, spokeswoman for the Massachusetts Republican Party. "But she refuses to say if she practices what she preaches by taking advantage of the unusual opportunity afforded by the Massachusetts Department of Revenue for people who believe they should pay more in taxes. It's
time to answer the question, Professor Warren." Watch:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5808eda33b99d7adf55e730ac04490350f130ae279b3c24db1
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5808eda33b99d7adf55e730ac04490350f130ae279b3c24db1 .

DSCC FUNDRAISING - $17.7 MILLION Q1 HAUL IS THEIR BEST EVER:The DSCC is announcing this morning that they had their most successful first quarter of fundraising ever, taking in $17.7 million in the first three months of the year. Last month's total of $7.4 million brings the total raised for the cycle to $70 million. The DSCC now has nearly $24 million on hand and zero debt. The committee notes, that according to the latest data available with the FEC, Democratic Senate campaigns across the country have an estimated $30 million more on hand than Republicans ($121.8 million to $91.5 million).

** As the Indiana GOP looks at Mourdock's use of its voter file, Gingrich ignores his past rhetoric on dogs and Republican leaders head for Scottsdale, here's POLITICO's Morning Score: your daily guide to the permanent campaign.

LATEST POLLING -

NYT/CBS-ECONOMY OFFERS OPENING FOR ROMNEY:"Nearly two-thirds of people are concerned about paying for their housing, the poll found, and one in five people with mortgages say they are underwater," Jeff Zeleny and Allison Kopicki write on A1. "Four in 10 parents say they have had to alter expectations for the type of college they can afford for their children. And more than one-third of respondents said high gas prices had created serious financial hardships."

MORE - ROMNEY BRUISED FROM NOMINATION FIGHT:"Only 29 percent of voters have a favorable view of him - but more than one-third say they have yet to form an opinion, creating a chance for him to introduce himself as a fix-it man who can improve the economic circumstances of Americans...more than 6 in 10 voters think Mr. Romney says what people want to hear, rather than what he believes...Only about one in seven voters say he cares a lot about the needs and problems of people like them, compared with one-third of voters who think Mr. Obama cares a lot about their needs and problems. Only one-third of voters say they can relate to Mr. Romney, while nearly half say they can relate to Mr. Obama."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58fd853e86de86c47b859e7642922d82da772de06f954d2745
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58fd853e86de86c47b859e7642922d82da772de06f954d2745

CBS NOTES MARRIAGE GAP:"The president leads 49 percent to 43 percent among women, while Romney leads 49 percent to 43 percent among men. But women are not a monolithic group: Among married women - who represented 29 percent of registered voters in this poll - Romney has the edge, 49 percent to 42 percent.The president, meanwhile, dominates among single women, 62 percent to 34 percent. The poll shows the president has a big edge over Romney when it comes to who voters are confident will make the right decisions on women's health issues, but such issues would seem to be more important to single women than married women. For Romney, the best path to closing the gap among women may not be
to win over single women, but instead to maximize turnout among women who are married." Brian Montopoli's post:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c589adbb317220b4a318d6c57f66f3a5028bd604d21ec8bc68f
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c589adbb317220b4a318d6c57f66f3a5028bd604d21ec8bc68f .

DO ROMNEY'S LOW FAVORABLES MATTER AT THIS POINT? - HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE:"On average over New York Times/CBS News polls conducted in January, February and March, Mr. Romney's favorable rating was 26 percent and his unfavorable rating was 37 percent," Nate Silver writes on his 538 blog. "These figures are fairly poor historically but not unprecedented. Bob Dole had similar numbers ... in early 1996. Bill Clinton was not as well known in 1992 as Mr. Romney is this year, meaning that both his favorable and unfavorable ratings were lower, but his net score (negative 11) was the same as Mr. Romney's. And Jimmy Carter had very poor favorability ratings as an incumbent in 1980 (just as his
approval ratings were poor).Overall, these early-stage favorability ratings have had a mixed track record as a predictor of election outcomes."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c584569516601f7e6a80b9b7544f5a250a8b8de323641e50fcb
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c584569516601f7e6a80b9b7544f5a250a8b8de323641e50fcb

DARTMOUTH poll of New Hampshire:Romney, 43.9; Obama, 42.4; Unsure, 13.7. MOE: 4.9.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58470af75eee29343048860289595e28f1eba41a15f3cb0fa2
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58470af75eee29343048860289595e28f1eba41a15f3cb0fa2

GREENBERG POLL:Here are the full results, with memo and crosstabs, of that Democracy Corps poll I previewed yesterday:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5816bd26cfff083c28d41e397dd8ee271c1a37e4d4094293ae
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5816bd26cfff083c28d41e397dd8ee271c1a37e4d4094293ae .

