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Thursday's campaign round-up

<p>Today's installment of campaign-related news items that won't necessarily generate a post of their own, but may be of interest to

Today's installment of campaign-related news items that won't necessarily generate a post of their own, but may be of interest to political observers:

* With Public Policy Polling showing Mitt Romney pulling ahead of Rick Santorum in Pennsylvania, will the former quit to avoid the embarrassment of losing in his home state again?

* Is Foster Friess done providing financial support to Santorum? Not yet. He told Fox News yesterday he's "absolutely not" closing his wallet. Referring to Santorum, Friess added, "He's not out yet."

* Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) argued on Tuesday, without proof or substantiation, that Democrats will attack Romney's religion during the presidential race. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.), chair of the Democratic National Committee, called Hatch's comments "preposterous" and "utter nonsense."

* Nevada is expected to be a competitive battleground state in November, and at this point, it appears likely to stay "blue" -- PPP shows President Obama leading Romney in the state, 51% to 43%.

* In Michigan, Republican gubernatorial hopeful Pete Hoekstra's (R) ugly Super Bowl ad helped incumbent Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D) secure the best fundraising quarter of her career.

* In New York, a new Quinnipiac poll shows incumbent Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D) crushing Rep. Bob Turner (R) by 30 points.

* In Florida, Rep. Connie Mack (R), a U.S. Senate candidate, refused to vote on Paul Ryan's House Republican budget, calling it a "joke." As Mack is finding back home, that's not a popular line with Republicans.

* And in Massachusetts, Democrats are hoping to take advantage of Romney's unpopularity in the state by tying him to Sen. Scott Brown (R), who's facing a tough re-election fight.