Update On Key Senate Races #VASen #MASen #AZSen #NESen #NDSen #MESen #NVSen #INSen #FLSen

In Virginia, the Fredericksburg News Desk reports that George Allen was in North Stafford warning about the dangerous effects that massive defense cuts would have on the Commonwealth.  Allen heard from local business leaders that sequestration isn’t just going to hurt if federal cuts go into effect in January—they’re already feeling the dire effects. During a roundtable discussion Monday focused on the defense industry, Allen met with about 20 people to see how the automatic defense cuts are already evident in businesses of all sizes.  “It’s dangerous in a variety of ways in that it weakens our military readiness,” Allen said at the campaign event at Hilldrup Moving and Storage in North Stafford.

In Massachusetts, the Sun Chronicle reports that Scott Brown was on the trail yesterday continuing his outreach to small business owners.  Brown also made a pitch to small business owners at a morning event in the city’s Mattapan neighborhood, delivering doughnuts and coffee to employees at Auto Service and Tire.  During the stop Brown again charged Warren represents a “you didn’t build it on your own” mentality, while Warren’s campaign said Brown continues to side with big corporations.
In Wisconsin, the NRSC reminded voters that Madison liberal Tammy Baldwin cut $700 billion from Medicare.  Last week, liberal Madison Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin claimed that she’s fighting for seniors, yet two years ago she voted for ObamaCare which raided $716 billion from Medicare.  The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that at least $200 billion will be cut from Medicare Advantage, $150 billion from hospitals, nursing homes and hospices and $40 billion from home healthcare. … “Liberal Madison Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin claims she’s fighting for seniors, yet her vote for government-run healthcare cut Medicare by $716 billion from seniors who depend on Medicare,” said National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) spokesman Jahan Wilcox.  “With a record like that, it’s clear Baldwin would rather put her liberal agenda ahead of seniors in Wisconsin.”

• Meanwhile, Crossroads GPS is up with a new ad that reminds voters that Madison liberal Tammy Baldwin supports a more radical version of government-run healthcare.  Tired of all the shouting?  Tammy Baldwin is just out of touch with Wisconsin.  She thinks Obamacare didn’t go far enough in putting government in control of our health care.  Wants Medicare spending cuts decided by unelected bureaucrats.  And Baldwin supports more taxes on middle class families.  Bigger government.  Extreme politics.  Tammy Baldwin’s what’s wrong with Washington.  Baldwin:  You’re damn right.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE VIDEO

In Arizona, the Phoenix Business Journal reports that over 40 doctors in the Grand Canyon State called on Democrat Richard Carmona to support a full repeal of ObamaCare.  The Flake campaign sent Carmona a letter today signed by 40 physicians who want ObamaCare (i.e. the Affordable Care Act) repealed, and link the Democrat to President Barack Obama’s health reforms.

• Meanwhile, the Tucson Citizen reports that Flake was recently honored by the NFIB for standing up for small businesses.  The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) announced this week that it had named Arizona’s Jeff Flake as one of its “Guardians of Small Business.” This annual honor is given to Members of Congress that vote to support key small business issues.

In Nebraska, the Associated Press reports that Deb Fischer continues to tout her rural background to voters in Nebraska.  Nebraska has far more cattle than people, so maybe it’s not surprising that Republican U.S. Senate candidate Deb Fischer stresses her rural background.  Her campaign ads showing her leaning up against fence posts while she’s described as a rancher who is “sharp as barb wire, tougher than a cedar fence post.”

• Meanwhile, the Lincoln Journal-Star reports that Fischer will bring her pro-jobs campaigns to the Lincoln Business Association.  Republican Senate nominee Deb Fischer will address a Lincoln Independent Business Association luncheon meeting Tuesday.

• Finally, the Fischer campaign hits liberal Democrat Bob Kerrey for accepting outside money to prop-up his flailing campaign.  As Nebraska Watchdog reports:  Fischer’s campaign manager, Aaron Trost, responded, saying Kerrey’s campaign is “floundering,” but his positions will probably capture the imagination of liberal Democrats on the coasts.  “I fully suspect that liberal Bob Kerrey will win the Progressives United contest and be the preferred candidate of out-of-state liberal Democrats,” Trost said. “With enthusiasm like this from liberal activists, I’m perplexed why his near-bid for New York City mayor didn’t get more traction.”

In North Dakota, the Fargo Forum editorializes on how hard Rick Berg is working to pass a farm bill and notes Heidi Heitkamp’s shallow political tactics on the issue.  Few in the House are working harder than Berg to force a vote on farm legislation. But, like colleagues on both sides of the political aisle, he is running into opposition from Republican leaders, specifically Majority Leader Eric Cantor of Virginia. Berg has been trying to work with farm-state Republicans and Democrats to move the House bill, which came out of the ag committee with bipartisan support… Despite criticism from Heitkamp and her supporters, Berg has pushed hard to get leadership to move. To charge he’s not been pulling out all the stops to advance farm legislation is not accurate… Her campaign will hammer home a manipulated message that Berg has not delivered.

• Meanwhile, on Valley News Live’s Hotbox, local political reporter Chris Berg discusses Heidi Heitkamp’s hypocrisy by claiming to be for North Dakota’s energy producers while simultaneously taking tens of thousands of dollars from an anti-fracking law firm – making them her second highest contributor.

In Maine, the Waterville Morning Sentinel reports on last night’s senate debate where Charlie Summers articulated why we should repeal ObamaCare and where Angus King and Cynthia Dill supported it.  Summers, who reiterated his support to repeal the Affordable Care Act, framed  the law as a job killer that hurt small businesses. King and Dill, however, said repealing it would take the country backwards… King also challenged Summers’ comments that the federal health care law would increase the deficit by $2 trillion. King, citing an analysis by the Congressional Budget Office, said the law would save money.

• Meanwhile, Politico’s Morning Score reports that the U.S. Chamber is up with a new ad reminding voters of King’s disastrous fiscal record while serving as governor.

In Nevada, Crossroads GPS is out with a new statewide ad targeting Shelley Berkley for supporting massive cuts to Medicare.

In Indiana, the Indianapolis Star reports that Vice-Presidential nominee Paul Ryan reminded Hoosiers why he and Mitt Romney need Richard Mourdock in the U.S. Senate.  Republican vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan told about 130 Hoosiers at an Indianapolis fundraising luncheon Monday that he and the man who leads the GOP ticket, Mitt Romney, know what to do to get America back to work and out of debt. “We’ll get it done,” said Ryan, a Wisconsin congressman, speaking to a crowd of mostly GOP insiders and officeholders at the JW Marriott in Downtown. With, he added, the help of Richard Mourdock, the GOP nominee for Senate in Indiana… Ryan met privately with Mourdock before the speech, then gave him special attention during it that went beyond the usual one-sentence plug that presidential tickets usually toss out at events. “Please, please send us Richard Mourdock. We need this man in the United States Senate. Please help us,” Ryan implored. Calling the Democrat-led Senate a dysfunctional pit where important issues wallow, Ryan said that “you can’t fix that unless you change the leadership of the United States Senate, unless you send us Richard Mourdock.”

In Florida, the Orlando Sentinel reports that Connie Mack’s penny plan could balance the federal budget.  It could be said that there’s a penny’s worth of difference between Republican U.S. Rep. Connie Mack IV and incumbent Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson when it comes to balancing the federal budget. But that penny represents trillions of dollars of disputed spending cuts.  Mack introduced his budget proposal, called “The Penny Plan,” in 2011 as HR1848. It is arguably one of the simplest proposals in Congress to balance the federal budget.