Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday

Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday

Jan 5, 2021 - Politics & Policy

Nearly $500 million spent on ads for Georgia Senate races

Sara Fischer, author of Media Trends

The Georgia Senate runoff races are among the most expensive Senate races in history, according to advertising spend figures from Ad Impact.

The big picture: Collectively, nearly $500 million worth of ads targeting Georgia voters has been spent in two months.

Data: Ad Impact; Chart: Axios Visuals

Overall, 9 of the top 10 highest-spending advertising Senate races were in the 2020 election cycle.

Republicans have outspent Democrats by more than $50 million across both races, thanks in part to large amounts of spending from outside groups.

Spending from American Crossroads, the Senate Leadership Fund and the Peachtree PAC, a group affiliated with the Senate Leadership Fund, has helped to widen the GOP's spend lead, according to the data from Ad Impact. In total, those three groups have poured more than $110 million into the runoff races.

The bottom line: For Georgia residents, the barrage of political ads on television for the past two months has been overwhelming.

Due to prolonged advertising blackouts on Facebook and Google, a vast majority of the advertising in the Georgia Senate runoffs races has been spent on local broadcast TV.

Go deeper: The battle for the Senate has triggered unprecedented fundraising

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Jan 24, 2021 - Politics & Policy

Sanders says Democrats will push coronavirus relief package through with simple majority

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) leaves the Senate floor on Jan. 1. Photo: Liz Lynch/Getty Images

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), incoming chair of the Senate Budget Committee who caucuses with the Democrats, told CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday that Democrats plan to push a coronavirus relief package through the chamber with a simple majority vote.

Why it matters: "Budget reconciliation" would allow Democrats to forgo the Senate's 60-vote requirement and could potentially speed-up the next relief package for millions of unemployed Americans. Democrats hold the the 50-50 split in the Senate with Vice President Kamala Harris serving as the tie-breaking vote.

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Dan Primack, author of Pro Rata

32 mins ago - Economy & Business

Scoop: Red Sox strike out on deal to go public

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

The parent company of the Boston Red Sox and Liverpool F.C. has ended talks to sell a minority ownership stake to RedBall Acquisition, a SPAC formed by longtime baseball executive Billy Beane and investor Gerry Cardinale, Axios has learned from multiple sources. An alternative investment, structured more like private equity, remains possible.

Why it matters: Red Sox fans won't be able to buy stock in the team any time soon.

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Updated 2 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

Health: Pandemic fatigue quantified — The pandemic could be worsening childhood obesity.
Vaccine: Moderna says vaccine appears to protect against new COVID-19 variants — Cities launch efforts to vaccinate the homeless.
Politics: Deborah Birx went "on the road" for local COVID efforts to avoid White House censorship — Sanders says Democrats will push coronavirus relief package through with simple majority.
Business: Budweiser skips Super Bowl ads in favor of vaccine education campaign.
World: Mexican President López Obrador tests positive for coronavirus.
🎧 Podcast: Google's chief health officer Karen DeSalvo on vaccinating America.

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