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Republican leaders max out donations
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Sharron Angle
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LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
Updated: Sep. 11, 2010 | 3:29 p.m.
The top four Republican Senate leaders have each given Sharron Angle the maximum $5,000 general election donation, including Sen. Mitch McConnell, the GOP nemesis of her opponent Sen. Harry Reid, said officials familiar with her fundraising.
Other popular GOP players also have opened their wallets for Angle -- such as potential 2012 presidential contenders Sarah Palin and Mitt Romney -- and might campaign for her in Nevada.
And the state's GOP senator, John Ensign, has given Angle $5,000, as well.
"I am just campaigning for his opponent. That is OK to do," Ensign said Tuesday in an interview, saying it doesn't violate a non aggression pact the two senators have. Reid campaigned for Ensign's Democratic foe in 2006. "That is part of the agreement and has been from the beginning."
Angle's fundraising so far signals that both establishment and Tea Party factions of the GOP are going all out to help the staunch conservative defeat Reid, the Democratic Senate leader who nonetheless is still expected to raise far more cash than Angle in a race of national import.
"Angle's never going to raise as much money as Reid, but she doesn't have to. She just needs enough money to run a credible campaign," said Jennifer Duffy of the Cook Political Report, which calls the U.S. Senate contest a "toss-up," meaning either candidate could win. "The fact that the GOP leadership is maxing out to help her is a good sign. They're not playing games."
Duffy noted that the Tea Party favorite Angle also is doing well in getting small contributions from people across the country via her website, raising to date more than $1.8 million since the June 8 primary.
Still, Angle campaign officials were hoping for an even bigger haul during the latest fund-raising quarter, which ended June 30 -- just three weeks after the primary.
Chuck Kozak, the campaign's finance chairman, said Angle fell short of a $1.4 million fund-raising goal by the June 30 deadline, partly because not enough GOP leadership Political Action Committees of other veteran lawmakers contributed money. Before this latest report, Angle had raised a total of $1.2 million since she began running for the Senate about a year ago.
"Reid has some people intimidated," Kozak said. "They know if they give money and Sharron loses, Reid will hit back pretty hard. But I think that will change with time."
For now, the top leaders are all getting fully behind Angle, the former Reno assemblywoman who traveled to Washington, D.C., right after her stunning primary victory to ask for help. Most leaders donate through political a ction committees they set up, which expands their political power.
Besides McConnell, the Senate minority leader from Kentucky, other $5,000 contributors include Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., and Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee and most closely involved in the Reid-Angle race. The figures were confirmed by Brian Walsh, spokesman for the NRSC.
"Sharron Angle has raised more money in three weeks than many Senate campaigns have been able to raise in three months," Walsh said in a statement. "Senate Republican leaders like Senators McConnell, Cornyn, Kyl and others have contributed to her campaign, but more importantly, her strong fundraising numbers reflect the tremendous outpouring of support she is receiving from not just the Republican grass roots but also independent voters who are tired of Harry Reid using the federal treasury like his own personal credit card. "
Reid and President Barack Obama, who campaigned in Las Vegas last week for the senate leader, defended industry bailouts and a $787 billion stimulus bill as necessary to stop the nation from falling into a deeper recession. The Democrats both blamed Bush administration policies for the crisis.
Obama has helped Reid and the Democrats raise about $2.8 million at fundraisers he has headlined during his three visits to Las Vegas since last year.
As of late May, the Reid campaign had about $9 million in cash on hand after having spent about $10 million so far during this election cycle. The campaign said it would release its latest second quarter fundraising report ending June 30 by a Thursday deadline set by the FEC.
Reid has said he plans to raise up to a record $25 million to win a fifth Senate term.
Majority Leader Reid has received the most of any senator in contributions from Democratic leadership PACs, according to OpenSecrets.org. It showed Reid raised at least $278,449 from those PACs this election cycle, according to reports filed with the FEC as of June 13.
On Sunday, Reid traveled to Vancouver, British Columbia, to raise money for himself and 11 other Democratic Senate candidates from trial lawyers attending the American Association for Justice convention. Reid was to get 20 percent of the total raised, though no figures were released.
While Reid is enjoying high-profile help from Obama, the first lady, former President Bill Clinton and Cabinet members, Angle, too, is now starting to get some big name support.
Sarah Palin's political action committee contributed $2,500 to Angle's campaign, according to an FEC report filed Sunday. It showed the former 2008 vice presidential running mate donating a total of $87,500 to candidates. Palin hasn't officially endorsed Angle yet, however.
Jerry Stacy, spokesman for Angle's campaign, said a dual appearance is in the works.
"Sarah Palin has already funded Sharron Angle's campaign with a generous contribution, and we will work to coordinate an event at a later date," Stacy said last month when Palin came to Las Vegas for a bowling convention but didn't hang around long enough to meet with Angle.
In March, Palin starred at a Tea Party event in Reid's hometown, the "Showdown in Searchlight," that attracted up to 10,000 people rallying to retire the incumbent. Angle also spoke at the event .
Romney, who won the 2008 GOP presidential caucuses in Nevada, donated $5,000 to Angle and endorsed her after she won the primary. The former Massachusetts governor has campaigned in Las Vegas for Joe Heck, the Republican trying to unseat Rep. Dina Titus, the vulnerable freshman Democrat.
