“This is pretty silly.” Toomey said. “Joe Sestak is so worried about his own record, he's trying to -- trying to run against somebody that I've never met, that I don't agree with.” Then Toomey jumped in with his own attempt at linkage.But I'm not sure he ever made a direct statement about hurting him. He just, as one pundit said, "But Toomey tacitly acknowledges the damage O'Donnell has done him", by speaking out about differences he had with her -- something that you normally don't want to have to do while trying to win an election.
It was clear that the democrats used O'Donnell to attack other tea party candidates like Buck and Angle, who were endorsed by Palin.
Appreciate your link, that is media trying to use her as a means to get Toomey off message- which, naturally, he didn’t fall for. She didn’t rate a mention in this review and nothing in it indicates she had a negative impact on Toomey. http://www.philly.com/philly/hp/news_update/20101104_How_Pat_Toomey_outpaced_Joe_Sestak_-_and_his_own_campaign_s_expectations.html
In keeping with my radical ‘politics is local’ thesis... I add that Colorado’s losses were led by Party Chairman Dick Wadham- infamous for “the year’s worst campaign” in George Allen’s loss in 2006 (I think he has to report to local police if he enters Virginia LOL!). In 2008, he managed Bob Schafer’s doomed Senate run in Colorado, while also serving as the state’s GOP party chair. The state went to Obama. (Wadhams is a longtime friend of Karl Rove.)
The state Party mess in Alaska is self-evident.
Haven’t seen any coherent explanation of Nevada, that may be a better example of a poor candidate- but , even if so, I’d ask ‘how and why did that candidate get there’?