(cross-posted at Bellwether Nation)
Today's Senate campaign news:
-Portman reports first quarter numbers
-Toomey takes a step towards a primary challenge to Specter
~Portman Leads in Fundraising for First Quarter~
Rob Portman announced that he raised $1.7 million in the first quarter for his Ohio Senate race. He also transferred $1.4 from his congressional campaign account, giving his Senate campaign a total of over $3 million cash-on-hand.
He said in the email that 78% of the funds were raised from Ohioans. He boasted his funding advantage over Democratic opponents Lt. Governor Lee Fisher (who reportedly raised $1 million) and Jennifer Brunner (who hasn't released her first quarter numbers yet).
So far, Portman is running uncontested for the Republican nomination.
~Toomey Takes A Step Towards Senate Run~
Yesterday, Pat Toomey resigned from his position of President of the Club for Growth. The statement released by the Club for Growth said that he was leaving to "pursue other opportunities."
Meanwhile, Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) questioned Toomey's past, pointing out a change in Toomey's biography on the Club for Growth's website. The change consisted of a deleted reference to his work selling derivatives for the firm Morgan Grenfel Finance Inc.
The National Republican Senatorial Committee, perhaps sensing that Toomey would be a losing candidate in the increasingly blue state of Pennsylvania, backed Arlen Specter in the Senate race.
With Toomey in this race, all bets are off.