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Budd has been outraised by McCrory, who lost his reelection bid in 2016, and trails him in recent polls McCrorys internal polling shows him with a 15-point lead, while data from a pro-Budd super PAC has McCrory ahead by just 3 points.

Mark Walker, a conservative former congressman who is also seeking the GOP Senate nomination, has criticized Budd for his failure to command a lead after receiving both Trumps backing and major funding from the Club for Growths super PAC, which plans to spend $10 million on Budd.

Theyve made a commitment to already spend $3 million on TV because the Trump endorsement for Mr. Budd did not push the needle like it has in some other states, Walker said during a radio interview with WBT in Charlotte in September. At some point, people have to ask why.

Budds campaign says its fundraising rapidly accelerated after the Trump endorsement in June, not just from small-dollar contributions but from donors who were previously uninterested in the campaign. Budd learned of the endorsement just minutes before Trump announced it onstage at the North Carolina Republican Partys annual convention this summer, raising questions in state political circles about why Trump decided to support Budd so early in the race and while his name recognition remained low.

Jonathan Felts, a senior adviser to Budds campaign, said the Trump endorsement has been key to Budds ability to catch up with McCrory. They expected it would take from Budds May Senate campaign launch until at least March 2022 to close the fundraising and name ID gap between Budd and McCrory. Now, the campaign is nearly there, campaign officials say.

What we had planned to do in 10 months we got done in six months, thanks to Donald Trumps endorsement, Felts said.

The downside, however, is that Budds backing from the polarizing former president risks turning off some moderates, a voting demographic Republicans in North Carolina and other competitive states need to win in November.

Trump has yet to endorse in Arizona, another swing state that is pivotal to the battle to capture the Senate majority. But he appeared at a fundraiser for candidate Blake Masters at Mar-a-Lago earlier this month one day after Masters released a video declaring that Trump won in 2020, a statement made in an apparent attempt to secure Trumps backing.

In recent polls, Masters trails well behind state Attorney General Mark Brnovich, whom Trump continues to publicly taunt for not doing enough to overturn Bidens win in Arizona.

The first primaries of the year are still three months away and Arizonas is nine months away so theres time for Trumps Senate endorsees to build enough momentum to overtake their opponents. At least one of them, retired football star Herschel Walker in Georgia, already has a wide lead and a considerable fundraising advantage in the GOP primary.

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Trump's Senate picks stumble out of the gate - POLITICO

Democrats objected to the redistricting plan, saying it had been quickly pushed through the legislative process with district lines that reduce their representation. Georgia is closely split between Democrats and Republicans in statewide elections, but the state House map continues to give the GOP an advantage.

The people of Georgia deserve more than a magic show of smoke and mirrors, said state Rep. Carolyn Hugley, a Democrat from Columbus. Republicans have ignored the will of Georgia voters in drawing their Statehouse map proposal. It minimizes the political power of the people of Georgia and ignores the fact that Georgia is equally divided politically.

The Georgia House of Representatives voted to pass a new political map, redistricting the state's 180 districts, on Wednesday, Nov. 10, 2021.

Credit: Gina.Wright

Credit: Gina.Wright

The mapmaking process picks winners and losers, with some representatives drawn into districts that favor their opponents and others forced to face members of their own party.

For example, Republican state Rep. Philip Singletons new district would favor Democrats in next years elections because it will extend north of Coweta County into Fulton County. Singleton has been a staunch critic of Republican House Speaker David Ralston, and hell now face a difficult path to reelection.

A few representatives were drawn into the same districts as incumbents, meaning only one will remain after next years elections. Only one of those pairings forces a contest between a Republican and a Democrat, when Republican Rep. Gerald Greene of Cuthbert would face Democratic Rep. Winfred Dukes of Albany.

If you allow your voice to be silenced, or you willingly submit your voice to a select few, you are complicit in the destruction of our republic, said Singleton, a Republican who voted against the map. I want everyone in this room to have an equal voice.

Democrats said Georgias districts should have been crafted in a way that kept more communities unified under one representative and empowered people of color to represent them. Members of the House are about 67% white in a state where white people make up about half of the population.

State House Democratic Leader James Beverly of Macon raised issue with the map House members approved Wednesday. The people of Georgia demanded a fair and transparent redistricting process, Beverly said. What they got instead was a rushed and secretive process. (Hyosub Shin / Hyosub.Shin@ajc.com)

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

The people of Georgia deserve better. The people of Georgia demanded a fair and transparent redistricting process, said Minority Leader James Beverly, a Democrat from Macon. What they got instead was a rushed and secretive process.

The House map introduces several opportunities for Democrats to make gains, primarily in newly formed districts in metro Atlanta, seats where there are no incumbents. There are two new districts in Cobb County, two in Gwinnett County, one in Fulton County and one in Rockdale County.

