While many GOP insiders expected front-runner Donald Trump's campaign to fade as the race went on, Senate Republicans who are facing tough re-election races are now scrambling to come up with new game plans now that the real estate mogul is the likely Republican nominee,
The Hill reports.
"We can't have a nominee be an albatross around the down-ballot races. That's a concern of mine," Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, told CNN on Monday.
The Hill notes that many vulnerable GOP incumbents have distanced themselves from the real estate mogul as he's been known to go on controversial tirades, with his latest being on Sunday where he refused to disavow Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke.
"I go to bed every night praying that our nominee is a person of integrity, intelligence, ideas and courage," Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., told Charlie Sykes radio show Monday. "This nation hungers for someone who can lead this nation, not be divisive.
"That's all I can say, Charlie. I'm praying for such a leader," Johnson, who is currently trailing in the polls added.
The New York Times reported over the weekend that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell advised incumbents to be ready to run negative ads against Trump to create political distance.He added that it's important for Senators to contrast themselves with Trump as much as necessary.
"There's no question that the top of the ticket will impact races. What you're going to see is individual senators looking for opportunities to separate themselves from not just the top of the ticket but from the larger political environment and focus on issues in their state," said Brian Walsh, a GOP strategist and a former NRSC aide.
This is exactly what Sens. Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H, and Rob Portman, R-Ohio, are doing as they're set to take the Senate floor this week.
The Hill reports that while Portman is addressing opioid abuse, a major issue in both Ohio and New Hampshire, Ayotte is urging the Food and Drug administration to "take a more aggressive approach on prescription drug abuse."
Ayotte released her first TV ad on Monday featuring her daughter Kate who noted that her mother is a "problem solver who helps make laws that help people, especially when they need it most."
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