“Brinker Harding has a Trump Problem” [Courier Nebraska]

Trump’s number-one cheerleader was missing from his rally in Nebraska, according to new reporting. Despite being “honored” to receive Trump’s endorsement, repeatedly praising his unpopular agenda, and claiming Trump and Republicans’ Big, Ugly Bill would “usher in ‘a new golden age,’” Harding was suspiciously absent from last week’s rally.

That absence might have something to do with Trump polling an abysmal 17 points underwater with Nebraskans, with just a quarter of registered voters approving of Trump’s handling of jobs and the economy.

DCCC Spokesperson Madison Andrus:
“Make no mistake, Brinker Harding has cozied up to Donald Trump throughout his entire campaign, parroting MAGA talking points and backing every disastrous policy along the way. No last-minute about-face can make Nebraskans forget the cost hikes, health care cuts, and endless war that Harding has supported since day one.”

Read more:

Courier Nebraska: Brinker Harding has a Trump problem—could it cost him the election?

• As President Donald Trump descended on Grand Island, Nebraska, last week to shore up midterm support, state Republicans lined up to capitalize on the visit—except one.
• Brinker Harding.
• While audience members were given a general edict to support conservative candidates “up and down the ticket,” in fact, the Republican nominee in Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District race wasn’t mentioned once during the three-hour event.
• The silence was as notable as it was deafening, as his race is routinely described by local and national media outlets as “highly competitive” and “crucial” for national Democrats aiming to seize the House in an off-election year. 
• But Harding’s complete absence from the rally was the latest variation in a delicate dance. To win this November, the Omaha city council vice-chair must balance the president’s unretractable support and teetering approval with an electorate that, while electing a Republican to Congress for 10 years, has rejected Trump twice since 2020.
• Harding, who advanced through his primary uncontested, navigates a political climate meaningfully different from that which dished up Bacon.
• According to the latest Economist/YouGov projections, Trump’s net approval rating is underwater nationally by roughly 26 points. That disapproval only bumps up to -17 among Nebraska voters. Further, as Election Day nears, only 25% of registered voters approve of Trump’s handling of jobs and the economy, according to a Financial Times poll.
• Meanwhile, voter sentiment and polarization on the president has largely crystalized over the last decade. So the Harding campaign’s decision to omit Trump’s endorsement from his campaign’s website is likely strategic in nature, as opposed to an oversight.
• “Brinker Harding has my Complete and Total Endorsement to be the next Representative from Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District,” Trump wrote in an April social media post. “HE WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!”
• Harding wrote back that he was “honored” to have the President’s cosign…
• During numerous interviews and campaign events, [Denise] Powell has characterized Harding as a “rubber-stamp” for Trump and the national GOP.
• Celebrating [the Big, Ugly Bill’s] signing, Harding said the President’s colossal reconciliation bill would usher in “a new golden age.”
• Despite projecting electoral confidence, national Republicans may be reconsidering their investment in helping Harding make his nuanced pitch for Congress.
• The House GOP’s major campaign arm recently removed $1.1 million in ad buys for Harding through the Nov. 3 election. 
• The paring back of funds may color Harding’s decision not to attend Trump’s Grand Island rally. 
• But a campaign suddenly down more than $1 million would reasonably want the free exposure and shoring of support—whether the venue is in-district or not.
• Unless that connotation presents a different obstacle.
• The Harding campaign did not respond by deadline to Courier Nebraska’s written questions about the president’s endorsement not appearing on his website and the nature of his absence from the Grand Island rally.

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