Senate races

Former Florida GOP chairman Jim Greer's attorney said Saturday that Gov. Charlie Crist signed off on a deal that allowed him to enrich himself off party donations.

Crist, a former Republican who left the party to launch an independent Senate bid, has said that he had no knowledge of Greer's clandestine fundraising role. Greer was arrested this week on charges of defrauding his party through funneling donations to himself through a shell company.

Greer was Crist's hand-picked chairman of the Republican Party of Florida when he was governor -- but he resigned in January amid accusations of wrongdoing and internal conflict within the party.

The Miami Herald reported Saturday:

Damon Chase, said Saturday that the deal giving them a 10 percent cut of party donations was legal. What's more, Chase said Crist's former right-hand man, now U.S. Sen. George LeMieux, first proposed the idea that they earn a fundraising commission to save the party money and replace the $30,000-a-month contract with fundraiser Meredith O'Rourke.

"You guys work hard. You deserve it,'' Chase said Greer was told by the governor as they played pool in February 2009 at a Palm Beach golf tournament.

Crist's opponents in the Senate race have sought to bring the allegations to the forefront to hurt his chances of winning.

Republican Marco Rubio's campaign blasted out the story Thursday, but investigators have also opened a preliminary probe into Rubio's role into improper usage of party credit cards.

Cross-posted to the Briefing Room

Florida Gov. Charlie Crist -- an former Republican -- has hired another Democrat to work on his independent Senate campaign.

Crist brought Josh Isay aboard his campaign to work in his communications shop, according to the USA Today. 

Isay formerly worked for one of the top Democrats in the Senate, Charles Schumer (N.Y.)

The Florida governor is running against former Florida House Speaker Marco Rubio (R) and Rep. Kendrick Meek (D) in November.

Crist hired Eric Johnson, a former staffer for ex-Rep. Robert Wexler (D-Fla.), to serve as his political director late last month. Crist has been trying to build up his staff since he left the Republican Party and launched an independent bid in late April.

Isay has also worked for politicians who have switched parties; namely New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (I) and Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), who still caucuses with the Democrats.

Cross-posted from the Briefing Room

California Senate candidate Carly Fiorina (R) continues to rack up endorsements from establishment Republicans.

On Friday she rolled out the endorsement of Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.). The first-term senator, who gained fame when he defeated then-Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D) in 2004, is a darling of the conservative movement.

"I am proud to endorse Carly Fiorina today because she is a principled leader who will add an important and much-needed real-world perspective to the dialogue in the U.S. Senate, especially in light of our nation’s economic struggles," Thune said in a statement.

Fiorina is also backed by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) and several other high-profile conservatives, including Sarah Palin. 

The latest Capitol Weekly/Probolsky Research tracking poll shows Fiorina leading former Rep. Tom Campbell (R-Calif.) 36.5 percent to 22 ahead of Tuesday’s primary.

(An earlier version of this post stated incorrectly that Dick Cheney had endorsed Fiorina. The former vice president hasn't endorsed in the GOP Senate primary. He's endorsed former eBay CEO Meg Whitman in the GOP gubernatorial primary.)

My colleague Russell Berman and I looked into whether the White House used the lure of an administration position to protect Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) from a primary challenge. 

New York Reps. Steve Israel, Carolyn Maloney and Carolyn McCarthy, along with former Rep. Harold Ford, Jr. (D-Tenn.), all told us the White House didn’t offer them jobs in exchange for forgoing a bid. 

The administration and its allies – including Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) – did, however, send signals they would work against any primary rival to Gillibrand, who was appointed by Gov. David Paterson (D) to fill the seat vacated by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Bottom line: The White House's tactics in New York helped Gillibrand avoid a primary challenge, whereas its maneuvers in Pennsylvania and Colorado failed to clear the field. 

Florida Gov. Charlie Crist wants funds to help monitor the effects of the oil spill threatening his state's shoreline.

The Republican Senate nominee in Illinois apologized for misstatements about his military services and awards.

Washington state Senate candidate Dino Rossi (R) sounded pleased with his first week on the campaign trail.

"In just the first week, we have signed up over 2,500 people online, attracted over 20,000 Facebook followers, [the] third most of any U.S. Senate candidate and nearly twice that of Senator Murray, and raised over $600,000, including nearly $200,000 online," Rossi said in a statement Thursday. "We did this without an office, phones, or staff. It happened because the people of our great state share my concerns."

Rossi needs to overcome Paul Akers, Don Benton, Clint Didier, Skip Mercer, Sean Salazar and Craig Williams to claim the GOP nod to face Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.).

The primary vote is Aug. 17.

Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) is sending out a flurry of e-mails to supporters ahead of Tuesday’s primary runoff against Lt. Gov. Bill Halter (D).

On Wednesday she sent a fundraising plea from Vice President Joe Biden, who noted how she stood with the administration on key priorities.

“Blanche has a consistent record of fighting for Arkansas,” Biden wrote. “That record includes standing with me and President Obama to pass the most historic health reform this country has ever seen.”

And on Thursday her campaign sent a note to supporters highlighting how she’s willing to “work across the aisle to get things done.”

Lincoln’s husband, Steven, wrote: “Blanche is a rare breed. She's one of the few senators left who are willing to work across the aisle to get things done.”

Lincoln has also brought former President Bill Clinton in to campaign for her in what is a tough election year for incumbents. She's already seen colleagues Sens. Bob Bennett (R-Utah) and Arlen Specter (D-Pa.) lose their primary bids. 

Colorado Senate candidate Jane Norton (R) is calling on Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) to reveal what he knew about the White House’s job offer to primary rival Andrew Romanoff (D). 

"Andrew Romanoff answered the tough questions, and now it's time for the appointed senator to do the same," Norton said in a statement Thursday.

Romanoff released a statement Wednesday saying White House deputy chief of staff Jim Messina contacted him in September. Messina "suggested three positions that might be available to me were I not pursuing the Senate race," Romanoff said. "At no time was I promised a job, nor did I request Mr. Messina’s assistance in obtaining one."

Colorado Republicans want to make Romanoff's Washington job search a campaign issue in the Senate race.

"With all of the problems our nation is facing, the Obama administration chose to focus on business-as-usual political games," Norton said. "The back-room deals and ‘Chicago-style’ politics have to stop."

The Bennet campaign hasn't yet responded to a request for comment.

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal's favorability rating has actually increased over past surveys despite the recent controversy over his service in the Marine Corps Reserves during the Vietnam War. 

Blumenthal was viewed very favorably by 42 percent of 500 Connecticut voters Rasmussen Reports surveyed on June 1.  That's an increase of 7 points from a survey that was conducted two weeks before the New York Times story broke.

The Times piece reported Blumenthal misstated his service during the Vietnam War. After the story came out, Blumenthal went on an apology tour and said his "misspoke" about his military record.

He remains a strong Senate candidate.

In the new survey, Blumenthal had support from 56 percent of respondents in a match-up with former WWE CEO Linda McMahon (R) who pulled in 33 percent. Only 7 percent said they were undecided.

In a potential meeting with investment banker Peter Schiff, who is gathering signatures to run against McMahon for the GOP nod, Blumenthal dropped to 55 percent while Schiff garnered a surprising 32 percent support, and 9 percent said they were undecided.

Blumenthal started airing his first three TV ads of the Senate race on June 1.