flanked

<p><b>This tag refers to pols who get primaried (or even challenged).  also RINO hunting</b></p>

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<div>So which accused RINOs ("Republicans in name only") have fended off, or are currently fending off, the best-financed challengers?</div>

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<div><b style=" font-weight: bold;">1. Sen.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/races/summary.php?id=KYS1&cycle=2014" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Mitch McConnell</a><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>(R-Ky.) - $1.4 million

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<div>While some are busy "<a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/comedycentral/the-daily-shows-30-top-mcconnelling-videos-of-al-1jmu" target="_blank" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">#McConnelling</a>," conservative outside groups have made more serious efforts to embarrass the Senate minority leader. Conservative outside groups have <a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/races/indexp.php?cycle=2014&id=KYS1" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">spent a combined $788,101 opposing McConnell</a> and another $586,151 in support of his primary opponent Matt Bevin. </div>

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<div>In addition to being one of the two highest-ranking Republicans in Washington, which is its own offense in the eyes of some anti-establishment tea partiers, McConnell's sins against conservatism include opposing the government shutdown aimed at revoking the Affordable Care Act, <a href="http://www.senateconservatives.com/site/post/2485/scf-releases-video-exposing-mitch-mcconnell" target="_blank" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">according to</a> the Senate Conservatives Fund. </div>

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<div><b style=" font-weight: bold;">2. Sen.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/races/summary.php?id=MSS1&cycle=2014" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Thad Cochran</a><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>(R-Miss.) - $1.1 million

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<div>Conservative groups have spent<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/races/indexp.php?cycle=2014&id=MSS1" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">$334,808 opposing Cochran</a> and $780,539 in support of his tea party challenger, state Sen.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/races/summary.php?cycle=2014&id=MSS1" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Chris McDaniel</a>. Cochran's reputation for securing earmarks grates fiscal conservatives. And the senator's recent<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2014/02/18/gop-sen-cochran-says-he-doesnt-know-much-about-the-tea-party/" target="_blank" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">admission</a><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>that he doesn't "really know much about" the tea party certainly didn't help matters. </div>

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<div>Cochran supporters have fought back. A super PAC with ties to Cochran called<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/pacs/indexpend.php?cmte=C00554774&cycle=2014" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Mississippi Conservatives</a> has poured $593,036 into opposition spending against McDaniel. Still, Stu Rothenberg <a href="http://blogs.rollcall.com/rothenblog/senator-thad-cochran-underdog/?dcz=" target="_blank" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">has identified</a> Cochran as the candidate most vulnerable to a tea party upset. </div>

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<div><b style=" font-weight: bold;">3. Rep.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/races/summary.php?id=NC03&cycle=2014" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Walter B. Jones Jr.</a><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>(R-N.C.) - $348,000</b></div>

<div>Jones' bid for reelection became a lot more competitive after he was hit by a<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.newsobserver.com/2014/03/24/3729718/super-pac-airs-ads-attacking-jones.html" target="_blank" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">$78,000 ad buy</a> from the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/pacs/lookup2.php?strID=C00489856&cycle=2014" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Ending Spending Fund</a>, a super PAC backed by hedgefund multi-millionaire <a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/outsidespending/donor_detail.php?cycle=2012&id=U0000000320&type=I&super=N&name=Ricketts%2C+John+Joe" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">John Ricketts</a> and mega-donor casino magnate<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/outsidespending/donor_detail.php?cycle=2012&id=U0000000310&type=I&super=N&name=Adelson%2C+Sheldon+G.+%26+Miriam+O." style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Sheldon Adelson</a>. </div>

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<div>In total, the fund <a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/races/indexp.php?cycle=2014&id=NC03" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">has spent $197,230 in its efforts to toss Jones from office</a>. </div>

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<div>The <a href="http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/pro-israel-group-drops-brutal-ad-against-walter-jones_786422.html?nopager=1" target="blank" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Emergency Committee for Israel</a> has also weighed in with a $151,075 <a href="http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/pro-israel-group-drops-brutal-ad-against-walter-jones_786422.html?nopager=1" target="blank" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">ad</a> hitting the congressman for being the only Republican to vote "present" on <a href="https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/112/hr4133/text" target="_blank" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">a 2012 resolution</a> that reasserted the Obama administration would continue to furnish Israel with military supplies amid the American withdrawal from Iraq.  </div>

