Lowden praises team, gets stalked by Dem chicken in DC

Despite being under fire for their response to "bartergate," Nevada Republican Sue Lowden touted her campaign team as the reason she'll defeat Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in November.

"We have a plan for November that includes hiring the team that saw John Thune beat Tom Daschle," she said during a GOP Senate candidates debate April 30 in Las Vegas. "I hired the same team because they've got the playbook, the plan in place of knowing exactly what to do."

Lowden's comments came the same night her campaign manager, Robert Uithoven, went on Nevada journalist Jon Ralston's interview program and said that universal healthcare exists in America because people can access treatment in emergency rooms.

That's a far cry from "repeal and replace," which had been the GOP slogan for attacking the Democrats' healthcare reform bill, and it generated more negative press for the campaign.

Meanwhile, Lowden was in Washington, D.C. Tuesday for a handful of fundraising events. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee dispatched a lucky volunteer dressed in a yellow chicken costume to stand outside one high-dollar event held at Charlie Palmer Steak.