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Articles by Seth McLaughlin

**FILE** Senate Armed Services Committee member Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, questions former Nebraska Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel, President Obama's choice to lead the Pentagon, during his confirmation hearing before the committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 31, 2013. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Mike Lee endorses Ben Sasse in Nebraska GOP Senate primary

Sen. Mike Lee is endorsing Ben Sasse in the Nebraska Senate GOP primary contest, giving the president of Midland University the support of another high-profile conservative and tea party favorite in the tight Republican race.

March 4, 2014
Sen. Thad Cochran (left) of Mississippi appears to be the only longtime Republican officeholder to face a tough challenge in his primary battle for re-election this year. State Sen. Chris McDaniel also has status among voters by having a high political post. (Associated Press)

Tea party loses some steam in GOP races

Tea party challenges to Republican senators are fizzling across the country, leaving Mississippi as the only state where a longtime Republican officeholder is seriously endangered by a primary threat from his right.

March 3, 2014
In this Jan. 24, 2014, photo, Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus is seen at the RNC winter meeting in Washington. The dueling faces of a conflicted political party were on display for all to see at the just-concluded RNC meeting. The reminder of the divisions comes a year after Priebus published a report aimed at modernizing the party and boosting its ranks, and as Republicans eye their best chance at taking control of both houses of Congress since 2002. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

RNC considers 2016 national convention sites

The Republican National Committee began the process Monday of listening to the sales pitches from the cities vying to host the 2016 GOP national convention, where the party's standard-bearer will be nominated.

March 3, 2014
** FILE ** Rep. Steve Israel, New York Democrat. (Associated Press)

Florida special election ‘tough terrain’ for Dems: DCCC chair

The head of the campaign arm for House Democrats downplayed the notion that a loss in a Florida special election this month would spell trouble for the party's chances of picking up a significant number of House seats in the midterm election this fall.

March 3, 2014
Hillary Rodham Clinton, holding her hand hear her face, speaks to a group of supporters and University of Miami students, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2014, at the university in Coral Gables, Fla. (AP Photo/J Pat Carter)

Hillary Clinton leads 2016 presidential field in Virginia: poll

In the battleground state of Virginia, a new poll shows Hillary Rodham Clinton is running well ahead of her potential Democratic rivals for her party's 2016 presidential nomination and leading the entire field of likely Republicans candidates.

March 3, 2014
**FILE** Sen. Lindsey Graham talks Sept. 3, 2013, to a reporter following a speech to business leaders in Goose Creek, S.C. Graham is facing three challengers in the 2014 Republican primary for his seat. (Associated Press)

Sen. Lindsey Graham up big in South Carolina: poll

Sen. Lindsey Graham is running laps around GOP competitors in the South Carolina primary race, but does not have enough support to avoid a two-person runoff race, according to a new survey.

February 26, 2014
Strategists say Louisville businessman Matt Bevin has failed to gain traction in his race against Sen. Mitch McConnell, Kentucky Republican, despite launching a series of attack ads against the Senate Majority Leader. (Associated Press)

Sen. Mitch McConnell to fend off conservative challenger, analysts say

With three months to go before the Kentucky GOP primary, Louisville businessman Matt Bevin and his allies have launched a series of attack ads against Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, casting the five-term incumbent as an unreliable conservative and as an Obama lackey.

February 25, 2014
Ohio Gov. John Kasich has had some ups and downs in his first term, but favorable/unfavorable polling finds him in good shape. (Associated PRess)

GOP governors face mixed bag of electoral prospects

The shine has worn off many of the GOP governors from the class of 2010, with the first-year fights over public pensions in the rear view and many of the party's brightest stars now facing tricky re-election campaigns.

February 20, 2014
** FILE ** Sen. Rand Paul, Kentucky Republican. (Associated Press)

Sen. Rand Paul: Restore vote rights to some Kentucky ex-cons

Sen. Rand Paul urged members of the Kentucky Legislature on Wednesday to restore the voting rights of some nonviolent felons and said it is time for the nation to rethink the "war on drugs" — putting him in the middle of a couple of thorny debates that put him at odds with many traditional conservatives.

February 19, 2014
FILE - In this Feb. 6, 2014 file photo, House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington. Little more than a week after Groundhog Day, the evidence is mounting that lawmakers have all but wrapped up their most consequential work of 2014, at least until the results of the fall elections are known. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

Some of Republicans’ 2010 ‘Pledge’ promises proving elusive

As they head into their third election since their 2010 Pledge to America, House Republicans have checked off some of the easier items they promised voters, but most of the heavy lifting remains a work in progress — and on some, including imposing spending cuts, they've recently begun to backtrack.

February 18, 2014
**FILE** House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., with House GOP leaders, speaks with reporters following a Republican strategy session, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2013. At left is Speaker of the House John Boehner, R-Ohio. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Cantor steps to GOP forefront with high-profile speeches

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor called Monday for the U.S. to remain engaged on the international front, as he continues to develop his foreign-policy credentials in anticipation of a potential ascendance among House Republicans.

February 17, 2014

Republican leaders lack spine, tea party groups say

Tea party leaders said Thursday they aren't to blame for the debt limit increase that Republican leaders helped approve this week, saying the GOP's problem isn't divisions in the ranks but lack of spine at the top.

February 13, 2014
Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky. speaks to reporters in front of federal court in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2014. Claiming the Obama administration is violating Americans’ constitutional rights, Paul and a conservative political group are filing a lawsuit over the National Security Agency’s surveillance program. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

Rand Paul launches suit against NSA snooping programs

Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul filed a class-action lawsuit Wednesday to halt the NSA's phone-records collection program, and invited millions of Americans to sign up as co-plaintiffs to block overbearing government searches.

February 12, 2014
Clockwise from top left: Rep. Jack Kingston, Rep. Paul Broun, Rep. Phil Gingrey and former Georgia Secretary of State Karen Handel are all competing for the Republican nomination in the U.S. Senate primary. Sen. Saxby Chambliss, also a Republican, is vacating the seat. (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Conservative support divided in crowded Georgia U.S. Senate primary

Conservative groups are starting to pick sides in Georgia's crowded Republican U.S. Senate primary, underscoring how split the party is — something Democrats hope their candidate, Michelle Nunn, can exploit to score an upset victory in November.

February 11, 2014
** FILE ** Sen. Mark Pryor, Arkansas Democrat. (Associated Press)

Democrats enjoy cash advantage over Republican challengers

Democratic senators facing tough re-election campaigns this year have a significant cash advantage over their potential challengers, according to the latest finance reports — though in some of those races, the GOP candidates are at least making up ground.

February 10, 2014