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By Scott Wong (
mailto:swong@politico.com
swong@politico.com or @scottwongDC)

SIMPSON-BOWLES IN DEBATE SPOTLIGHT - It's not trending on Twitter but the bipartisan presidential debt commission known as Simpson-Bowles or Bowles-Simpson was uttered eight times during last night's debate. That's not surprising given that the debate focused on domestic issues, including how Congress will deal with the mounting debt, tax hikes and automatic spending cuts at the end of the year.

Here's one of the livelier exchanges about the $4 trillion debt-reduction plan as former Sen. Alan Simpson (R-Wyo.), a co-chair of the fiscal commission, looked on from the audience:

LEHRER: Governor, what about Simpson-Bowles? Do you support Simpson-Bowles? ...

ROMNEY: I have my own plan. It's not the same as Simpson-Bowles. But in my view, the president should have grabbed it. If you wanted to make some adjustments to it, take it, go to Congress, fight for it.

OBAMA: That's what we've done, made some adjustments to it, and we're putting it forward before Congress right now, a $4 trillion plan...

ROMNEY: But you've been -- but you've been president four years ...You've been president four years. You said you'd cut the deficit in half. It's now four years later. We still have trillion-dollar deficits.

-- The Hill's Jonathan Easley notes that Obama failed to mention "Bain" or "47 percent" - two of Democrats' most effective lines of attack against Romney - throughout the entire hour and a half debate.
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ROMNEY GETS A REPRIEVE - POLITICO's Jonathan Martin and John Harris lead the site this morning: "Mitt Romney took the debate stage here with top Republicans verging on panic over his listless and accident-prone campaign, publicly second-guessing their party's nominee and privately hedging their bets as they contemplated the long odds he was facing. He left the stage as a man who had won a debate, a reprieve from early obituaries, and at least the possibility of a fresh look from the relatively narrow slice of voters still open to persuasion in a highly polarized electorate. ...

-- "At a minimum, Romney's performance has chased away the aroma of terminal illness that was starting to emanate from his campaign and the increasingly restive factions in and around his operation. He has given conservatives a performance to rally behind, likely stalled any effort by GOP moneymen to start directing money away from the presidential race in favor of congressional races, and, not least, bolstered his own self-confidence after weeks of painful stubbed toes and jeering commentary. ...

-- Surrogates in the Senate said Romney's performance has energized Republicans up and down the ticket. "'It gives Mitt Romney the opportunity now to have more key people, undecided voters, listen to what he's staying,' said Rob Portman (R-Ohio), who has been playing Obama in debate preparations.

-- "'We saw such a strong and effective leader tonight that I'd like to see some of this in the advertising plan,' said Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.).

-- "'This was a make or break moment for the Romney campaign and he delivered," said Sen.John Thune (R-S.D.), adding, with a chuckle: "A lot of my colleagues who are in tough races were really encouraged by what they saw tonight. They saw somebody ready to run this thing to the finish line."
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RUBIO: 'WE HAVE A NEW RACE' - The Washington Post's David Nakamura and Phillip Rucker report from the post-debate spin room in Denver: "Portman. Rubio. Giuliani. Hatch. They had come to claim victory before the first presidential debate had concluded, a show of confidence - and no shortage of satisfaction after a long month of GOP self-doubt - in their belief that their candidate had clearly bested President Obama. 'We have a new race, ladies and gentlemen,' Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) declared the moment Romney uttered the last word of his closing statement. It would be 15 more minutes before the first Democrats arrived in the media spin room - first campaign director Jim Messina, then
senior White House adviser David Plouffe, looking tired and uncertain as a handler guided him, weaving and bumping, through the crush of reporters surrounding the Romney surrogates."
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Wall Street Journal, A8, "Democratic backers steer cash to Congressional Races," By Brody Mullins and Melanie Trottman: "Big Democratic interest groups such as labor unions and environmental organizations are largely bypassing President Barack Obama's re-election and pouring millions of dollars instead into congressional races. Since June, these groups have outspent Republican super PACs by a two-to-one margin in House races, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of advertising spending. The groups are lagging financially in Senate races overall, but have outdone Republicans in some individual contests by pooling resources.

-- "In one Michigan House race, Democratic groups are outspending their GOP rivals eight to one. Unions have come to the aid of Democratic Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren in Massachusetts. And environmental groups appear to have helped put a New Mexico Senate seat for now in the Democratic column."
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SONS OF FARMWORKERS SEEK SEATS IN CONGRESS - Phil Willon writes for the L.A. Times: Jose Hernandez, a former NASA scientist, is part of an unusual political club: "congressional candidates in California who are also the sons of Mexican farmworkers, hoping to represent the farming towns where their parents once picked strawberries, peppers or tomatoes. Hernandez, a Democrat; Republican former Lt. Gov. Abel Maldonado; Coachella Valley physician and Democrat Raul Ruiz; and state Sen. Juan Vargas (D-San Diego have cast their stories in the glowing American context of hope and opportunity for all. Their rise also affirms the growing political strength of Latinos in the California countryside,
far from the major cities and urban neighborhoods that have been their traditional base of support."
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-- Democrats are pushing a McClatchy story that Maldonado raised tens of thousands of dollars for a state race "on the same day as a party as a party in his honor that his family's business later claimed as a business expense on its federal income tax return."
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FAREWELL TO CONGRESS - POLITICO reporter Kate Nocera and photographer Jay Westcott profile six lawmakers - Reps. Ron Paul, David Dreier, Heath Schuler, Steve LaTourette, Lynn Woosley and Barney Frank - who are saying goodbye to Congress at the end of the year. Their stories and portraits:
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DEMS BUY ADS IN NEVADA SENATE RACE - Former Las Vegas Sun columnist Jon Ralston reports for his blog: "The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and the Majority PAC both made buys today in Nevada to try to help Rep. Shelley Berkley in what Democrats for months fretted was a race going Sen. Dean Heller's way. The purchases are substantial and the Majority PAC buy is in Reno, where Berkley needs to do well to win. And by doing well, I mean not lose by too much. The continually increasing Clark County voter registration numbers now show Democrats may have close to a 115,000 lead in Southern Nevada by the time registration closes. Perspective: When Obama won the state by 12 points here
in 2008, the Democrats had a 125,000-voter lead in the South.
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A DEAD HEAT IN CONN. SENATE RACE - A new Quinnipiac University Poll this morning shows Republican Linda McMahon leading Democratic Rep. Chris Murphy 48 percent to 47 percent, the AP reports.
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SENATE 5: McCASKILL LEADS IN POLLS, MONEY GAME - In our new daily feature called the Senate 5, Scott Wong and David Catanese write: "Two polls out Wednesday show Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill leading Republican challenger Todd Akin by six points, with one survey putting the Missouri senator over the '50 percent mark for the first time.' McCaskill also tweeted that she had a very good third-quarter haul: $5.8 million. The Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of 500 likely voters showed 51 percent favored McCaskill while 45 percent backed Akin, a congressman and former state lawmaker. A Public Policy Polling survey of 700 likely voters, conducted Monday through Wednesday, showed McCaskill
leading Akin 46 percent to 40 percent. The polling firm had McCaskill essentially tied with Akin in an earlier August poll. ...

-- "The volatile Wisconsin Senate race is beginning to settle down after broad swings in both candidates' directions. Marquette University - which has earned a reputation for its stellar projections this cycle - has a new survey showing Republican Tommy Thompson creeping back to within 4 points of Democratic Rep. Tammy Baldwin. The horserace is now 48 percent to 44 percent in Baldwin's favor - but that's a drop from her nine point advantage in a mid-September Marquette poll."
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TEDDY WINS! - The Teddy Roosevelt mascot won his first Presidents Race at Nationals Park Wednesday, Dan Steinberg writes on A1 of the Washington Post.
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@SenJohnMcCain: #Teddy won! #Teddy won! #Teddy won! We've defeated the massive left wing conspiracy!

