Dems Worry Hillary Will Siphon Money from Candidates in Midterm Elections

 

The formidable campaign apparatus that has sprung up to support a possible 2016 presidential bid by Hillary Clinton is rattling some Democrats, sparking concerns that it could suppress competition for the party nomination and siphon money from candidates running in the midterm elections this fall.

 

With Democrats fighting to keep control of the Senate in the midterms, the emergence of the pro-Clinton super PAC Priorities USA could eat into donations that the party's candidates need to win in November, some Democrats warn.

 

A number of Democratic groups are soliciting donors for money, including super PACS devoted to House and Senate races along with traditional party fundraising committees.

Aware of the anxiety, Priorities officials are considering tailoring their requests so that donors would be asked to write their biggest checks after the midterm elections are over, people close to the super PAC said. For example, Priorities might ask a donor to pledge $1 million to the Clinton effort over the next few years, but write a check for only $100,000 this year, a person familiar with the discussion said.

"My goal is to not have donors honestly say, 'I can't send money to you, House and Senate [candidates], because I'm giving all this money to Priorities,' " a person close to the process said.

David Gergen, who served in Bill Clinton's White House and also worked for Republican presidents, said: "There's no question that the Hillary movement is taking the oxygen out of the air for every other potential candidate."

(Wall Street Journal)