Texas: Michael Burgess Backs Ted Cruz for Senate

Rep. Michael Burgess made an endorsement in the Texas Senate runoff today even though most Members are sitting on the sidelines. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call File Photo)

Rep. Michael Burgess (R-Texas) announced today that he is backing former Texas Solicitor General Ted Cruz in the GOP Senate runoff to replace retiring Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R).

“Ted Cruz is that strong, proven conservative leader, a constitutional scholar, and a fighter through and through,” Burgess said in a press release. “He’ll lead the fight to stop the Obama agenda, and I look forward to fighting alongside Ted to repeal every word of ObamaCare.”

Cruz is engaged in an increasingly tough runoff campaign with Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst. The winner of that July 31 race will almost certainly become the Lone Star State’s next Senator. Full story

David Dewhurst, Ted Cruz Headed to Senate Runoff in Texas

Texas Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst did not garner the 50 percent of the vote necessary to avoid a runoff for the GOP Senate nomination. (Pat Sullivan/Associated Press)

HOUSTON — Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and former state Solicitor General Ted Cruz are headed to a July 31 runoff to determine the Republican nominee for Senate, igniting a showdown between the Washington, D.C., tea party community and the Texas GOP establishment.

With 35 percent of precincts reporting, Dewhurst led the primary field with 47 percent of the vote, followed by Cruz at 32 percent. But Dewhurst failed to garner 50 percent of the vote, giving Cruz another shot at upsetting the generally popular lieutenant governor. Dewhurst has been the favorite in this race throughout the campaign and has never trailed in polling of the contest.

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David Dewhurst: D.C. Insiders Can’t Buy Texas Senate

HOUSTON — Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst today likened attorney Ted Cruz to President Barack Obama, tarring his opponent in Texas’ Senate Republican primary as the Washington insiders’ bought-and-paid-for candidate who is practicing the same negative attacks that Obama is using against presumptive GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney.

Meeting with voters lunching at a popular Jewish deli in the Galleria neighborhood just west of downtown, Dewhurst used his only campaign stop of primary day to stump for last-minute votes and make the case that he is the only candidate in the race with Texas’ interests at heart. Speaking to reporters before the made-for-local-TV-news event, a relaxed Dewhurst reaffirmed his conservative credentials and called Cruz a liar.

“What we’re seeing in Washington is President Obama, who can’t run on his record, is now running on the politics of personal destruction of Governor Romney. And I submit that Mr. Cruz has no record, and so he’s trying to run against me by impugning my fiscally conservative and social conservative record,” Dewhurst said, before speaking to voters inside Kenny & Ziggy’s Deli. “Mr. Cruz will lie and say one thing one day, and he’ll say something else the next.”

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Texas: Tom Leppert Puts Up New Television Ad

Updated: 2:23 p.m. | Former Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert added another television advertisement to his rotation today. It continues his campaign theme that his fellow GOP candidates in the primary to replace retiring Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R) are “empty suits.”

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Texas: Rick Perry and Sarah Palin Make the Case for Their Candidates

Texas Gov. Rick Perry and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin have found themselves on opposing sides in the Texas Senate GOP primary.

Each has previously made an endorsement: Perry for Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst; Palin for former state Solicitor General Ted Cruz.

And now they are going to bat for their candidates. Perry is featured in a new TV ad released Monday by Dewhurst. Perry vouches for him on fiscal policy and adds, “Our country needs him, and so does Texas.”

The Cruz camp also made news Sunday by releasing a robocall from Palin.

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Texas: David Dewhurst Puts $6 Million More Into Senate Campaign

Updated: 9:38 p.m. | Texas Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst has donated an additional $6 million to his Senate campaign since April 1.

The figure put his total personal donations to the campaign at $8 million, according to a source in the campaign.

The campaign made the announcement in a press release. It also noted that he had received $500,000 in individual contributions in the pre-primary reporting period beginning on April 1. Campaigns must submit federal election finance reports two weeks out from the primary date.

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Palins Endorse Ted Cruz in Texas Senate Race

Ted Cruz, who is battling to get into a possible runoff in the Texas Senate race, got the endorsement of Sarah Palin. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call File Photo)

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and her husband, Todd, have endorsed another Senate candidate in a contested Republican primary: former Texas Solicitor General Ted Cruz.

Cruz told supporters in an email that he sought her support via a letter.

“We’re proud to join conservatives in Texas and throughout the nation in supporting your campaign to become the next Senator from the Lone Star State,” Palin wrote back.

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Texas: GOP Senate Candidates Place Major Ad Buys

Former Texas Solicitor General Ted Cruz has spent more than a half-million dollars on his Senate bid and has support from outside groups. (Douglas Graham/CQ Roll Call File Photo)

The air war in the Texas Senate race to replace retiring Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R) has ramped up. With the primary on May 29, April was when most Texas political observers expected ad spending to begin in earnest. The campaigns have not disappointed.

