Poll shows Tommy Thompson would lead Feingold

Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) won't be on anybody's target list unless things get pretty bad for Democrats, but a new poll shows the right candidate could at least have a shot at beating him.

The poll, which was conducted by University of Wisconsin professor Ken Goldstein for the Wisconsin Policy Research Institute, shows former Gov. Tommy Thompson (R) leading Feingold 43-39 in a head-to-head matchup. Thompson hasn't shown interest in running against Feingold, though, and his inclusion in the poll represents something of a best-case-scenario for Republicans.

In contrast, Feingold polled double-digit leads over Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and former Rep. Mark Green (R-Wis.) in June.

Feingold has never taken more than 55 percent of the vote in three races, but he's not generally thought of as a top potential target. Now that Republicans have apparently landed Rep. Mike Castle (R-Del.) to run in that state, perhaps they will try to get candidates in races against Feingold and Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.).