Overnight Campaign: A Sanders media ‘blackout’?

by Jonathan Easley - 12/14/15 6:25 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.

Political watchers are turning their attention to another Republican debate — the fifth of the cycle — underscoring complaints from Bernie Sanders’ campaign about coverage that has been weighted toward Donald Trump and the GOP race.

The Sanders campaign is lashing out the national media, claiming that it’s frivolous coverage of Trump’s outrageous remarks are drowning out coverage of the insurgent they believe is running strong on the Democratic side.

But not all Democrats are sympathetic to Sanders’ plight, arguing that he’s partly responsible for the lack of coverage his campaign is getting. The Hill’s Jonathan Easley reports.

Also, check back throughout the night on Monday and early Tuesday for The Hill’s coverage of the Republican presidential contest on the eve of the next debate.

The Hill’s Jonathan Swan is on the ground in Las Vegas, where he’ll be posting dispatches on rallies for Donald Trump and Sen. Marco Rubio throughout the night.

And you’ll want to read The Hill’s Niall Stanage, who will preview on Tuesday morning what each candidate needs to do under the bright lights in Sin City.

RACE TO 1600 PENN:

FRIENDLY FIRE: The Hill’s Jonathan Swan reports: The Rubio-Cruz feud is set to take center-stage at the GOP debate on Tuesday night.

SO LONG: The Hill’s Ben Kamisar reports: A top aide for Mike Huckabee has left his campaign. It’s another sign of trouble for Huckabee, who has struggled to gain traction this year.

JOCKEYING UP TOP: The Hill’s Jess Byrnes reports: Rush Limbaugh is lashing out at Donald Trump’s attacks against Sen. Ted Cruz, accusing him of adopting Democratic talking points.

TRUMP, PARTY OF 14: The Hill’s Ben Kamisar reports:The super-PAC backing Hillary Clinton is out with a new ad that bashes the GOP presidential field for standing by a pledge to back Donald Trump despite a controversial call to block Muslim immigration.

ODDS AND ENDS:

ON THE ATTACK: The Hill’s Jordain Carney reports: Rand Paul is slamming his GOP rivals and Senate colleagues Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz on Syrian refugees in an ad released ahead of Tuesday’s debate.

NOT YOUR CREDIT CARD: The Hill’s Lisa Hagen reports: Florida Democratic Party released a web video knocking Marco Rubio for using the Florida GOP’s credit card for personal use while serving as a state lawmaker.

POLL POSITION

STILL GOING: The Hill’s Jonathan Easley reports: Donald Trump has hit a new high in a national poll, opening up his largest lead of the cycle over the field of GOP contenders.

CLOSE RACE IN IOWA: The Hill’s Lisa Hagen reports: Donald Trump narrowly edges out Ted Cruz by 1 percentage point in Iowa, according to a new Quinnipiac University poll. But a Loras College survey finds Cruz with a 6 point advantage over Trump.

EASY PICKINGS: The Hill’s Kyle Balluck reports: Hillary Clinton would sail to victory over Donald Trump in a head-to-head matchup, a NBC News-Wall Street Journal poll found.

THE DAILY TRUMP

GOP ZOO: The Hill’s Lisa Hagen reports: John Kasich’s super-PAC released a TV ad airing in New Hampshire that compares Donald Trump to a hippopotamus and cites examples of hypocrisy.

THE CHAMP WEIGHS IN: The Hill’s Mark Hensch reports: Mike Tyson is defending Donald Trump against criticism over his remarks that Muslims should be banned from entering the country. An American-Arab group has called for Trump to step out of the race in response to those comments.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“If elected, Mr. Trump, I can state unequivocally, will be the healthiest individual ever elected to the presidency.”

— Trump’s physician, Dr. Harold Bernstein, vouching for the candidate’s bill of health.

CONGRESSIONAL CAMPAIGNS

BUCKEYE STATE NOD:The Hill’s Ben Kamisar reports: Jim Obergefell, the lead plaintiff on the landmark Obergefell v. Hodges decision that granted a national right to same-sex marriage, is endorsing Democrat Ted Strickland in his bid to topple Republican Ohio Sen. Rob Portman. The move comes despite the incumbent’s own public embrace of same-sex marriage after his son came out as gay.

LOOK FOR THE UNION LABEL: The Chicago Sun-Times reports: SEIU Illinois State Council endorsed Rep. Tammy Duckworth’s (D-Ill.) Senate bid over her Democratic opponents Andrea Zopp and Napoleon Harris, all vying to topple Republican Sen. Mark Kirk.

A LITTLE HELP FROM FRIENDS: The Chicago Sun-Times reports: Sens. John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) headlined events for Sen. Mark Kirk’s (R-Ill.) reelection.

PROGRESSIVE CAMPAIGNING: National Journal reports: Democrats facing tough primaries are seeking align with Sen. Elizabeth Warren, the well-regarded liberal firebrand, to shore up their liberal support.

MONEY WATCH

PAPER TRAIL: National Journal reports: Questions are being raised over whether a PAC supporting Marco Rubio made payments to help produce a book that earned the GOP presidential candidate a substantial windfall.

WHAT WE ARE WATCHING FOR TODAY AND TOMORROW:

(All times Eastern)

Marco Rubio will be a guest on “Hannity” at 10 tonight on Fox News.

Donald Trump holds a pre-debate rally at 10 p.m. today in Las Vegas.

The Republican presidential contenders will meet for the firth primary debate of the cycle in Las Vegas on Tuesday night. Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, Ben Carson, Marco Rubio, Jeb Bush, Carly Fiorina, Chris Christie, John Kasich and Rand Paul will be on the prime-time stage for the 8:30 p.m. debate. Mike Huckabee, Lindsey Graham, Rick Santorum and George Pataki will get things started at the undercard debate at 6 p.m.

Rand Paul heads to Nevada for a Las Vegas campaign rally on Tuesday.

Martin O’Malley will address the National Partnership for New Americans conference on immigration in New York City at 11:15 a.m. on Tuesday.

TWEET OF THE DAY