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Friday, Oct 5, 2012 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Have a great Columbus Day weekend. The Damn Quails will play us out…

So just keep going ’til you find you a better place to stop

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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY: Friday afternoon campaign updates

Friday, Oct 5, 2012 - Posted by Rich Miller

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*** UPDATED x1 *** Outside spending for Joe Walsh nears $2.2 million

Friday, Oct 5, 2012 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Greg Hinz…

A Texas super PAC has once again upped its bet on Congressman Joe Walsh, R-North Barrington, and now looks like it may well hit the $2 million mark on his behalf in the northwest suburban 8th District.

As of late Thursday, according to the Sunlight Foundation, the Now or Never PAC has reported spending $1.75 million here, mostly on TV ads promoting Mr. Walsh or zapping his Democratic foe, Tammy Duckworth.

The “independent” expenditures are up almost a half a million dollars just from earlier this week, with some tens of thousands of other spending by the group not yet reflected in Sunlight’s database.

* The complete totals from the Sunlight Foundation show that outside spending for Walsh and against Duckworth rack up to an astonishing $2.18 million - dwarfing the tiny amount of money spent on Duckworth’s behalf. The numbers…

WALSH, JOE (R) NOW OR NEVER PAC Support $917,320.00

DUCKWORTH, L. TAMMY (D) NOW OR NEVER PAC Oppose $829,148.00

WALSH, JOE (R) FREEDOMWORKS FOR AMERICA Support $181,215.44

DUCKWORTH, L. TAMMY (D) NEW PROSPERITY FOUNDATION; THE Oppose $171,993.49

DUCKWORTH, L. TAMMY (D) FREEDOMWORKS FOR AMERICA Oppose $83,532.15

WALSH, JOE (R) CREDO SUPERPAC Oppose $26,586.89

KRISHNAMOORTHI, S. RAJA (D) SUBURBAN VOTERS FOR CHOICE Support $25,215.00

WALSH, JOE (R) LUNCH PAIL REPUBLICANS INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURE ONLY COMMITTEE Support $6,618.75

DUCKWORTH, L. TAMMY (D) LEAGUE OF CONSERVATION VOTERS ACTION FUND Support $70.52

WALSH, JOE (R) CLUB FOR GROWTH PAC Support $61.66

WALSH, JOE (R) LEAGUE OF CONSERVATION VOTERS ACTION FUND Oppose $52.87

WALSH, JOE (R) ILLINOIS TENTH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT DEMOCRATS Oppose $6.39

* Duckworth’s ~~latest~~ [This may actually be an older ad that just popped up again on YouTube] TV ad…

Duckworth has raised a lot of money so far, so she can fight back. But this is obviously a ton of outside cash.

*** UPDATE *** I took a quick look at some more outside spending and here’s what I found…

* Outside spending for 10th District Democrat Brad Schneider is just shy of $69,000, according to the Sunlight Foundation. By comparison, outside independent expenditures designed to help Republican incumbent Bob Dold is over $1.2 million.

* Over in the 11th CD, total independent expenditures topped $1.7 million. Of that, almost $1.6 million has been spent either attacking Democrat Bill Foster or supporting Republican incumbent Judy Biggert.

* It’s a bit more weighted toward the Democrats in the 17th CD, where over $1.2 million has been spent to help Republican Bobby Schilling, and over $1.9 million has been spent helping Democrat Cheri Bustos.

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*** UPDATED x2 *** Schilling up with very strong ad

Friday, Oct 5, 2012 - Posted by Rich Miller

* In my opinion, this is one of the best TV ads of the season so far. Republican Congressman Bobby Schilling totally undercuts a powerful ad run by the DCCC (click here to see the DCCC’s ad). Schilling wrongly blames Cheri Bustos for the spot, but you still gotta watch this one…

Script…

Narrator: “Why is Cheri Bustos running a Chicago-style false attack ad on Bobby Schilling?”

Steve Ballard: “You forgot where you came from.”

Narrator: “But we know where this guy’s from. Bustos is using party bosses posing as local workers.

Hank Gray: “Why does Cheri Bustos have to go to Wrigley Field to raise campaign money? This is her district—here—not Chicago.

Randy Gebhardt: “Cheri Bustos is a tax-raiser. Like Bobby, I’m fed up with Washington.”

