McMahon Sees Simmons' Stealth Campaign

[ccharles000]

Ex-Rep. Rob Simmons (R) may have suspended his CT SEN bid, but ex-WWE CEO Linda McMahon (R) still sees evidence that Simmons is pursuing the state's GOP nomination.

"It's hard to imagine why he's left his name on the ballot," McMahon said of Simmons, in an interview with The Hotline yesterday. "I think he's hoping that I will fail, and that there are some -- that there would be some opportunity for him to reenergize his campaign and get back in. I think the public may be starting to grow a little restless relative to that stand at this point."

Simmons began the campaign as the clear front-runner, leaping to a lead when he entered the race last March. But McMahon, who has spent at least $16M on her own campaign, vaulted ahead after running early TV ads. The last Quinnipiac Univ. poll, conducted earlier this month, showed McMahon leading Simmons by a 45%-29% margin among GOP primary voters.

With the wind out of his sails, Simmons suspended his campaign on May 25, just days after coming in second place at the state GOP convention. Simmons had said he would end his bid if he didn't win the convention, but after finishing just 7 points behind McMahon, he made early noises about continuing his campaign.

http://hotlineoncall.nationaljournal.com/archives/2010/06/mcmahon_sees_si.php#more

[Jennicut]

1. Neither of them seem like they will beat Blumenthal but Siimmons

is not as sleazy as McMahon and has not tried to buy the seat by throwing millions at it.