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By Daniel Strauss | 02/26/2018 10:00 AM EDT


With Elena Schneider

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)

SPECIAL ELECTION SEASON - "Sexting scandal threatens Arizona seat," by Campaign Pro's Elena Schneider: "The Arizona congressional seat vacated by former GOP Rep. Trent Franks should be an easy hold for Republicans, but some in the party are worried that one of the frontrunners in Tuesday's primary could put the seat at risk if he wins the nomination. Former state Sen. Steve Montenegro has lined up endorsements from Franks and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), whose leadership PAC boosted Montenegro in TV ads. He was tied in the polls with Debbie Lesko, his former colleague in the state Senate - both quit the chamber to run for the seat - when ballots were mailed out at the end of January. But with a
week to go until the votes are tallied, a bombshell report of nude text messages exchanged with a legislative staffer roiled Montenegro's campaign, leaving GOP operatives wondering if 'it could be Alabama all over again,' said Shiree Verdone, who ran Arizona Sen. John McCain's 2010 Senate race." Full story.

LIPINSKI VS. NEWMAN - "Anti-abortion Democrat snubbed by party for reelection" by POLITICO's Heather Caygle: "Dan Lipinski is the kind of candidate Democrats need more of for the party to win the House in November. But the national Democratic party is refusing to endorse him. ... Lipinski is one of three co-chairmen of the Blue Dogs, a coalition of center-left Democrats that has been struggling to rebuild since Republicans took back the House, wiping out many of the group's members, in 2010. After years of feeling ignored and sometimes shunned by the DCCC - Blue Dogs have said the campaign arm is historically biased toward progressive candidates, even if they aren't the best fit for a
district - this election cycle was supposed to bring a better working relationship between the two groups." Full story.

DIVIDED CALIFORNIA DEMOCRATS - "California Democrats decline to endorse Feinstein" by POLITICO's David Siders and Carla Marinucci: "In a sharp rebuke to Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the California Democratic Party has declined to endorse the state's own senior senator in her bid for reelection. Riven by conflict between progressive and more moderate forces at the state party's annual convention here, delegates favored Feinstein's progressive rival, state Senate leader Kevin de León, over Feinstein by a vote of 54 percent to 37 percent, according to results announced Sunday." Full story.

- Democrats also didn't endorse in governor, attorney general races, via The Los Angeles Times.

- Handful of House Democratic challengers in competitive races secured the nod: Four Democrats in top-tier races picked up endorsements from the party: Emilio Huerta, Dave Min, Hans Keirstead and Ammar Campa-Najjar. But they weren't secured without some drama, including "causing a couple of late-night confrontations in the convention center halls." Several other primaries received a "no consensus" result, meaning the races to take on Reps. Jeff Denham and Steve Knight, as well as the open races to replace Reps. Ed Royce and Darrell Issa, have no party-endorsed candidates. Find a full list of endorsements here.

FIRST IN SCORE - "Not One Penny poll charts Democrats' tax-reform strategy," by Campaign Pro's Kevin Robillard: "GBA Strategies' Margie Omero conducted the poll for Not One Penny, a coalition of Democratic groups fighting the new tax law that together plans to spend more than $10 million on television advertising attacking GOP members of Congress who voted for the plan. The survey found 40 percent of registered voters have a positive opinion about the law, while 44 percent have a negative opinion. It also found voters aren't fully convinced the law is helping them, and are even less certain about whether it will help them in the coming year.

"Democrats and Republicans have both pegged the popularity of the tax reform law, especially its impact on the middle class, as a key fight in the 2018 midterms. Not One Penny plans to present the findings of the poll to Democratic leaders in the House and Senate, and Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chairman Chris Van Hollen will discuss the poll on a conference call on Monday. 'Engaging on taxes is essential given the current political landscape: despite broader climate advantages for Democrats, voters are somewhat optimistic about the economy and the tax plan's economic impact, but are responsive to progressive arguments about the law's negative consequences,' Omero wrote in a
memo making the case for fighting against GOP efforts to sell the law." Full story.

FIRST IN SCORE - House Majority PAC, BOLD PAC pop digital ads on DREAMers: "House Majority PAC and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus' BOLD PAC are releasing a round of English- and Spanish-language digital ads attacking Republicans in four House districts for "[offering] false hope and empty promises" to DREAMers, according to one of the ads. The ads will target voters in districts held by Reps. Denham (CA-10), Mike Coffman (CO-06), Carlos Curbelo (FL-26) and Barbara Comstock (VA-10) - all battleground seats with large Hispanic populations." Full story.

- ClearPath Action Fund endorses Heller, Curbelo: "ClearPath Action Fund, a super PAC founded by Republican Jay Faison, announced today that it's endorsing Florida Rep. Carlos Curbelo and Nevada Sen. Dean Heller, along with financial commitments to back the Republican incumbents." Full story.

