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By Kyle Cheney

With Tarini Parti and Steven Shepard

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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CRIME AND PUNISHMENT - "The end for Michael Grimm?" by POLITICO's Jake Sherman and John Bresnahan: "New York Rep. Michael Grimm has always been a survivor, so if he steps into a federal court in Brooklyn Tuesday and pleads guilty to a felony charge that he evaded taxes - as he is expected to do - it will likely be the beginning of the end for his brief, but spectacularly colorful, political career. There is no word yet on whether the New York Republican's plea deal will involve prison time, although with his record of public service, any period of incarceration would likely be short. Grimm faced as much as 20 years behind bars under his federal indictment. Yet what is all but certain is
that Grimm can't survive politically once he admits guilt."
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-- "Boehner won't say if Grimm has to go," by John Bresnahan and Jake Sherman: "[A] guilty plea by Grimm would make it hard for House Speaker John Boehner and other top Republicans to support his continued tenure in the House. The Ethics Committee has held off from moving against Grimm while the federal criminal case unfolds. However, if Grimm admitted to a crime in federal court, then Ethics could begin proceedings against him, which could include expulsion, among other sanctions. Democrats are likely to put heavy pressure on the GOP leadership to call for Grimm's resignation, hoping they can win that seat in a special election. Boehner's office declined to comment, and an aide to House
Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy did not respond to a request for comment.
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-- Trivia, from the Staten Island Advance: "Only five House members have been expelled in history, three of them for joining the Confederacy in 1861. The two others: Rep. Michael Myers (D-Pa.), expelled in 1980 after being convicted of bribery in the Abscam scandal, and Rep. James Traficant (D-Ohio), who was expelled in 2002 after being convicted of bribery, obstruction and racketeering."
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While the Kentucky gov race gets a shakeup and a Romney relative makes moves in Michigan, here's POLITICO's Morning Score: daily news, notes and essential information for the 2015 and 2016 election cycle.

Days until the 2015 election: 316; Days until the 2016 election: 686

Thanks for joining us. We're eager for your news and feedback. Email us at
mailto:kcheney@politico.com
kcheney@politico.com or find us on Twitter at @
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kyledcheney .

PROGRAMMING NOTE: This is the final issue of Morning Score for 2014. Happy holidays, and we'll see you on Jan. 5, 2015.

STAFFING UP - "Hal Heiner's campaign manager resigned earlier this month but still '100 percent' behind candidate," by CN2 Pure Politics' Kevin Wheatley: "The same day Holly Harris VonLuehrte announced her departure from the gubernatorial campaign of Agriculture Commissioner James Comer, the campaign of Louisville Republican Hal Heiner revealed it had also lost a top operative this month. Joe Burgan, who had managed Heiner's campaign since its launch in March, said he decided to resign his post Dec. 9 to explore other options, preferably a more flexible schedule so he can spend more time raising his newborn son.

"Unlike Comer, who said former U.S. Sen. Rand Paul field representative Edwin King would take over VonLuerhte's duties in the first week of January, Heiner's campaign had already hired a new point man about a month before Burgan's exit. Kyle Robertson, former campaign manager for Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder and Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, joined Heiner's team as a senior advisor in November to direct the campaign and ground organization."
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REPERCUSSIONS - McDaniel ally in state Senate draws a challenge: Per the Jackson Clarion-Ledger: "First-term Meadville Mayor Lane Reed has announced he will seek the state Senate District 37 seat currently held by Melanie Sojourner ... 'My focus will always be on the needs of District 37 not some other area of the state,' Reed said, apparently taking a jab at Sojourner, R-Natchez, who was campaign manager for U.S. Senate candidate Chris McDaniel's unsuccessful campaign against longtime Sen. Thad Cochran.' Sojourner, who is in her first-term, has yet to announce whether she will seek reelection."
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LOUISIANA SURPRISE? -- Is the Louisiana governor's race as big a snoozefest as it seems today? Conservative columnist Quin Hillyer, writing in the Baton Rouge Advocate, thinks otherwise. The evidence? When Bobby Jindal ran for governor in 2003, he was at the back of the pack and emerged as a contender late. That should give heart to third-string candidates like Lt. Gov. Jay Dardenne and Public Service Commissioner Scott Angelle, Hillyer writes. In other words, don't buy the conventional wisdom.
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STATE OF PLAY - Romney niece seeks Mich. GOP chairmanship: Mitt Romney's niece, Ronna Romney McDaniel, is making a bid for the chairmanship of the Michigan Republican Party - and claiming the support of 18 county chairs. "County parties are the lifeblood of the grassroots and I am proud to announce these leaders as my supporters," she wrote in a letter to party members. "They come from counties across Michigan - large and small. They know I am someone who listens and will want everyone to have a seat at the table for a broad-based discussion on how to make the Republican Party better. Romney McDaniel, who became a RNC national committeewoman earlier this year, then urges other supporters to
add their names to the list.

-- Panel recommends independent redistricting in Va.: An ethics advisory panel created by Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe adopted a set of recommendations today calling on the General Assembly to use nonpartisan criteria for redistricting and push to amend the commonwealth's constitution to create an independent redistricting commission before 2020. In the short term, to panel is urging the General Assembly to work with the governor to fix the state's congressional map next month. Following a court decision that ruled the state's 3rd District to be unconstitutional, the panel recommends the governor and legislature together create nonpartisan districts within 10 business days of the General
Assembly convening its 2015 regular session on Jan. 14. If they fail to redraw the lines within that time frame, the panel recommends the governor appoint a redistricting commission of his choosing. The recommendations:
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-- Mark your calendars: The Supreme Court will hear arguments in the Arizona redistricting case - do independent commissions violate the elections clause of the Constitution? - on March 2.
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CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY: 'I know that they will do everything they can to recruit somebody, but I can promise you it's not Sarah Palin.' - Sen. John McCain on the possibility of a Palin primary challenge to his reelection, per the Arizona Republic:
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