WASHINGTON (AP) — Popular Massachusetts Republican Sen. Scott Brown appears rattled for the first time since grabbing the late Edward Kennedy's seat from Democrats 16 months ago.
Brown, widely seen as an early favorite to win his first full term in 2012, has been stung by a recent gaffe involving phony photos of Osama bin Laden's body and rocked by a $1 million ad blitz attacking his environmental record.
The freshman senator's woes have been a jolt of hope for Democrats, even though they don't have a strong candidate to field against him.
And Brown has been well-funded and popular in Massachusetts.
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