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By Maggie Severns | 05/29/2018 10:00 AM EDT


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. (http://www.politicopro.com/proinfo)

BREAKING OVER THE HOLIDAY - "Garrett to quit Congress amid servant scandal, alcoholism," by POLITICO's Alex Isenstadt and John Bresnahan: "Rep. Tom Garrett (R-Va.) said Monday that he is an alcoholic and will not seek reelection in November - a decision that came amid mounting scrutiny into his handling of his congressional office. The 46-year-old Garrett was the subject of a POLITICO report on Friday citing four former aides who said that the congressman and his wife, Flanna, had used official staff to run errands and take care of their dog. In his Monday statement, he called the allegations 'a series of half-truths and whole lies' ...

"The Virginia filing deadline has passed, so it will now be up to local Republican officials to select a replacement to run in the general election. The names mentioned include state Sen. Bill Stanley, state Sen. Jill Vogel, and state Del. Rob Bell. 'Depending on who the committee picks, Republican chances of holding the seat have greatly increased,' said Chris LaCivita, a longtime Virginia-based GOP strategist." Full story.

- President Donald Trump beat Hillary Clinton in Garrett's district 53 percent to 42 percent during the 2016 elections, according to data compiled by Daily Kos. As of May 22, the Cook Political Report rated VA-05 as "lean Republican."

- ICYMI - "Ex-aides say congressman made them his servants," by POLITICO's Rachael Bade, Alex Isenstadt and Kyle Cheney: "Virginia Rep. Tom Garrett and his wife turned the congressman's staff into personal servants, multiple former employees to the freshman Republican told POLITICO - assigning them tasks from grocery shopping to fetching the congressman's clothes to caring for their pet dog, all during work hours." Full story.

HAPPENING TODAY - Trump travels to Tennessee: The president is in Tennessee today, where he will fundraise for Rep. Marsha Blackburn's Senate bid and hold a rally in Nashville. More here from the Associated Press.

FIRST IN SCORE - VoteVets pops TV ad to boost Ryan in NY-19: VoteVets is up with a TV ad to support Democrat Pat Ryan in his crowded primary to take on GOP Rep. John Faso. The ad emphasizes Ryan's support for "common sense gun safety" and his background as a veteran. The ad is backed by a $130,000 buy, airing May 30 to June 8. Watch the ad here.

Days until the 2018 election: 161.

Upcoming election dates - June 5: Alabama, California, Iowa, Mississippi, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico and South Dakota primaries - June 12: Maine, Nevada, North Dakota, South Carolina and Virginia primaries. June 26: Colorado, Maryland, New York (congressional), Oklahoma and Utah primaries and Mississippi and South Carolina primary runoffs.

Upcoming filing deadlines - Arizona: May 30 - Vermont: May 31 - Alaska, Kansas, Wisconsin and Wyoming: June 1 - Hawaii and Minnesota: June 5 - Connecticut: June 12.

Thanks for joining us! You can email tips to the Campaign Pro team at sbland@politico.com, eschneider@politico.com, dstrauss@politico.com, mseverns@politico.com and jarkin@politico.com.

You can also follow us on Twitter: @politicoscott, @ec_schneider, @danielstrauss4, @maggieseverns and @jamesarkin.

ANOTHER FOR THE LIST - NJ-11 Democrat Mikie Sherrill said at a debate last week she wouldn't support Nancy Pelosi for minority leader or speaker next year: "I'm glad to see that Paul Ryan decided not to run for reelection, but in the Democratic Party, we have to look at ourselves as well. So, I won't be supporting Nancy Pelosi for leadership either, because we know that the next 50 years aren't going to look like the last 50 years, and we need a new generation of leaders," Sherrill said, per the New Jersey Globe. The comments "were a change from previous forums when she declined to say if she would, or would not, support Pelosi," InsiderNJ.com noted.

UP ON AIR - Hogan releases first television ad: Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan is going up on air with his first television ad, backed with a $1.3 million buy. The ad focuses on Hogan's record as governor. "When we needed a leader, Larry Hogan was there. And when Larry Hogan needed us, we returned the favor," a narrator says in the ad. Watch it here.

GAS HIKE - "Democrats steal GOP playbook to attack Trump on gas prices," by POLITICO's Ben Lefebvre and Anthony Adragna: "A spike in gasoline prices is giving Democrats a rare chance to borrow an old Republican tactic: pounding the occupant of the White House for motorists' pain at the pump. They're unleashing the message with gusto against President Donald Trump, arguing that his foreign policy moves - including his push to reimpose sanctions on Iran - are to blame for a 50-cent-per-gallon surge in prices since he took office. Democrats also note that gas prices are the highest they've been in nearly four years despite the multibillion-dollar windfall that oil companies received from the
GOP-backed tax bill. ...

"But the Democratic message faces a big obstacle, even as the party is riding a wave of optimism to the November midterms: Short of an energy crisis like the one Jimmy Carter faced in his 1980 reelection campaign, it's tough to convince voters the president is to blame for expensive gas, as GOP candidate Mitt Romney found out when he tried to use it against Barack Obama in 2012." Full story.

THE CALIFORNIANS - "Democrats Go All-Out to Avoid Disaster in California House Races," by The New York Times' Jonathan Martin in Irvine, Calif.: "National Democrats, confronting mushrooming political chaos across Southern California, are pouring millions of dollars into congressional races to avert a self-inflicted disaster that could undermine their chances at taking control of the House. After months of optimism that the state's June 5 primary would position them to pick off seven Republican-held districts in November - a substantial down payment on reclaiming the House - Democrats are now trying to ensure that they do not hurt themselves because of their unusually crowded slates of
candidates." Full story.

HOT DOC - Ervin threatens to sue in letter to Board of Elections: Valerie Ervin, who is running for governor in Maryland after her running mate Kevin Kamenetz unexpectedly died, sent a letter over the weekend threatening to sue the State Board of Elections if it doesn't reprint ballots that add her name as a candidate for governor and her new running mate as a candidate for lieutenant governor in time for the primary election. See the letter here. More via The Baltimore Sun.

SAD NEWS - "George H.W. Bush hospitalized in Maine," by POLITICO's Brent D. Griffiths: "Former President George H.W. Bush was hospitalized in Maine on Sunday, days after greeting well-wishers upon his arrival in Kennebunkport. 'President @GeorgeHWBush was taken to Southern Maine Health Care (@SMHCHealth) today after experiencing low blood pressure and fatigue,' Bush spokesman Jim McGrath wrote on Twitter." Full story.

CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY: "It's not in my plans. But I have not ruled anything out," Sen. Jeff Flake said over the weekend about the possibility of challenging President Donald Trump in 2020. "I do hope that somebody runs on the Republican side other than the president, if nothing else, simply to remind Republicans what conservatism is. And what Republicans have traditionally stood for."

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