Jerry Schreiner: “What sets Bobby Schilling apart is that he’s one of us.”

Lori Rotz: “Leads by example. Go Bobby!”

Bobby Schilling: “I’m Bobby Schilling and I approved this message.”

That “Go Bobby!” line really works well. Your thoughts?

* Some background can be found in a recent letter to the editor from a Schilling fan…

OK, now the anti-Schilling ads are getting silly.

I just saw one in which Steve Ballard, former Rock Island County Democratic chairman and East Moline prison warden, is saying that he is disappointed in Rep. Bobby Schilling. What a joke! This is the same Steve Ballard who appointed the son of Phil Hare to be assistant prison warden, even though there was at least one more qualified candidate.

So, let’s line up all of the Rock Island County Democratic machine nepotists and let them testify how they don’t like Bobby Schilling, duh.

*** UPDATE 1 *** From the Schilling campaign…

The Democrats’ ad included Dave DeBaillie, a former Henry County Democratic Party Chairman, Steve Ballard (pictured), a former Rock Island County Democratic Party Chairman, Cecilia O’Brien, wife of former Chief of Staff to Rep. Phil Hare, and Derek Jones, a former staffer for Rep. Phil Hare.

Sheesh.

*** UPDATE 2 *** From the DCCC…

Priceless: Tea Party Congressman Bobby Schilling Enlists Campaign Donor and Activist in Latest Bogus TV Ad

Reeling from attacks from his own constituents, Congressman Bobby Schilling enlisted one of his own campaign donors to appear in his newly released TV ad. Congressman Schilling actually accuses Democrats of “posing” as local workers in his new ad while at the same time defending himself with his own campaign donor, Jerry Schreiner. The same donor spoke on behalf of the Schilling campaign to the Quad Cities Argus Dispatch at a Schilling sponsored protest opposing raising the minimum wage.

“Could Congressman Bobby Schilling be any more desperate to change the subject from his record of voting to end the Medicare guarantee just to protect tax breaks for corporate outsourcers and millionaires?” asked Haley Morris of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “When his own constituents condemn his failed priorities in Washington, the best Congressman Bobby Schilling can do get his campaign donors to come to his defense.”

Background

Jerry Schreiner Donated to Schilling. According to FEC reports, Schreiner gave $300 in May 2012, and $100 in June 2012. [FEC.gov, filed 7/15/12]

[ *** End Of Updates *** ]

* Meanwhile, here’s the latest US Chamber ad attacking Bustos…

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Billionaire casino owner, US Chamber go all in for Plummer

Friday, Oct 5, 2012 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Billionaire casino owner Sheldon Adelson is putting big bucks into Jason Plummer’s congressional race…

Adelson, the billionaire owner of the Las Vegas Sands casino and many other resort venues, and his wife, Miriam, are the primary nonparty donors for campaign ads.

Last month, the Adelsons’ YG — for Young Guns — Action Fund spent $557,750 to buy media attack ads against Plummer’s Democratic opponent, Bill Enyart, according to Federal Election Commission records.

Adelson’s superPAC, which provided the most money of any of the independent groups buying ads in the 12th and 13th District races, exemplifies the “new normal” of fundraising since the Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United decision allowed outside groups to spend unlimited amounts on campaigns as long as they don’t coordinate with the candidates.

All told, Republican and conservative groups have spent almost $1.2 million on attack ads against Enyart.

Meanwhile, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has spent $503,350 in attack ads on Enyart’s behalf against Plummer, plus another $335,170 to support Enyart, according to the FEC reports.

* Background…

Worth just over $21 billion and now in the cross hairs of the Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission, Adelson has made history: He is the first person to spend $70 million to sway a presidential election, and he plans to spend more — perhaps as much as $100 million — by Election Day. An estimated $20 million to $30 million of the giving went to groups that do not disclose their donors and had not been reported before.

Adelson (pronounced ADDLE-son) is the dominant pioneer of the super PAC era — by far the biggest donor to the web of secretive groups that are adding nearly $1 billion to the more traditional spending by the Romney campaign and the Republican National Committee.

The 79-year-old literally spreads the wealth: He sent $5 million to the super PAC run by Boehner allies and $5 million to the super PAC run by Cantor allies.

* And as the AP is reporting today, the US Chamber has spared nothing in its attacks on Democrat Bill Enyart. Rate the Chamber’s latest ad…