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Steyer would shift funds to Senate races if Rosenstein fired, Kavanaugh confirmed

Greg Nash

Democratic mega-donor Tom Steyer says he would consider shifting some of his focus toward Senate races in the November midterms is President Trump fires deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein and if the Senate confirms Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.

The Washington Post reports that Steyer aides say that he could spend seven figures on competitive Senate races in states like Tennesse, Arizona, Nevada, Texas, Indiana and Florida.

{mosads}The aides say that Steyer would consider it a constitutional crisis if Trump fires Rosenstein, according to the Post.

Steyer is poised to become the Democratic party’s largest individual donor after pledging to spend $110 million on races across the U.S. this election cycle. He had previously outlined a focus on 60 congressional districts in an attempt to help the party take back the House and make room for a possible impeachment of the president.

The billionaire has spent millions on an ad campaign to impeach Trump.

Steyer believes Democrats have a greater chance of flipping the Senate if Trump ousts Rosenstein and Republicans confirm Kavanaugh in light of the allegations of sexual assault that have stalled his confirmation process, a senior staffer told the Post.

Democrats need 24 seats to take the House and only need to flip two to take the Senate, but the Upper Chamber remains an uphill battle, with political analysis website FiveThirtyEight giving it a one-in-three chance.

Democrats are defending 10 Senate seats in states that Trump won in 2016.

The states mentioned as Steyer’s targets are all close races and include four that have Republican incumbents trying to fight off Democratic challengers.

The billionaire, who has not ruled out a bid for president in 2020, has already poured millions of dollars into Democratic efforts ahead of the midterms, including $3.5 million investments to target young voters in California and Florida.

Reports emerged earlier this week that Rosenstein was either planning to resign or Trump was going to fire him. The two are set to meet on Thursday in a highly-anticipated huddle. 

Trump has previously left the door open as to whether he would fire Rosenstein, who oversees special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into ties between the Trump campaign and Russia. Rosenstein’s firing would likely raise questions about potential obstruction of justice by the White House.

Tags 2022 midterm elections Deputy Attorney general Donald Trump House Robert Mueller Rod Rosenstein Senate

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