Who will Ebola hurt in the midterm elections?

In recent weeks, candidates across the political spectrum have tried to use the public's fear of Ebola to their advantage.

With just two more weeks of campaigning for the midterm elections, the Ebola crisis is a prominent talking point for candidates, reports CBS News correspondent Chip Reid.

From North Carolina Republican Senate nominee Tom Tillis, to Kansas' Independent Senate nominee Greg Orman, it's been on their agenda. Even President Obama brought it up on the stump.

"We face a lot of challenges, from stopping the spread of disease to combating violent extremism," he said at an event for Maryland Lieutenant Governor Anthony Brown.

Republicans are doing their best to tie their opponents to a White House under fire.

"Mark Pryor always stands by Barack Obama, whether it's the V.A., the IRS, the Secret Service, our border crisis, or now, Ebola," Arkansas nominee Tom Cotton said of his competition at the state's Senate debate.

Some Democrats are firing back, claiming that Republican spending cuts have made the problem worse.

"Francis Collins, the head of the NIH said that, but for sequestration, we might have been able to find a vaccination against Ebola," nominee Mark Warner said at the Virginia Senate debate.

An independent liberal group called The Agenda Project has even released a new ad with the tag line "Republican cuts kill."

CBS News contributor and Republican strategist Frank Luntz says the government's mishandling of the crisis is likely to hurt incumbents the most.

"It's going to affect both political parties," Luntz said. "Basically if you're in Washington, you're going to end up with responsibility for this. You're going to end up with anger for this. And the public is going to take it out on you. And it's only 14 days before the election."

But the biggest impact may be on Americans' faith in the government as a whole.

A recent CBS News poll found confidence in government is at an all time low.