ROMNEY TO OHIO - WHAT THE REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES ARE UP TO:Romney goes to Ohio to bracket Obama, who was just there. He speaks at the National Gypsum Company at 1:15 p.m. in Lorain. Ron Paul campaigns in Ithaca, N.Y. - with a lunch fundraiser and an evening town hall at Cornell. Gingrich speaks at the New York GOP's annual dinner in NYC at 6 p.m. Details:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58b2f7c6e7d37efd1ec7a0736af75da6ff58ac7e02af41f705
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58b2f7c6e7d37efd1ec7a0736af75da6ff58ac7e02af41f705

TED NUGENT TO MEET WITH SECRET SERVICE TODAY:"Rocker Ted Nugent is set to meet with the U.S. Secret Service regarding his controversial remarks about President Obama," USA Today reports. "Nugent, who has endorsed Mitt Romney for president, caused a stir with his comments over the weekend about the 'vile, evil, America-hating' Obama administration at the National Rifle Association meeting... 'I'm sure we'll have a great conversation,' Nugent said today on Glenn Beck's radio show, according to the Blaze, a website founded by the conservative talk show host. 'Bottom line is, I've never threatened anybody's life in my life. I've never threatened. I don't waste breath
threatening,' Nugent is quoted as saying. He said the Secret Service 'are dedicated and I will be as polite and supportive as I possibly can be, which will be thoroughly.'"
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5821dd9939096af6c19a31d226df6531b78d33ea8da7372865
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5821dd9939096af6c19a31d226df6531b78d33ea8da7372865

CORONATION CONTINUES -Mitch Daniels endorsed Romney yesterday, as did North Carolina House Speaker Thom Tillis. The DNC releases a web video noting that Daniels signed a bill stripping Planned Parenthood of its federal funding. The tagline: "Mitt Romney and Mitch Daniels are too extreme for women." Watch:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5880892b0b57a032073fdbf7b1e4da407a0b8bd534cd0da5a2
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5880892b0b57a032073fdbf7b1e4da407a0b8bd534cd0da5a2 .

SANTORUM LIKELY TO MEET WITH ROMNEY IN NEXT TWO WEEKS:"Senior Strategist to the Santorum campaign John Brabender told Andrea Mitchell [yesterday] on MSNBC that he just spoke with Romney's campaign manager and started to float a few dates for a meeting to take place between the former rivals, likely in the next two weeks in Philadelphia," per NBC. "It has been made clear to us that the Gov. Romney would like to have at least a discussion of a possible endorsement at that time,' Brabender said. "I don't think there will be any endorsement before this meeting takes place...he feels it's important to have a discussion with Mitt Romney to make sure that the conservative wing of the party is
certainly represented in a Romney administration...I would say as Rick Santourm's advisor that it would be helpful to the process if he did play a major role in the convention."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58b4be9bf1c32fd81d57371cd0d9063b041d8c5fa525b76392
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58b4be9bf1c32fd81d57371cd0d9063b041d8c5fa525b76392

RNC GATHERING TO RALLY BEHIND ROMNEY IN ARIZONA:"GOP leaders from every state will begin gathering Thursday at a posh Scottsdale resort to plot out general election strategy with the former Massachusetts governor as their standard-bearer," CNN's Peter Hamby reports. "Romney will address the meeting of state Republican Party chairmen at a Friday luncheon that is sure to be the meeting's biggest draw. Later that evening, the presumptive nominee will venture into Phoenix raise money for the joint Victory Fund he established with the RNC. A minimum donation of $50,000 is being requested. Arizona Sen. John McCain will also speak at the three-day conference, an appearance that one RNC member
described as the 'passing of the torch' from one Republican presidential nominee to the next."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58fcdaaafc98e9e56ebc70681360c8fae857762cbb3ac80c10
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58fcdaaafc98e9e56ebc70681360c8fae857762cbb3ac80c10

