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By Elizabeth Titus and Jose DelReal

With Tarini Parti, James Hohmann and Kyle Cheney

The following newsletter is an abridged version of Campaign Pro's Morning Score. For an earlier morning read on exponentially more races - and for a more comprehensive aggregation of the day's most important campaign news - sign up for Campaign Pro today. (
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FIRST IN SCORE - Daines goes positive after Walsh plagiarism bombshell: In his first ad since the revelation that his opponent plagiarized a paper at the U.S. Army War College, Montana Republican Senate candidate Steve Daines is shown fishing with his youngest daughter, Caroline, on a bucolic lake. He narrates about the importance of honesty, trust and values - subtle jabs at Democratic Sen. John Walsh, who is not mentioned by name. The campaign will put six figures behind this spot, produced by Jon Downs at FP1 Strategies. It is a shift from some of Daines' previous TV messaging, which has ripped the appointed senator over Medicare and a sexual-harassment lawsuit filed against the Montana
National Guard when he was in charge. And the commercial reflects a degree of confidence: Daines speaks of what he "will" do in the Senate, as if victory is assured. "Montana is a place where a handshake means something and your word is your bond," he says.
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- Rauner up 4 in Illinois, poll finds: A new poll from the Democratic firm Harstad Strategic Research. shows Republican Bruce Rauner narrowly ahead of Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn, 46 percent to 42 percent among likely voters. The survey was commissioned by the Illinois Education Association, a teachers' union that endorsed Quinn. The poll, which carries a 3.1 percent margin of error, included landline and cellphone interviews with 1,003 likely voters and was conducted from July 17 to 22. Harstad has polled for President Barack Obama and other Democrats but emphasized that the poll in the governor's race was not conducted for Quinn or the DGA. The poll showed 8 percent of voters undecided and 3
percent favoring another candidate. The memo, for Campaign Pro subscribers:
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TECH-BACKED SUPER PAC PUSHES 'NO DARK MONEY' PLEDGE: A new super PAC founded by tech entrepreneurs is pushing for candidates in key midterm races to take a pledge rejecting any "dark money," or undisclosed spending, by outside groups. CounterPAC launched with three full-page newspaper ads: One in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, targeting the Georgia Senate race; another in Alaska Dispatch News (formerly the Anchorage Daily News), focused on Alaska's Senate race; and a third in The Charleston Gazette, directed at West Virginia's 3rd District contest.

The group, modeled after the "People's Pledge" in the 2012 Massachusetts Senate race, "will act as the arbiter and enforcer of the pledge after candidates have agreed to the terms, which include rejecting expenditures from undisclosed sources and countering rejected expenditures by donating 50 percent of the cost of the rejected expenditure to a charity of the opposing candidate's choice," according to a statement. Jim Greer, former CEO of gaming site Kongregate, is a co-founder of the group. Others involved in the effort include Matt Cutts, head of the Webspam team at Google; Ethan Beard, entrepreneur-in-residence at Greylock Partners; and Ted Wang, a Silicon Valley-based partner at
Fenwick & West.

RATINGS CHANGES: Sabato's Crystal Ball changed its ratings in five gubernatorial races. Arkansas moves to "leans Republican" from "tossup," Hawaii moves to "tossup" from "leans Democratic," Illinois moves to "leans Republican" from "tossup," Kansas moves to "tossup" from "leans Republican" and Wisconsin moves to "leans Republican" from "likely Republican."
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As Scott DesJarlais stays in the game, Shelley Moore Capito pulls a switcheroo and President Obama adds fundraising dates, here's POLITICO's Morning Score: your daily guide to the 2014 midterms.

Days until the election: 96.

Thanks for joining us. We're eager for your news and feedback. Does your campaign, PAC or firm have personnel moves to announce? New insights on what works in advertising, digital or voter contact? Email us at
mailto:etitus@politico.com
etitus@politico.com and
mailto:jdelreal@politico.com
jdelreal@politico.com or find us on Twitter at @
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emtitus and @
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jdelrea l.

** It's not possible to win campaigns this cycle without having a focus on Hispanics who are 50% of A18+ in 25 congressional districts. Univision connects you with Hispanic voters via TV, radio and digital. Visit:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=aa231c71e82a198e06a2bd81c31352845599a4e52d422a2319bf45d79cfdb730
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=aa231c71e82a198e06a2bd81c31352845599a4e52d422a2319bf45d79cfdb730 to contact us, and for case studies on how to win the Latino vote. **

TODAY ON CAMPAIGN PRO:

- "Scandal-ridden DesJarlais a tough out in Tennessee primary," by Tarini Parti:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=aa231c71e82a198e41b4d959397901a40c41b596016b1e39310c82346121930f
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=aa231c71e82a198e41b4d959397901a40c41b596016b1e39310c82346121930f

-"Capito runs harsher, unreleased attack ad," by James Hohmann:
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TODAY ON POLITICO - "Ethanol fuels a clash in corn country," by Erica Martinson in Cedar Rapids, Iowa: "While critics ranging from environmentalists to anti-subsidy fiscal conservatives have turned against ethanol, [Democrat Bruce] Braley is busy posing at gas stations that sell the corn-based biofuel, campaigning with farmers and pressuring EPA to protect the federal mandate that guarantees corn's role in the U.S. fuel supply. His Republican opponent, state Sen. Joni Ernst, has been more elusive on the issue - saying she 'philosophically' opposes government meddling in markets but promising to protect EPA's ethanol program until all other subsidies are repealed. ...