Each House district in the state will represent about 59,500 residents. The House map now advances to the state Senate for further consideration, a day after the Senate approved a map for its 56 districts.

Not everybodys going to be happy, said Ralston, a Republican from Blue Ridge. Not all the Republicans are going to be happy. And thats the case with every piece of legislation that we pass, but we have done the best we can.

After the General Assembly finishes redistricting itself, maps for Georgias 14 congressional districts will be introduced.

Republicans currently hold an 8-6 majority in Georgias U.S. House delegation, and the GOP is trying to regain a seat currently held by Democrat Lucy McBath, who represents parts of Cobb, DeKalb and Fulton counties. A proposal by state Senate leaders would move more conservative Forsyth County into her district, but the House hasnt yet released its congressional plan.

Staff writer Maya T. Prabhu contributed to this article.

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New political map approved by Georgia House, preserving ...

Never Trump was a label embraced by a handful of Republicans who deemed Donald Trump disqualified for office by some combination of his ignorance, his mendacity, his bigotry, and/or his authoritarianism. Almost no one still affiliated with the party or the conservative movement willingly uses the label any more. The label has largely been repurposed by Trump himself as an epithet against any Republican who dares utter criticism of him, however mild. Never Trump now serves essentially the same role in right-wing discourse as Trotskyite did in Stalins Russia an all-purpose accusation of secret disloyalties, which must be fervently disavowed.

In place of Never Trumpism, the Biden-era Republican party offers up figures like Chris Christie. Christie has put himself forward as the face of Republican resistance to Trump. But it is a form of resistance so tepid as to become almost indistinguishable from support.

Christie grabbed headlines by declaring he might run for president, and unlike other contenders, who have implicitly or explicitly conditioned their candidacies on Mr. Trump not running he announced he wouldnt wait for Trumps permission. Christie has lambasted Trump for continuing to claim he legitimately won the 2020 election. But he has restricted his criticism to the exceedingly narrow ground that voters are simply tired of hearing about the past: We can no longer talk about the past and the past elections no matter where you stand on that issue, no matter where you stand, it is over.

This is the perfect distillation of Establishment Republican thinking on this issue. They dont want to dispute Trumps election lies; they just want to drop the question. Trump, of course, has no intention of dropping the argument, which is why hes winning it: He is making a case that Biden stole the election, and hardly anybody in his party is willing to contradict him. (Indeed, Republicans are actively muzzling Liz Cheney precisely because she insists on refuting Trumps election lie.)

In an interview last night with Laura Ingraham, who spoke at Trumps 2020 nominating convention, Christie assured the Fox News audience that he had no disagreement in principle with the partys leader. He agreed that Democrats cheated in 2020 We know what happened in 2020, in instances where the voting laws were changed improperly and heartily endorsed state-level voting restrictions as an appropriate, forward-looking response.

Prodded further by Ingraham, he conceded that his disagreements with Trump were limited to matters of style and personality and that he fully supported Trumps substantive positions. Laura, he announced grandly, the line of supporting Donald Trump starts behind me!

Trump appealed to the Republican base, despite his many apostasies, because he promised to crush their enemies. His attack on the Republican leadership was, and is, ideologically incoherent they are too conservative or too moderate, too hawkish or too dovish, unable to pass a trillion-dollar infrastructure bill or shamefully willing to do just that but characterologically consistent. The other Republicans are timid and weak. He is ruthless and strong.

Trumps supporters see the party as riven along the same lines: not left versus right, but weak versus strong. When conservative pundits Jonah Golderg and Stephen Hayes quit Fox News over Tucker Carlsons weeklong orgy of paranoid January 6 revisionism, an American Spectator columnist assailed them for lacking the guts to get their hands dirty in the fight: Theres a certain brand of weak-sauce conservative pundit, many of whom have populated the airwaves of cable news channels and other corporate media venues, which depends for its sustenance on remaining acceptable to those who are not conservatives Lets hope that somebody is less acceptable and more willing to accurately assess the state of America brought on by two decades of weak-sauce conservatisms constant retreating.

The weak-sauce conservatism of Goldberg and Hayes is extremely conservative. What makes it weak is its unwillingness to undermine the voting process through chaos and violence.

Supporting Trump is fundamentally a choice between being willing to abide the rules of the democratic game and doing whatever it takes to gain power. Christie is trying to elide the choice. But in so doing, he is revealing the same weakness of character that Trump used to discredit the Republican alternatives. When the choice comes again between democracy and power, they will choose power.

Analysis and commentary on the latest political news from New York columnist Jonathan Chait.

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Chris Christie and the Death of the Never Trump Republican - New York Magazine

The Republican partys vilification of members of Congress who have criticized Donald Trump or supported bipartisan legislation is ruining America, New Hampshires governor, Chris Sununu, said on Sunday, adding another tacit voice to the small but growing internal opposition to the former president.

