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Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* Donald Trump’s endorsement in Ohio’s Republican Senate primary is proving to be a force multiplier for J.D. Vance: Now that the first-time candidate has locked up the former president’s backing, billionaire tech investor Peter Thiel is pumping another $3.5 million into super PAC supporting Vance’s candidacy. This is the same super PAC that Thiel backed last year with $10 million in seed money.
* American Bridge 21st Century, a leading super PAC aligned with Democratic politics, launched a new $3.5 million ad campaign this morning. The ads, which will focus on economic issues, will air in Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania, and Nevada starting tomorrow.
* In North Carolina, Rep. Madison Cawthorn has a primary challenger, Chuck Edwards, and GOP Sen. Thom Tillis has agreed to appear as a special guest at an Edwards fundraising event next week.
* On a related note, Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene will face Jennifer Strahan in a Georgia primary this year, and Strahan is receiving financial support from, among others, Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy’s leadership PAC.
* Former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson, who left office more than two decades ago, appeared to be gearing up for a 2022 comeback bid, and even discussed a candidacy with Trump at Mar-a-Lago. This week, however, the former four-term governor decided not to run after all.
* Those expecting former Gov. Eric Greitens to give up his U.S. Senate candidacy in the wake of domestic-violence allegations will have to wait: The Missouri Republican told the Associated Press this week that he still expects to win.
* That said, Politico reported that with Greitens damaged by the claims made by one of his ex-wives, Rep. Vicky Hartzler is “surging toward the front of the pack in Missouri’s GOP Senate primary.” Hartzler has previously welcomed the idea that she would be Missouri’s version of former Rep. Michele Bachmann.