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Koch-backed group posts 7-figure ad buy in North Carolina Senate race

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Americans for Prosperity Action, the political arm of the powerful conservative Koch network, has placed a 7-figure ad buy for former RNC Chair Michael Whatley’s Senate campaign in North Carolina, banking an early investment in a must-win seat for the GOP in what’s expected to be one of the most expensive races in the country.

The total spend in the Tarheel State will amount to over $1 million and will run on cable, marking the organization’s first TV ad buy of the 2026 midterms cycle. The 30-second spot, shared first with Blue Light News, hits on perennial Koch priorities, casting Whatley as the candidate who will “stop wasteful spending, drive down prices and cut taxes.” The package of ads will also run on internet connected TV services and Meta platforms.

Sen. Thom Tillis’ (R-N.C.) retirement announcement last year following a barrage of attacks from President Donald Trump opened a top-priority race for both parties in the swing state. Democrats haven’t won a Senate race or carried the state at the presidential level since 2008 — but Democrats have been inching closer to cinching a statewide federal win in past cycles after posting two consecutive Democrats to the governor’s mansion and maintaining a longtime hold on the attorney general’s office in Raleigh.

Whatley, the Trump-endorsed frontrunner in the GOP primary, raised $3.8 million in 2025’s final FEC filing period, which amounted to about half of the $7 million haul posted by former Gov. Roy Cooper, his likely Democratic challenger. AFP Action’s support will likely amount to just a drop in the bucket, though, as operatives in both parties have estimated that spending in the race could reach $650 million by Election Day.

The ad campaign is coupled with a grassroots door-knocking effort helmed by AFP Action, which began in North Carolina earlier this year. Whatley is set to join one of those outreach efforts himself in the Charlotte area later this month.

The significant spend in North Carolina comes as the group has made similar, albeit smaller, 6-figure digital investments in the open Senate races in Michigan and New Hampshire for Mike Rogers and John Sununu, respectively — a sign of where they might invest more down the line.

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Congress

Senate Democrat aims to put members on record opposing Maxwell pardon

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Sen. Jacky Rosen will introduce a resolution Thursday designed to put the Senate on record opposing the prospect of President Donald Trump granting a pardon or clemency to Ghislaine Maxwell, the longtime associate of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein who is currently in prison.

The Nevada Democrat, in a statement first shared with Blue Light News, said she wanted to “make sure the U.S. Senate sends a clear message to the White House that a convicted sex trafficker of minors should not receive any clemency.”

“If Leader Thune won’t bring this up for a recorded vote, I’ll do everything I can to try to bring this up for unanimous consent, as it’s my sincere hope we can all agree Ghislaine Maxwell should serve out her full sentence,” Rosen added.

Absent getting Republicans to allow a vote on her resolution, Rosen is discussing whether to try to approve it through a unanimous consent agreement after the Senate returns from next week’s scheduled recess.

Adoption would require an agreement from all 100 senators, however. And while there are Republicans who have clamored for more transparency in the Epstein case and accountability for Epstein’s co-conspirators, the measure would likely face at least one GOP objection. Though the Senate quickly cleared legislation last year to force the release of the Epstein files, Senate Republicans have batted down related follow-up efforts on the floor.

Though the resolution would be nonbinding, it would make the Senate’s official position against a pardon or clemency for Maxwell, which Republicans could see as boxing in Trump if he chooses that route.

The president has not ruled it out, and Rosen’s forthcoming resolution is expected to note that the president has refused to rule it out. It also is likely to quote Trump saying, in 2025, he is “allowed to do it, but it’s something [he has] not thought about.”

Maxwell’s attorneys have said his client will only testify under oath in exchange for clemency. Making good on that position, Maxwell invoked her Fifth Amendment right earlier this month when she appeared over video in a deposition, in compliance with a congressional subpoena, before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

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Justice Dems endorse Kat Abughazaleh in Illinois primary

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Justice Democrats and the Peace, Accountability, and Leadership PAC, PAL PAC, have jointly endorsed progressive influencer Kat Abughazaleh in the hotly contested Democratic primary to replace Rep. Jan Schakowsky in Illinois.

In a statement, Justice Democrats executive director Alexandra Rojas described Abughazaleh as “the type of progressive leadership we need in Congress — leadership that isn’t too afraid to take on AIPAC or corporate PACs to defeat right-wing fascism or corporate corruption in the Democratic Party.”

Abughazaleh faces more than a dozen primary opponents in a March primary that’s turned into a national proxy fight. Last week, a newly formed super PAC, Elect Chicago Women, started airing ads backing state Sen. Laura Fine, and some of Fine’s opponents have accused the PAC of being funded by AIPAC.

Abughazaleh, who is Palestinian-American, has frequently criticized AIPAC and called Israel’s military operations in Gaza a genocide.

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House member trips to Munich, elsewhere at risk due to likely DHS shutdown

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Two dozen House members could miss a major national security gathering in Munich this weekend, thanks to the Senate’s struggles to strike a deal that would avert a shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security.

With DHS funding past Friday in doubt, Speaker Mike Johnson told members this week they will not be allowed to travel with official funding during the upcoming recess. That includes military flights, which are frequently arranged for congressional delegations overseas.

House members could arrange commercial flights, but it’s unclear whether they could seek House reimbursement for them.

Among the trips in doubt is the Munich Security Conference, which some members were hoping to depart for Thursday, according to four people granted anonymity to describe private discussions. The Senate is not affected by Johnson’s prohibition and multiple senators have indicated they plan to attend the conference regardless of whether DHS is funded or not.

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