Look out, Lieberman: McMahon might run for Senate again

Is Linda McMahon thinking about running against Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) in 2012?

According to Roll Call's Steve Peoples, the former World Wrestling Entertainment CEO has requested a meeting with Sen. John Cornyn, chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee, to discuss her options.

"I don't know what her message is going to be, but I sort of suspect she isn't finished," Cornyn tells Roll Call.

McMahon spent nearly $50 million of her own cash on a Senate bid in Connecticut that she lost last month to Democrat Dick Blumenthal. But McMahon has hinted that her political aspirations aren't over. Three weeks ago, McMahon ran a TV ad in Connecticut to "thank" her supporters and said she was doing polling to find out where she went wrong.

Her immediate target could be Lieberman, a Democrat-turned-independent who is considered one of the most vulnerable senators up for re-election in 2012. The question is: Would Republicans back McMahon over Lieberman, when he has long been counted as a GOP ally?

As Politico's Manu Raju reports, Republicans have been wooing Lieberman to officially switch parties in 2012. Cornyn admits he has engaged in "friendly banter" with the Connecticut senator. But Democrats aren't willing to give up on Lieberman. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has reportedly encouraged Lieberman to run for re-election and to continue caucusing with Democrats.

Interestingly, Lieberman stayed out of the race between McMahon and Blumenthal — even though he had previously clashed with McMahon over violence in the WWE. She contributed $2,000 to his 2006 Senate campaign.

So far there's been no polling to show how McMahon and Lieberman would match up against each other. But a Public Policy Polling survey out last month found Lieberman with a 54 percent disapproval rating among Connecticut voters.

(Pool photo of McMahon: Richard Messina/Getty Images)