North Dakota state Rep. Rick Berg (R) has widened his lead over Rep. Earl Pomeroy (D-N.D.) in a new poll.

Berg is up 53 percent to 44 for the incumbent in a new Rasmussen Reports survey of 500 likely voters that was conducted Aug. 10-11. Last month, Berg was ahead by three points. Pomeroy holds the state's only House seat.

Republicans in North Dakota are confident of picking him off, in part, because Gov. John Hoeven (R) will be at the top of the ticket as he's running for Senate. The popular governor has been polling 40 points ahead of his Democratic opponent.

Interim Sen. Carte Goodwin (D-W.Va.) has taken fewer than 20 votes in his brief time in the Senate, but state Republicans apparently see his record as one of their best arguments against Gov. Joe Manchin (D) this fall.

Top state Republicans told the Charleston Daily Mail that they plan on holding Goodwin's votes against Manchin, who appointed him last month as the interim replacement for the late Sen. Robert Byrd (D). Manchin is running in a special election this fall to fill out the remainder of the term. 

The party lost its best hope of defeating Manchin when Rep. Shelley Moore Capito (R) decided against challenging him this fall. Republicans have more than 10 candidates vying to get on the special-election ballot in a field led by businessman John Raese.  

But if Sen. Goodwin's votes on extending unemployment benefits and in support of Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan are going to lead the Republican argument against Manchin this fall, Democrats in the state say they aren't concerned in the least about the popular governor's prospects. 

From the Daily Mail:

[State Republican Party Chair Mike] Stuart said an "overarching theme" of Republican campaigns this year is going to be accountability for "spending habits."

"I think it's ludicrous to think the governor could make an appointment to the United States Senate and disclaim all reasonability," he said.

But the Manchin campaign said attempts to tie Goodwin's votes to Manchin were "absurd."

"Individuals are entitled to their own views and opinions and certainly Sen. Goodwin is entitled to his," spokeswoman Sara Payne Scarbro said. "I think it's important to note that the governor appointed Mr. Goodwin because the governor thought he was young and dynamic and independent."

She also said the governor would likely have supported the unemployment benefit extension, if only because the vote was taken on Goodwin's first day on the job. She indicated Manchin might not have voted for it had he been in the Senate longer and had time to "fix that problem." 

The Crist campaign says it intends to refund the contributions from the disgraced chairman.

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A South Carolina Republican congressional candidate wrote House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Monday to invite her to his district.

State Sen. Mick Mulvaney, a Republican challenging Rep. John Spratt (D-S.C.) this fall, wrote the speaker to invite her to South Carolina's 5th Congressional District to talk healthcare reform.

Mulvaney's campaign released a letter noting Pelosi's willingness to campaign for Democrats, and said it was an opportunity to come to South Carolina.

"Therefore, I invite you to come to the 5th District of South Carolina," he said, in a letter provided to the Charleston Post and Courier. "As you know, it is the home of your Budget Committee Chairman John Spratt."

The letter is no doubt a stunt on behalf of Mulvaney, since Pelosi is unlikely to travel to the district — at least at the Republican's request. It reflects, though, a sense among Republican candidates that the Speaker is a liability for endangered incumbent Democrats, some of whom have been debating whether or not to appear with Pelosi or even more senior party leaders like President Obama.

Mulvaney's letter needles Spratt, the chairman of the House Budget Committee, by looking to link him to Pelosi on a number of policy items, especially ones unpopular in their relatively more conservative district.

"Many of us in South Carolina remember his impassioned introduction of you on the night of the final vote of that historically bad bill," he said. "Certainly, by any measure, he has earned your support in this election."

Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) said he has absolutely no reservations about appearing in Wisconsin on Monday with President Obama.

Feingold, a liberal Democrat who's facing a tough reelection battle this fall, said he was proud to appear with Obama as the president arrived in Wisconsin Monday morning for a speech on the economy and a fundraiser.

"Absolutely none," Feingold said when asked if he has any qualms about appearing with Obama, according to a pool report.

"I'm pleased to stand with this president any time and anywhere and defend what we've done and what we're doing," the senator added.

While Feingold may be betting on benefiting from Obama, other Democrats aren't as sure. Several vulnerable incumbents have avoided appearing with Obama, or have at least ducked questions as to whether or not they would like to campaign with the president.

Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), for instance, said last week that he would "have to see" whether he wanted Obama, who endorsed Bennet in a bruising primary, to campaign with him. Rep. Joe Donnelly (D-Ind.) also swiped at Obama and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) in a new TV ad.

