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Unaffiliated voters, meet Linda McMahon.

Some of you may have heard she’s the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate.

Don’t be fooled.

You haven’t seen her latest campaign mailer, directed right at you.

The term “Republican” appears once, and even then as almost an afterthought.

“Linda wants to go to Washington and work with Independents, Democrats and Republicans to find common ground on important issues…”

I’m sure Republicans are grateful they’re listed third

When she names Senators she’d emulate, there’s no mention of party affiliation, either.

“She will lead in the tradition of respected independent leaders like Senator Joe Lieberman (the self-described independent Democrat who backed a Republican for president in 2008 and whose retirement gave Linda an opening for this second run for U.S. Senate), Senator Susan Collins (a Maine Republican), Senator Scott Brown (a Massachusetts Republican) and others who buck the party line and do what is best for the country.”

McMahon successfully petitioned her way on to the November ballot as the Independent Party candidate, allowing her to also state in the mailer that she “is the Independent Choice for the U.S. Senate.” (Although, frankly, she was also the only game in town for a third party trying to remain relevant in Connecticut politics).

The mailer – which you can view in the photos below – really is something.

GOP Chairman Jerry Labriola hadn’t seen it when I phoned him. But when I read Labriola the contents he called McMahon “a stalwart Republican” who has been very supportive of the party, its candidates and the fundamental Republican principal of fiscal responsibility.

“It’s no surprise to me,” Labriola said. ““We have a long tradition of Yankee Republicans who have shown an independent streak while at the same time voting in a pro growth, fiscally responsible manner and putting the interests of Connecticut at the forefront.”

McMahon actually beat one in August’s GOP primary – ex-U.S. Rep. Chris Shays.

I’m sure some of her fellow Republicans may cringe when they learn McMahon is promising to “buck the party line.” But the smart ones know whether she means it or not, McMahon needs the support of unaffiliated voters to win in blue Connecticut. And they can take comfort knowing at the end of the day she still has that “R” next to her name.

Here’s the mailer, in four parts:

Front

Inside Left

Inside Right

Back

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Not this Moses.

This Moses.

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The Huffington Post tonight is reporting on Republican U.S. Senate candidate Linda McMahon’s “little noticed” remarks made at a Tea Party event in Waterford in April about Social Security.

According to the report, McMahon made a vague reference to a Social Security Act “sunset provision” when asked about strengthening Social Security and Medicare.

It’s the kind of comment that can cause a bit of a distraction for a campaign and a candidate like McMahon, who simply does not have a reputation as a policy wonk, because opponents will fill in the blanks for voters. You can just hear the Democratic ads now, narrated by a woman, of course, to appeal to that segment of voters McMahon needs to win over: “Republican Linda McMahon told Tea Party extremists she wants to eliminate Social Security!!! Linda McMahon: Bad for the elderly and disabled!!!”

(For those who are interested, here’s what McMahon had to say about Social Security in an interview with our Hearst newspapers during her first Senate bid in 2010.)

All campaigns play the “this is what my opponent REALLY meant” game. “You didn’t build that,” anyone?

This same thing happened to McMahon during her 2010 race after she spoke that April to a Tea Party audience.

McMahon made comments that some interpreted at the time as her being open to eliminating the departments of education, energy and environmental protection. Her campaign then had to attempt to clarify what McMahon said.

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Sometimes narrative is everything in political campaigns.

And for a few weeks now the narrative about the race for U.S. Senate in Connecticut has been that Republican Linda McMahon has made Democrat Chris Murphy her… um… there’s a term I’m searching for… tip of my tongue…

Well, the narrative has been McMahon’s run a really good, very aggressive, self-funded campaign and in some polls has made a race in a reliably blue state too close to call by defining the still unknown Murphy before he can introduce himself to voters.

Today’s new data from Public Policy Polling provides a bit of relief to the Murphy camp.

It also refutes findings in earlier polls that McMahon, who during her first run for Senate in 2010 had problems with women, has dealt with that liability.

———-

Murphy leads by 6 in CT-Senate race

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Democratic U.S. Rep. Chris Murphy’s campaign did it during the U.S. Senate primary with Susan Bysiewicz.

Republican Andrew Roraback’s campaign pulled a similar move in his heated race in the 5th Congressional District against Democrat Liz Esty.

And today Republican Steve Obsitnik adopted the same strategy as he seeks to unseat Democratic U.S. Rep. Jim Himes.

The new trend in Connecticut’s 2012 campaigns is to write an oh-so-serious letter to a television station or stations strongly objecting to an opponent’s advertisement, releasing, of course, that letter to the rest of the media world so voters also know just what dirty liars are slinging mud for the opposing campaign.

It’s a nice break from the days when campaigns would file ethics or elections complaints for the same purposes, knowing full well those complaints would not be addressed prior to the election.

Oh. Wait a minute. That stunt was pulled this month by Republican Linda McMahon’s campaign and the state Democratic Party.

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Retiring state House Speaker Chris Donovan, D-Meriden, who was unable to salvage his congressional bid in the wake of a federal influence-peddling probe, has been pretty quiet after losing the 5th District August 14 primary to Elizabeth Esty.

But today Donovan emerged from political seclusion in the form of an email to supporters asking them to pitch in $5 to help retire his campaign debt.

According to the Federal Elections Commission, Donovan as of late July was trying to pay down an $84,668 bill.

Donovan’s message did not mention Esty, a former state representative who he eventually endorsed for the 5th seat.

I’m sure some loyal Democrats are torn between giving that $5 to Donovan or to Esty as she campaigns against Republican Andrew Roraback.

