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By Daniel Strauss | 04/24/2017 10:00 AM EDT


With Kevin Robillard, Scott Bland and Bianca Padró Ocasio

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)

FINANCIAL TIMES - We've noted several times recently that Democratic candidate fundraising has been on fire to start 2017, driven by never-before-seen rates of online donating. Democratic party committees have touted new records each month of the first quarter. And yet, the GOP party committees have been outraising them. While the Democratic committees are leaning on that high-octane online fundraising, Republicans - in power at all levels in Washington - are bringing in more big checks.

- The DCCC raised $13.2 million in March, part of a record $30.8 million in the first quarter - but the NRCC raised $15.4 million in March and $35.9 million in the first quarter. The RNC was narrowly outraised by the DNC in March, $12.17 million to $12.14 million, but has a wide lead for the whole quarter: $41.4 million to $23.6 million. And the DSCC raised $6.5 million in March and about $14 million in the first quarter - but was outraised by the NRSC, which raised $7 million in March and $16.4 million in the first quarter.

- Cash on hand after Q1 - RNC: $41.4 million, DNC: $10.5 million - NRCC: $27.2 million, DCCC: $16.5 million - NRSC: $13.3 million, DSCC: $12.5 million.

- One more fundraising note: Keep an eye on the special elections. In GA-06, Democrat Jon Ossoff raised $8.3 million in the pre-primary period and millions more since then. Now that Republican Karen Handel has advanced to the runoff, she too is benefitting from the huge levels of interest in the special, telling donors she raised more than $500,000 in 48 hours after making the runoff late Tuesday night. In Montana, Democrat Rob Quist's fundraising is accelerating, while wealthy Republican Greg Gianforte would not lack for campaign cash even if the race wasn't one to watch.

2018 SIREN - "Republicans sound alarm on Trump's troubles ahead of 2018, " by POLITICO's Alex Isenstadt: "Republicans say President Donald Trump needs to turn things around fast - or the GOP could pay dearly in 2018. With the party preparing to defend its congressional majorities in next year's midterms, senior Republicans are expressing early concern about Trump's lack of legislative accomplishments, his record-low approval ratings, and the overall dysfunction that's gripped his administration ... Potential GOP candidates whom party leaders want to recruit are afraid of walking into a buzz saw, uncertain about what kind of political environment they'll be facing by the time the midterms
come around - and what Trump's record will look like."

- "... [I]nterviews with more than a dozen top Republican operatives, donors and officials reveal a growing trepidation about how the initial days of the new political season are unfolding. And they underscore a deep anxiety about how the party will position itself in 2018 as it grapples with the leadership of an unpredictable president still acclimating to Washington. ... 'It's not the way you'd want to start a new cycle,' said Randy Evans, a Republican National Committee member from Georgia. 'At some point, they've got to find some kind of rhythm, and there is no rhythm yet.'" Full story.

SPECIAL ELECTION UPDATE - "NRCC ups Montana ad spending to $1.2 million," by Campaign Pro's Elena Schneider: "Congressional Leadership Fund has also expanded its ad buy in the district and released a new TV ad Friday. The increased Republican spending comes as Quist's fundraising has accelerated. On Thursday, his campaign announced passing $2 million raised, including $700,000 in the previous nine days. The NRCC ads will air on Great Falls and Missoula broadcast stations, but will expand to statewide." Full story.

LA PRESIDENTIELLE - "Macron, Le Pen face off for French presidency," via POLITICO Europe: Full story.

Days until the 2017 election: 197.

Days until the 2018 election: 561.

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

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

THE GLOBAL POLITICO PODCAST: REVENGE OF THE NEOCONS? In an exclusive for The Global POLITICO, Paul Wolfowitz, architect of the Iraq war, talks Trump, Iraq and his fears the country could descend into "chaotic violence" all over again, and the need for America to step back up in the melting down Middle East. An original #nevertrumper, hehe says he's now seeing "fantastic opportunity" in Trump's newly assertive foreign policy. Listen and subscribe iTunes | Soundcloud | Stitcher

THE NEXT SPECIAL - Norman, Parnell lead fundraising in South Carolina: Compared to hotly contested races in Montana and Georgia, the special election to replace OMB Director Mick Mulvaney hasn't received much attention. The May 2 party primaries, which will likely be followed by May 16 runoffs. Ralph Norman, a Republican real estate developer, leads the money race so far, raising $590,000 (including a $305,000 loan) and with $407,000 on hand. That's three times the cash on hand of Tommy Pope, the speaker pro tem of the state House, who has $142,000 in the bank. Chad Connelly, who has the endorsement of House Freedom Caucus leader Mark Meadows of North Carolina, has raised $189,000 but has
just $12,000 left in the bank. Archie Parnell, a senior vice president at Goldman Sachs and the leading Democrat in the field, has $178,000 on hand. He's raised less than a quarter-million dollars so far, a pittance compared to Quist and Ossoff.