"Less-than-overwhelming enthusiasm for EPA's ethanol mandate is a rare stance for any candidate in Iowa, from either party, so a perception that Ernst is wobbly on biofuels would offer an advantage to Braley. Ernst's opponents have also attacked her for planning to attend a Washington fundraiser hosted by the oil industry, one of ethanol's biggest opponents. But Braley, whose campaign leans heavily on his influence in Washington, faces pressure to show he can deliver. A key test is expected in the coming weeks, when EPA announces a decision that could make or break the federal mandate that requires gasoline refiners to blend ethanol into their fuel."
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http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=aa231c71e82a198efc17e57918a1900aac164e0ca2b045d13df4acb226fe9fb0

- "Harry Reid's Nevada," by Manu Raju: "The decision to swing through Nevada two years before campaign season [as Joe Biden, Martin O'Malley and Hillary Clinton have done or plan to do] speaks to the state's position as the first in the West during the presidential nominating contest in 2016. ... And Reid is glad, too. ... The usually sleepy lieutenant governor's race could help determine who Reid faces in 2016, should he run for a sixth term. ... So it should come as little surprise the Reid team is going all out for [Democrat Lucy] Flores. ... 'Harry talks about her constantly,' Biden said of Flores last week at the Henderson Convention Center to roughly 300 Democrats, just outside Las
Vegas. 'I thought she was his daughter at first.'"
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POLITICO SPEED READ: "Begich blasts Reid on amendments," by Manu Raju:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=aa231c71e82a198eca5049d8b03281445972493b8bb100983b64378e13a06216
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=aa231c71e82a198eca5049d8b03281445972493b8bb100983b64378e13a06216 ... "At-risk Democrats stress over Obama and immigration," by Carrie Budoff Brown and Seung Min Kim:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=aa231c71e82a198ee29939135ef4edd06e21dbce83ba7d827714d3554ad2e65e
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=aa231c71e82a198ee29939135ef4edd06e21dbce83ba7d827714d3554ad2e65e .

QUICK HITS ACROSS THE MAP -

HI-Sen: Democratic Rep. Colleen Hanabusa launched her closing-argument TV ad, a direct-to-camera spot in which she doesn't mention Sen. Brian Schatz but says, "I worry that Hawaii is becoming more and more like everywhere else, and less like the place we've always loved."
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TN-Sen: GOP Sen. Lamar Alexander's internal polling continues to show him leading primary challenger Joe Carr by a wide margin, 53 percent to 24 percent.
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AR-Gov: Republican Asa Hutchinson leads Democrat Mike Ross, 46 percent to 41 percent, according to a Talk Business & Politics/Hendrix College poll.
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NY-Gov: U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara sent a letter "threaten[ing] to investigate the Cuomo administration for possible obstruction of justice or witness tampering," The New York Times reported overnight.
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DCCC, DSCC: President Obama is set to fundraise for House Democrats on Aug. 29 in Rhode Island and Senate Democrats on Sept. 12 in Maryland.
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CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY: "You want to make sure you have access to those people, and the airplane accomplishes that." - Businessman Jonnie Williams testifying in the Bob and Maureen McDonnell trial.
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SIGN UP FOR CAMPAIGN PRO - Designed for you, the political professional, Campaign Pro has what you've been asking for: real-time news, analysis and data on more than 60 House, Senate and gubernatorial races - plus an earlier and more comprehensive version of this newsletter - Morning Score. Get the information you need to do your job - first, fast and all in one place. Sign up for Campaign Pro today.
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DON'T MISS the latest story from POLITICO's ongoing series All Policy is Local: Energy examining how energy policy issues are affecting the 2014 midterms. This must-read piece centers around Iowa where corn is at the core of the election. Get it here:
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** 50,000 Latino citizens turn 18 every month and are eligible to vote. It's not possible to win many local, federal and statewide races this cycle without having a strategic focus on Hispanics who account for nearly 15% of the Electorate, and 50% of Adults 18+ in 25 key congressional districts.

Those kinds of numbers swing elections, and smart campaign managers and political consultants know it. It's not whether Hispanics have a voice this cycle. It's whether they'll hear yours.

Univision Communications Inc. (UCI) is the gateway for all campaigns looking to connect with Hispanic voters.We provide strategic and creative assistance and paid media recommendations utilizing 62 top-rated TV stations and 68 market-leading radio stations; plus, zip code, district and statewide geo-targeted digital and mobile platforms.

Visit today:
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