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This is a new era of American innovation. Find out more at G.co slash American Innovation. Good morning. I'm Jake Sherman and welcome to The Daily Punch, brought to you by Punch Bowl News.

It is Friday, October 18th, 2024. Let's get into the mix. Here are your Washington headlines of the day.

Number one, a report from the center of the political universe. Number two,

incoming freshmen are doling out money to campaign committees. And number three, a sleeper race in

Maryland heats up. Let's get into it. Max Cohen this morning is in Mount Pleasant, Michigan.

18 days ahead of the election is reporting from the center of the political

universe where Alyssa Slotkin and Mike Rogers are in a tight race for the Senate race. It's already

attracted more than $90 million in spending. Max makes the point, and it's an interesting point

to make that Alyssa Slotkin is campaigning basically

she's not going negative at all at least in his in his experience with her he she is doing a

she's basically campaigning and uh on her positive bio which is she worked for the CIA uh in

Iraq uh she worked under George W. Bush. She worked under

Barack Obama. She is in her, and again, this is her saying it. She is battle tested after winning

her, uh, Lansing area house district three times. Slokin is running against Mike Rogers.

Mike Rogers is a former House

Republican from Michigan, and he is a, when he was in the House of Representatives, he was a very

centrist House Republican, an ally of leadership. And he's shifted to the right in the, in his quest to win a Senate seat.

But, you know, although Slotkin has a very narrow lead in public polling,

I expect this is going to obviously be extraordinarily tight going down the wire.

...