Four weeks away from the 2014 midterm elections and even some Democratic operatives struggle to imagine a scenario where they retain control of the U.S. Senate. The terrain and current momentum seem all but overwhelming and against them. A new CNN/ORC poll out Thursday morning suggests a Republican lead over a Democratic incumbent, this time in Alaska, and does nothing to calm Democrats' nerves. "If you put a gun to my head, I guess I'd say that we're going to lose the Senate," one Democratic consultant told me in a moment of anonymous candor. It's not even so much that President Obama is an Ancient Mariner-esque Albatross around their necks, though he is.
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Democrats are on defense in seven key senate races
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They are all but sure to lose three seats where Democrats are retiring
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Some Democrats privately admit it is going to be very difficult for them to keep control of the Senate
Remember that the @placeholder only need win three of these and the most recent polling, which could clearly change between now and election day, suggests extremely close margins or a Republican advantage in all of them: