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By 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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DOWN THE STRETCH THEY COME - It's the final weekend in the Kentucky GOP gubernatorial primary. Here's Friday's big news:

- "McConnell, Paul lay low in Kentucky primary," by Campaign Pro's Kyle Cheney in Louisville:
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- "Heiner ad calls out Comer, Bevin for scoring 'political points' on Comer abuse charges," by Kyle Cheney in Louisville:
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- "Republican candidates play nice while honing their closing arguments," by the Lexington Herald-Leader's Sam Youngman: "Weeks of mudslinging and controversy took a back seat Thursday night as the four Republican candidates for governor laid out their closing arguments just days before Kentuckians are set to go to the polls. The candidates, speaking at the Jefferson County Lincoln Day Dinner in downtown Louisville, combined their standard stump speeches with arguments about why they and not their opponents are uniquely suited to defeat likely Democratic nominee Jack Conway in the fall election. It was a peaceful affair, considering the tenor of the campaign."
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- "10 percent voter turnout predicted in Kentucky Tuesday," by the Herald-Leader's Jack Brammer:
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SENATE RACE RUMBLES -

- "Baron Hill says he will run for the U.S. Senate in 2016," by the Columbus (Ind.) Republic's Mark Webber: Former Rep. Baron Hill (D-Ind.) "told Democrats at the annual Bartholomew County Jefferson Jackson Dinner that he plans to run for the U.S. Senate in 2016. 'I want to be your next Senator,' Hill told a crowd of nearly 200 people [Thursday night]. The announcement ends speculation that he will run for governor next year. A formal announcement will be made before the start of the summer, Hill said."
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- "Russ Feingold running for Wisconsin Senate," by Campaign Pro's Kevin Robillard: "Former Sen. Russ Feingold said Thursday he would seek a rematch with Wisconsin GOP Sen. Ron Johnson in a race crucial to Democrats' hopes to win back the Senate in 2016. Feingold spent 18 years representing Wisconsin in the Senate before losing to Johnson, a tea party-affiliated businessman, by five percentage points in 2010. But the Democrat starts the 2016 race with an apparent advantage over Johnson: A Marquette Law School poll last month found Feingold earning 54 percent of the vote, to 38 percent for the incumbent. 'Let's fight together for change,' Feingold says in an announcement video filmed at his
home in Middleton, Wis. 'That means helping to bring back to the U.S. Senate strong independence, bipartisanship and honesty. So, today, I'm pleased to announce I'm running for the U.S. Senate in 2016.'"
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- "Russ Feingold and His Ghosts," by WisPolitics.com editor JR Ross, in POLITICO Magazine: "The Russ Feingold of 2016 will face a much better environment than the Russ Feingold of 2010. But can he find the magic he had in 2004, 1998 or 1992 without seeming dated? ... As Wisconsin insiders size up the race, they see several things that will play in Feingold's favor: He has a Democratic base that's already fired up for his comeback, the state is much more Democratic in presidential elections than off years and Johnson has largely failed to connect with the moderate voters he'll need to have a shot in 2016."
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- "Sanchez launches California Senate campaign," Campaign Pro's Elena Schneider:
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http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f55a26b324fdebd237ef9bf56f399df25526dd20909918e62e45a623695b24d4

- "Sittenfeld tacks left in Ohio Senate primary," by Campaign Pro's Kevin Robillard:
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- "[Sittenfeld] backs pot legalization," by the Toledo Blade's Jim Provance in Columbus: "Sittenfeld said Thursday he does not like everything about the marijuana legalization proposal likely headed for the November ballot, but he will vote for it if it's the only choice. Following a speech on the Statehouse steps to present himself as the proudly liberal Democrat alternative to the party's endorsed candidate, former Gov. Ted Strickland, the Cincinnati city councilman gave a weak endorsement of the proposed Responsible Ohio constitutional amendment. 'I look at the current laws around marijuana, and I see brutal drug dealers and cartels make billions of dollars,' he said. 'That money could
be going to building roads and bridges. I look at folks who have cancer or Alzheimer's who need the palliative care."
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As Dems gripe about Hillary and the Frank Guinta fallout continues, here's Campaign Pro's Morning Score: daily news, notes and essential information for the 2015 and 2016 election cycles.

Days until the 2015 election: 173; Days until the 2016 election: 544.

Thanks for joining us - it's been a privilege guiding you through the week in politics. Please congratulate
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@ec_schneider on her Cubbies' four-game-series sweep over my Mets - and her restraint in not gloating about it. Email tips or condolences at
mailto:sshepard@politico.com
sshepard@politico.com , or find me on Twitter at
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@POLITICO_Steve .

2016 IN 2 MINUTES -

- "The POLITICO Caucus: Dems say Hillary must campaign more," by POLITICO's James Hohmann and Katie Glueck: "Four in 10 Democratic insiders in the early states warn that Hillary Clinton is not spending enough time on the campaign trail, making her vulnerable to possible challenges from the left and dampening the enthusiasm of progressives who are already committed to her. The POLITICO Caucus - our weekly bipartisan pulse-taking of the most important activists, operatives and elected officials in Iowa and New Hampshire - also finds Democrats almost evenly divided over whether Clinton needs to take a firmer position on the trade battle that's gripped Washington this week, but many approve of
Bill Clinton's efforts to be a more silent partner in his wife's campaign."
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- "Bush backpedals amid Iraq furor," by POLITICO's Eli Stokols in Tempe, Ariz.: "After three days of hemming and hawing about his brother's decision to go to war in Iraq, Jeb Bush finally came up with a clear answer: 'Knowing what we know now, I would not invade.' Only days earlier, Bush was aggressively dismissing 'hypothetical' questions about the war in an effort to end the first real controversy enveloping his likely White House run - even saying it would be 'a disservice' to Iraq veterans to address those questions at all."
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- "Christie shrugs off doubts, hires two top campaign aides," by POLITICO's Alex Isenstadt: "Despite sagging poll numbers and lingering fallout from the Bridgegate scandal, Chris Christie continues to take steps to run for president in 2016. The New Jersey governor has made two new hires for his prospective campaign, bringing on Tom Dickens to serve as his national field director and Hayden Stone to be his national director of data and analytics, according to a source familiar with the moves."
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http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=f55a26b324fdebd20762bf7f964aeeaad6b55367b273be54735e5ee14c3caada

- "Stephanopoulos says he should not have donated to Clinton Foundation, will not moderate GOP debate," by POLITICO's Dylan Byers: "George Stephanopoulos says he should not have donated money to the Clinton Foundation and that he will not moderate the ABC News-sponsored Republican primary debate in February after failing to disclose those contributions. In an interview with POLITICO on Thursday, Stephanopoulos said that while he made the donations 'for the best reasons,' he now realizes he should not have given. 'In retrospect, I probably shouldn't have, even though I did it for the best reasons,' he said. Stephanopoulos also said that, contrary to earlier reports, he has given a total
of $75,000 to the Clinton Foundation. That figure represents charitable contributions of $25,000 in 2012, 2013 and 2014, respectively."
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CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY: "I'm not scared. Do I look scared?" - Johnson, commenting on Feingold's announcement in an interview with POLITICO's Burgess Everett.
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BONUS CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY: "We are a unique family." - Guinta's explanation to the Union Leader for the financial arrangement with his parents at the heart of his FEC settlement.
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