The Republicans' Senate campaign arm cuts TV ad buys in 3 critical battleground states (PA, WI, AZ)

[Demovictory9]

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/08/15/us/primary-elections-midterms#senate-gop-ad-wisconsin-pennsylvania-arizona

The Republicans’ Senate campaign committee has slashed its television ad reservations in three critical battleground states for the fall, a likely sign of financial troubles headed into the peak of the 2022 midterm election season.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee has cut more than $5 million in Pennsylvania, including its reservations in the Philadelphia media market, according to two media-tracking sources.

Reservations in Wisconsin, in the Madison and Green Bay markets, have also been curtailed, by more than $2 million. And in Arizona, all reservations after Sept. 30 have been cut in Phoenix and Tucson, the state’s only two major media markets, amounting to roughly $2 million more.

So far around $10 million had been canceled as of midday Monday, though more changes to the fall reservations were in progress. The states where ad reservations have been canceled are home to three of the nation’s most competitive Senate contests.

In a statement, Chris Hartline, the communications director for the N.R.S.C., said, “Nothing has changed about our commitment to winning in all of our target states.”

Mr. Hartline added that the committee had “been spending earlier than ever before to help our candidates get their message out and define the Democrats for their radical agenda. We’ve been creative in how we’re spending our money and will continue to make sure that every dollar spent by the N.R.S.C. is done in the most efficient and effective way possible.”

[Freddie]

1. They realized Dr Oz is a total lost cause

The Jersey Boy isn’t going to get anywhere here. I see a few Mastriano signs around here (Philly burbs) but NO Oz signs.

[fishwax]

2. Pennsylvania doesn't feel like a big surprise, but the Wisconsin cut seems pretty interesting

[Stinky The Clown]

3. No surprise, really. RoJo has often been called the most vulnerable GQP incumbent senator

[fishwax]

4. yeah, but it's one thing to back off of an obviously-out-of-his-league newcomer in PA

or an unlikely challenger to a Democratic incumbent in AZ. It's something else to give up on a republican incumbent in a swing state in a race that still has plenty of fight. And if Johnson loses his senate race and it isn't the biggest news of the night, then it would seem likely to be a *very* bad night for the GOP.