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.
* As things stand in Alaska’s Republican Senate primary, Joe Miller leads Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R) by 1,668 votes. There are, however, more than 20,000 absentee and disputed ballots that have not yet been counted, and that process will begin on Tuesday.
* In Florida, state Attorney General Bill McCollum is unwilling to endorse Rick Scott, the scandal-plagued health care executive who defeated in him in a Republican gubernatorial primary.
* A Mason-Dixon poll in Nevada shows Sen. Harry Reid (D) with the narrowest of leads over Sharron Angle (R) in this year’s Senate race, 45% to 44%.
* In Wisconsin, Senate candidate Ron Johnson (R) is basing his campaign on opposition to spending and government intervention in private industry. He keeps getting caught, however, having sought and received federal aid for his business enterprises.
* In Missouri, a new poll shows Robin Carnahan (D) and Roy Blunt (R) tied in this year’s Senate race, but there are some legitimate questions about the methodology, which may be inflating the Democrat’s support. (thanks to B.G. for the tip)
* Does Sen. David Vitter (R) have anything to worry about in his Republican primary? Not really — Public Policy Polling showing him easily trouncing his challengers, including retired state Supreme Court Justice Chet Traylor, who seemed like a potential threat.
* Sharron Angle’s new attack ad in Nevada goes after Democrats for George W. Bush’s mistakes.
* And in Iowa, Rep. Leonard Boswell’s (D) opponent seems to have an ugly past: “Republican congressional candidate Brad Zaun was the mayor of Urbandale, Iowa, when he went to an ex-girlfriend’s home in the middle of the night, pounded on the windows and called her a slut, according to a 2001 police report.”
