Top of the ballot: Ron Paul picks his winner in Utah

Utah Senate candidate Mike Lee (R) unveils his own big endorsements, Illinois adds a big spender to the Senate race and Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) won't be going to Colorado after all.

I'll see your senator and raise you a congressman

Lee was thought to be losing momentum in his bid for the Utah GOP Senate nomination after his rival, Tim Bridgewater, rolled out endorsements from Sen. Bob Bennett (R-Utah) and fourth-place convention finisher Cherilyn Eagar (R).

But Lee was able to fire back this week with endorsements from Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) and the Tea Party Express, which helped Republican Sharron Angle with the Nevada Senate primary.

Lee didn't know too much about Paul's endorsement before his political action committee released a statement, but he flaunted it all the same.

“It's another indicator that Mike is the true fiscal conservative in the race. Is it a game-changer? Not by any means. But I'm sure it will help open up some fundraising ability," a Lee spokesman told the Salt Lake Tribune.

They better rake that money in quickly; the primary vote is next Tuesday.

What recession?

Banker Mike Niecestro is set to run as an Independent for Senate in Illinois, competing with Democrat Alexi Giannoulias and Republican Mark Kirk for President Barack Obama's old seat.

"I'm just an average guy who worked his butt off to raise a family and give them a good start in life, which is really what the American Dream is supposed to be," Niecestro told The Daily Caller. "And that's who I am."

He's pledging to spend $1 million of his own money on the race, which won't have much of an impact in a big state where he has zero name ID.

It's interesting, though, that so many self-funders (Meg Whitman, Jeff Greene, etc.) are running during an economic downturn.

King not welcome

King was set for a weekend trip to Colorado for a fundraiser with Republican House candidate Cory Gardner and a rally with the Northern Colorado Tea Party.

But after his comments about Obama favoring blacks over whites, King was uninvited from the Gardner event. Then the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee hit Gardner for still appearing at the Tea Party rally with King. The Iowa congressman was subsequently dropped from the rally, too.

King, uncowed, was back at it again this week, saying on the House floor Monday that law enforcement officers could identify illegal immigrations by "indicators" such as "the type of grooming that they might have."