If the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee isn't bailing on behinder-and-behinder candidate Patrick Murphy, why have they suddenly dropped Florida as a target state?
It certainly was a target state. As recently as Sept. 1 it was on the target list.
I'm thinking maybe we can look to Ohio to find out why the exclusion.
Maybe the DSCC puts Murphy in the same boat as they put former Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland, who is running 11 points behind Republican Sen. Rob Portman in the Buckeye State and isn't much of a bang for the Dems' buck.
Ohio just got dropped as a target, too.
The Quinnipiac University Swing State Poll not only gave Strickland the bad polling news Friday, in the same survey it showed Sen. Marco Rubio jumping to a 7-point lead over Democratic Congressman Murphy.
The poll was released as Senate Democrats privately appear to be bracing themselves for the likelihood that Strickland will not defeat Portman. Is that what they're doing in the Rubio-Murphy race, too?
The Columbus Dispatch confirmed at a private meeting this week before a trade association in Washington, D.C., Tom Lopach, executive director of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, did not list the Ohio race as among the top eight races Democrats are focusing on.
Instead, according to a source who attended the meeting, Lopach said Strickland could only win “if a wave comes” in. That was a reference to Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton winning by a strong margin in Ohio.
The states the DSCC is focusing most on are Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Nevada, Missouri and North Carolina. Democratic victories in Illinois, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Nevada and New Hampshire would all but guarantee they take control of the Senate, says the Committee.
Pretty much kicks Murphy to the B-List with Strickland.
The Miami Herald wrote a story earlier in the week saying, "The DSCC on Tuesday canceled its ad buy planned for Sept. 20-26 -- what was to be the committee's first foray into Florida's general election between Democrat Patrick Murphy and Republican incumbent Sen. Marco Rubio."
A DSCC official was quick to warn off anyone who would interpret that as an indication of dwindling commitment to Murphy.
"This spending is simply being moved to come later in the election to backload our current Florida buy," the official told the Herald.
Actually, National Democrats are going through with a large ad buy it had planned months ago, set to start Sept. 13. After that, expect a drought.
By delaying spending until closer to Election Day, the Dems likely reduce the impact of their ads because many voters will have already made up their minds. Mail ballots start going out in early October and early voting begins Oct. 29.
Considering the four FEC complaints lodged against his campaign, the $52,800 he forked over for legal services between July 1 and Aug. 10, and now this DSCC snub less than two months before the election, Patrick Murphy is in campaign hell.
Reach Nancy Smith at nsmith@sunshinestatenews.com or at 228-282-2423. Twitter: @NancyLBSmith
