Washington Post: Bruning’s “abrasive personal style” needs burnishing

Interesting analysis in the Washington Post about the hits Attorney General Jon Bruning has sustained in recent weeks.

The Fix blogger writes that the Nebraska Republican primary was once considered to be a coronation for Bruning in his bid to take U.S. Sen. Ben Nelson’s seat, but his recent missteps and revelations about his business dealings have put the party on hold.

“Nebraska political observers cite an abrasive personal style that has rubbed many Republicans the wrong way, and Bruning has suffered from a series of unhelpful headlines and gaffes on the campaign trail,” The Fix reports.

He reports on Bruning dumping his political consultant for a new one — as we told you last week — and hiring a second consultant. He goes on to write:

Those close to Bruning deny the moves constitute any kind of campaign shake-up, but they do acknowledge that it hasn’t been smooth sailing and say the candidate is leaning more on the advice of his new campaign apparatus.

They say they doubt the raccoon comment will hurt him in the long run, but acknowledge their early problems. “The [property] thing creates more of a bump in the road for him,” said a source close to the campaign. “I don’t think it’s a death blow, but it’s a difficulty that he’s going to have to deal with.”