Sununu, seen as a rising star of the post-Trump right, attacked his colleagues in an interview on CNN, insisting that House Republicans have their priorities screwed up for seeking retaliation against 13 members who voted for Joe Bidens $1.2tn infrastructure bill.

Sununu was scathing when asked about the call for those members to be stripped of their committee assignments in the same week that only two Republicans vocal Trump critics Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger voted to censure their colleague Paul Gosar for tweeting a video showing him murdering the Democratic congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

Thats kind of that social media mob mentality thats built up in this country where we dont agree with one issue so were going to attack them, were going to vilify one person or one individual. Weve got to get beyond that, because culturally, its really, really ruining America, he said.

Politics in its entirety on both sides of the aisle in Washington is screwed up. They got their priorities all wrong, they focus on the wrong things. They dont talk about balancing budgets, fixing healthcare, immigration reform, social security and Medicare instead we spend all of our time focusing on these nitpicky things.

He defended Cheney, who was ousted from her leadership role earlier this year by House Republicans after she challenged Trumps lie that his election defeat by Joe Biden was fraudulent.

Regarding Republicans failure to speak out against Gosar, a Trump loyalist, Sununu added: When a congressman says those things, of course they have to be censured Were talking about kicking people off committees because they dont like one vote or the other? Again, I just think they have their priorities screwed up.

Sununu is among a small number of senior, elected Republicans with the confidence to begin pushing back (although not directly) against Trumps domination of the party.

Glenn Youngkin won a surprise victory earlier this month in Virginias governors race after a campaign during which he deliberately kept Trump at arms length, yet did tacitly echo the former presidents talking points. Some saw his win as a new Republican playbook for navigating future elections minus the specter of Trump.

Meanwhile, Chris Christie, a former governor of New Jersey and one-time Trump adviser, has told party members they needed to renounce the conspiracy theories and truth deniers, the ones who know better and the ones who are just plain nuts. Trump, who is considering another presidential run in 2024, attacked Christie while attempting to seek credit for Youngkins victory.

Friction has also been reported in Trumps relationship with his protege Ron DeSantis, the Florida governor touted in Republican circles as the former presidents heir apparent and tipped for a likely 2024 White House run of his own. Trump is increasingly irritated by DeSantis soaring popularity, according to CNN, and has become obsessed with receiving credit for his rise.

A report in the Atlantic published on Sunday suggested that Trumps once iron-clad grip on the Republican party might finally be slipping, arguing that the recent series of developments point to the early stirrings of a Republican party in which Trump is sidelined.

However, Trump continues to raise millions of dollars for an as yet undeclared presidential candidacy, and sends out regular endorsements of state and national candidates he believes embody the principles of Trumpism.

Until recently, Sununu was believed to be among them, but he reportedly upset Republican colleagues earlier this month with his announcement that he was not interested in pursuing a seat in the US Senate.

According to Politico, both the Senate minority leader, Mitch McConnell, and Rick Scott, chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, considered him the perfect candidate to help wrest chamber control from Democratic hands in the 2022 midterm elections, but were blindsided by his decision.

You just get so much more done as governor, Sununu told CNN on Sunday. Governors are the ones that have to implement and design programs, create opportunities, and we as governors have the best opportunity to offset some of the negative things coming out of Washington. The Senate and House really dont have any power to do that.

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Republicans vilification of Trump critics is ruining the US, says governor - The Guardian

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With less than a year to go before the 2022 midterm elections, the Republican Party is staring at an opportunity of truly historic proportions. Even before the shocking results of the gubernatorial races last month things looked good, all signs were pointing to "yes" on taking back Congress. But the win in Virginia and narrow defeat in deep blue New Jersey have changed the map. What had looked like solid gains, could now turn out to be completely transformational.

In the wake of the 2020 election the conventional wisdom was that a kind of trade had taken place. Democrats had solidified their gains among suburban White voters but Republicans had made deep inroads into a more diverse working-class demographic.

VOTER TSUNAMI BEGINS TO DROWN DEMOCRATS

It was a deal that most, though not all, conservatives were happy with, a coalition with greater growth potential. But after this years elections, Republicans must be asking themselves, "Can we have both?" And it sure seems like the answer is yes.

The current facts on the ground are daunting for Democrats. Joe Biden is about as unpopular as a Democrat president can be, the generic congressional polling has the GOP up an almost unprecedented 10 points, and aside from James Carville and a smattering of others, the left doesnt appear to understand it even has a problem.

This is an opportunity for Republicans to achieve something that they have not for at least a century: lasting institutional political power. The GOP has long been the "opposition party" in American life. Even sweeping victories by Richard Nixon in 1972 and Ronald Reagan in 1980 left Democrats in charge of the House of Representatives.

