McMahon campaign claims credit for report on Senate rival for Conn. seat, then drops it

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McMahon claims credit for report on rival’s record

WASHINGTON — Republican Linda McMahon’s campaign trumpeted its role in The New York Times report about a Democratic rival’s misleading claim he served in Vietnam. Hours later, her Senate campaign stripped the chest thumping from its website.

The campaign posted a headline late Monday on its blog: “McMahon Strikes Blumenthal In NYT Article.” The millionaire wrestling executive’s campaign proudly explained how it provided the newspaper with video of Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal falsely claiming he served “in Vietnam.”

Democrats quickly said the report on Blumenthal, the party’s pick for the Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Chris Dodd’s retirement, was partisan opposition research and the worst of political gamesmanship. Veterans on Tuesday rallied behind Blumenthal, a longtime ally who was presumed to keep the seat in Democratic hands.

McMahon is in a GOP primary with Rob Simmons.

Billionaire and Democratic Senate candidate Jeff Greene is hitting the Florida airwaves with two ads depicting himself as a political outsider and successful businessman.

Greene, who earned his riches betting on the real estate market’s rise and fall, is spending more than $1 million on the statewide ad campaign that begins Tuesday.

In both spots, he highlights the fact that his isn’t a politician. “I’m tired of career politicians who are only worried about their own jobs,” he says.

Greene entered the Senate race less then three weeks ago, challenging front-runner Kendrick Meek, who is serving his fourth term in the U.S. House. The primary is Aug. 24.

Gov. Charlie Crist is running as an independent candidate and former House Speaker Marco Rubio is the likely Republican nominee for the Senate seat.

Quick hits: Romney plays in Iowa governor race

— Mitt Romney is backing Terry Branstad for governor in Iowa, a key early state in the nominating calendar for would-be presidential candidates. Romney, who unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination in 2008, is a potential candidate in 2012.

— It’s quite a while to 2012, but a poll from the University of New Hampshire showed Romney the early front-runner, with 41 percent favoring the former Massachusetts governor. Twelve percent favor 2008 vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin. Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani pulled 11 percent support and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee enjoys 9 percent support. Worth noting: 85 percent of likely GOP primary voters say they aren’t settled on a candidate.

— President Barack Obama visited Ohio on Tuesday and Republicans were quick to note that Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher, running for the Senate, didn’t appear with him. It was the second time Obama was in the state without the fellow Democrat at his side.

— Meg Whitman’s campaign for California governor launched a 60-second television commercial in the Central Valley highlighting the endorsement of the California Farm Bureau, the state’s largest farm organization. Whitman remains in a tight race with insurance commissioner Steve Poizner ahead of the June 8 Republican primary.