NEWT DEATH WATCH, DAY 36-GINGRICH FLIP-FLOPS ON DOG ISSUE:

SHOT-YESTERDAY IN DELAWARE:'It's just utterly stupid,' Gingrich said. "This is a country with really big problems. I believe the American people are hungry for leadership that transcends the normal junk.'
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58206de76ec36e88479781cfab9ea860c964d64f96dc1c2fcf
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58206de76ec36e88479781cfab9ea860c964d64f96dc1c2fcf

CHASER - GINGRICH CAMP RELEASED DOG HIT ON ROMNEY IN JANUARY!"A nearly 30-year-old story involving the GOP hopeful's treatment of the family pooch resurfaced Wednesday in an ad produced by Newt Gingrich's campaign," according to an NBC story from January 12. "The ad, meant to appeal to canine lovers and question Romney's ability to defeat President Obama, is titled 'For the Dogs.' It rehashes a story first reported by the Boston Globe in 2007...In the Gingrich ad, as plucking strings play in the background, the dog story is part of a montage of controversial Romney comments." Story:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c583ed490a36af8034d387fb7950756fd2132bf7eb297d74194
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c583ed490a36af8034d387fb7950756fd2132bf7eb297d74194 . Video:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5800fdbaacf8e5c454a936ddb4c828116f39a401fc177b14ac
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5800fdbaacf8e5c454a936ddb4c828116f39a401fc177b14ac .

ROMNEY ON THE WAR OVER DOGS:"This campaign is ultimately going to become about jobs not dogs," said Romney in an interview with Bill Cunningham on WLW radio in Ohio.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5851d2faf1d8b3509a33d0668dcb8f0ed9154c5c090610a776
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5851d2faf1d8b3509a33d0668dcb8f0ed9154c5c090610a776

MITT PLANS LONDON VISIT FOR THE SUMMER OLYMPICS:"The former Massachusetts governor, who headed up the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, said he intends to be present for the first 'day or two of the events," per CNN. 'Ever since the games in Salt Lake City in 2002 the Olympics has been a big part of my life, and I would love to be over there and see the kick off of their games,' Romney told WTVN Radio in Columbus, Ohio.
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58155e34ea0f31c3b7d6ca6a5cc059c6446bb160cfc7f5e715
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58155e34ea0f31c3b7d6ca6a5cc059c6446bb160cfc7f5e715

SHOTS FIRED - OBAMA CAMP MOVES INTO ROMNEY'S IOWA HEADQUARTERS:"The Obama campaign moved into the Romney campaign's former headquarters in Des Moines after the caucuses, and [Tuesday] aides tweaked their GOP rivals, saying the office is more popular now that the Democrats have taken over," writes The Des Moines Register's Jennifer Jacobs. "Romney ran what he called a lean campaign in Iowa...The campaign had no official Iowa office until mid-November when it rented a former Blockbuster Video store on Ingersoll Avenue...Obama for America Iowa, which took some sweet satisfaction in setting up shop in the space in late February, [has] launched a Twitter campaign with the hashtag
#SinceMittsBeenGone."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c584295a1ca354f64bbf491420db23d2eae6c207b5f56d530d8
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c584295a1ca354f64bbf491420db23d2eae6c207b5f56d530d8

WHAT THE PRESIDENT IS UP TO: "In the afternoon, the President will welcome the BCS National Champion University of Alabama Crimson Tide to the White House to honor their 14th championship and their exceptional 2011-2012 season...Later, the President will attend a campaign event in Washington, DC. This event at The W Hotel is closed press."

INDIANA SENATE -

DANIELS, MCCAIN HAVE TAPED COMMERCIALS FOR LUGAR:"Mitch Daniels and John McCain are coming to Sen. Dick Lugar's rescue," Dave Catanese scoops. "The Indiana governor and the Arizona senator have cut ads on Lugar's behalf that are likely to air in the closing weeks of his neck-and-neck Republican primary contest. While the details of the commercials are unclear, two GOP sources confirm that the two political heavyweights are featured in television and radio spots encouraging the election of Lugar to a seventh term. A source with knowledge of their participation cautioned that no final decision has been made to run the commercials. But the pair of high profile surrogates would make a powerful
closing argument for Lugar. The term-limited Daniels is by far the most popular politician in the state, boasting a 63 percent job approval rating."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c586a40352febed1bd98f1f7de93e269767d796015381ca65f4
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c586a40352febed1bd98f1f7de93e269767d796015381ca65f4

