Tea Party Express to endorse Bruning in Nebraska

The Tea Party Express--the national group responsible for elevating some of the most prominent tea party candidates of 2010--on Wednesday will endorse state Attorney General Jon Bruning in Nebraska's U.S. senate race.

The endorsement gives Bruning a high profile in the upcoming GOP primary and that, in turn, could translate into significant financial support should he win the nomination and go on to challenge Democratic Sen. Ben Nelson in next November's general election.

"We at the Tea Party Express have been watching and waiting for the right candidate to send Ben Nelson home to retirement," Express chairman Amy Kremer announced in a statement Wednesday. "Jon Bruning is a true conservative who will fight to uphold the tea party core values of fiscal responsibility, and finally give Nebraskans the quality of representation they deserve. We are thrilled to endorse Jon Bruning, and are confident he will be the next senator of Nebraska."

Bruning's endorsement marks the first from Tea Party Express this cycle. Last year, the organization backed Sharron Angle in Nevada, Christine O'Donnell in Delaware and Joe Miller in Alaska. All three won their primary contests but lost their general election races. The group also extended financial and organizational assistance to other fiscal conservatives in the 2010 cycle.

Bruning faces competition for the GOP nomination from state treasurer Don Stenberg and businessman Pat Flynn. Bruning ran for Nebraska Senate in 2008, but dropped out ahead of the GOP primary. Nelson defeated Stenberg in 2000 by just two percentage points.

Some local tea party groups are already taking issue with the Express' choice of Bruning.

"Joanne Elliott, co-organizer of Conservative Connections in Lincoln, said her group was 'disappointed' that the national group was weighing into a Nebraska race without getting 'input' from local groups," the Omaha World-Herald reports. Additional tea party leaders offered similar statements to the newspaper.

GOP strategists have singled out Nelson as a vulnerable target for 2012, since the two-term lawmaker is an increasingly embattled conservative Democrat in a state where Republicans are on the rise. A February poll showed Nelson trailing Bruning.

(Photo of Bruning: Nati Harnik/AP)