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GOOD THURSDAY MORNING, October 4, 2012, and welcome to The Huddle, your play-by-play preview of the day's congressional news. Send tips, suggestions, comments, complaints and corrections to
mailto:swong@politico.com
swong@politico.com . If you don't already, please follow me on Twitter @scottwongDC.

My new followers include but are not limited to @NatashaMayer and @Edmond_Frost.

TODAY IN CONGRESS - Both the House and Senate are out on the campaign trail and won't return until after the Nov. 6 election.

HOUSE, SENATE LEADERS HIT CAMPAIGN TRAIL - Meredith Shiner reports: "A Roll Call survey of leadership offices reveals busy campaign schedules for every top-ranking Member, including Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Speaker John Boehner. Boehner has already been to Oklahoma, Texas, Illinois, South Carolina, Pennsylvania and Florida, with an East Coast swing through New York up next. The Ohio Republican's focus has been on 'orphan races' in states that lack a high-profile contest at the top of the ticket, or in which those ballot-topping races are less competitive for Republicans. On his last barnstorming tour, Boehner raised $4 million during the 23 days leading up to
August's Republican National Convention. Reid has space on his schedule for a few out-of-state fundraisers but plans to spend plenty of time in Nevada, where he has been trying to help Rep. Shelley Berkley unseat GOP Sen. Dean Heller. With early voting starting Oct. 20, Reid plans to attend get-out-the-vote rallies."
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JACKSON JR. MAY BE OUT OF SIGHT UNTIL AFTER ELECTION -- Rick Pearson and John Byrne report for the Chicago Tribune: "Ald. Sandi Jackson indicated Wednesday that voters might not see or hear from U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. before the Nov. 6 election, but she said he would remain on the ballot with 'no last-minute switcheroos.' The veteran congressman has been on medical leave from Congress for nearly four months as he seeks treatment for bipolar disorder. His wife, Chicago's 7th Ward alderman, said he is recuperating at the family's Washington, D.C., home and seeing doctors two to three times a week. But Ald. Jackson could not say when Jackson would return to public life. 'I believe
at some point in time he will come back. I don't know whether that will be before the election or after the election,' she said. Asked whether voters deserved to hear from the congressman before the election, Sandi Jackson said she 'hopes he will be able to do that.'"
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CHC POISED TO BOOST NUMBERS - Molly K. Hooper writes for The Hill: "The Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) is poised to bolster its ranks on Election Day.The 20-member Democratic caucus is losing three lawmakers to retirement and/or primary defeats. But the CHC might pick up as many as 10 new members, which would bolster the long-shot chances that Democrats will win back the House. ... Democratic insiders tracking the races say they are confident the CHC will gain at least five freshmen in 2013 with candidates Tony Cardenas (Calif.), Michelle Lujan Grisham (N.M.), Juan Vargas (Calif.), Filemon Vela (Texas) and Joe Garcia (Fla.). Rep. David Rivera (R-Fla.), who is Hispanic, is running
against Garcia in a race that The Hill has deemed leans Republican. Meanwhile, Texas state Rep. Joaquin Castro is a shoo-in for the San Antonio-based seat vacated by outgoing CHC Chairman Charles Gonzalez (D-Texas)."
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WEDNESDAY'S TRIVIA WINNER - Plenty of correct answers yesterday but Jim Casto was first to email that John Gorrie of Florida, the 'father of refrigeration and air-conditioning,' is honored with a statue in the Capitol.

TODAY'S TRIVIA - Colleen Shogan asks: Who is the only former U.S. president to serve as a "delegate" in the House of Representatives? First to correctly answer gets a mention in the next day's Huddle. Email me at
mailto:swong@politico.com
swong@politico.com .

WEATHER - Clouds and light rain this morning with some sun breaking through in the afternoon, according to ABC7's Brian van de Graaff.

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