Days until the 2018 election: 254

Upcoming election dates - Arizona 8th District special primary: Feb. 27. Texas primaries: March 6. Pennsylvania 18th District special election: March 13. Illinois primaries: March 20.

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

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

SPECIAL ELECTION SEASON, PT. II - "Americans for Prosperity jumps into PA-18" by Campaign Pro's Elena Schneider: "Americans for Prosperity announced today that it's jumping into the special congressional election in western Pennsylvania with a mail and phone-banking program that will go after Democrat Conor Lamb. The mail piece tells voters that Lamb's 'liberal agenda is bad for Pennsylvania,' featuring images of both Lamb and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. It also says Lamb is 'another rubber stamp vote for Democrats and Pelosi's liberal agenda.'" Full story.

- Lamb attacks Pelosi in lastest TV ad: Lamb, responding to a barrage of Republican TV ads linking him to Pelosi, released a TV ad that reiterated his opposition to her leadership. "My opponent wants you to believe that the biggest issue in this campaign is Nancy Pelosi. It's all a big lie," Lamb says, directly addressing the camera. "I've already said on the front page of the newspaper that I don't support Nancy Pelosi." Lamb goes on to promise that he'll protect health care, education and Medicare and Social Security. Watch the ad here.

- "Court won't immediately halt new Pennsylvania congressional map" by Campaign Pro's Steven Shepard: "A federal court in Pennsylvania has declined Republicans' request that it immediately halt implementation of the state's new congressional map, but the three-judge panel agreed late [Friday] to hear arguments over the new map early next month. ... Eight Republican members of the state's congressional delegation, along with state Senate GOP leaders, had asked for a temporary injunction, arguing that is appropriate because the filing period for the 2018 election begins Tuesday. But the court said 'the alleged injury articulated in plaintiffs' motion is not so exigent as to justify issuance
of temporary injunctive relief in light of the court's willingness to expedite resolution of plaintiffs' motion for preliminary injunction and the court favoring an opportunity for all parties to be heard.'" Full story.

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HERE WE GO - "McDaniel expected to clarify political future Monday" by WTVA's Craig Ford: "State Senator Chris McDaniel says he will make an announcement early next week about his political future. The Republican from Ellisville posted on Facebook Saturday night that he will make that announcement live on Facebook at 6 p.m. Monday. ... McDaniel has said he has been looking at a run for the United States Senate in the GOP primary against incumbent Senator Roger Wicker of Tupelo. Qualifying for that primary ends March 1 at 5 p.m." Full story.

MONEY MONEY MONEY - "Rich Candidates Square Off in Democratic Party Primaries" by The Wall Street Journal's Reid Epstein: "From northern Maine to southern California, Democrats in at least 40 primary elections for House, Senate and governor find themselves choosing between millionaires and those with middle-class economic backgrounds. The fleet of wealthy candidates comes as Democrats are energized against President Donald Trump yet don't have a large bench of recruits to seek federal office, having seen the party's slate for state legislators offices wiped out in recent elections. The party lost about 1,000 state legislative seats during President Barack Obama's presidency. ...
Republicans, who have long proposed tax cuts for the wealthy and policies friendly to businesses, take less issue with rich candidates, and are supportive of President Trump, himself a billionaire." Full story.

STRANGE TIMES - "Luther Strange makes play to return to D.C." by POLITICO's Andrew Restuccia and Daniel Strauss: "Voters sent Luther Strange back to Alabama last year, but the former senator is quietly plotting a return to Washington. ... He's been sounding out professional contacts, and weighing whether he can get a job at a federal agency or set up his own consulting shop. Those close to him say he's increasingly likely to land at a law firm, where he'll split his time between Alabama and D.C. Strange has been interviewing with several firms in Washington over the last couple weeks, including Venable, according to two people familiar with the issue. ... It's unclear what, if any, position
Strange might eventually get in the administration, but lobbyists and some in the White House have long been buzzing about the possibility that he could be nominated to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau." Full story.

GREITENS WATCH - "GOP governors keep their distance from Missouri's Greitens" by Strauss: "Republican governors don't have any advice for Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens. Fellow GOP leaders at the National Governors Association winter meeting this weekend didn't try to give Greitens any cover as he faces an indictment and likely investigation in his state's Republican controlled legislature. And they shied away from saying whether the first-term GOP governor should resign or fight the charges. ... "When asked if he had any recommendations on what Greitens should do, Alaska Gov. Bill Walker, an Independent, simply said, 'I do not.' 'I have enough trouble keeping up with Mississippi,' said former
Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, who once chaired the Republican Governors Association." Full story.

CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY: "I haven't heard a good answer to: Why should a 20-year-old be able to buy an assault rifle and not a beer?" - Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam speaking to The Washington Post on gun control.

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