Senate Race Blowing Up in Dems Faces

The bad blood fueled by the Sherrod Brown’s campaign has caused them yet more problems (nevermind the already poor polling numbers). The Toledo Blade is reporting a leaked internal Hackett campaign memo which highlights opposition research showing Brown’s problem with terrorism and intelligence (hat tip OH02).

Republicans are swift to pick this up:

Mr. Hackett quit the race last week, leaving Mr. Brown as the near-certain Democratic nominee against incumbent Republican Sen. Mike DeWine. But not before his campaign paid more than $5,000 to comb Mr. Brown’s background for political weakness.

The research concluded it was unwise to attack Mr. Brown’s career voting record in a Democratic primary, because he toed the party line faithfully. It also predicts Republican attacks on Mr. Brown this fall.

“For Sherrod Brown, the issue of terrorism presents a big problem,” a Hackett consultant wrote in an undated memo. A paragraph later, the consultant called Mr. Brown’s intelligence votes “evidence that Brown would be pummeled in a general election match-up, as we already know how Republicans use the issue of terrorism against Democrats.”

Whoops.