* The Hill…

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump swiped at vulnerable GOP Sen. Mark Kirk (Ill.) on Thursday night, saying it’s Kirk’s fault that he’s facing a loss in his reelection fight since he didn’t get on board with the nominee.

Speaking at a town hall event in Sandown, N.H., Trump was asked about the Republican hold-outs who have refused to support him; earlier that day, 30 former GOP lawmakers announced their steadfast opposition to his candidacy. […]

“I guess there’s a gentleman in Illinois who’s not doing very well,” Trump said, referencing Kirk. “He was actually taking out ads against me. I said, are you sure he’s a Republican? Maybe he’s a Democrat. He’s not doing well but hey, that’s his problem. He wasn’t for me and that’s for political reasons.” […]

Still, Trump predicted Republicans would maintain their slim majority in the Senate, and took credit for a coattails effect he claimed would ensure the GOP maintains power in the upper chamber.

“If you look at what’s going on — the other day I saw very interesting — the announcer said Donald Trump is having a very positive effect on the Republicans,” Trump said. “The Republicans are going to hold. They’re doing terrifically well, far better than anyone thought, and we’re going to win some states that never in a million years people thought we’d do well.”

Yeah, well, his coattails aren’t so great in Illinois as a whole.

* Sen. Kirk’s campaign has released a new poll and specifically mentions in the memo how much Kirk is outperforming Trump…

GS Strategy Group surveyed 600 likely voters, statewide, in Illinois. The survey was conducted October 4-5, 2016. The margin of error for the survey was +/- 4.0% at the 95% confidence level.

United States Senate Ballot

Our findings indicate a much tighter battle in the race for United States Senate than the most recently released numbers from our opponent. As has been the case for over a year, the race remains a statistical tie and inside the margin of error. While Congresswoman Duckworth maintains a lead over Senator Kirk, he is well within striking distance of her. Duckworth’s inability to capitalize on the Democratic strength in the Presidential ballot underscores voter apprehension toward her candidacy and provides a path to victory for Senator Kirk.

Key Highlights

* Race remains a statistical tie – consistent with nearly every other public poll.
* Kirk is outperforming Trump by a net of 13 points.
* Duckworth continues to significantly underperform the top of the ticket.

According to the poll, Hillary Clinton is winning Illinois 50-33, while Kirk is trailing 41-37.

* Normally, candidates wouldn’t release a poll showing them trailing in October by four points. But with the new Paul Simon Institute poll showing Duckworth ahead by 14 points, the Kirk campaign needs to stop people from assuming this thing is a complete lost cause.

Also, according to the Kirk campaign, the NRSC is running TV ads in the Chicago, Rockford, Springfield and Peoria media markets. They claim those ads show the national folks haven’t given up hope.