So with Chris Matthews now officially out of the race for Senator from Pennsylvania against Republican incumbent Arlen Specter, who are the more established (though less colorful) local Democrats who could end up going for it?

A Pennsylvania Dem source told us that while it could be a few months before we have any official candidates, and there are no true frontrunners at this point, these are the potential candidates who have dropped their names in the gossip circles of state Democratic politics, looking to see what the reaction might be:

• Jack Wagner: The second-term state Auditor, who was just re-elected in a landslide this past November, and is said to be weighing whether to run for governor or Senate in 2010. Like Sen. Bob Casey, he is a pro-life and economic populist Democrat, which would make for a fun match-up against the pro-choice and pro-business Specter -- and if he won, the state would have two pro-life Dem Senators.

• Allyson Schwartz: Congresswoman and former state Senator from the Philadelphia area. She previously ran for Senate in the 2000 primary, so it's hardly unrealistic to see her trying for it again.

More potential Senate candidates, after the jump.

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An MSNBC executive has announced that Chris Matthews won't be running for Senator from Pennsylvania, having told the Hardball staff of his decision earlier today.

Polling had shown Matthews in a tight race against GOP incumbent Arlen Specter, but Specter is hardly out of the woods. There is a good-sized bench of elected Democrats in Pennsylvania -- and on top of that, Specter could very well face a tough challenge in the Republican primary like he did in 2004.

So is Chris Matthews really going to run for Senate from Pennsylvania? Two NBC execs have independently said that they don't believe so, and they think he's sticking around.

NBC News chief Steve Capus said Matthews isn't running: "Well, look, if he were running for office, he wouldn't be on TV."

Meanwhile, MSNBC president Phil Griffin cast doubt on the idea, too. "I've talked to Chris. I think he's going to be here for a long time," Griffin said. "I want him to be here for a long time."

Yet another poll is suggesting that Chris Matthews could have a real shot at being elected to the U.S. Senate from Pennsylvania, if he decides against renewing his contract at MSNBC and in favor of mounting a campaign.

The numbers from Research 2000: Matthews is in a near-tie with GOP Sen. Arlen Specter, with Specter at 45% and Matthews at 44%. In a three-way Democratic primary with Reps. Patrick Murphy and Allyson Shwartz, it's Matthews 24%, Murphy 19%, Schwartz 15%, with "undecided" leading the race at 42%.

This internal might surprise people: Against his lesser-known potential opponents in the Democratic primary, Matthews currently has a plurality among women voters, and is doing better with them than men, though obviously it's hard to draw any solid conclusions when the undecideds are this high.

Here's another number that should seriously worry Specter: He's under 50% in the Republican primary, with 43% against 2004 primary opponent Pat Toomey's 28%. Specter just barely won his 2004 primary 51%-49%, and could be in for another dogfight if Toomey or another conservative challenger mounts a bid -- and if he were to lose his primary, a Democratic pickup would become very likely.

A previous Rasmussen poll showed Matthews only three points down against Specter.

Obama: Economy "Going To Get Worse Before It Gets Better"
In his new interview on Meet The Press, Barack Obama laid out a blunt assessment of the economy, declaring twice that, "The economy is going to get worse before it gets better." He also said he would support the proposed $15 billion loans to save the auto industry from bankruptcy during the lame-duck period, but with conditions for the companies to make changes.

Obama Holding Press Conference, Announcing Shinseki For Veterans Affairs
Barack Obama is holding a 2 p.m. ET press conference in Chicago, at which he will announce his pick of retired Gen. Eric Shinseki -- who was famously ridiculed by the Bush Administration after he accurately predicted in early 2003 that many more troops would be needed for the Iraq War -- to be Secretary of Veterans Affairs. Obama confirmed the pick during his interview on Meet The Press.

RNC: We Can Still Win Elections
RNC chairman Mike Duncan released a statement last night trumpeting the GOP's victories in yesterday's House elections in Louisiana. "Coupled with the recent Senate win in Georgia, it's clear that Republicans still know how to win elections as we continue to build a solid foundation for the elections in 2010," said Duncan.

It's Official: David Gregory Is New Host Of Meet The Press
NBC News has officially announced that they've picked White House correspondent David Gregory to be the new host of Meet The Press. "I'm filled with a great sense of purpose as I join a superb team to cover Washington and the world from a treasured platform in our country," Gregory said in the press release. "Above all, I want to make Tim proud."

