The Chris McDaniel camp is crying foul over the Cochran campaign's outreach to Democrats in the state, and even the incumbent's advisors admit the cross over votes from Democrats made the difference. But as this Politico autopsy on the race shows, Cochran was able to eke out a narrow victory thanks to a truly massive effort in both Washington and Mississippi involving millions of dollars and thousands of volunteers: Dogged ahead of the primary by complaints about a lackluster field program and an unfocused campaign message (and candidate), Cochran’s campaign moved swiftly to reorient its operations for a second election on June 24. Austin Barbour, a top Cochran adviser and former campaign manager for Sen. Roger Wicker, took over the leadership of the organization. Former state GOP Chairman Brad White joined the team to help drive the get-out-the-vote effort. Kirk Sims, up to that point the top staffer on the race, stepped back for personal reasons. The NRSC...(Read Full Post)