KEVIN MCCARTHY DROPS THE GLOVES ON BUILD BACK BETTER AND KICKS OFF 2022 MIDTERM FIGHT

Under President George W. Bush, Republicans controlled both houses of Congress for most of his first six years, but it was tight. Like Biden, the 43rd president entered the Oval Office with an evenly split Senate. In 2006 the Democrats would sweep back into control on Capitol Hill.

The chance at power that Republicans have today is of a completely different order of magnitude. Voters are rejecting Democrats ideas on education, the economy, the border, crime, you name it. Even on COVID, Biden has crashed in the polls, and while some Democrats seem keen on reducing COVID restrictions, their base, whom they have terrified for two years, doesnt really seem ready for that.

The trick for Republicans will be to isolate Democrats politically as a niche far-left party. Amazingly, this is a project a whole lot of Democrats, including Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, seem on board with. But, of course, none of this is a fait accompli.

For the GOP to pull off an historic victory they must do two things. First, be a big tent party that eschews purity tests, and second, keep a laser-like focus on the fumbling failures of the Democrat majority.

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In regard to casting a wide electoral net Republicans must draw a line between figures like Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., who have completely disqualified themselves, and those like former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, currently on a media blitz, who still have a role to play.

Cheney has made it her mission to harm Republican efforts at regaining power unless it totally rejects Donald Trump. Christie, the first major Republican to endorse Trump in 2016, is focused on winning, even if some of the former presidents allies see him as disloyal.

As regards attacking the record of the current Democrats, the GOP should be on offense everywhere. Fight them in the suburbs, fight them in the factories, fight them in the school boards, and the gas stations and the grocery stores.

And one last thing. To truly emerge from the shadow of permanent opposition into the sunshine of national political dominance Republicans have to act like they belong there.

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It is not enough to paint America as the victim of progressive Democrat excesses, there must be a positive vision of something better.

If that happens, American politics could shift next year in ways that last a generation.

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The Republican Party is looking at a truly historic opportunity in 2022 - Fox News

The website of the Oklahoma Republican party has a running countdown to the 2024 presidential election measured in Maga days, Maga hours, Maga minutes and Maga seconds Maga being shorthand for Donald Trumps timeworn slogan, Make America great again.

The state party chairman, John Bennett, a veteran of three combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, has described Islam as a cancer in our nation that needs to be cut out and posted a yellow Star of David on Facebook to liken coronavirus vaccine mandates to the persecution of Jewish people in Nazi Germany.

This is just one illustration of how Republican parties at the state level are going to new extremes in their embrace of Trump, an ominous sign ahead of midterm elections next year and a potential glimpse of the national partys future. Yet the radicalisation often takes place under the radar of the national media.

We are not a swing state and were nowhere near a swing state so no ones looking, said Alicia Andrews, chair of the Oklahoma Democratic party. And because no one is looking at Oklahoma, we are allowed to be way more extreme than a lot of states.

Andrews pointed to the example of a state law passed by the Republican majority in April that grants immunity to drivers who unintentionally injure or kill protesters and stiffens penalties for demonstrators who block public roadways.

Only three states passed it, with Oklahoma being the first, she said. And you know why? Because there wasnt national attention. We were talking about Florida passing it and Texas passing it. No one was even considering what was going on in Oklahoma and it quietly passed in Oklahoma.

Similarly, Andrew argues, while other states were debating critical race theory in schools, in Oklahoma a ban was rammed through with little coverage. Another concern is gerrymandering, the process whereby a party redraws district boundaries for electoral advantage.

Andrews, the first African American to lead the Oklahoma Democratic party, said: Our legislators are in a special session right now to review our maps and they are really eroding an urban core, taking at least 6,000 Hispanic Americans out of an urban district and moving them to a rural district, thus denuding their votes. I didnt think that they could make it worse but they are.

Oklahoma is a deep red state. As of August, its house and senate had 121 Republicans and 28 Democrats. It continues to hold Stop the Steal rallies pushing Trumps big lie that Joe Biden robbed him of victory in the presidential election.

Andrews warns that Republicans in her state are indicative of a national trend.

Their stated strategy is start at the municipal level, take over the state, take over the nation. So while everybodys talking about the infrastructure plan and the Build Back Better plan, theyre rubbing their hands together and making differences in states.

She added: Were like the testing ground for their most radical right exercises, and once they perfect it here, they can take it to other states.

Republican state parties rightward spiral has included promotion of Trumps big lie about electoral fraud, white nationalism and QAnon, an antisemitic conspiracy theory involving Satan-worshipping cannibals and a child sex-trafficking ring. It can find bizarre and disturbing expression.

Arizona staged a sham audit of the 2020 presidential election that only confirmed Bidens victory in the state. Last month in Idaho, when Governor Brad Little was out of the state, his lieutenant, Janice McGeachin, issued an executive order to prevent employers requiring employees be vaccinated against Covid-19. Little rescinded it on his return.

