The Midday Brief: February 10, 2010

Your afternoon reading

"But a new survey of Collin County voters shows Hutchison in a dead heat with activist Debra Medina." — More Bad Polling News for Hutchison — Texas Politics

"When the NRSC received polling in mid-December from the Bay State that showed Brown had an outside chance of winning, Jesmer and the rest of the staff kept mum." — Staying Mum and Winning Races — Congressional Quarterly

"The fresh money may close the gap slightly with the Democrats' House campaign committee, which outraised the NRCC last year by $20 million and, with $16.7 million in the bank, held a 6-1 edge a month ago." — Rep. Pete Sessions says NRCC has turned a corner, predicts GOP majority after midterms —TRAILBLAZERS

"The Post said that former Texas Lt. Gov. Ben Barnes was spotted with Harold Ford, Jr. at the tony restaurant Fresco’s." — Ben Barnes could be dabbling in New York politics…Maybe not —Postcards

New in The Texas Tribune

“Well, they cut Medicaid and CHIP (the Children’s Health Insurance Program), and otherwise they pretty much balanced it on the backs of other people.” — The Last Time Around

"Yet the district and surrounding Collin County are "ground zero" for the battle between 'real conservatives and the philosophically pliable.'" — Primary Color: HD-66