MOURDOCK RELEASES INTERNAL POLL SHOWING HIM UP 1:Richard Mourdock's campaign sent around the results of a poll conducted April 16th-17th by respected Republican firm McLaughlin & Associates that showed him ahead 42 to 41 percent among likely Republican primary voters. 'With 20 days until the election we are well-positioned for a victory on May 8th,' he said in a statement. Here is the two-page memo from the campaign:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58f7e857c35eb42c02bfc799bfba92a7f8e13c456c32fe7e3d
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c58f7e857c35eb42c02bfc799bfba92a7f8e13c456c32fe7e3d .

STATE GOP PROBING UNAUTHORIZED MOURDOCK DATABASE USE:"Indiana Republican leaders met Wednesday to discuss how to handle allegations that a U.S. Senate campaign improperly tried to access a critical database of voter information," the AP reports. "The Republican Party's voter files are incredibly important for any campaign, although especially so for Lugar and Mourdock as they enter the last few weeks before the election. Republicans use the data to determine who to target with phone-calls, door-knocks, direct mail and other tactics designed to bring their supporters to the polls. At issue is a March 14 email obtained by The Associated Press in which Mourdock campaign manager Jim Holden
writes that Mourdock staffers should 'start pillaging email addresses' from a voter database known as Salesforce, which is used by all Indiana Republicans."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5807d6466ccafb20e2fc6f2567c8cddc95a5fb2c926cd0fb1b
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5ba7b3dd9efa0c5807d6466ccafb20e2fc6f2567c8cddc95a5fb2c926cd0fb1b

OHIO SENATE - MANDEL UP WITH MAJOR AD BUY:Republican Josh Mandel went up last night with his first TV ads of the campaign, Alex Burns reports. The Ohio state treasurer, challenging Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown, highlights his military service in the spot. The Mandel campaign's TV flight runs to about $580,000 over two weeks, per Burns-"a big, early investment from a candidate who's proven to be a powerful fundraiser." Item:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849eb5a1559d67404d718c542f90b418807869d267d542a87c89
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849eb5a1559d67404d718c542f90b418807869d267d542a87c89 . Watch the ad:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849e33f5016062793d26a098436eb0fa9699bdb3e499ed58ff0d
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849e33f5016062793d26a098436eb0fa9699bdb3e499ed58ff0d .

UTAH SENATE-62% OF REPUBLICANS BACK HATCH IN SALT LAKE TRIB POLL:"Prospects appear rosy for Sen. Orrin Hatch to again win his party's nomination in a primary fight, with a new Salt Lake Tribune poll showing that 62 percent of Utah Republican voters support him over the nine GOP hopefuls challenging him," the paper reports today. "Former state Sen. Dan Liljenquist is favored by 20 percent, state Rep. Chris Herrod is supported by 6 percent and 12 percent are undecided. That's according to a poll of 422 likely primary voters, conducted April 9-11 by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research. Hatch hopes for similar support among the 4,000 delegates to the state GOP convention on Saturday. If he can win
60 percent of delegate votes there, he avoids a primary and goes directly to the general election. Otherwise, the top two candidates will face off in the June 26 primary election."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849e12616176291e1c601ba08af262342d5f95473015aaf097cd
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849e12616176291e1c601ba08af262342d5f95473015aaf097cd

LILJENQUIST HAS BACKING OF MORE STATE SENATORS:The Deseret News reports that Dan "Liljenquist came out on top in an informal poll conducted by the Office of the Legislative Auditor General" [of the State Senate]. The former state senator garnered 11 votes; Hatch got seven and Democrat Scott Howell got two:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849e319050567e8e53e2a0a784dfa422b20666ed4e5d41942368
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849e319050567e8e53e2a0a784dfa422b20666ed4e5d41942368 .

ARIZONA HOUSE - BARBER KICKS OFF GENERAL PHASE OF SPECIAL:Want an indication of where Democrat Ron Barber's campaign is going to focus in the special to replace Gabby Giffords? His first event since winning Tuesday's primary is an 11 a.m. "discussion with seniors about Ron's commitment to protect Social Security and Medicare" at senior living apartments in Tucson.

