Republicans pulling money from battleground Senate races

(NewsNation) — What once appeared to be a “no doubt” major red wave heading to the House and Senate after November’s midterm elections now appears to be more of a ripple in a puddle.

Democrats are seemingly building momentum toward November’s midterms, shaking off the weight of high inflation and gas prices that burdened them with voters for much of summer.

Democrats believe they have secured wins with voters by passing student loan forgiveness, the Inflation Reduction Act and other key bills that have made it to Biden’s desk.

“The enthusiasm gap has gone away, and then we’ve passed some really good legislation this summer,” said Rep. Don Beyer, D-Va. “There’s no reason for us not to be optimistic about November.”

Hope has grown even stronger among Democrats after Dem House candidate Pat Ryan defeated Republican Marc Molinaro in a special election in New York that was considered a major bellwether of voter sentiment.

“We took clear strong stances to stand up for fundamental rights and freedoms for people in this community,” Ryan said after his win.

Money, of course, talks, and if you follow it in politics, it will generally show you the direction a party feels it is heading.

This week, a GOP super PAC aligned with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell cut roughly $8 million from the Senate campaign ad budget in Arizona, a sign the party does not feel strongly about candidate Blake Masters’ chances.

This came after the National Republican Senatorial Committee cut millions of dollars in advertising from the key battleground states of Arizona, Wisconsin, Nevada and Pennsylvania.

• Pennsylvania-$7.5 million
• Arizona-$3.5 million
• Wisconsin-$2.5 million
• Nevada-$1.5 million

McConnell did not shy away from doubting his party’s chances.

There is “greater likelihood the House flips than the Senate,” McConnell said. “Senate races are just different. They’re statewide. Candidate quality has a lot to do with the outcome.”

Those cuts come as Republican Senate and gubernatorial candidates in battleground states continue to slide in recent polls.

Decision Desk HQ has most polls showing Republican Mehmet Oz behind by 5 points in Pennsylvania, Republican Herschel Walker behind by 2 points in Georgia, and incumbent Republican Ron Johnson behind by 5 points in Wisconsin.

Meanwhile, in the race for Pennsylvania governor, there was another bump in the road for Trump-backed Republican Doug Mastriano, after a 2014 photo of him in a Confederate uniform surfaced. The Army war college where he worked gave faculty the option to dress as a historic figure, Reuters reported. Mastriano was the only one who chose to dress as a Confederate.