———-

Friend,

It’s been a few weeks since the primary, so I wanted to drop you a brief note to say thank you. We had a difficult few months, but I’m proud of how hard we fought for the working families of Connecticut – and I’ll be proud to cast my ballot for the Democratic ticket in November! So thank you – your support made my campaign possible.

I know I asked you for a lot during the campaign, but I have one more request. Our campaign finished with some debt, but I want to make sure that everyone gets what is owed to them. Can I count on you to donate $5 to help me retire this debt?

Thanks again,

Chris

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World Wrestling Entertainment’s “attitude era” has gotten plenty of unwanted attention since Linda McMahon, whose family owns the Stamford-based wrestling empire, became interested in politics.

McMahon has run on her experience as a “job creator” and used her wrestling fortune to fund her campaigns.

Although WWE programming is today family-friendly and rated either PG or G, her critics love alerting voters to the period about a decade ago when the company’s scripts contained plenty of sex, violence and other material that could turn off some voters.

In fact WWE earlier this month announced it was removing clips of some of the more controversial material from the Internet to “protect its brand” from being tarnished during campaign season.

So a couple readers found it interesting that in late November – just a few weeks after the election – WWE is releasing an “Attitude Era” Blu-ray.

The implication? The company, still run by Linda’s husband, Vince, is protective of its brand when it helps Linda’s political career, but happy to profit off of those raunchier programs any other time.

Except that according to WWE spokesman Brian Flinn, the Blu-ray will be rated PG and consistent with how the company has marketed itself for the past several years.

Here’s the description from Amazon.com: In the late-90s, WWE was struggling for ratings survival while a cultural shift in the viewing audience’s taste was occurring. Saying your prayers and taking your vitamins had lost its luster among the rebellious masses who preferred “flipping the bird” and “laying the smackdown.” Enter Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Triple H, Mankind and the notorious crop of edgy and fearless Superstars who ushered in The Attitude Era. Now in this 3-Disc DVD set, fans can own all the infamous moments from this controversial and revolutionary era that redefined sports entertainment for an entire generation. Over 8-hours of envelope-pushing content includes all the aggression, antics and innuendos that proved to be the perfect cocktail for an explosion of popularity.

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Here’s a recipe for political controversy: Take the well-attended Women’s Expo this weekend in Hartford, give Republican U.S. Senate candidate Linda McMahon a much higher profile role than Democratic opponent Chris Murphy, and mix in the fact the women’s vote helped sink McMahon’s 2010 campaign and that she has been actively cultivating that group of voters in 2012.

“Everyone’s trying to read into it there’s something there,” said Nick Curci, president of Westport-based Connecticut Expos, as well as a registered Republican.

As a result, Curci said, McMahon will no longer give remarks as part of seven “stage events” scheduled for Saturday. McMahon was supposed to speak from 10:30 a.m. to 10:50 a.m. under the title “Linda for Senate.” McMahon will, however, still cut the opening ribbon with Miss Connecticut U.S.A. Marie-Lynn Piscitelli and her campaign will, like Murphy’s, have a more modest presence.

“She’s going to be there but not to address the crowd with a speech,” Curci said.

Curci said McMahon, a Greenwich millionaire who, like in 2010, has been self-funding her campaign, is a sponsor of the Women’s Expo. She and husband Vince earned a fortune running Stamford-based World Wrestling Entertainment, which Vince continues to operate.

Curci said neither her money nor her candidacy had anything to do with his decision to contact McMahon and ask her to play a more prominent role than Murphy, who has paid for a booth tucked away among 139 other exhibitors.

McMahon attended last year and proved to be popular draw, Curci said.

“It has nothing to do with anything other than she’s a woman, well known and a figurehead,” he said. “It’s the same reason I got Miss Connecticut. She’s a woman, a celebrity, she’s well known … I’m there to promote my show, period.”

McMahon’s role did not sit well with some Democrats who viewed it as providing the candidate an unfair platform in her battle with Murphy for female voters. Polls show their race is tied.

“They can certainly add anyone that they want,” Democratic State Chairwoman Nancy DiNardo said. “I just think they should have given Chris Murphy equal time to speak.”

Setting aside the ribbon cutting, it is fair to say a 20-minute speech by McMahon stood out from the list of other expo presenters – dance demonstrations and lessons; kickboxing and other fitness activities; and fashion shows.

Murphy’s campaign indicated that, after learning the full extent of McMahon’s participation, they asked organizers for opportunities for equal time but were not given clear answers about their options.

“Their manager called me, angry,” Curci said. “I said what do you want? We’ll put a package together. (They said) we don’t have any money. I said what do you want? For me not to take money from Linda because she’s willing to sponsor?”

But Curci again emphasized McMahon’s sponsorship had nothing to do with his decision to try and feature her.

“It’s not a home show. It’s a women’s expo. Last I checked, Murphy’s not a woman,” Curci said.

WWE also has a large role at the Women’s Expo. WWE Superstar David Otunga and WWE Diva Eve are two of three celebrities making appearances this weekend.

Democrats have continually tried to use some of WWE’s past business decisions and past, edgier programming against McMahon, in particular video footage that might offend women. And they have also claimed – but never actually proven – that Vince has used WWE to assist his wife’s chances of winning a Senate seat. That accusation was made again last week when WWE suddenly announced it was removing older, less family-friendly footage of televised matches from the Internet because the clips have been taken out of context for political purposes.

Brian Flinn, a WWE spokesman, said this is the second year the company has participated in the Women’s Expo.

“Our return to the event is a result of CT Women’s Expo organizers asking WWE to participate again following the overwhelmingly positive response we received last year,” Flinn said.

He added, “Any implication or assertion that WWE is coordinating with Linda McMahon’s U.S. Senate campaign is false; to do so would be unlawful and in violation of Federal Election Commission regulations.”