Kochs backing out of blue-state Senate races [View all]

[n2doc]

Sorry Charlie (and David): It turns out there are some things money can’t buy, like Senate races in liberal states. And that means the Democrats just might keep control of the Senate.

The Koch brothers have learned this the hard way. After spending big in Oregon to boost their favored candidate, she continues to lag in the polls, so they’ve now dropped plans for additional spending. The Register-Guard of Eugene, Ore., reports:

Freedom Partners’ super PAC, the Virginia-based group affiliated with oil and gas magnates Charles and David Koch, confirmed Friday that it has canceled all the television ad time it had reserved in October to influence Oregon’s U.S. Senate race.

Freedom Partners’ nonprofit affiliate has strongly criticized incumbent Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley in TV ads throughout August, providing a big outside boost to the campaign of GOP challenger Monica Wehby.

Freedom Partners spokesman Bill Riggs declined to provide the exact size of the October airtime reservation it was canceling, but it was expected to total at least $1 million.

Riggs also declined to provide a specific reason for the pullback.

Well, here’s a theory on why Freedom Partners is giving up on the Oregon Senate seat: In the last poll, from Rasmussen Reports — which if anything leans Republican — Wehby was trailing Merkley by 13 points. That’s consistent with Merkley’s strong lead in previous polls. In early August, Freedom Partners committed $3.6 million to ads attacking Merkley, so that means it likely spent around $2 million or more in one month and was unable to move the needle.

more

http://grist.org/politics/kochs-backing-out-of-blue-state-senate-races/