FLORIDA HOUSE - WEST HAS NO REGRETS ON COMMUNIST ACCUSATION:"Rep. Allen West (R-Fla.) said Tuesday that he doesn't have any regrets about saying last week that as many as 80 House Democrats are members of the Communist Party, an incident that drew harsh criticisms," the Huffington Post's Jen Bendery reports. 'No, I don't regret it whatsoever,' West said in response to a reporter asking about his comment. The freshman Republican, who took the question while participating in a panel discussion at conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation, then proceeded to double down in his belief about liberal Democrats being communists. 'I think that if you would take the time to study the
political spectrum of ideologies, you'd understand that, at the turn of the century, American communists renamed themselves as progressives,' he said. 'If you studied the Woodrow Wilson administration, people referred to the Woodrow Wilson administration as a progressive administration.'
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849e2b36a1415aaece942e394f0cfd39ec815528b70ebedd720a
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849e2b36a1415aaece942e394f0cfd39ec815528b70ebedd720a

WISCONSIN RECALL -

DEMOCRATS FACE UPHILL STRUGGLE IN STATE SENATE RECALLS:"New polls showing Republicans with healthy leads in three of the four state Senate recall fights are sobering for Democrats for a few reasons," Craig Gilbert writes in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "One, they're a reminder that these races are being fought on Republican-leaning turf, as were last year's Senate recalls. Two, the Democratic pollster who did the surveys argues that a small portion of voters unhappy with GOP Gov. Scott Walker don't approve of the recalls, creating an extra hurdle for Democrats to overcome in flipping these Senate seats. Three, Walker leads in his own recall fight in these particular districts,
according to the polls."
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849e289c0d43d3a17a936459ee64f5e3a9df334239cd77e9c8bd
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849e289c0d43d3a17a936459ee64f5e3a9df334239cd77e9c8bd

REMEMBER HIM? - PERRY WILL GIVE 2016 RUN "A GOOD EXAMINATION":"2016 is way down the road, but I'll assure you one thing, if I decide to run for the presidency in 2016, I'll be way in before the summer of 2016; 2015, even," the Texas governor told the Dallas CBS affiliate. "There's also been speculation that Perry wants to run for governor again in 2014. I'm certainly going to give that the appropriate consideration. My instincts are very positive towards it right now, but we'll wait until after the legislative session to make that announcement."
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LIGHTER CLICKS -

JON STEWARTstruggles to decide whether Obama or Romney is funnier:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849e9517451da13b0513ea5363beecbc0295da11a9688079f891
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849e9517451da13b0513ea5363beecbc0295da11a9688079f891 .

STEPHEN COLBERTsays Romney should pick his shadow as his running mate:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849ea89678626487040222386ff7c98167bbb304d70e95182478
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849ea89678626487040222386ff7c98167bbb304d70e95182478 .

GEORGE CLOONEYwill host an Obama fundraiser on May 10:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849e74feebda8267d897a5a48488b320647129ed76c59cbcad1b
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849e74feebda8267d897a5a48488b320647129ed76c59cbcad1b .

GAVIN NEWSOM,the California Lieutenant Governor and former San Francisco mayor, is getting his own weekly show on Current TV:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849ef694064aaf3548029f4b97eddc8d9d20546d67474dce8c1f
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849ef694064aaf3548029f4b97eddc8d9d20546d67474dce8c1f .

THE ROMNEY'S DANCING HORSEcompetes without them:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849ee0910be06c5fcf2678e8f751ded8dfb54c03991becee28f4
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849ee0910be06c5fcf2678e8f751ded8dfb54c03991becee28f4 .

KARL ROVEsays in today's Wall street Journal column that Romney can beat Obama in the Buffett Rule debate by saying the higher tax would hurt economic growth:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849e1c5d64e379a2b0e39aa4c8de0a2949f9692e4b6ee297c9c6
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=5e52a809e429849e1c5d64e379a2b0e39aa4c8de0a2949f9692e4b6ee297c9c6 .

CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY:"I tell him, 'Baby, my cash money.'" - The self-described "escort" who ignited the firestorm enveloping the Secret Service recounts what happened in the Hotel Caribe last week
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