“Donald Trump has gained ground against Hillary Clinton, according to the latest findings from the USC Dornsife/Los Angeles Times national tracking poll of the presidential race.”

“The uptick for Trump follows a broad-based decline in early August and suggests a possible narrowing of the race… As of Sunday, the tracking poll showed Trump at 45% and Clinton at 43%, within the survey’s margin of error. Those results are far closer than most other polls, which use different methodology and almost uniformly show Clinton ahead by several points.”

Nate Silver: National polls show the race tightening, but state polls don’t.

“It’s very hard to find someone to mimic the reckless temperament and the hateful instincts and divisive instincts of Donald Trump.”

— Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook, quoted by Politico, on not yet finding someone to play Trump for debate preparation.

CNN: “Political director Jim Murphy and pollster Tony Fabrizio are among a handful of Trump staffers known to have expressed frustration to close friends in recent days — suggesting the new team has pushed them out of the loop to the point that they have learned of some new campaign plans either from the media or by watching the candidate on television.”

“Will they head for the exits? Stay tuned. National GOP leaders are worried more departures will cause more questions about a campaign team already considered not up to the challenges of the final months of the campaign.”

Politico: “Donald Trump campaign’s boasts of a formidable fundraising month in July spooked Democrats who feared their financial advantage could be slipping. But a closer inspection of the campaign finance report filed just before Saturday’s midnight deadline indicates the haul came at a steep price, and the campaign was still not dedicating resources to catching up on building the staff and field organization that all previous presidential efforts have required.”

“The money that the Trump campaign raised also didn’t come cheap. The campaign more than doubled its spending from the previous month to $18.5 million in July, far more than in any other period of the campaign. But most of that money went toward expanding the campaign’s online fundraising operation.”

Here are the latest state polls from the presidential race:

Ohio: Clinton 46%, Trump 40% (CBS News/YouGov)

Iowa: Clinton 40%, Trump 40% (CBS News/YouGov)

Former Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) told Minnesota Public Radio that she is advising Donald Trump on foreign policy.

Said Bachmann: “He also recognizes there is a threat around the world, not just here in Minnesota, of radical Islam. I wish our President Obama also understood the threat of radical Islam and took it seriously.”

A new Morning Consult poll finds that Hillary Clinton continues to lead Donald Trump by six points nationally, 44% to 38%

Key finding: 45% would consider or definitely vote for Trump while 50% would not.

For comparison, the HuffPost Pollster average shows Clinton leading by eight points, 48% to 40%.

“The super PAC backing Democrat Hillary Clinton vastly outraised the outside groups supporting Republican Donald Trump in July,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“The pro-Clinton group, Priorities USA Action, raised $9.9 million last month, less than the $12 million it raised in June, and ended July with more than $38 million in the bank. Meanwhile, a pro-Trump group called Great America PAC raised $2.4 million last month and ended July with less than $990,000 on hand.”

“A sharpening debate has emerged in Republican circles over whether and when to cut ties with Donald Trump, who has shaken up his campaign team as his poll numbers have dropped,” The Hill reports.

“While some in the GOP have called for Republicans to cut Trump loose sooner rather than later to avoid lasting damage, strategists concerned about control of Congress in 2017 say that would be disastrous.”