by Jennie Taer
A Mitch McConnell-linked Senatorial Republican Super PAC has pulled millions of dollars in ad buys in Arizona, where Trump-backed Blake Masters will likely face a tight race in November.
The Senate Leadership Fund, a group aligned with McConnell, is cancelling ad buys worth nearly $8 million in Arizona, where Masters is running, set for early fall. The ads are about half of what the super PAC bought, leaving the rest to start in early October, according to Politico.
Masters, who is backed by PayPal co-founder and Republican donor Peter Thiel, will run against incumbent Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly in what is considered a “toss up” race by Cook Political Report. Kelly is beating Masters in most polls, with his lead averaging 8.3 percentage points, according to FiveThirtyEight.
The Trump-aligned candidate said Friday he hopes to get McConnell’s support.
“We’re leaving the door wide open in Arizona but we want to move additional resources to other offensive opportunities that have become increasingly competitive, as well as an unexpected expense in Ohio,” Senate Leadership Fund President Steven Law told the Daily Caller News Foundation.
“We think the fundamentals of this election strongly favor Republicans, we see multiple paths to winning the majority, and we are going to invest heavily and strategically to achieve that goal,” Law added.
OneNation, the advocacy arm affiliated with the Senate Leadership Fund, announced a $1.1 million addition in Arizona Friday.
In addition to Arizona, the Super PAC also cancelled around $1.7 million in ad buys in Alaska, where the group is backing Senator Lisa Murkowski who faces a ranked-choice general election against Trump-endorsed Kelly Tshibaka, according to Politico.
“We are all-in for Senator Murkowski. Senator Murkowski is in a very strong position and based on that decided to push back our start date,” Law said, according to Politico.
The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) and Masters’ campaign didn’t respond to the DCNF’s requests for comment.
The Murkowski campaign declined to comment.
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Jennie Taer is a reporter at Daily Caller News Foundation.
Photo “Mitch McConnell” by Gage Skidmore. CC BY-SA 2.0. Photo “Blake Masters” by Blake Masters for Senate. Background Photo “United States Capitol” by Noclip.
Another example of how the GOPe is working for Democrat rule [as in dictatorship] in the US.
Subotai Bahadur
THIS is NOT difficult to understand. McConnell knows that if Masters is elected to the U. S. Senate, Masters will NOT vote for McConnell to continue as Republican Leader. Masters is a Trump man, NOT a McConnell man. McConnell wants ONLY those Republicans elected who will vote for him to continue to be Republican Leader in the U. S. Senate. A Republican candidate who McConnell cannot trust to do THAT is NOT acceptable to McConnell even if it means that the Republicans will be in the minority. Kentucky voters, it is time for YOU to ‘get rid’ of crooked, old Mitch! Old Mitch is part of the Deep State where everyone in D. C., behind the scene, works together to ‘feather their own nests.’
Leave it to Anaconda Mitch to snatch defeat from winning