FRIDAY’S CAMPAIGN ROUND-UP…. Today’s installment of campaign-related news items that wouldn’t necessarily generate a post of their own, but may be of interest to political observers:
* Wisconsin Democrats are ready to file 24,000 signatures — 150% of the required total — to recall state Sen. Randy Hopper (R). He’ll be the second Republican to meet this fate, following last week’s developments with state Sen. Dan Kapanke (R).
* It’s unclear if New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch (D) will seek an unprecedented fifth two-year term in 2012, but if he does, he’ll enter the race as the clear favorite. A new survey from Public Policy Polling shows the Democratic governor leading all of his likely Republican challengers by margins ranting from 18 to 28 points.
* Rep. Trent Franks (R) wasn’t just prepared to launch a U.S. Senate campaign in Arizona, he’d already assembled a staff, arranged for a kick-off event at a local hotel, and had aides telling reporters about the launch. And then, Franks reversed course and said he wouldn’t run. No one knows what happened, but the events are raising questions.
* With an eye on 2012, National Journal‘s Ron Brownstein takes a closer look at the extent to which President Obama is “struggling with white voters.”
* With Republican voters apparently finding his oddities appealing, Donald Trump chatted with Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus yesterday. The call reportedly touched on a poll this week showing the television personality has one of the GOP’s leading candidates.
* On a related note, Trump sat down with radical TV preacher Pat Robertson’s Christian Broadcasting Network, explaining that he switched from pro-choice to pro-life because he heard about a friend who didn’t want a baby, but was happy about the baby later.
* And in New Jersey, Gov. Chris Christie (R) is apparently determined to criticize every cultural icon in the state. This week, that means the governor taking potshots at Bruce Springsteen for wanting to “raise taxes all the time on everyone.”
