Chad’s Morning Brief: Republicans Looking Good Heading Into the Midterms, Is Jeb Bush Preparing to Run for President?, and Other Top Stories

Here is your Morning Brief for October 27, 2014.

Midterms

According to POLITICO, Republicans are showing up well in polling data in critical states which could go a long way in deciding who controls the Senate.

Republicans are on the precipice of taking control of the Senate for the first time in eight years, new NBC News/Marist polls released Sunday show, but the GOP has yet to lock up many of the key battleground races.

The surveys show the Republican candidate with slight, inside-the-margin advantages in three of the hardest-fought contests for Democratic-held seats: Arkansas, Colorado and Iowa. North Carolina is a dead heat.

Republicans’ brief scare in South Dakota appears to be over, with Mike Rounds now leading by double digits. But the party still faces danger in Kansas, where an independent candidate is in a virtual tie with the GOP incumbent.
(POLITICO’s 2014 race ratings)
NBC/Marist didn’t poll all of this year’s competitive Senate races. But with Montana, West Virginia and South Dakota in the GOP column, Republicans need to pick up just three seats in the following states: Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Louisiana and North Carolina.
Republicans have a cushion. Five of those states currently lean toward the GOP, poll averages show, while North Carolina is still a toss-up. They also are closing the gap in New Hampshire. But the party may need to pick up additional seats if it loses Georgia, Kansas (if the independent conferences with Democrats) or Kentucky.
Here are the numbers from Sunday’s NBC/Marist polls:
Arkansas —
The NBC/Marist poll in Arkansas shows GOP Rep. Tom Cotton 2 points ahead of Democratic Sen. Mark Pryor, 45 percent to 43 percent, with third-party candidates splitting 5 percent of the vote and 7 percent of likely voters undecided.
An NBC/Marist poll last month found Cotton 5 points in front of Pryor, 45 percent to 40 percent.
Cotton wins 91 percent of Republicans, comparable to Pryor’s 86 percent of Democrats. The Republican has a 6-point lead among independents, 43 percent to 37 percent.
Pryor — a two-term incumbent and son of a former governor and senator — is now viewed unfavorably by more voters (49 percent) than view him favorably (41 percent). Cotton is viewed favorably by 46 percent and unfavorably by 43 percent.
The Democrat’s biggest challenge is President Barack Obama’s lack of popularity. Just 34 percent of likely voters — and only a quarter of whites — approve of Obama’s job performance, the poll shows.
In the state’s open governor’s race, Republican Asa Hutchinson is 3 points ahead of Democrat Mike Ross — within the poll’s margin of error of plus or minus 3.9 percentage points.
The poll was conducted Oct. 19-23, surveying 621 likely voters.
Colorado —
GOP Rep. Cory Gardner and Democratic Sen. Mark Udall are neck-and-neck in the NBC/Marist Colorado poll, with Gardner leading 46 percent to 45 percent. Three percent of likely voters prefer another Senate candidate, and 5 percent are undecided.
That is closer to some other recent public polling in the race: Surveys from Quinnipiac University and Suffolk University showed Gardner with a lead in the mid-to-high single digits.
Democrats say the public polls underestimate their candidate’s support, and the Udall campaign’s internal polling during the middle of last week showed the Democrat ahead by a point.
One factor Democrats point to is the Latino vote, claiming that public surveys undercount Hispanic supporters of the party. Latinos comprise 15 percent of NBC/Marist’s likely voter sample, and Udall leads them by 4 points, 48 percent to 44 percent.

It's still very close in these and other states and way too early for Republicans to celebrate. However, things are looking up for the GOP. It's just a matter of getting voters to the polls. The same goes for here in Texas where Republican voters have to show up.

You can read the full story by clicking on the link above.

Bush 2016?

According to the AP, Jeb Bush is apparently moving forward on a possible 2016 Presidential run. At least that is what his son believes.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush is "moving forward" on a potential 2016 White House run and it appears more likely he will enter the Republican field, according to his son, who's running for office in Texas.

George P. Bush told ABC's "This Week" that his father is "still assessing" a presidential bid, but suggested it was more likely that he would seek the White House this time. The ex-governor declined to run for president in 2012 despite encouragement from Republicans.

"I think it's more than likely that he's giving this a serious thought and moving — and moving forward," said the younger Bush, who is running for Texas land commissioner.

Please don't run Jeb. Please?

You can read the full story by clicking on the link above.

Other Must Read Links:

UTA Grad Talks About Ebola Quarantine

Texas Governor's Race 

Christie Bullish on GOP Governors Chances 

Suspect in CA Deputies Killings Was Deported... Twice 

Charles Barkley Talks Race 

These and many more topics coming up on today’s edition of The Chad Hasty Show. Tune in mornings 8:30-11am on News/Talk 790 KFYO, streaming online at kfyo.com, and now on your iPhone and Android device with the radioPup App. All guest interviews can be heard online in our podcast section after the show at kfyo.com.