The Wyoming state party central committee this week voted to no longer recognise the congresswoman Liz Cheney daughter of the former vice-president Dick Cheney and a hardline conservative as a Republican, its second formal rebuke for her criticism of Trump and vote to impeach him for his role in the US Capitol attack.

Nina Hebert, communications director of the state Democratic party, said: Wyoming is not exempt from the extremism that Trump has intentionally cultivated and fuelled and continues to court today.

He was a popular figure in Wyoming in the 2016 election and he retains that popularity amongst voters in the state, which I think is the most red in the nation.

Gerrymandering is a longstanding problem, Hebert said, but Trumps gleeful celebration of the 6 January riot has opened floodgates.

They have created situations where Republican-controlled state legislatures have no reason to pretend even that theyre not just trying to hold on to power. This has become something that is acceptable within the Republican party.

The shift has also been evident in policy in Florida, Texas and other states where Republicans have taken aim at abortion access, gun safety, trans and voting rights. Often, zealous officials seem to be trying to outdo one another in outraging liberals, known as owning the libs.

The drift is not confined to red states. When Republicans in California, a Democratic bastion, sought to recall Governor Gavin Newsom, they rallied around a Trumpian populist in the conservative talk radio host Larry Elder rather than a more mainstream figure such as Kevin Faulconer, a former mayor of San Diego.

Kurt Bardella, an adviser to the Democratic National Committee who was once an aide to a leading California Republican, said: To me that was a bellwether. If even a state like California cant get a more moderate, pragmatic Republican party at the state level, theres really no hope for any of the parties in any state at this point.

Theyre leaning so hard into this anti-democratic, authoritarian, non-policy-based iteration and identity. The old adage, As goes California, so goes the country, well, look at what the California Republican party did and were seeing that play out across the board.

Like junior sports teams, state parties are incubators and pipelines for generations of politicians heading to Washington. The primary election system tends to favour the loudest and most extreme voices, who can whip up enthusiasm in the base.

Trump has been promiscuous in his endorsements of Maga-loyal candidates for the November 2022 midterms, among them Herschel Walker, a former football star running for the Senate in Georgia despite a troubled past including allegations that he threatened his ex-wifes life.

Other examples include Sarah Sanders, a former White House press secretary running for governor in Arkansas, and Karoline Leavitt, a 23-year-old former assistant press secretary targeting a congressional seat in New Hampshire.

This week, Amanda Chase, a state senator in Virginia and self-described Trump in heels, announced a bid for Congress against the Democrat Abigail Spanberger. Chase gave a speech in Washington on 6 January, hours before the insurrection, and was censured by her state senate for praising the rioters as patriots.

The former congressman Joe Walsh, who was part of the Tea Party, a previous conservative movement against the Republican establishment, and now hosts a podcast, said: I talked to these folks every day, and for people who think [members of Congress] Matt Gaetz and Marjorie Taylor Greene and Lauren Boebert are nuts, they aint seen nothing yet.

The Republicans at the state and local level are way, way more gone than the Republicans in Washington. Were talking about grassroots voters and activists on the ground and eventually, to win a Republican primary at whatever level, every candidate has to listen to them.

So youre going to get a far larger number of wackadoodle Republicans elected to Congress in 2022 because they will reflect the craziness thats going on state and locally right now.

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The testing ground: how Republican state parties grow Trumpism 2.0 - The Guardian

With the 2022 midterm elections less than a year away, Senate Republicans are building on their cash advantage, while House and national committees are sitting on similar warchests.

The Republicans' Senate campaign arm continued to outraise the Democrats' campaign committee, beating the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee in October for the seventh straight month. In June, the DSCC brought in slightly more from individual donations than the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

The NRSC raised $9 million in October compared to the DSCC's $6.9 million haul. It ended October with about $29.7 million in the bank, while the DSCC had $15.9 million cash on hand.

But there is some good news for the Democratic Party its candidates have been outraising Republicans in key battleground races. Senator Raphael Warnock of Georgia raised $8.9 million in individual contributions in the third quarter. Six other Democratic Senate candidates all topped $2 million in individual contributions in the quarter.

On the GOP side, Senator Marco Rubio ($5.5 million) of Florida and Herschel Walker ($3.7 million), who could face Warnock in Georgia, were the only Republican Senate candidates to crack $2 million in individual contributions. Some other Republicans have contributed large sums to their own campaigns to shore up their financial standing.

In the battle for the House, Democrats held a slight financial advantage with less than a year to go before Election Day 2022. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee raised $11.6 million in October, with about $7.5 million from individuals, while the National Republican Committee raked in $9.7 million, including $6.4 million from individuals. Both committees were sitting on about $67 million at the end of October.

Midterm elections are historically difficult for the party controlling the White House. With state lawmakers redrawing districts around the country, Democrats have seen 17 members announce plans to retire or run for a new office. Over the weekend, Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas retired. On Monday, Representative Peter Welch of Vermont said he would be leaving his House seat to run for the Senate following Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy's retirement, and received the coveted endorsement of Senator Bernie Sanders. Just 10 House Republicans have announced they'll retire or say they're running for a different office.

The House and Senate campaign committees are key allies for the political parties in tight races to supplement candidate spending. They can use their millions on television and digital advertisements and send other material, much of which is negative, in an effort to persuade voters.

The Republican National Committee reported raising $13.8 million in October, including $10.9 million from individual donors. The Democratic National Committee brought in $11.4 million, with $7.9 million coming from individual donors.

It was the third straight month, and sixth month this year, that the RNC has brought in more money than the DNC. But Democrats have closed a massive cash gap between the two committees at the start of the year.

At the end of January, the DNC had $44.8 million in the bank and more than $5 million in debt. The RNC, meanwhile, had $83 million in its coffers and no debt. At the end of October, both committees were sitting on about $68 million.

The RNC has spent nearly $150 million this year, including transferring about $5 million to GOP Senate and House campaign committees through the end of September. The committee's biggest expenditure total, about $11.4 million, has been paid to a mailing vendor.

In October, the RNC reported spending about $120,000 to pay a lawyer who is representing former President Trump in investigations into his finances in New York. The spending was first reported by The Washington Post.

"The RNC's Executive Committee approved paying for certain legal expenses that relate to politically motivated legal proceedings waged against President Trump," an RNC spokesperson said in a statement. "As a leader of our party, defending President Trump and his record of achievement is critical to the GOP. It is entirely appropriate for the RNC to continue assisting in fighting back against the Democrats' never ending witch hunt and attacks on him."

The DNC has spent about $100 million in 2021. Through the end of October, the law firm Perkins Coie was the top recipient of DNC spending, receiving about $12.6 million from the committee.

Another big factor in the midterms will be how Mr. Trump spends his Save America PAC's millions. The committee doesn't have to report its fundraising figures again until January, but was sitting on $90 million at the end of June.

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Senate Republicans hold fundraising edge over Democrats, House and national party committees even on cash - CBS News

Republicans and Democrats disagree about a lot of worldly things. One thing that unites majorities across parties, however, is the belief that this earthly life is not all there is. A large majority of Republicans along with a smaller but still substantial majority of Democrats believe in heaven, hell or some other form of life after death, according to a new Pew Research Center survey conducted Sept. 20-26, 2021.

Still, as on so many terrestrial matters, there are big differences between Republicans and Democrats in the specific beliefs they hold about life after death and who can obtain it.

Overall, nearly three-quarters (73%) of all U.S. adults believe in heaven, and a solid majority (62%) also believe in hell. More than eight-in-ten Republicans and Republican-leaning independents (85%) say they believe in heaven, compared with 64% of Democrats and Democratic leaners. Additionally, three-quarters of Republicans express belief in hell, compared with about half of Democrats (52%).

Pew Research Center conducted this survey partly to explore Americans views of the afterlife, including whether it exists and what it is like. For this report, we surveyed 6,485 U.S. adults from Sept. 20 to 26, 2021. All respondents to the survey are part of the Centers American Trends Panel (ATP), an online survey panel that is recruited through national random sampling of residential addresses. This way nearly all U.S. adults have a chance of selection. The survey is weighted to be representative of the U.S. adult population by gender, race, ethnicity, partisan affiliation, education, religious affiliation and other categories. For more, see the ATPs methodology. Here are the questions used for this report, along with responses, and its methodology.

A majority of Americans believe in both heaven and hell, including 74% of Republicans and 50% of Democrats. But about a third (35%) of Democrats say that they do not believe in either heaven or hell, compared with just 14% of Republicans who say this.

In fact, when given the option to express belief in some sort of afterlife aside from either heaven or hell, a quarter of all Democrats say that they do not believe in any afterlife at all, which is much higher than the share of Republicans who express the same view (9%).

The religious composition of the two parties helps to explain these findings. A large majority of Republicans identify as Christians, substantially higher than the share of Democrats who are Christians. Conversely, Democrats are much more likely than Republicans to be religiously unaffiliated describing themselves as atheists, agnostics or nothing in particular when asked about their religion. Large majorities of Christians in both parties believe in heaven, hell or both, including 95% of Republican and GOP-leaning Christians and 90% of Democratic Christians. And in addition to being more numerous in the Democratic Party, religious nones who are Democrats are far more inclined than religiously unaffiliated Republicans to say they believe in neither heaven nor hell (68% vs. 47%).

