Today’s installment of campaign-related news items that won’t necessarily generate a post of their own, but may be of interest to political observers:
* Two new national polls of Republican voters reinforce the perception that Rick Perry is the GOP presidential frontrunner. The NBC/WSJ poll shows the Texas governor leading Mitt Romney 38% to 23%, while the Politico/GW poll shows Perry ahead of Romney, 36% to 17%.
* Arizona will not force an overhaul of the Republican nominating schedule, with Gov. Jan Brewer (R) rejecting a plan to move up her state’s primary to Jan. 31.
* Rick Perry’s Super PAC has a plan in place to spend roughly $45 million through the end of March to help the governor secure the nomination, and another $10 million after that.
* In Wisconsin, Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D) officially kicked off her U.S. Senate campaign this morning, and with Russ Feingold out of contention, will likely enjoy the party’s enthusiastic support. If elected, Baldwin would be the first openly gay senator.
* In Virginia, former Gov. Tim Kaine’s (D) Senate bid got a boost yesterday when Rep. Bobby Scott announced he will not take on Kaine in a Democratic primary. Scott will instead run for re-election.
* In Massachusetts, a Boston Globe poll shows Sen. Scott Brown’s (R) popularity slipping to a 49% favorability rating, down nine points over the last year. A new WBUR poll, meanwhile, shows him leading Elizabeth Warren (D) by nine points, 44% to 35%. (thanks to K.Z. for the tip)
* Speaking of the Bay State, Rep. Michael Capuano (D-Mass.) has ruled out a Senate campaign in 2012. Capuano came up short in a 2009 special-election primary.
* And Republican presidential hopeful Jon Huntsman has apparently ruled out running as an independent if/when his GOP campaign fails.