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<div>It appears his offenses also include a <a href="http://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/house/219093-paul-ryan-budget-passes-house-with-ten-republican-defections" target="_blank" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">vote against</a> the Republican budget plan devised by Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.).</div>

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<div><b style=" font-weight: bold;">4. House Speaker<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/races/summary.php?id=OH08&cycle=2014" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">John Boehner</a><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>(R-Ohio) - $272,000</b></div>

<div><a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/pacs/indexpend.php?cmte=C00520825&cycle=2014" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">The TeaParty.net Leadership Fund</a>, a PAC, has spent $238,799 opposing Boehner and $33,558 boosting his tea party opponent, J.D. Winteregg. TeaParty.net's organizers were so eager to take down Boehner, they<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/368156/tea-party-spending-25k-attract-boehner-primary-challenger-alec-torres" target="_blank" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">announced</a><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>their intention to spend $25,000 against him before there was even a challenger. Good luck with that.

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<div><b style=" font-weight: bold;">5. Rep.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/races/summary.php?id=ID02&cycle=2014" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Mike Simpson</a><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>(R-Idaho) - $244,000</b></div>

<div>Simpson is staring down the most competitive race since his 1998 election to Congress. Club for Growth Action and FreedomWorks, and other groups that lean far to the right, have spent <a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/races/indexp.php?cycle=2014&id=ID02" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">$206,634</a> to defeat Simpson and $36,869 in support of challenger Bryan Smith, a corporate lawyer. Club for Growth's PAC has pitched in as well, spending $21,000 for Smith.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>

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<div>Simpson has run afoul of tea party conservatives in part because of his close alliance with Boehner. On the other hand, the <a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/pacs/indexpend.php?cmte=C00053553&cycle=2014" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">National Rifle Association</a> has endorsed him, and its PAC has spent $45,516 on his behalf.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>

<div><b style=" font-weight: bold;">6. Rep.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/races/summary.php?id=CO04&cycle=2014" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Cory Gardner</a><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>(R-Colo.) - $106,000</b></div>

<div>The Tea Party Express/Our Country Deserves Better PAC<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/races/indexp.php?cycle=2014&id=COS2" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">dumped $105,857</a><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>into supporting state Sen. Owen Hill's primary campaign before he bowed out last month, allowing Gardner to focus on his general election bid to unseat Sen. Mark Udall (D-Colo.). Gardner's experience in the House marked him as a GOP insider. The tea party group's spending occurred before Gardner officially announced his candidacy, but when he announced, the group's chairman<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.coloradostatesman.com/content/994676-gardner%3Fs-switch-changes-game" target="_blank" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">attacked him</a><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>as "the establishment's anointed candidate."

A few runners up to this list also deserve mention.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/races/indexp.php?cycle=2014&id=TXS1" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Sen. John Cornyn</a><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>(R-Texas) would almost certainly feature on this list had he not soundly quashed tea party favorite Sen. Steve Stockman in an early primary.

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<div>Once considered a winnable race for the anti-establishment right, Milton Wolf's campaign against incumbent Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) has<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/03/meet-milton-wolf-obamas-crazy-cousin-105161.html#.UzsIQahX-uY" target="_blank" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">swerved somewhat off track</a> of late -- something the Senate Conservatives Fund can't be happy about; it<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/races/indexp.php?cycle=2014&id=KSS1" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">has already spent</a><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>more than $107,000 on behalf of Wolf. </div>

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<div>Tea party groups don't just support challengers, of course, since some of candidates they've backed in the past are now in office. Example: Club for Growth <a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/races/indexp.php?cycle=2014&id=MI03" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">has spent $195,000</a><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>to undercut Brian Ellis's campaign to upend Rep.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/races/summary.php?id=MI03&cycle=2014" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Justin Amash</a><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>(R-Mich.), an especially fiscally conservative libertarian. It seems tea party groups support incumbents too, so long as they're aligned with the far-right.</div>

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<div>The rankings will change as primary dates inch ever closer. Our tallies do not include the "issue" ads favored by<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://www.opensecrets.org/outsidespending/detail.php?cycle=2012&cmte=Americans%20for%20Prosperity" style=" background-color: transparent; color: rgb(62, 114, 181); text-decoration: none; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Americans for Prosperity</a><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>and other organizations so far this cycle; those are often aimed to influence elections, but do not specifically endorse or attack a candidate and thus needn't be reported until the election is closer.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>

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