Report: Matthews Inks New Contract With MSNBC, Won't Run For Senate
The Politico reports that Chris Matthews has signed a new contract with MSNBC, set to be announced on Tuesday. If this proves to be true, then Matthews will not be running for U.S. Senate from Pennsylvania

Sebelius Withdraws Her Name From Consideration For Cabinet
Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, who endorsed Barack Obama in the run-up to Super Tuesday and helped deliver him a landslide win in her state's caucuses, has taken herself out of consideration for a cabinet post. Sebelius said she wanted to focus her time on solving Kansas' current fiscal crisis, but her decision has one other effect: It leaves her open and available for a possible run for Senate in 2010.

Obama's Speechwriter Favreau Caught In Facebook Antics
Barack Obama's top speechwriter Jon Favreau just got in a bit of trouble on Facebook, with photos posted that showed him apparently groping a life-size cardboard photo of Hillary Clinton at a house party. The reaction from a Clinton spokesperson: "Sen. Clinton is pleased to learn of Jon's obvious interest in the State Department, and is currently reviewing his application."

So how exactly do Pennsylvania Democrats feel about the possibility of Chris Matthews running for Senate?

Abe Amoros, the communications director for the Pennsylvania Democratic Party, confirmed to Election Central that Matthews has been talking to Democrats in the state about a run, and says Dems think Matthews could have a real shot.

"It's in its infancy right now," Amoros said. "He's just talking to people. Conversations are going on, obviously. We will know whether or not he's a serious candidate some time early next year."

So could Matthews win? "Sure," Amoros said. "It'll be a dogfight, but every campaign is a dogfight."

Amoros also said it's simply too early to know whether one specific potential weakness Matthews might have -- women Dem activists and donors who could have it in for him on account of his treatment of Hillary Clinton during the primaries -- would still be an obstacle to securing the nomination in 2010.

As for the general election, he pointed out that GOP Sen. Arlen Specter would have a tough time making that into a wedge: "I think you could put those in the same context of Senator Specter's attacks on Anita Hill, which have not been forgotten, either."

Hmm, maybe Chris Matthews does have a chance at getting elected Senator from Pennsylvania!

The new Rasmussen poll of Pennsylvania finds that GOP Sen. Arlen Specter has a bare three-point lead over the Hardball host among likely voters, 46%-43%, with a ±4.5% margin of error. These are not the best of poll numbers for Specter, an incumbent who will have been in the Senate for 30 years at the end of the current term.

Key internal numbers: Specter is attracting 32% of crossover Democratic voters, but only has 70% among Republicans. He's never been that popular with the right-wing base, and very nearly lost a primary challenge back in 2004. And if his support among crossover Dems were to weaken, too, he'd be in big trouble.

Other polls have shown Matthews further back than this, but here's something to keep in mind: All of them have had Specter in the mid-40s, too, with higher undecideds. Since Rasmussen is a robopoll, a method that has a natural tendency to push undecideds much harder, it appears those voters could end up breaking to Matthews as the Dem nominee.

Obama Thanking Illinois Donors; No Biden Events
Barack and Michelle Obama are holding a thank-you event for members of his Illinois finance committee, with pooled press. Joe Biden is holding private meetings in Delaware, and has no public events scheduled.

Report: Political Advisers Telling Matthews To Quit MSNBC
The Politico reports that Chris Matthews has been meeting with political operatives to discuss a timetable for his possible Senate candidacy -- and they're advising him to quit MSNBC and get organized ahead of his contract's expiration in June. "I said, 'if you want to be a U.S. senator, step up and get into the race,'" said one participant.

WaPo: Richardson Pick At Commerce A Big Change
The Washington Post points out that the appointment of Bill Richardson as Secretary of Commerce is a real departure for that office, putting a politician in a post that has usually been held by private-sector executives. Commerce has been considered one of the lesser roles -- but that could be changing, between Richardson's own background as a governor and diplomat, and the need for more national leadership on the economy.

Plouffe Writing Book About Campaign
Barack Obama's campaign manager David Plouffe is writing a book about his experience in this past election. Plouffe is indicating that this won't be a tell-all, but more an examination of the process itself, comparing how the rival campaigns were run: "Hopefully, there will be some lessons on how to put together a three-quarters of a billion dollar operation."

