Indiana: Lesser Of Two Evils To The Rescue?

Joe Donnelly greets a right-wing rapist Trump wants confirmed

Thus cycle, I have very mixed emotions when it comes to writing about conservative Democrats. I am fully aware about what kind of damage they do to progressivism by relentlessly pulling the Democratic Party towards the right and usually reject less-of-two-evils politics-- the #1 organizing principle of the 21st century Democratic Party. But, this cycle... Trump. If you believe, as I do, that he really is an existential threat to our democracy, our families, our country you've got to be thinking about how to defend against him. One way-- the easiest way-- is through the ballot box. Electing even the worst Democrats-- Blue Dogs and New Dems, the whole corrupt Democrap garbage that makes up the massive and growing Republican wing of the Democratic Party-- is something that has to be seriously considered to stop Trump. Or does someone have a viable post-primary alternative?

Normally I wouldn't be cheering, for example, Tim Kaine's massive lead over neo-fascist Republican Corey Stewart in the Virginia Senate race, nor the fact that Republican Winsome Sears, an ex-Delegate just jumped into the race as a write-in candidate to give more mainstream Republicans an alternative to Stewart. Obviously. Blue America isn't about to add Tim Kaine to our 2018 Senate contributions page, but... I'm glad Kaine's going to win this one without breaking a sweat... and that Trump will probably be spending/wasting time campaigning in Virginia and turning out more Democratic voters there.

And I find myself hoping that Andrew Gillum has strong enough coattails in Florida-- where his gubernatorial campaign against neo-fascist Ron DeSantis is surging-- to pull elderly, bumbling conservative dullard Bill Nelson, who should have retired, over the finish line. Gillum has been leading DeSantis in every poll and in even poll by more than the last one. The new Reuters/Ipsos poll released yesterday shows Gillum leading DeSantis by 6 points (outside of the margin of error), while Nelson lags by one point.

All that leads to the Indiana situation. The Republican, Mike Braun, is a hopeless Trumpist. The Democrat, Joe Donnelly, is not exactly my cup of tea. He's an accidental senator who succeeded with a Hail Mary pass is 2012 when he was going to lose his House seat and decided to make a long-shot run for the Senate instead. Because of events that had virtually nothing to do with him-- the Indiana GOP imploded-- it worked and a House Blue Dog came over and became one of the Senate's most conservative Democrats, not as bad as Heidi Heitkamp or Joe Manchin... but almost. On the other hand, the Democrats can't afford to lose him if they're going to take back control of the Senate in November. The Associated Press did a report on the state of the race in Indiana yesterday, GOP frets about prospects for picking up Indiana Senate seat. It should be relatively easy-- Pence's home state, PVI of R+9 (same as Mississippi and Missouri), Trump beat Hillary 57-38%. But... Donnelly has been out-working Braun and is hardly rolling over and playing dead.

Groups that typically back GOP candidates, such as the Indiana Chamber of Commerce, are sitting on the sidelines. Braun’s recent three-stop “solutions” tour-- spread out across three days-- was ridiculed by Democrats, who pointed to Donnelly’s seven-day, 40-stop trek in August.

And while Braun, a multimillionaire businessman, took out $6.4 million in loans to fund his primary campaign, he also publicly groused about the cost. Now, with less than two months until the election, he has yet to purchase air time for October, while Donnelly has outspent him by almost double on TV and radio since June, records show.

That’s cause for concern, according to a half-dozen GOP officials, operatives and commentators familiar with the race, most of whom spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to offer candid assessments of the contest. They say Braun appears to be coasting at a time when he ought to be investing more of his own money and rallying the base.

Conservative talk radio host Rob Kendall summed up the GOP’s worries by pointing to Braun’s recent appearance with President Donald Trump at a rally in Evansville.

“He’s in front of (thousands of) people at the Ford Center and it sounds like you’re at a funeral,” said Kendall, who is a producer and has a show on Indianapolis-based WIBC radio. “I would have been like James Brown and the Blues Brothers shouting out ‘Do You See the Light’ to the congregation. And this guy, you have to check him for a pulse.”

Republicans have viewed Donnelly’s seat as a prime pickup opportunity in a state Trump won by nearly 20 points in 2016. The criticism of Braun’s performance reflects a sudden sense among the GOP that Senate contests in several states Trump carried may be tougher than expected and that control of the Republican-led chamber could be at stake-- a prospect that was unthinkable just a few weeks ago.

...While commuting back-and-forth between Indiana and Washington, Donnelly has held more than 190 campaign events since May-- more than double the number attended by Braun, who resigned from his seat in the Indiana Legislature to focus on campaigning.

Bob Grand, a GOP fundraiser and Indiana powerbroker, said Donnelly has done a “phenomenal job” campaigning, but doubted it will be enough to win in an overwhelmingly Republican state.

“He’s even featuring Donald Trump in his ads. What does that tell you?” Grand said.

Still, groups that have enthusiastically supported GOP nominees in the past are uncharacteristically absent.

In addition to the Indiana Chamber of Commerce, which opted against issuing an endorsement, the U.S. Chamber was mum over whether it will get involved. In 2016, the group spent at least $3.7 million backing GOP Sen. Todd Young in his race against Democrat Evan Bayh, a popular former Indiana governor and senator who previously worked for them.

Americans for Prosperity, the political arm of billionaire industrialists Charles and David Koch, interviewed Braun but decided not to directly support him. Two years ago, they launched a door-knocking and phone-bank operation that helped Young win.

On paper, Braun has everything the GOP wants: He built a national auto parts distribution company from the ground up, speaks with a subtle southern Indiana twang and is a virtual outsider to politics, despite his brief stint in the Legislature.

He also has the ability to self-fund.

During the GOP primary, Braun used his wealth, worth somewhere between $37 million and $95 million, to bury U.S. Reps. Todd Rokita and Luke Messer with more than $6.2 million worth of radio and TV spots, Federal Election Commission records show.

But Braun-- whose wife once described him to the Indianapolis Star as the “tightest guy I know”-- said after his May 8 victory that he wasn’t looking to do the same in the general election.

With November looming, his campaign only started to ramp up spending on TV ads this week. Meanwhile, Democratic groups and super PACs are set to spend $22 million, much of it ruthlessly attacking Braun’s business record.

They’ve seized on stories by the AP that revealed his companies racked up safety violations and were sued by employees for unfair treatment, including a worker kicked off health insurance days after he suffered a heart attack.

Democrats also labeled Braun a hypocrite for attacking Donnelly’s family business for outsourcing jobs to Mexico while using Chinese goods for his own brand of auto accessories.

This looks very optimistic. I wonder how Donnelly will vote on Kavanaugh, don't you?