BORDER SECURITY, ABORTION, GUNS We’re in the thick of down-ballot debate season. So it’s a good time to talk about some through lines here. House and Senate candidates are obviously focusing on local issues in most races (we see you, Alaska Fisheries Debate), but there are a few common threads clearly dominating the election cycle. The top three won’t surprise you: the economy, abortion and the border. Let’s zero in on the latter two, and another we noticed cropping up: BORDER SECURITY AND IMMIGRATION: Candidates in districts that aren’t remotely close to the Rio Grande River are frequently talking about how to tackle border problems in debates. The broad strokes should sound familiar: Republicans are hammering Democrats on the Biden administration’s handling of the border, and Democrats are scolding Republicans for tanking a bipartisan border security deal in the Senate early this year. At a debate last week, Rep. Ruben Gallego — who’s running for the open Senate seat in Arizona — hit Republican opponent Kari Lake over her lack of support for the bipartisan border bill. “You’ve been to Mar-a-Lago more than you have been to the border,” Gallego told Lake. Some get into the particulars a bit more. In Maine, Democratic Rep. Jared Golden, a centrist Democrat running in a district Donald Trump won in 2020, got into a back-and-forth with GOP opponent Austin Theriault about work permits for those who come to the country to seek asylum. “The moment that they come here and we acknowledge them in their claim for asylum. Let’s say here’s your work permit, get to work, we need you to work,” Golden said at a recent debate. Theriault responded: “Now I do support allowing them to work. However, if you do that without securing the border, you’re only going to incentivize more people to come across, because that’s why they’re coming.” ABORTION: At least 10 states will have abortion measures on the ballot in November, and abortion access has come up in nearly every down-ballot race. In Arizona, where there is a 15-week abortion ban with few exceptions, abortion was one of the main issues during a debate last week between Rep. Juan Ciscomani (R-Ariz.) and Democratic challenger Kirsten Engel. Ciscomani supports the 2022 Dobbs ruling, but wasn’t specific on the debate stage about what abortion limits he supports. “I trust women,’’ Ciscomani said. “I cherish new life. I reject the extremes on this issue.’’ In New Jersey, Republican Senate candidate Curtis Bashaw supports abortion rights — but also said that the Supreme Court’s decision on Dobbs, which ended a constitutional right to abortion, was correctly decided. Bashaw pushed back when Democratic Rep. Andy Kim questioned his pro-choice credentials in a recent debate. “I am pro-choice, congressman. I am for freedom in the home," said Bashaw, who is gay. “I don’t think the government should tell me who I can marry. I don’t think it should tell a woman what she can do with her reproductive health choices.” GUNS: With Vice President Kamala Harris touting her glock ownership and two assassination attempts against Trump, guns are playing an unusual role in the 2024 election cycle. It’s a bleak reality that in many races, mass shootings have become a local issue. But a lot of the messaging is the same. In the Michigan Senate race, where Democratic Rep. Elissa Slotkin said gun owners and non-gun owners alike have to “go after the No. 1 killer of children in our communities.” Former Republican Rep. Mike Rogers said “banning guns isn’t going to” solve gun violence, instead blaming mental health issues. MORE DEBATES COMING: On Tuesday night, candidates for Senate face off in Pennsylvania, Texas and (less competitive) Massachusetts. On Thursday, Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen debates Republican Sam Brown in Nevada. On Friday, Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin and Republican Eric Hovde will debate in Wisconsin. — Katherine Tully-McManus and Daniella Diaz GOOD EVENING! Welcome to Inside Congress, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Tuesday, Oct. 15, where we can’t stop tracking the big panda arrival. EMMER’S BIG CONTRIBUTION House Majority Whip Tom Emmer cut a $2 million check this week to Republican candidates and the House GOP campaign arm, bringing his contributions to more than $14 million as his party fights to keep the majority. The Minnesota Republican’s contribution comes as the National Republican Congressional Committee has been pressing its members to give as it seeks to compete with this cycle’s Democratic fundraising boon. Emmer’s cash infusion also comes in the final campaign stretch, a particularly helpful move for candidates in competitive races who want to do late ad buys. Also: Emmer is on the trail working to help candidates get elected, along with other top members of GOP leadership. He will be in California this week campaigning for a number of candidates in competitive House seats. — Olivia Beavers SENATE LEADERSHIP SCUFFLES Senate GOP leadership elections are slated to be just weeks away — and nothing is settled yet. Not even the exact date. Some on the right flank of the Senate GOP conference have been pushing to delay voting on future leadership, allowing more time for senators to deliberate, or for new candidates to come forward. Those leadership elections typically happen in the weeks after the November elections. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) pushed back on the delay idea in his own letter Tuesday, which was obtained by Inside Congress: “I believe delaying the election and creating more hurdles for the [Republican] leader to navigate are unwise, and they will impede our work on behalf of the American people.” Tillis specifically responded to a letter from Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) sent earlier this month. Lee outlined his proposed reforms for the next GOP leader, including ideas to change the amendments process and push leadership to “present specific strategies for achieving Republican victories in connection with must-pass legislation.” “The debate among members really boils down to whether you favor a weak or strong conference leader model,” Tillis wrote. “Mike has laid out proposals that would substantially weaken the [Republican] leader and further empower Schumer, and I believe it would be unwise to go down that path.” Flashback: Tillis earlier this year laid out some of his own ideas for future leadership, specifically highlighting ideas he believes could empower the GOP leader to have authority similar to that of the Democratic leader. Lee rebutted those proposals at the time, arguing against consolidating power in conference leadership. Others, like Sens. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), have also recently laid out their own rules change proposals. Many Republicans have stressed to us that the GOP leader race isn’t wrapped up yet. Rules change proposals are a critical part of the conversation for many senators still weighing who to vote for. Races to watch: The Senate GOP leader race has three current contenders: Sens. John Thune (R-S.D.), John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Rick Scott (R-Fla.). The No. 3 GOP spot, Senate Republican Conference chair, has two people running: Sens. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) and Tom Cotton (R-Ark.). — Ursula Perano
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