The emerging debate over Obama's role on the campaign trail also spurred Democratic National Committee Chairman Tim Kaine to opine last week that candidates who chose to avoid their own party's president were making a "mistake."

"If you distance yourself from the president, you can pour cold water on the excitement about what he is doing," Kaine told The Hill. "I can tell you this. Everywhere I go, every last community I visit, there are energetic supporters of this president who are excited about what he is doing."

The Louisiana governor, who has sometimes been mentioned as a GOP presidential candidate, said he will seek a second term. 

A pro-military group that typically supports Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans running for office is promoting a civilian gubernatorial candidate in Connecticut.

Iraq Veterans For Congress on Monday expressed "deep appreciation" for Republican Tom Foley's service in Iraq and encouraged supporters to consider voting for him. 

Foley was the Bush administration's director of private sector development in Iraq from 2003-04. Critics charge he was responsible for the hurried privatization of Iraq's state-owned businesses, which resulted in thousands of layoffs. By adding more unemployed men to the ranks of those disaffected by the American occupation, the measures may have helped fuel the insurgency.

Foley has talked up the daunting aspects of his time there. "Donning bullet proof vests, dodging rockets and mortars, and avoiding IED's became regular parts of the routine," according to his website biography. 

And that's apparently what got the attention of IVC.

"I don't know any other Harvard grads in their fifties with no military experience who left comfortable executive positions to answer the call when the country needed them to serve in a ferocious combat zone," Kieran Michael Lalor, the group's founder, wrote in an e-mail to supporters. "Foley spent a year in country laying the foundation for economic growth by helping Iraqi entrepreneurs and small merchants build and expand their businesses."

Foley, who later served as ambassador to Ireland, faces Democrat Dan Malloy in November.

Rep. Donna Edwards (D-Md.) has the backing of the Washington Post’s editorial board to emerge from her four-way primary.

"She is a champion of labor unions, a skeptic on free trade and a doubter when it comes to projecting American force overseas," the board wrote Monday. "We may not always agree with her, but we admire the energy, hard work and intelligence that informs her work as a legislator. She deserves another term in Congress."

The board's editorial praised Edwards as an "unapologetic liberal of the old school."

The winner of the Sept. 14 primary is expected to hold the heavily-Democratic district.

Edwards famously defeated eight-term Rep. Al Wynn (D-Md.) in a primary in 2008.

Edwards wasn't in serious danger of losing her primary this cycle, but the paper's backing may help her to a comfortable win. In 2009, the Post's endorsement helped Virginia Democrat Creigh Deeds clinch his party's gubernatorial nomination. He touted the backing in a memorable TV ad before the vote.

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee leads the field of potential 2012 Republican hopefuls in Iowa, according to a new poll commissioned by TheIowaRepublican.com. 

Huckabee and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney garner the most support in the poll, which paints a picture at the top that's not all that different than the 2008 Iowa Caucuses. 

Huckabee has 22 percent of the vote to Romney's 18 percent among likely Republican voters in the state. In 2008, Huckabee held off Romney to win in Iowa despite getting significantly outspent.

Somewhat surprisingly, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich was in third with 14 percent, ahead of former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, who garnered just 11 percent. Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) rounds out the list at 5 percent of the vote.

Two other potential candidates, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty and Sen. John Thune (S.D.) garnered just 1 percent in the poll, while former Sen. Rick Santorum's (Pa.) support stood at less than 1 percent. 

Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour and Texas Gov. Rick Perry, another two rumored contenders, didn't register any support. 

The poll surveyed 399 likely Republican voters and has a margin or error of plus-or-minus 4.9 percentage points. 

While it's clearly too early to glean much of anything from these numbers, Huckabee's position at the top is interesting given that he hasn't yet shown the same eagerness for 2012 as the three who trail him.

While Romney, Palin and Gingrich have crisscrossed the country so far this cycle, dishing out tens of thousands of PAC dollars to Republican candidates and inserting themselves into a slew of GOP primaries, Huckabee has remained on the sidelines more often than not.  

He did make a late endorsement in Georgia's runoff for governor, backing former Rep. Nathan Deal (R), the eventual winner. And there has been some suggestion the former governor is simply flying under the radar. 

Huckabee did indicate last week that his campaign schedule is about to increase significantly as he stumps for Republicans across the country.  

Even though Huckabee is still a favorite among Iowa conservatives, 23 percent fell in the undecided camp in this poll, leaving plenty of room and plenty of time for other contenders like Pawlenty or Santorum to emerge.