- "Sheri Few, facing better-known foes, lights lots of fuses," by the Lancaster News' Greg Summers: "Sheri Few is sticking to her guns, particularly the prominent AR-15 in her most recent online political ad. Few, one of seven Republicans running for the 5th Congressional District seat, has been the most incendiary campaigner from the start. Friday she drew criticism for a 30-second commercial that she started airing on her website. The ad criticizes fellow Republicans Tommy Pope and Ralph Norman for voting to remove the Confederate flag from the State House grounds in 2015. The flag removal was in response to white supremacist Dylann Roof's killing of nine members at Emanuel AME Church in
Charleston." Full story.

- Pope is out with a new ad, where he promises to strengthen the military and repeal Obamacare. Watch the ad here.

VIRGINIA DEBATE - "Accused of disloyalty, Gillespie stands by his condemnation of Trump's Access Hollywood' comments about grabbing women," by the Richmond Times-Dispatch's Graham Moomaw: "During the final major debate of the GOP primary schedule, Saturday at Goochland High School, Corey Stewart, who was fired last year as chairman of Trump's Virginia campaign, accused Gillespie of failing to support Trump 'when the chips are down.' 'He didn't show up at a single Trump rally. Not one,' Stewart said. ... Gillespie, a former Republican National Committee chairman, said of Trump's remarks in the 2005 recording, which became public Oct. 7, 'I still don't think they were appropriate comments to
make. To his credit, he said the same thing. Corey's the only one who thinks they were great comments and is standing by them.' Gillespie's response drew both applause and raucous boos from the crowd of conservative activists gathered for the debate sponsored by the Virginia Tea Party Patriots Federation." Full story.

- "Ralph Northam, Tom Perriello discuss rural issues in first forum," by the Roanoke Times' Carmen Forman: "Perriello and Northam spoke to the crowd of about 50 people separately, but answered identical questions at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum. Both reassured their liberal friends that winning votes in Southwest Virginia is possible, as long as candidates show up and listen to the region's voters. They agreed Southwest Virginia can't rely on coal jobs to survive and grow." Full story.

BACK TO SCHOOL - "Inside Democrats' 'American Idol'-Style Campaign School" by MSNBC's Alex Seitz-Wald: "Over 1,300 aspiring campaign managers, field directors, and finance chiefs have so far enrolled in what the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is calling "DCCC-University."...Like "American Idol" for political junkies, students who show the most promise in each of the cities will be invited to a more advanced course in Washington, D.C. They hope to discover promising political talent outside the Beltway, and to provide a path into politics for accomplished people in other professions who are looking for ways to fight Trump, but might not have any experience in campaigns...The
DCCC has faced blowback for not investing more in this year's special elections, like a recent one in Kansas and upcoming one in Montana. But they hope long-term investments in human capital will pay big dividends for years to come in multiple races. As a sign of his group's commitment to the effort, DCCC Executive Director Dan Sena noted they created a new department to focus on training at party headquarters." Full story.

NRSC ATTACKS USING WARREN - "GOP ads compare vulnerable Senate Dems to Elizabeth Warren" by CNN's Miranda Green. "The National Republican Senatorial Committee is launching an ad campaign comparing Democrats in vulnerable states to "extreme Massachusetts liberal Elizabeth Warren" as part of their midterm strategy. In digital ads and email blasts, the GOP campaign committee compares 10 incumbent Democrats in states that were either highly competitive or broke in Trump's favor in 2016 to Warren, including Ohio's Sherrod Brown, Montana's Jon Tester, and Missouri's Claire McCaskill, whose voting records the NRSC says match Warren's 97%, 90%, and 88% of the time, respectively." Full story.

ADMINISTRATION SPEED READ - "White House, Democrats to hammer 'promises' as 100-day mark nears," by POLITICO's Edward-Isaac Dovere and Josh Dawsey: "Democrats and Republicans agree the word of the week will be 'promises.' As President Donald Trump's 100th day in office nears, the battle will be over whether they've been kept or broken ... Democrats so far have been divided on how to peel supporters away from Trump, but this week's strategy will launch a broader effort heading into the midterm election cycle to convince voters he is a phony, congressional aides said. 'So far, the president's first 100 days have been defined by broken promises to America's working class,' Senate Minority
Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement ... Trump has packed his next six days with meetings and meals with prominent senators, ambassadors from United Nations Security Council countries, and U.S. Supreme Court justices. Higher-profile Cabinet secretaries will hit the road to promote his agenda, and the president plans to woo his base with a White House reception for conservative media figures and a speech at the National Rifle Association conference. The White House hopes the hectic schedule drowns out coverage of the misfires and highlights his successes." Full story.

CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY: "President Xi, we have a, like, a really great relationship. For me to call him a currency manipulator and then say, 'By the way, I'd like you to solve the North Korean problem,' doesn't work." - President Donald Trump, explaining during an interview with The Associated Press' Julie Pace the importance of being flexible in his 100 days agenda. The full transcript is here.

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