Jul 18, 2012
Congressman Bartlett Overwhelmed by Bad Headlines as Seat Slips Away
Since a lackluster primary victory in April, Congressman Roscoe Bartlett (MD-6) has been plagued by negative headlines. Congressman Bartlett’s troubles culminated this week, as he became one of 14 Republican incumbents to be out-raised in the second quarter. As the headline read Tuesday in the Frederick News-Post, Bartlett’s “best-ever second quarter not enough.”
Months of miscues have led to a torrent of bad press for the twenty-year incumbent. Among other missteps, Congressman Bartlett has been caught retracting false attacks online and making mysterious robo-calls to lobbyists. Worse still, in late June it was reported in outlets across the state that Congressman Bartlett’s campaign had been fined by the FEC for inaccurate campaign finance reports. Congressman Bartlett’s FEC problems eventually landed him on the front page of the Baltimore Sun, which noted that Congressman Bartlett has received more letters from the FEC requesting additional information than any other member of the House. All while polling shows that Congressman Bartlett trails entrepreneur John Delaney by nine points.
Both local and national observers now question Congressman Bartlett’s viability. Editorials in the Frederick News-Post and Hagerstown Herald-Mail have argued that Bartlett is in deep trouble. The Washington Post calls Congressman Bartlett one of the “terminal ten” and says that the race is now an “uphill battle” for the incumbent. National Journal rates Bartlett as the 4th most endangered incumbent in the House, and the Cook Political Report rates the race “likely Democratic.” In the words of Sabato’s Crystal Ball, “the growing consensus seems to be that Rep. Roscoe Bartlett (R-MD) is a goner.”
“For the first time since he was elected two decades ago, Rep. Roscoe G. Bartlett is in real danger of losing his seat.” – Ben Pershing, Washington Post 7/15/12
“I think things would have to go pretty far south nationally for Democrats for Bartlett to have a chance.” – David Wasserman, Cook Political Report, quoted in Washington Post 7/15/12
“The growing consensus seems to be that Rep. Roscoe Bartlett (R-MD) is a goner.” – Kyle Klondik, Sabato’s Crystal Ball 7/12/12
“The problems occur so often it is hard to believe that there is any explanation other than Bartlett’s own contempt for the law. […] Indeed, this might well be the year it all catches up with him. – Editorial Board, Hagerstown Herald-Mail 6/30/12
Negative Bartlett Headlines since 4/3/2012
Campaign
You Can Still Probably Bet Against Roscoe Bartlett [Center Maryland, 7/17/12]
Roscoe Bartlett fights uphill battle to keep his seat [Washington Post, 7/15/12]
The Roscoe Update: Bartlett Phoning It In, Lobbyists Say [National Journal, 5/24/12]
Conservative Republican Admits Keystone Pipeline Has Nothing To Do With Gas Prices [Talking Points Memo, 5/23/12]
Roscoe Bartlett: The Man Who Wasn’t There? [National Journal, 5/22/12]
Baltimore Sun: First salvo in 6th District race fired then withdrawn on Twitter [Baltimore Sun, 5/08/12]
The Last Stand of Roscoe Bartlett [Baltimore Magazine, May 2012]
Fundraising
Delaney tops fundraising: Bartlett’s best-ever second quarter not enough [Frederick News-Post, 7/17/12]
BARTLETT OUT-RAISED, OUT-RACED [Maryland Reporter, 7/16/12]
Bartlett had best fundraising quarter in years, but is still outraised [Baltimore Sun, 7/13/12]
FEC Report Fines
Bartlett’s incomplete finance reports draw fine [Frederick News-Post, 6/26/12]
Bartlett fined by FEC [Germantown Patch, 6/26/12]
Md’s Bartlett Cited for Campaign Finance Violations [Newsmax, 6/25/12]
Bartlett Struggles with Campaign Disclosure [Baltimore Sun, 6/24/12]
Bartlett in hot seat again over finance reports [Gazette, 6/14/12]
Delaney outraised Bartlett in 6th District 2-1, but starts out even for the general; FEC questions Bartlett’s filings [Maryland Reporter, 6/07/12]
Polling
Delaney polls shows lead over Bartlett [Frederick News-Post, 4/20/12]
Delaney Internal Poll Shows Him Up Over Bartlett [Roll Call, 4/17/12]
Bartlett Trailing Delaney in Challenger’s Poll [National Journal, 4/17/12]
Delaney’s poll gives him a 9-point lead over Bartlett in House race [Washington Post, 4/17/12]
Ratings
The Terminal Ten: The most vulnerable House seats in the country [Washington Post, 7/13/12]
House Rating Changes [Center for Politics, University of Virginia, 7/12/12]
Opinion
Election update [Frederick News-Post, Editorial, 7/18/12]
Bartlett’s failure to comply might irk some voters [Hagerstown Herald-Mail, Editorial, 6/30/12]
Let me revise: Delaney will defeat Bartlett [Gazette, Column, 4/12/12]
###
Want the latest updates? Follow the DCCC on Facebook and Twitter:
