The Republican establishment is getting its excuses ready in case its candidates don’t win enough elections this November to regain control of the Senate. At the top of the list is that conservatives didn’t give it enough money to spend.
That’s right. Forget the all-out war the Republican establishment has been waging against its most conservative members. Forget everything it’s done to smear Tea Party types who dared to challenge it. Forget all the dirty tricks, such as getting Democrats to tip the balance in the Republican primary in Mississippi.
Yep, we’re supposed to forget all of those past abuses and get behind the mealy-mouthed, me-too moderates that they have chosen for us, such as Thad Cochran in Mississippi or Pat Roberts in Kansas.
With standard-bearers likes those two worn-out hacks, no wonder so many conservatives are sitting on their wallets this time around. Heck, I suspect a ton of them won’t even bother to go to the polls this November. And who can blame them?
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In a column in The Wall Street Journal, Karl Rove set the tone for this latest propaganda barrage. He began by reciting why things should look so rosy for Republicans: “The president’s job approval numbers are lousy, no Democrat in a competitive Senate race polls regularly above 50%, GOP enthusiasm is high, and independents are trending Republican.”
All of that should be very good news for Republicans, shouldn’t it? But Rove, one of the key establishment strategists, says there is a very dark cloud on the horizon. It is that the Democrats have a ton more money to spend.
“The midterm environment is terrible for Democrats,” Rove wrote, “yet each passing day provides evidence as to why a GOP Senate majority is still in doubt.”
In a story on super PACs, The Wall Street Journal detailed just how badly Republican candidates are being outspent. Here is what the newspaper reported has happened in the 10 top Senate races: “Since July 3, the largest super PACs aligned with Democrats have raised four times the money of pro-GOP super PACs, and have now spent $60 million to Republicans’ $38 million, data compiled by The Wall Street Journal shows.”
The study found that of the 25 highest-spending partisan super PACs, those affiliated with the Democrats have raised $110.2 million in this election cycle, compared to just $55.6 million for Republicans. Not only have the Democrats’ super PACs badly outspent their Republican opponents, they also have a ton more cash left on hand: $25.4 million compared to the Republicans’ $7.7 million.
The most effective money-raiser for the Democrats is the Senate Majority PAC, which is desperate to elect enough Democrats to keep Harry Reid (D-Nev.) in his powerful position as Senate Majority Leader.
So “steal” may be the wrong word to use in my headline. “Buy” is probably a more accurate description of what’s happening. Or would you prefer “purchase”?
Whatever description you prefer, Rove says that “reducing the Democratic cash advantage” is what is needed to “tip the needle in the GOP’s direction.” If that doesn’t happen, he warns, we’d better get ready “for two more years of Majority Leader Harry Reid.”
If that does happen, liberty-lovers have the Republican establishment to thank for it.
Until next time, keep some powder dry.
Chip Wood was the first news editor of The Review of the News and also wrote for American Opinion, our two predecessor publications. He is now the geopolitical editor of Personal Liberty Digest. This article first appeared in PersonalLiberty.com and has been reprinted with permission.
