Republicans Face Critical Test In Ohio Ahead Of Midterms
GOV. JOHN KASICH (R), OHIO: Millennials, you have it very close. I asked them the other day, why are you bringing Trump in? He said, well, I don't have anything to do with it. So, look, I think he's trying to thread this needle.</s>JOHN KING, CNN ANCHOR: If Republicans lose a district that is considered by most analysts plus seven, plus eight Republic -- you know, for Republicans, the last Republican won it by 30-plus points. If it's even close, what does that tell us about the mood from now through November and the likelihood of a Democratic takeover of the House?</s>JULIE BYKOWICZ, NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORT, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: It's just another data point potentially in the democratic enthusiasm that has shown up in numerous other special elections. And from what we can see in fundraising from Democratic candidates, there's real enthusiasm out there. It's been consistent. It seems like even if you just look at the early voting in this particular district, there is some evidence that Democrats are casting votes early in ways they hadn't previously. So, I think it's going to be a really interesting data point in sort of the overall special election and trending towards November as well.</s>KING: And so, the President goes out in the final days, and he makes the case -- he doesn't acknowledge that some people don't like him. But when he does make the case is that never mind me. If you elect this Democrat, then the Democrats might take the House back and then you'll get Nancy Pelosi. And then, you get higher taxes.</s>DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Pelosi, who by the way again controls Danny O'Connor, whoever the hell that is but you know. Danny O'Connor, that's a beauty. He's another beauty. This is what we're fighting. They will take away your taxes. They will destroy so many things that we've given.</s>KING: Danny O'Connor would be the Democratic candidate against Troy Balderson.</s>JULIE PACE, WASHINGTON BUREAU CHIEF, ASSIOCIATED PRESS: Probably did some good for his name recognition there.</s>KING: Yes, yes.</s>SAHIL KAPURM, NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER, BLOOMBERG: Yes. It's decent for Democrats if they come closer here, but it's a five-alarm fire for Republicans if they end up losing this district. The Republican incumbent here, Pat Tiberi, has won this district by an average of 35 points since it was redrawn after 2010. The bigger implications are what's fascinating here. This is a very college educated district, one of the most in Ohio. I think the most in Ohio. And if Republicans cannot hold on to this, what does it mean for someone like Peter Roskam in Illinois, someone like Dana Rohrabacher in Orange County who are also in these upper income, suburban college educated districts where a lot of voters especially women are turned off by Trump .</s>KING: And if you look just in the last days, there's been all the Republicans have gone out. Again, this tells you all you need to know. You could say, gee, these are just being good loyal Republicans, or you could say, wait a minute, why are they going to -- why do you have to send the President, the vice president, the house speaker, the Republican government of the state, the senior senator from the state, Rob Portman, and the President's son, Donald Trump Jr. Why do you need to send all this and more essentially? Why do you have to send the fire department into a district that should be a cakewalk?</s>PACE: Well, every time we have these special elections, we always caution that it is true. You don't want to read too much into one special election. But Julie's point, we have now had enough of these special elections and enough of these primaries over this year that you do start to see a trend. And Republicans are worried. They know that Trump has 80%, let's say, approval rating with among GOP voters, but there is this soft 20%. And they tend to be college- educated younger voters. If that 20% starts to fall apart, it is a really difficult midterm landscape for the</s>GOP. KING: Right. Especially, if all the Dem -- if Democrats coming out of the woodwork too. Democrats --</s>PACE: Exactly.</s>KING: -- come out. The Republicans either aren't voting or may be going to steps. Look at the especially the money, the resources here. Again, tells you all you need to know. This is a safe Republican district. Look at all the money the Republican parties and Republican groups are pouring into this district. You just look at that and say, I know they got a problem.</s>MICHAEL SHEAR, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, THE NEW YORK TIMES: Well, and I think, in addition to everything else that folks have said here. I think there's implications for Trump's mood. You know, when he loses these -- if he loses, right? Like if they lose here, despite him going in there. I was with him for the 78 minutes or whatever that he spoke in Ohio on Saturday night, you know, it has the potential to just really make him angry. And his anger tends to build and then, you sort of -- he gets less disciplined, and you can imagine the kinds of things that he tweets and the things he says, and statements and the like. So, I think, you know, it's sort of in addition to the politics on the ground, kind of getting into his head. It's not going to be a good place.</s>BYKOWICKZ: Maybe he'll rethink the strategy that they've been talking about of getting him out there so much during midterms as we get closer and closer to the election. They were talking about plans to have him traveling all over the place and talking all the time.</s>SHEAR: And this would be a place that you'd want to put him. But if that doesn't work then --</s>KAPUR: But it's a bifurcated strategy. On one hand, they are trying to appeal to the Trump voter. That is the majority of the Republican voters trying to supercharge with that vote. But also appeal to what they call the Kasich Republican, the moderate Republican. He talked a little bit about that in the clip you played. So my question is, can you bifurcate that? Can you bring Trump in? Can you bring Pence in? Do this, you know, this very red meat crime open boarder, (inaudible) resisting message, while also not turning off those exact voters that you're also trying to appeal to because they hold the balance.</s>PACE: The soft 20. But also -- but then energizing Democrats.</s>KING: Right.</s>PACE: I mean, Trump comes in and you can energize Democrats as well. Who say, hey, like this is our chance to stop him. Look, not just -- what it would do for the agenda, but impeachment obviously is something that gone by the minds and the lips of a lot of Democrats right now.</s>KING: Yes. And I think a lot of House Republican incumbents are going to say, go play in the Senate races, with Mr. President.</s>PACE: Yes.</s>KING: If this one goes down just like please stay away from me. Up next for us here, new, this just in, Rudy Giuliani just gave CNN an update on when the President Trump's legal team will get back to Robert Mueller. You heard this story before?