Carter Writes New Book -- With Pleasant Title
Jimmy Carter has a new book coming out about the Middle East, entitled We Can Bring Peace To The Holy Land. Hopefully it will go over better than his last book, Palestine: Peace, Not Apartheid.

Potential Reid Challenger Indicted
Harry Reid just got a piece of good news back home in Nevada: One his top potential challengers for 2010, Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki, has been indicted on corruption charges. Between scandal-plagued Gov. Jim Gibbons and now Krolicki, plus Barack Obama's double-digit win here last month, the Republican brand just keeps going downhill in Nevada.

Inauguration Organizers Working To Keep Kids Out
The committee organizing Barack Obama's inauguration is providing some strong disincentives against bringing children, banning strollers and expressly warning that attendees will have to stand in one place for hours. Said a spokeswoman for the committee: "They are shorter than everyone else; they can be stepped on. Parents should think long and hard about bringing a small kid to an event with 1 million people."

Oprah Taping Show In DC For Inauguration Week
Oprah Winfrey, whose public support of Barack Obama quite arguably made the difference in the very close Democratic nomination contest, will be hosting her show from Washington during Inauguration Week. Could a White House Christmas special be next?

Chris Matthews is denying reports that he's recruiting staffers from the Obama campaign for a possible race for Senator from Pennsylvania in 2010.

"It is absolutely not true," Matthews said in a statement posted on FiveThirtyEight.com. Matthews appears to be denying that he's staffing up -- but not necessarily denying that he's in some way planning a campaign.

A Quinnipiac poll this week shows Matthews trailing GOP Sen. Arlen Specter by a 45%-33% margin. But oddly enough this is not because of any high negatives -- instead, 60% of Pennsylvania voters said they hadn't heard enough about Matthews to form an opinion of him. Outside of people like us who track politics incessantly, he might not actually be that big a name.

But if Matthews were to get in the race, Pennsylvania voters would be hearing an awful lot more about him -- both the positives and the negatives.

Obama Briefed On Mumbai By Condoleezza Rice
President-elect Obama spoke by phone yesterday with Secretary Rice to get an update on the Mumbai situation, an Obama aide says. He also received an intelligence briefing on the attacks and is getting regular updates from the State Department Ops Center and the National Counter Terrorism Center.

No Public Events For Obama Today
Here's his Thanksgiving message:

Congressional Leaders Aiming To Have Big Initiatives Ready When Obama Takes Office
Dem leaders in Congress are vowing to have economic, spending and health care legislation waiting on Obama's desk when he enters the Oval Office for the first time as President. Top Obama economic adviser Jason Furman met with fiscally conservative Blue Dog Dems to persuade them that the Obama team views fiscal responsibility as a core goal, a hint that Obama advisers may recognize the potential for opposition from those Dems to their more ambitious and expensive economic rescue initiatives.

Gates And Obama Have Common Ground On Defense Issues
The New York Times reports that Barack Obama and his Defense Secretary, Robert Gates, have more common ground on defense questions than one might think: Gates has argued internally for the closing of Guantanamo Bay and is more inclined towards troop reductions than some of his colleagues. Indeed, he is already looking with senior commanders at how significant reductions can be achieved next year, the paper says.

GOP Incumbent Leads In Georgia Senate Race
A new Research 2000 poll shows GOP incumbent Senator Saxby Chambliss leading Dem challenger Jim Martin among likely voters, 52%-46%. As Taegan Goddard notes, the key finding of the poll is that "the likely-voter model for the runoff election will be substantially different from the turnout model for the November election" and that many black voters who supported Obama will "stay home for the runoff."

Chris Matthews' Run For Senate In Pennsylvania Inches Forward
This week he met with Democrats in the state to discuss his plan to try and knock off GOP Senator Arlen Specter, who is rated by The Cook Political Report as one of the four most vulnerable Senators up for re-election in 2010. If he runs, who would replace "thrill up my leg" Matthews as MSNBC's resident Obama hagiographer?

Could Chris Matthews have a real shot if he goes through with running for Senate in Pennsylvania against GOP Senator Arlen Specter? The answer, according to a new poll of the 2010 Senate race -- we already have one nearly a year in advance of the race really beginning in earnest -- is that he is currently running behind, but might just have a chance.

