FRIDAY’S CAMPAIGN ROUND-UP….Today’s installment of campaign-related news items that wouldn’t generate a post of their own, but may be of interest to political observers.
* A Research 2000 poll for Daily Kos found Arlen Specter looking strong against potential Democratic primary opponents in Pennsylvania — leading Joe Sestak by 45 points and Joe Torsella by 55 points — but there’s a glimmer of hope for Specter’s Democratic detractors. The same poll found only 37% of Pennsylvania Democrats said they would “definitely” vote for the incumbent.
* The same poll offered very bad news for Republican hopeful Pat Toomey. Not only would he lose badly to Specter in a general election, he also trails Sestak and Torsella, despite the fact that few know who they are.
* Now that former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge has said he’s not running, will he throw his support to Toomey? Not yet. On “Hardball” yesterday, Ridge wouldn’t say whether he thinks Toomey can win, and wouldn’t even commit to voting for him.
* Perhaps all that ridiculous secession talk paid off — a Rasmussen poll in Texas shows Gov. Rick Perry edging ahead of Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison in next year’s Republican gubernatorial primary.
* Former Rep. J.C. Watts (R-Okla.) has gone from college football player to congressman to infomercial salesman to CNN contributor to lobbyist. Now, he’s expected to announce next week whether he’ll run for governor in Oklahoma next year.
* And speaking of Oklahoma, it’s unclear whether Sen. Tom Coburn (R) will seek re-election next year, but if he doesn’t, a lot of Democratic leaders hope Gov. Brad Henry (D), a moderate Dem with a high approval rating, can be recruited to seek the seat.
