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Hurricane Milton

Milton hammers Florida, Perry faces big trouble in the Keystone State

Milton latest: Hurricane Milton lashed central Florida overnight, spawning deadly tornadoes, flooding a huge swath of the state, tearing the roof off Tropicana Field, leaving at least 3 million people without power and more.

Sustained winds remain near 90 mph. Milton is still packing hurricane force as it crosses the state and then will dissipate, according to the National Hurricane Center: “After moving into the Atlantic, Milton is expected to gradually lose tropical characteristics and slowly weaken.”

The St. Petersburg area received a stunning 18 inches of rain, and the storm surge is a major threat.

President Joe Biden was briefed late Wednesday night by Homeland Security Adviser Liz Sherwood-Randall and FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell, according to the White House.

We’ll have more on the reaction from Washington, Florida and lawmakers throughout the day.

On the trail

HARRISBURG, Pa. — There are increasingly dire signs that six-term conservative Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.) is on the verge of losing his seat, potentially a big pickup for House Democrats.

Recent public polls have shown both Perry and former President Donald Trump down several points in the south-central Pennsylvania district.

The district still ranks as R+5 according to the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter. But Perry, a former House Freedom Caucus chair, is being walloped in fundraising by Democratic challenger Janelle Stelson, a well-known former local news anchor.

Yet the conservative firebrand tells us he has no plans to temper his views in an effort to appeal to moderate voters who could save him.

“When you fear God, you have nothing else to fear,” Perry said in an interview here Wednesday. “I don’t answer to the Republican Party. I answer to the people of this district.”

House GOP leaders are clearly worried about losing the seat. Speaker Mike Johnson will campaign for Perry on Friday in Mechanicsburg, Pa., and the House Freedom Caucus is mobilizing staff to canvass for their former leader up until Nov. 5. HFC aides are planning to knock on doors this weekend in Mechanicsburg, New Cumberland and Harrisburg.

Perry referred to Pennsylvania and his own race as “ground zero” for the future of the country. We’ll note so far Perry has improved his margins in every general election since 2018.

“When you’re in one of these races, you always want as much help as you can get,” Perry told us. “I’m confident that leadership is going to look at it and determine what the appropriate level of involvement is right now.”

It seems likely that the Congressional Leadership Fund, the House GOP super PAC that conservatives sharply criticized for the last few years, will have to consider putting money into Perry’s district.

Fellow Freedom Caucus Reps. Chip Roy (R-Texas) and Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) are pushing their colleagues to contribute to the House Freedom Fund, which will then funnel money to Perry’s race, according to HFC insiders. Roy campaigned for Perry in Harrisburg last week.

The HFC is eager to avoid another high-profile defeat after the group’s last chair, Rep. Bob Good (R-Va.), lost in a GOP primary this cycle.

And a new super PAC linked to a former executive director of the NRSC has also earmarked more than $2.3 million in TV ads to support Perry in the coming weeks, according to his campaign.

Committed conservative: Perry is unique within the Pennsylvania delegation, which includes some of the most moderate Republicans in Congress.

Though he once celebrated joining the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus, Perry is now recognized as one of the most conservative members of the House. He frequently bucks GOP leadership on spending bills and withheld support for former Speaker Kevin McCarthy until the California Republican agreed to prioritize House conservatives’ agenda.

Perry also faced scrutiny over his role in trying to help former President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election results. FBI agents seized his cell phone as part of their probe into the events leading up to the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. Perry was subpoenaed by the Jan. 6 select committee but refused to testify.

Perry has tried to appeal to voters in other ways. He’s repeatedly mentioned his self-made upbringing, being the grandson of Colombian immigrants, as well as his military background. Perry has also shared how his mother struggled as a single parent to raise him and his brother.

Stelson has countered that Perry is too radical for the district and has vowed to work across the aisle if she’s elected.

Despite the uphill battle to keep his seat, Perry pushed back against the idea of tweaking his views to help himself win reelection.

“I’m going to do the right thing every single time, regardless of where or who it came from,” he said. “That’s what I was elected to do … not the politically right thing, but the right thing.”

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Editorial photos provided by Getty Images. Political ads courtesy of AdImpact.