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:
* In Maine, new survey results from Public Policy Polling show Rep. Mike Michaud (D) leading Gov. Paul LePage (R) by four points, 39% to 35%, with independent Eliot Cutler third with 18%. As was the case in 2010, when Cutler split Maine’s voting mainstream and allowed LePage to win, he takes nearly all of his support from the Democrat — in a head-to-head match-up, Michaud leads LePage by 15 points.
* Virginia gubernatorial hopeful Ken Cuccinelli (R) hopes to get a boost from a scheduled campaign visit from Sen. Marco Rubio (R) of Florida. Election Day in the commonwealth is just 10 weeks away.
* In New Jersey, Gov. Chris Christie (R), true to form, slammed yet another reporter this week, calling the New York Daily News’s Manesh Mehta “a complete idiot.”
* Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R), increasingly unsubtle about his future plans, is scheduling upcoming appearances in Iowa. * One of Sen. Max Baucus’ (D-Mont.) top staffers, John Lewis, has filed a statement of organization with the Federal Election Commission, in advance of his congressional campaign next year. While it was unclear which seat Lewis would pursue, it now appears he’ll run for the U.S. House. * And the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee continues to outpace the National Republican Senatorial Committee in fundraising, with the Dems besting the GOP by about a million dollars in July. As The Hill noted, “The DSCC has outraised the NRSC every month this year except April.”
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past." Recommended
