Rove's Crossroads Is Back in the Money
American political consultant Karl Rove is seen at the Tampa Bay Times Forum in Tampa, Florida, during final preparations for the opening of the Republican National Convention on August 27, 2012.
BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/GettyImagesBig Republican donors are back. The 2014 midterms victories lifted their lingering 2012 depression, ending that period of sadness and disbelief that began when the GOP lost the presidency and failed to retake the Senate despite spending record amounts of cash. Republican leaders are stoking these new feelings of glee. Karl Rove's American Crossroads is already turning to Hillary Clinton as its next target and GOP fundraisers are reminding the giving class that the 2016 Senate map won't be favorable and the party will contend with a presidential electorate that's been more supportive to Democrats in recent years.
"You don't want to rest on your laurels," said Fred Malek, who founded the private equity firm Thayer Lodging Group and is a board member of American Action Network, which focused on winning Republican House races this year. "You don't want to be complacent. We're realistic enough to know that 2016 is a different ball game."