| | | | | |  | | By Zach Montellaro | Presented by All* Above All | Editor's Note: Weekly Score is a weekly version of POLITICO Pro's daily Campaigns policy newsletter, Morning Score. POLITICO Pro is a policy intelligence platform that combines the news you need with tools you can use to take action on the day's biggest stories. Act on the news with POLITICO Pro. | | | — Former President Donald Trump's political operation had over $31 million in the bank, as he looks to shape the future of the Republican Party. And millions more could be on the way. — Three of the four major congressional party committees are starting the cycle with a significant debt burden, as the fundraising scramble for 2022 is already under way. Plus, the early fundraising numbers for 2022 battleground senators. — The NRSC and NRCC have asked the FEC to allow members of Congress to use campaign funds to hire personal security guards, citing "recent developments." Good Monday morning . If you allow me a brief point of personal privilege, I'd like to tell you all about one of your fellow Score readers, Bruce. Bruce was a retiree in Michigan and a big Detroit Tigers fan. He'd email in to Score quite frequently, sometimes about politics but mostly about baseball, and tried to tune in to any live events we did. Last May, I stopped hearing from Bruce. I followed up at the start of the baseball season, but I figured he had just moved on from emailing some dumb kid about sports. Last week, there was some news around a universal DH, which he passionately hated, and I was reminded of him. In the process of trying to find Bruce's email once again, I came across a posting from a local radio club: My friend Bruce had passed away last May, about a week after our last email. I have missed Bruce's missives on the sport we both loved, and the country we both hold dear. I will miss them more permanently now. It is delayed, but today's Score is dedicated to Bruce. Go Tigers. Email me at zmontellaro@politico.com, or follow me on Twitter at @ZachMontellaro. Email the rest of the POLITICO Campaigns team at sshepard@politico.com, jarkin@politico.com, amutnick@politico.com and srodriguez@politico.com. Follow them on Twitter: @POLITICO_Steve, @JamesArkin, @allymutnick and @sabrod123. Days until the LA-02 and LA-05 special elections: 47 Days until the New Jersey and Virginia gubernatorial elections: 274 Days until the 2022 midterm elections: 645 Days until the 2024 election: 1,373 | | A message from All* Above All Over the last four years, the Trump Administration denied people struggling financially, especially people of color, the opportunity to make their own decisions about their health and futures. President Biden can build back bolder by enacting policies that prioritize abortion justice in the first 100 days! Learn more at https://allaboveall.org/campaign/100-days-agenda/ | | | | | | TRUMP, POST-PRESIDENCY — Trump may be out of office. But he has shown that he is going to have a heavy hand in directing the future of the GOP — and has tens of millions of dollars to back that up, I reported with Elena Schneider . Sunday was the latest FEC filing day, giving us a look at campaigns, super PACs and party committees through the end of 2020. Save America, the leadership PAC that Trump created in the aftermath of the election, reported having $31.2 million in the bank at the end of 2020 (Save America filing ). They reported almost no expenditures before the end of the year — just a couple hundred thousand in processing fees to WinRed — and the report doesn't include any activity in 2021, including on or around the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol. Trump cannot spend the PAC funds directly on any future campaign of his own, but he can use it to wield influence in campaigns in the midterm elections, pay his political advisers and travel the country. That money also likely represents a floor, not a ceiling. An affiliated joint fundraising committee — the Trump Make America Great Again Committee — also had nearly $60 million in its own coffers (TMAGAC filing). Recent fundraising solicitations from that group have said that it is splitting donations between Save America and the Republican National Committee, with 75 percent going to Trump's leadership PAC and 25 percent going to the RNC, so Save America is likely still entitled to tens-of-millions more in fundraising. Trump's presidential campaign had a bit over $10.7 million in the bank, with $2.7 million in debt ( Trump campaign filing). "The more money [Trump] stacks up in his committee, the greater his grip will remain on many elected Republicans who will fear those resources could be turned against them," said Rob Stutzman, a California-based Republican consultant. Stutzman said that it "should be no surprise" that Trump "has continued to fundraise well during this period." The RNC itself reported over $80 million in the bank at the end of the year, which is also likely a floor because it will presumably get more money from TMAGAC (RNC filing). The RNC will have to walk a delicate tightrope of striking its own independence, as RNC chair Ronna McDaniel insisted the party will do, while still being financially tied to the former president. — President Joe Biden's campaign does not have much left in the tank. The campaign itself reported just $260,000 in the bank, but his operation is more closely intertwined with the DNC as an incumbent president (Biden campaign filing). The DNC reported $38.8 million in its bank account at the end of the year, with a bit under $3.2 million in debt (DNC filing). The New York Times' Shane Goldmacher also reported that there's about $40 million earmarked for the party wrapped up in various joint fundraising operations. (By contrast, the DNC ended the last election cycle, 2018, with only $8.6 million in the bank.) | | | | A message from All* Above All   | | | | | | THE CASH DASH — POLITICO Campaigns' James Arkin has a close eye on some of the Republican senators mulling retirement next year, he writes in to Score. Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), who has yet to say if he'll seek a third term, raised only $131,000 in the quarter and has just under $560,000 in the bank ( Johnson filing). That is extremely low for a senator facing what would be one of the toughest campaigns in the country and signals either that Johnson is leaning towards retirement or has a lot of ground to make up in the first quarter of this year. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) raised only $266,000 but has $1.8 million in the bank, and faces a much easier path to reelection if he runs again (Grassley filing). Two Democrats who just won are back on the ballot again. Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) raised $849,000 in just five weeks and has $1.4 million in the bank, a strong starting amount given his proven ability to raise small-dollar sums during the 2020 campaign (Kelly filing). Sen. Raphael Warnock's (D-Ga.) filing only covered the last two-and-a-half weeks of the year, so check back in with us on Friday for his post-runoff filing (which is due to the FEC on Thursday night) for a more-complete picture. POLITICO Pro subscribers get exclusive access to our 2022 Senate fundraising chart , breaking down all the money for incumbents and would-be challengers. — For the congressional party committees, the letter of the day is "D" — for debt. Three of the four party committees are carrying at least seven-figure debt obligations, with the DSCC having more debt than money in the bank (although that debt does come with a Senate majority). DSCC: The DSCC raised $24 million and spent $31.7 million. It had $9.8 million in the bank, with $20 million in debt (DSCC filing). NRSC: The NRSC raised $43 million and spent $65.5 million. It had $14.4 million in cash on hand and $9 million in debt (NRSC filing). DCCC: The DCCC raised $7.2 million and spent $14.6 million. It had $21 million in reserves, with $14 million in debt (DCCC filing). NRCC: The NRCC raised $10.3 million and spent $19.2 million. It had $12.6 million in the bank, and was the lone committee to not owe anything (NRCC filing). THE ENFORCERS — The two Republican congressional party committees, the NRSC and the NRCC, are asking the FEC to allow lawmakers to use campaign funds to pay for private security for themselves and their immediate family — which would mark a significant expansion in the permissible use of campaign funds for members' security, should it be granted. The letter from the committees' council, dated Jan. 26 and released by the agency over the weekend, asks for "confirmation that a Member of the U.S. Senate or U.S. House of Representatives may use campaign funds to pay for personal security personnel to protect the Member and the Member's immediate family from threatened harm," and that by doing so members weren't using campaign funds in a way that would be classified as impermissible personal use. Broadly, the FEC has already declared that members may use campaign funds to pay for residential security systems to their homes that "do not constitute structural improvements," in an opinion that was issued in July 2017, shortly after Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) was shot at a Congressional baseball game practice, a precedent on which this request leans. "In light of well-publicized events that have transpired since July 2017, the 'threat environment' faced by federal officeholders clearly has not 'diminish[ed] significantly,' and has actually worsened," the letter reads, noting that while members are protected by Capitol Police while on the Hill, that protection doesn't extend for most outside the Capitol. "Members are confronted in public on a routine basis, and it has become increasingly common for protesters to gather outside Members' homes." The attorneys ask for an expedited review of their request, "in light of recent developments that have elevated the threat environment facing Members." PRIMARY PROBLEMS — One of the most talked-about Senate Democratic primaries might be New York … if only for the fact that there is chatter that Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) may primary Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. She pointedly didn't rule one out (pre-Georgia runoffs, at least ), but that doesn't mean Schumer — who ended 2020 with $10.3 million in the bank, to Ocasio-Cortez's $4.3 million — hasn't worked to try to shore up his left flank. "It's dependent on what Schumer does," Waleed Shahid, communications director for Justice Democrats, told POLITICO's Holly Otterbein on if Ocasio-Cortez or another progressive will primary him. "Schumer will have to explain every one of his decisions to one of the most progressive primary electorates in the country, and if voters think he's capitulating to Mitch McConnell and not organizing his caucus to deliver for working families, then he's going to be in some trouble." | | | | THE UNOFFICIAL GUIDE TO OFFICIAL WASHINGTON: Washington hasn't slowed down in 2021. A new administration and Congress are off and running, and our new Playbook team is two steps ahead of the pack to keep you up to speed. The new Playbook foursome of Rachael Bade, Eugene Daniels, Ryan Lizza and Tara Palmeri is canvassing every corner of Washington, bringing you the big stories and scoops you need to know—and the insider nuggets that you want to know—about the new power centers and players. "This town" has changed. And no one covers this town like Playbook. Subscribe today. | | | | | REPUBLICAN TEN-SION — Rep. Tom Rice (R-S.C), one of the 10 House Republicans to vote to impeach Trump, was censured by the state GOP over the weekend for his vote, The Post and Courier's Jamie Lovegrove and Tyler Fleming reported. "It seems to me they are cowering before Donald Trump," Rice, who was a stalwart supporter of Trump pre-riot, spat back. And another potential primary challenger for Rice emerges: state Rep. Russell Fry, who told The P&C's Fleming and Lovegrove that he is considering a bid and has been contacting donors and party members about it. — Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) launched a leadership PAC of his own to try to counter Trump's and challenge the former president's wing of the party, The Washington Post's Paul Kane and Amy Wang reported. (And thank you to your fellow Score reader Lauren for the "ten-sion" pun for items about those 10 House Republicans.) FIRST IN SCORE — THE GOVERNATORS — Republican Glenn Youngkin, a former Carlyle Group exec who recently launched his Virginia gubernatorial bid, is going up with TV ads this week. His first ad is a positive 60-second bio spot that talks about his upbringing, and says he's an "outsider." (There is also a 30-second cut.) It is backed by a six-figure buy and is set to start running on Tuesday. ON MY MIND — Freshmen Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) and her long history of conspiracy theories and bigoted statements is causing a major headache for the Georgia GOP, as it heads into a cycle with critical races for Senate and governor. "If you have any common sense, you know she's an anchor on the party. She is weighing us down," Gabriel Sterling, the Republican operative turned election administrator, told POLITICO's Marc Caputo. NOTABLE FLOATABLES — Kenneth Braithwaite, a former Navy secretary during the Trump administration, is considering a run for Pennsylvania's open Senate seat as a Republican, POLITICO's Lara Seligman, Holly Otterbein and Connor O'Brien reported. Braithwaite was also formerly an aide to the party-switching Sen. Arlen Specter. — This goes against the spirit of the floatable section, but former Democratic presidential candidate and HUD Secretary Julián Castro told KXAN's John Engel he was "very unlikely" to run for office in 2022, so cross off a Texas gubernatorial bid. MADAM MAYOR? — The Atlanta mayoral race could be one of the most hotly-contested big city races of the year. Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, a top Biden surrogate, is facing a challenge from City Council President Felicia Moore. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's J.D. Capelouto and Ben Brasch have a deep dive on the race, and where Bottoms' fortures stand right now. NO AUDIT — A real "irony is dead" quote from Kelli Ward, who was recently reelected the chair of the Arizona GOP in a tight contest, after pushing conspiracy theories about the 2020 presidential election: Ward rejected a call for an audit of the party election, telling a local radio station that there was "no procedure, process, rule that allows for it to be done, and you certainly don't allow a challenger who lost an election to demand something that they don't have the right to, and we don't have the responsibility for providing," per the Arizona Republic's Yvonne Wingett Sanchez. ANTI-TRUMP WING — John Weaver, the longtime Republican strategist and a now-former leader of the anti-Trump group The Lincoln Project, sent "unsolicited and sexually provocative messages" to at least 21 young men, including asking at least one minor about his body, The New York Times' Maggie Astor and Danny Hakin reported, following a story from Ryan Girdusky in the magazine The American Conservative earlier in the month. The Times reported he offered at least two of the men work with the Lincoln Project while sending suggestive messages. Weaver re-issued the statement to The Times that he sent earlier this month, where he said he was "truly sorry to these men," while The Lincoln Project sought to distance itself from his behavior with an unsigned statement condemning Weaver. | | A message from All* Above All Legal abortion has never been enough. It leaves out too many. Those who are denied care because they are struggling financially, are forced to travel too far, or their clinic was shut down by unjust restrictions.
We cannot wait any longer. Abortion justice must start today. We call on President Biden to build back BOLDER in his first 100 days. Learn more at https://allaboveall.org/campaign/100-days-agenda/ | | | | | | IMPEACH 2.0 — Trump saw a major changeover within his legal team about a week before his second impeachment trial in the Senate is set to begin. Five attorneys who were on the team — including Butch Bowers and Deborah Barbier, who were expected to lead — have left, CNN's Gloria Borger, Kaitlan Collins, Jeff Zeleny and Ashley Semler first reported. CNN reported that Trump wanted the attorneys to make baseless election fraud arguments. On Sunday, Trump announced that two attorneys will head his legal effort: David Schoen and Bruce Castor. POLITICO's David Cohen has more on the new legal team. FIRST IN LINE — A calamitous caucus for Iowa Democrats in 2020 further imperiled the state's status as first in line for both parties' nominating calendars. But Republicans and Democrats in the state are looking to work together to defend it. "We will stand shoulder to shoulder in this fight," Jeff Kaufmann, the Iowa GOP chair, told The Wall Street Journal's John McCormick. Kaufmann told The Journal that he met with RNC members from Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina to plan to defend the early-state status quo. | | | | JOIN TUESDAY - THE FUTURE OF AMERICAN ENERGY: President Joe Biden is pushing for an ambitious agenda to tackle the climate crisis amid a gridlocked Washington. Biden's signature plan "Build Back Better" includes a $400B investment in clean energy research, establishing a new agency to focus on climate, among other initiatives. Join POLITICO for a virtual conversation to explore policy proposals and practices to help communities with economies that rely on fossil fuels to navigate the energy transition. REGISTER HERE. | | | | | CODA — POLITICIAN OF THE DAY: Blue Demon Jr., a legendary masked Mexican luchador whose real identity is unknown, is running for mayor of a municipality of Mexico City … but he's refusing to unmask publicly and will only do so for election officials, per an interview with Milenio (in Spanish). | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Follow us | | | | |
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