A source who closely watches Lone Star State media buys says the campaigns have cumulatively spent the following in the GOP primary:

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Today’s First-Quarter Fundraising Roundup

First-quarter fundraising numbers continued to trickle out today, as campaigns inch toward Sunday’s filing deadline. These are the first money figures in an election year, and therefore they provide a window into the state of many races as campaigns become more organized.

Tuesday and Wednesday were fairly heavy with Democratic reports, but more Republicans began to show their cards today.

Senate:

• Arizona: Rep. Jeff Flake raised $935,000 for his Senate bid in the first quarter of the year and ended March with about $3 million in cash on hand.
• Montana: We do not have exact figures, but it’s about a tie. Both campaigns are saying they raised about $1.2 million in the first quarter. However, Sen. Jon Tester (D) has the upper hand in cash on hand. He had $4.3 million at the end of last month compared with Rep. Denny Rehberg‘s (R) $2.7 million. The two are facing off in a race that Roll Call rates as a Tossup. Full story

Fundraising Numbers Continue to Trickle In

First-quarter fundraising numbers continue to trickle in as the Sunday deadline to file reports with the Federal Election Commission approaches.

The first fundraising period of election years offers indications of which candidates are gaining momentum heading into primary season. It’s the last quarterly report before about half the states hold their Congressional primaries.

This is another daily roundup of candidates who released their numbers in the past 24 hours. It’s heavy on Democrats, who are looking to hold the Senate and win back the House majority.

Senate:

• Arizona: Former Surgeon General Dr. Richard Carmona raised $800,000 in his first full quarter as a candidate. He has $1.1 million in cash on hand. The large amount shows that the fundraising prowess he showed in the fourth quarter was more than just low-hanging fruit.
  
• Connecticut: Rep. Christopher Murphy (D) brought in $855,000 for his Senate campaign to replace retiring Sen. Joe Lieberman (I). He will report about $3 million in the bank. Full story

Conservative Senators Pick Sides in Texas, Missouri and Maine Primaries

Sen. Tom Coburn endorsed Senate candidates in Texas and Missouri today. (Douglas Graham/CQ Roll Call File Photo)

There were Senate endorsements galore in GOP circles today, with a few of the highest profile conservative Senators coming out in support of candidates locked in tough GOP primaries. Here’s a quick rundown of what happened:

• Texas Solicitor General Ted Cruz picked up an endorsement from Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.). Alluding to one of the most intense rivalries in college football (between the University of Texas and the University of Oklahoma), Coburn wrote in a statement, “Oklahoma and Texas may have our friendly rivalry, but when it comes to fighting for limited government, I’m proud to endorse my neighbor across the Red River.”

• Along with Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Coburn also gave his nod to businessman John Brunner, one of three contenders for the GOP nomination in the Missouri Senate race. ”John Brunner will be a force for fiscal conservatism in the U.S. Senate, and I am proud to endorse his candidacy,” Coburn said in a statement released by the Brunner campaign. Earlier this year, Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) endorsed former state Treasurer Sarah Steelman, another GOP contender hoping to take on vulnerable Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) in November.

• Finally, Lee backed Maine Treasurer Bruce Poliquin in the Pine Tree State’s GOP Senate primary. A source in the Poliquin camp told Roll Call that a statement is forthcoming.

As Deadline Nears for 1st Quarter, Pitches Soar

Saturday marks the all-important first-quarter fundraising deadline, and candidates are getting a little help from their friends in the form of last-minute pleas for donations. Full story

Texas: DeMint Continues to Help Boost Cruz

Sen. Jim DeMint (above) praised Ted Cruz in his Senate primary race against Texas Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call File Photo)

Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) emailed supporters Monday morning to aid the effort of former Texas Solicitor General Ted Cruz (R) to replace retiring Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R). Full story

Ted Cruz Unsure on Backing John Cornyn if Elected

(Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call File Photo)

Updated 6:55 p.m. | A controversy is stirring up in Texas about leadership, conservatism and state loyalty.

It began last night, when the Dallas Morning News published an interview with former Solicitor General Ted Cruz. Cruz said he was undecided on whether he would vote for Sen. John Cornyn for GOP Senate Whip in November, should he be elected to the Senate.

Cruz “won’t decide his vote for GOP whip, one step below party leader, until November — once it’s clear how many ‘constitutional conservatives’ got elected,’ Todd Gillman of the Dallas Morning News wrote.

“I’m not going to prejudge,” Cruz told the paper.

Cruz walked back the comments today on Lubbock radio station KFYO, questioning the context of the statements.

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David Dewhurst Internal Poll Shows Big Lead

An internal poll from the campaign of Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst shows he has a big lead in the contest for the GOP nomination to succeed retiring Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas). Full story