LANSING — On Friday’s Off the Record, reporters discussed the chaos and brutal infighting in the Michigan GOP Senate primary. The “competition is not leaving the race,” as Amash focuses on “tak[ing] Rogers out any way he can,” and Republicans attack “Deep State” Rogers for being “Mr. Patriot Act” and supporting “snooping” which could prove to be a “significant liability.”
As Rogers, Meijer, Pensler, and Amash continue to attack each other, reporters point out that the primary will leave the general candidate taking lots of “flack” and “damage” that he’ll have to “defend his record on.”
See for yourself:
Chad Livengood: “His competition is not leaving the race… Justin Amash is really serious about running against and especially trying to take out Mike Rogers any way he can. That seems to be his campaign. And Peter Meijer, the former congressman, he seems to be treading along still and raising money and wanting to offer himself as a generational alternative to Mike Rogers.”
Simon Schuster: “I mean, I think to your point about Justin Amash, you look at two candidates you could not find, I think two individuals more diametrically opposed on a single issue than Justin Amash or Mike Rogers when it comes to national defense and the national surveillance apparatus.”
Tim Skubick: “And so Donald Trump, I mean.”
Chad Livengood: “They’re going to label Mike Rogers, Mr. Patriot Act, and say this is a guy who has long supported essentially snooping in your…”
Tim Skubick: “…Deep state.”
Jonathan Oosting: “But the question is how much flack does he take in the primary? If he wins the primary, how much damage has he taken in the process? And how much of his money that he raises does he have to spend defending his record at this point?”
Simon Schuster: “And so despite his endorsement that he’s received from Trump, if that can depress enthusiasm for him among the Republican base, it could prove a significant liability.”
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