But even among those who believe in heaven, Democrats and Republicans also differ on who deserves to get in. In general, Republicans who believe in heaven are more likely to offer an exclusive vision of it as a place limited to those who are Christian or at least believe in God while Democrats tend to say they believe that heaven is open to many people regardless of their sectarian identities or beliefs about God.

Roughly two-thirds of Democrats who believe in heaven say people who do not believe in God can gain entry, while a third say nonbelievers are excluded. Among Republicans who believe in heaven, a greater share say nonbelievers cannot go there (52%) than say they can (45%).

Similarly, Christian Republicans are about twice as likely as Christian Democrats to say their religion is the one true faith leading to eternal life in heaven (40% vs. 21%), while Democrats are more likely to say that many religions can lead to eternal life in heaven (65% vs. 53%). And about half of Christian Democrats (53%) say some non-Christian faiths can lead to heaven, compared with just a third of Christian Republicans (35%) who agree.

One subject on which Republicans and Democrats often agree is what heaven and hell are like. Among people in both parties who believe in heaven, overwhelming shares say they think that in heaven, people are free from suffering, are reunited with loved ones who died previously, can meet God, and have perfectly healthy bodies. In the case of those who believe in hell, strong majorities of both Democrats and Republicans say that hell is a place where people experience physical and psychological suffering and become aware of the suffering they created in the world.

Note: Here are the questions used for this report, along with responses, and its methodology.

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Republicans more likely than Democrats to believe in heaven, say only their faith leads there - Pew Research Center

Republicans are in an advantageous position, albeit one that is not of their making.

Just under one year out from the midterm elections, Republicans find themselves with substantial advantages in polls asking voters which party they want to see in control of Congress. Democrats are in bad odor across the board, in part because they have set their sights on an agenda the public isnt overly enthusiastic about while also failing to see to the basics of governance little things like preserving a healthy economy, maintaining national security and delivering the nation out of a historic pandemic.

All Republicans have to be is something other than Democratic.

Because the party in power has turned in such a lousy performance over the last year, Republicans dont have to be anything more than against Democratic governance. They dont have to offer an alternative governing vision for the country. They dont have to grit their teeth and rubber-stamp Democratic initiatives. All Republicans have to be is something other than Democratic.

Thats easy enough, for now. But it will not last.

The GOP is benefiting from a lack of specificity. Right now, Republican governance is a hypothetical, and the partys candidates are generic. But soon enough, those hypothetical candidacies will become flesh and blood. House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy of California has shown little ability to impose any kind of discipline on his conference. That is going to make it harder for Republicans to present themselves to voters as an unobjectionable vehicle of opposition to the Democratic presidents agenda. And if McCarthy thinks maintaining discipline in the minority is hard, just wait until he becomes speaker of the House.

In the majority, the House GOP will have to present a positive agenda to contrast with Joe Bidens. That mission will be frustrated by the demands of the GOPs base voters, who seem to want little from their elected representatives beyond the relentless trolling of their political opponents. McCarthys primary interest so far has been to give those base voters what they want.

For example, McCarthy has devoted inordinate attention to what he alleges is the persecution of his conferences most irresponsible members: Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Paul Gosar of Arizona. Democrats removed both members from their committees after they repeatedly made odious spectacles of themselves. Greene was the subject of House Republican condemnations before the demands of negative partisanship made her into a GOP cause clbre. Gosar spent his time flirting with Holocaust deniers before he landed himself in the dock for posting a cartoon featuring his caricatured likeness murdering a House colleague. According to McCarthy, the majority party is unduly punishing both. He promised to restore those members assignments as speaker. Indeed, he added, they may have better committee assignments.

McCarthys defiance in support of these unworthy members stands in stark contrast to the opprobrium he rained down on Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming a reliable vote for Republican leaderships legislative priorities only because her conscience compels her to say out loud what McCarthy hasnt allowed himself to say since the shock of the day wore off: That Jan. 6 was a stain on the countrys history, and that Donald Trump bears responsibility for it.

Its entirely likely that Democrats will regret using their majorities to police the misconduct of minority members without a buy-in from GOP leadership.

Its entirely likely that Democrats will regret using their majorities to police the misconduct of minority members without a buy-in from GOP leadership. Republicans are likely to use their power in the majority to impose similar consequences on the Democratic Partys more contemptible members. But the sidelining of these two spotlight-hogging, addlebrained conspiracy mongers adds fuel to the populist persecution complex overtaking McCarthys party. Their presence in the media spotlight only makes it harder for Republicans to brand themselves as a generic vehicle of opposition to Democrats. McCarthy is not, however, obliged to lend credence to the notion that these members are being unfairly targeted. That was his choice.

But maybe McCarthy is just being a good steward of his conference? After all, as speaker, he would be responsible for maintaining the good faith of all his members. Herding 218 self-interested cats into corrals not always of their choosing is tough and thankless work. Sometimes pride or even prudence must take a back seat to the drudgework of legislating. But Republicans cant have much confidence in McCarthy to keep his conference in line in the majority when hes been unable to do that in the minority.

Despite his public admonitions against voting for the bipartisan infrastructure package, 13 Republicans bucked leadership and voted for that Democratic-sponsored initiative. It was always too much to expect that there would be no GOP defections when that bill received the support of 69 senators, including 19 Republicans. But the tactical incentives to deny Democrats a victory couldnt compete with the interests of those members constituents, most of whom live in infrastructure-heavy states in the Northeast. As far as we can tell, the minority leaders warnings werent a factor for the 13 defectors.

Nor could McCarthy keep his conference in line ahead of a vote on a proposal to create an independent commission to investigate the events leading up to the siege of the Capitol. "Given the political misdirections that have marred this process, given the now duplicative and potentially counterproductive nature of this effort, and given the speaker's shortsighted scope that does not examine interrelated forms of political violence in America, I cannot support this legislation," McCarthy said. Strong words words that 35 Republicans summarily ignored when they voted in favor of the commission, preferring a framework deal hashed out on the sidelines by four-term Rep. John Katko, R-N.Y.

McCarthys style of leadership as minority leader has been to either ignore or defend his conferences most embarrassing members and to play to the partys pro-Trump base, even at the risk of reinforcing the general perception that the GOP remains captive to the former presidents cult of personality. At the same time, he has repeatedly failed to demonstrate the ability to keep his members in line. These are inauspicious signs for a party poised to hand him the speakers gavel. Maybe Republicans should start thinking about a Plan B.

Noah Rothman is the associate editor of Commentary Magazine.

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Republicans have a Kevin McCarthy problem on their hands - MSNBC

DENVILLE Back during the Watergate era, Morris County Democrats won a county freeholder seat for theonly time and a handfulof state legislative seats.

But when the embers of Watergate died down, Republicans regained their posture as the countys dominant party.

History may not literally repeat itself, but its an open question if something similar is afoot more than four decades later.

Fueled by Donald Trumps unpopularity among many suburbanites, Democrats flipped four congressional seats in 2018 and held three of them last year. (The exception was CD-2 where then-Democrat Jeff Van Drew switched parties and won as a Republican).

But the 2021 election was not a good one for Democrats.

Phil Murphy won a surprisingly close race, the GOP gained seven seats in the Legislature and in Morris, Republicans won the mayors seat in Parsippany.

Whether the county is returning to its traditional form as the Trump presidency slips further into the background day by day is an open question. Well have to wait for the 2022 midterms to find out, but to Laura Ali, the county GOP chair, its a time for optimism.

I feel great, Ali said Tuesday during a chat at a local coffee shop. I think CD-11 although Mikie Sherrill is a popular candidate is going to be a referendum on Joe Biden and his horrible and disastrous policies.

Before that happens, Republicans need a candidate. Theres no shortage of possibilities.

At least six individuals have expressed interest so far and Ali expects more to come forward.

And that excludes Rosemary Becchi, who ran against Sherrill in 2020 and lost by about 30,000 votes. Becchi, who has stayed in the local political limelight through a grassroots organization called Jersey 1st, may run again.

There is time for all this to be sorted out, but not a lot of time.

Morris County now has a county line and Ali said she wants to hold a nominating convention in February.

You really need to get going soon, because you need to get those county committee votes, Ali advised all would-be candidates.

Then again, what complicates things is that no one knows what the 11th district is going to look like. It now covers most of Morris and small sections of Essex, Passaic and Sussex. The redistricting commission is now holding public hearings.

Rumors abound that CD-11 may incorporate Millburn and all of Montclair, thereby making it more Democratic.

That would hurt Republicans, but Ali is not all that troubled.

Morris will still be a strong part of the district, she said.

Fair point, but hows Morris going to vote? The county backed Sherrill in 2018 and 2020. No matter how you slice the numbers, its going to be virtually impossible for a Republican to win in CD-11 without carrying Morris.

Ali says the turnaround of GOP fortunes began three weeks ago.

Biden carried the county by 12,000 votes last year, but this year Republican Jack Ciattarelli won it by 21,000 a 33,000 vote swing. Many, many more people voted in 2020 than they did in 2021, so this is not a direct comparison, but you see the point.

As the GOP field jockeys for position, Ali has no favorite.

I dont want to go into the county convention with any preconceived favorite, she said.

The most important thing for me is that the person who comes out of the convention is the person who has the biggest chance to beat Mikie Sherrill. I want to make sure that happens.

And when a candidate emerges, Ali said she will work hard to energize and expand the Republican base, adding a bit cryptically, We have a lot of good plans up our sleeve.

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Ali Seeks the Best Republican to Take on Sherrill - InsiderNJ