"I would be somewhat surprised if we don't see him again" campaigning for GOP candidates such as Heck and Angle in Nevada, said Ryan Erwin, Romney's representative on the ground in Las Vegas. "I think you're going to see Governor Romney campaigning across the country for a number of candidates."
Both Reid and Angle already are getting plenty of big money support from outside interest groups spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to run TV and radio ads -- money that political observers believe could make the U.S. Senate race a $100 million contest by Election Day on Nov. 2.
Angle's even getting some support from unusual sources.
Dick Morris, the former political adviser to President Clinton, has turned his back on Democrats and embraced conservatives. And now he's raising money to run anti-Reid ads for Angle.
"The campaign in Nevada to replace Harry Reid is in a desperate situation and needs your help," Morris writes in an e-mail solicitation for the Las Vegas-based Americans for New Leadership, which was formed last week, according to The Associated Press.
Stephens Washington Bureau Chief Steve Tetreault contributed to this report. Contact Laura Myers at lmyers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2919.
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Final Report of the GOP Platform Committee After Remand:
And we further stipulate that the GOP is against health-care, day-care, prenatal care, geriatric care, women's rights, gay rights, African-American rights, Hispanic rights, well all the rights of individuals non white or "non American".
We REAL Americans in the GOP are against ANY environmental protections what so ever. We will immediately refund the slush fund money extorted from British Petroleum with an apology.
We the GOP wish to further state that logging, mining, and oil exploration in wilderness areas should start immediately. American business should not be hamstrung by regulations; the market will dictate their safe operations in these areas.
We the GOP will end public education.
We the GOP believe in preemptive war; not pre-school. The market dictate whose children deserve to be educated. Other children can go to work as we will lower the legal working age to 7.
We the GOP will end FEMA, the FDA and the CDC. The market will dictate whose food should be inspected and what diseases we should concern ourselves with. Those faced with natural disasters should not live where those things happen. We will end the freeloading of drunks on welfare and unemployment insurance.
We the GOP will end the needless payment of disability benefits. The disabled can work too.
We the GOP believe corporate benevolence will insure the masses of a safe and comfortable life dictated by the market.
We just didn't have the time while we were in power but THIS time we will ban abortion.(promise)
In the schools that we allow to remain open we will end the teaching of evolution; and-well ALL the sciences not dictated by the market to be of importance.
We will strive to improve the lives of all Americans especially those Americans whom we deem fit.
Submitted this 13th day of July, 2010
Harry will win easy!
In an interview with Christian Broadcasting Network's David Brody, Sharron Angle declared that she's "glad" Harry Reid reposted her old website -- a sharp departure from her prior position, when she was threatening a lawsuit for stealing her intellectual property.
After she won the Republican primary a month ago, Angle's campaign took down most of its website, and later replaced it with a relaunched version that toned down her more conservative positions. But the Reid campaign had saved the old version, and put up a website called "The Real Sharron Angle," reproducing the old content. Then the Angle campaign sent them a cease-and-desist letter, alleging violation of copyrights for Reid having reposted Angle's old campaign literature. In response, the Reid campaign briefly took down the site -- then made some slight modifications, such as removing some e-mail sign-up boxes that had been left intact, and put it right back up again.
Angle then continued to threaten legal action. "Well your website is like you, it's your intellectual property. So they can't use something that's yours, intellectual property, unless they pay you for it or get your permission," she said in a radio interview, also adding: "Well we are going to pursue it. I don't think that Harry is above the law. He needs to obey the law. If you and I need to obey the law, Harry isn't immune. He needs to obey the law as well."
This position put Angle in a strange spot, from a First Amendment standpoint -- a politician arguing that their opponents could not reproduce their own statements and literature for the purposes of mocking them and telling people to vote against them.
"John Ensign, has given Angle $5,000."
And his parents gave her $93,000 to keep quiet.
Sharron Angle says that she is now "glad" that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid re-posted her primary website despite earlier sending a cease and desist order demanding that he take it down.
Some of the biggest lies that we tell our children:
The tooth fairy will give you money for your tooth!
Santa Claus will leave you toys if your good!
The Easter Bunny lay colored eggs!
Our President is a great man!
Dirty Harry has brought 10,000 jobs to NV !
I tried calling her office and left a message and here it is. I was hoping that her office would keep it under wraps but no call back.
She and other campaigners are asking for too much in donations.
25 seems to be the minimum. That's 3/4 of a tank of gas for us. $25 at the 99c store is a lot of canned goods. I could go on.
There is no area to donate $10 or even $5 and thus people on a fixed income or out of work don't want to contribute at one time.
I would be happy to use my own postage and donate $10 at various times.
No appeal to those of us on very limited incomes.
Is someone from her office reading this.
The call was this a:m and talks about my answering phone and I was one of Kenny Guinns' phone workers.
Many people I've talked to all have my feelings at this time. No respect for the little guy. Politicians all seem to have the Harry Reid ego.
Dirty Reid is against a balanced budget, ok's bail outs after chastising Bush for same thing, uses stimulas money to hire illegals and foreigners, accepts money from criminal bankers, acceots 80% campaign funds from outside of Nevada(including canada)and from oil companies he supposed to hate..
jack.webb is a HARRY REID PUPPET AND DEMOCRAP REID WORKER