Ensign Fumes Over Failed GOP Fundraising Effort
By Bart Jansen, CQ Staff
The chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee said Friday colleagues have not heeded his calls for contributions to contested races, threatening advertising on behalf of GOP candidates.
“It has become clear that my call has gone largely unanswered,” Sen. John Ensign of Nevada fumed in a statement. “I have no control over the timing or content of (independent) ads, but I have had no choice but to decrease the total budget for our (independent expenditures) unit.”
Republicans, who must defend 23 seats this fall — including five retiring incumbents — compared to 12 for Democrats, have faced difficulties throughout the campaign raising money while in the minority. The NRSC had $24.6 million on hand as of June 30, according to reports filed with the Federal Election Commission, compared with $43 million for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.
Republican lawmakers contributed $1.1 million to the NRSC through June, while Democrats chipped in nearly $5 million, according to FEC reports. Joint fundraising committees raised nearly $1.2 million for the NRSC, compared to $3.4 million for the DSCC.
Senate Republicans who are not campaigning for re-election this year had more than $47 million in their campaign accounts on June 30. The largest warchests belong to Richard Shelby of Alabama, who had $13 million; Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas, who had $8.6 million; and Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, who had $5.2 million.
Shelby, who won his fourth term with two-thirds of the vote in 2004, plans to hold the money for his next campaign. But the ranking Republican on the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee has a political-action committee that has $2.4 million on hand and distributed $315,000 to candidates and party organizations.
“Sen. Shelby intends to keep his personal campaign funds for his own re-election in 2010, but he has and will continue to support Republican candidates in the Senate and in the House from his Defend America PAC,” said spokeswoman Laura Henderson.
(Continued here.)
The chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee said Friday colleagues have not heeded his calls for contributions to contested races, threatening advertising on behalf of GOP candidates.
“It has become clear that my call has gone largely unanswered,” Sen. John Ensign of Nevada fumed in a statement. “I have no control over the timing or content of (independent) ads, but I have had no choice but to decrease the total budget for our (independent expenditures) unit.”
Republicans, who must defend 23 seats this fall — including five retiring incumbents — compared to 12 for Democrats, have faced difficulties throughout the campaign raising money while in the minority. The NRSC had $24.6 million on hand as of June 30, according to reports filed with the Federal Election Commission, compared with $43 million for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.
Republican lawmakers contributed $1.1 million to the NRSC through June, while Democrats chipped in nearly $5 million, according to FEC reports. Joint fundraising committees raised nearly $1.2 million for the NRSC, compared to $3.4 million for the DSCC.
Senate Republicans who are not campaigning for re-election this year had more than $47 million in their campaign accounts on June 30. The largest warchests belong to Richard Shelby of Alabama, who had $13 million; Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas, who had $8.6 million; and Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, who had $5.2 million.
Shelby, who won his fourth term with two-thirds of the vote in 2004, plans to hold the money for his next campaign. But the ranking Republican on the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee has a political-action committee that has $2.4 million on hand and distributed $315,000 to candidates and party organizations.
“Sen. Shelby intends to keep his personal campaign funds for his own re-election in 2010, but he has and will continue to support Republican candidates in the Senate and in the House from his Defend America PAC,” said spokeswoman Laura Henderson.
(Continued here.)
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