Overnight Campaign: Jeb seeks to allay donor concerns

by Jonathan Easley - 10/26/15 6:06 PM ET

Welcome to OVERNIGHT CAMPAIGN, your daily rundown from The Hill on all the latest news in the White House, Senate and House races.

The Hill’s Jonathan Swan reports: Jeb Bush spent the day in Houston seeking to convince worried donors that he’s in the race for the long-haul and built to withstand the surprising insurgent campaigns of Donald Trump and Ben Carson.

Bush’s team walked major donors through a 45-slide Powerpoint presentation that touted the strength of Bush’s organization, his fundraising prowess, his record, and data in the polls meant to show things aren’t so dire.

“Press obsession with process will not determine primary outcome,” one slide states.

The Bush team went farther than they have gone before in attacking Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), who they see asBush’s main rival in the establishment lane for the Republican presidential nomination. Also at the gathering on Monday, Jeb called George W. Bush’s response to 9/11 “awe-inspiring.”

RACE TO 1600 PENN

NEW FRONT-RUNNER?: The Hill’s Niall Stanage reports: Ben Carson is still rising in the polls overcoming Donald Trump in several surveys of Iowa, provoking the question among GOP elites – can he win?

REIGNITE: The Hill’s Ben Kamisar reports: Carly Fiorina needs a strong debate performance on Wednesday to regain some of the momentum she appears to have lost since the last debate.

ODDS AND ENDS:

DEMS LOCK HORNS: The Hill’s Bradford Richardson reports: An eruption of infighting between Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton broke out over the weekend. Sanders criticized Clinton on a host of issues, including her explanation of why her husband signed DOMA. Clinton fired back, accusing Sanders of making a sexist remark by saying she was “shouting” about gun control and of running a negative campaign.

HINDSIGHT: The Hill’s Bradford Richardson reports: Joe Biden says he would have run for president if he believed he could have won.

DAYTIME TALK: The Hill’s Jonathan Easley reports: Bernie Sanders took the argument for his presidential campaign to the women of ABC’s “The View” on Monday.

NOT A FAN: The Hill’s Ben Kamisar reports: Rand Paul is warning that the Democratic Socialism espoused by Bernie Sanders can lead to a government that will “exterminate” people who step out of line.

ENDORSE: The Hill’s Jesse Byrnes reports: Former House Majority Leader Dick Armey will support John Kasich for president.

NOT BACKING DOWN: The Hill’s Bradford Richardson reports: Ben Carson is comparing abortion to slavery, and is refusing to temper his past remarks about the Holocaust.

NO WHINING: The Hill’s Jordain Carney reports: Lindsey Graham is accusing Jeb Bush of sounding “whiny” in lamenting the rise of Donald Trump.

POLL POSITION

CARSON RISING: The Hill’s Jonathan Easley reports: Ben Carson has opened up a 14-point lead over Donald Trump in Iowa, the third poll in the last week to show him with a healthy lead in the Hawkeye State. With that poll, Carson is now up nearly 9 points on Trump in Iowa, according to the RealClearPolitics average of polls.

TEA PARTY DOWN: The Hill’s Mark Hensch reports: A new poll from Gallup finds that support for the Tea Party is at its lowest point since its inception.

THE DAILY TRUMP

ALLOWANCE: The Hill’s Mark Hensch reports: Donald Trump says he received a “small” loan from his father of $1 million to kick-start his business career.

ON BURKAS: The Hill’s Caitlin Yilek reports: Trump mimicked a woman in arguing that it’s easier for women to wear a burka than it is to put on make-up.

NOT A FAN: The Hill’s Mark Hensch reports: Donald Trump thinks the media are “scum.”

ON THE ATTACK: The Hill’s Mark Hensch reports: Donald Trump is going hard after surging Ben Carson, calling him “weak” on everything from immigration to the Second Amendment to his level of energy to his religion. Carson dismissed the criticism and says he refuses to get into the mud pit with Trump.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Hillary worries me. I have an awful worry that she might become the first woman president to drop a f—— nuclear bomb on somebody. There is something scarily hawkish about her…” – Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters, a British citizen and Bernie Sanders supporter, as quoted by Rolling Stone.

CONGRESSIONAL CAMPAIGNS

CROSSROADS: The Hill’s Jonathan Easley reports: After a sterling performance defending Hillary Clinton at the Benghazi hearing last week, Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) must now decide whether to run for Senate in what’s lining up as a bitterly contested Democratic primary.

MOVE TO CENTER: The Hill’s Timothy Cama reports: Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.), who faces a tough reelection fight in 2016, will support President Obama’s signature climate change rule.

ZOPP ZAPS DUCKWORTH ON GAY MARRIAGE:Politico reports: Andrea Zopp is accusing Rep. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) of flipping on gay marriage ahead of their Senate primary.

FLA-13 (OPEN): Former Gov. Charlie Crist (D) is out with his first online advertisement with footage from his announcement last week. Crist faces former Obama Pentagon official Eric Lynn in the Democratic primary.

MONEY WATCH

TEXAS MONEY: The Hill’s Mark Hensch reports: The Texas billionaire who gave millions to Rick Perry’s presidential super-PAC has joined Ted Cruz’s finance team.

STILL GIVING: The Center for Public Integrity reports: Donors who were invited for sleepovers in the Lincoln Bedroom during Bill Clinton’s White House days are still giving generously to the Clintons – this time to Hillary’s presidential campaign.

WHAT WE ARE WATCHING FOR TODAY AND TOMORROW:

(All times Eastern)

Jeb Bush will host a fundraiser in New Orleans on Monday night.

Rand Paul will campaign in Pahrump, Nevada, on Tuesday morning and in Denver, Colo., on Tuesday afternoon.

Chris Christie will hold a fundraiser in Denver.

Hillary Clinton makes an appearance on “Late Night with Stephen Colbert” on Tuesday night on CBS.

TWEET OF THE DAY