The new numbers from Public Policy Polling (D): Specter 40%, Matthews 27%, and a very high 33% undecided.

The internals have good news and bad news for both candidates. Specter is below 50%, a bad place for an incumbent, but he's grabbing 30% of Democrats and a 41%-28% plurality among independents, indicating that he's able to draw some crossover support like he usually has in his previous races. If he can solidify the 32% of undecided GOP voters, he would basically have it made.

The good news for Matthews is that 47% of voters age 18-29 and 43% of voters age 30-45 are undecided, and those groups both went big for Barack Obama in this past election. Also, 44% of black voters say they're undecided, and 25% are for Specter -- but if they break big for Matthews as the Dem candidate, he could quickly make up some ground.

Here's tonight's run-down of the Congressional races:

GOP Candidate's Ad: Democrats Have Blown Up Our (Fiscal) Houses
Wow. Check out this truly amazing new ad from former Rep. Melissa Hart (R-PA), who lost her re-election in an upset in 2006, and is now in a rematch against Democratic Rep. Jason Altmire. The ad accuses the Democratic Congress of blowing up America's fiscal house:

Unfortunately, it looks like no real explosions were used in the making of this ad. Hart's campaign manager informed Election Central that the ad was most likely done with computers.

Franken's Closing Argument: Coleman Is "Trying To Fool You"
Here's Al Franken's new attack ad against Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN), accusing him of running a "fake positive campaign" and lying about his political record and personal scandals:

"Norm Coleman really did take 52 trips paid for by special interests -- remember Alaska?" the announcer says. "Norm Coleman really does live in a million-dollar home owned by his special-interest friend. Norm Coleman really has voted with George Bush almost 90% of the time."

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Moderate GOP Senator Arlen Specter is running for a sixth term in 2010 -- despite the fact that he'll be 80 years old at the time, The Hill reports.

Specter, who narrowly survived a primary challenge from the right in 2004 from Pat Toomey, the President of the Club for Growth, is announcing his reelection bid early as a “preemptive move” to raise big bucks early and scare off potential challengers, says Pennsylvania pollster and analyst Terry Madonna. “He’s obviously trying to not set off a scramble within his own party,” Madonna tells the paper. “He’s sending a message to conservatives who want to do battle with him.”

More voting problems -- this time in Pennsylvania. From the Election Protection coalition's morning update email:

Poll monitors encountered countywide problems with voting machines in Allegheny County, where machines were not working and there was a lack of paper or provisional ballots—long lines resulted, with some voters leaving polling places without voting. EP officials were following up with election officials to resolve the problems. Additional voting machine-related delays were reported in Philadelphia and in Lebanon County.

GOP Senator Rick Santorum -- who's trailing Dem Bob Casey by double digits in polls -- has launched a remarkable attack on Casey: He's now accusing the Dem of "aiding and abetting terrorism and genocide." Today's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that Santorum is making this charge by rather creatively pointing out that Casey, who's state treasurer, hasn't ensured that pension funds were not invested in firms that do business with nations "linked" to terrorism, such as Iran and Syria. Of course, there's a small problem with this attack: As a Casey spokesman is noting, Santorum's own campaign has taken money from some of the very same companies which Casey allegedly failed to prevent pension fund investments in. Among them: Royal Dutch/Shell and Deutche Bank. More here.

One new ad from GOP Senator Rick Santorum shows a mushroom cloud next to the face of Dem challenger Bob Casey; another depicts Washington politicians as brawling pro-wrestlers. Side by side, the new ads give us a tale of two Santorums: A lighthearted, goofy Santorum, and a darker Santorum who thinks the world is on the verge of nuclear armageddon. View the dark one first -- it shows frightening images of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Il, Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as it intones, “We just can’t take a chance on Bob Casey.”

Want to see the lighter side of Santorum? It's after the jump.

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Rick Santorum has a new ad out that juxtaposes an image of his opponent Bob Casey with a nuclear explosion. The ad shows North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Il, Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, as well as a group of terrorists who Casey apparently wants to grant amnesty to. The narrator intones, “We just can’t take a chance of Bob Casey.”

Conservative leaders across the country are desperately trying to save sinking GOP Rep. Rick Santorum -- not least because they see a Santorum loss as a potential turning point for the entire conservative movement. Today's L.A. Times reports that a a defeat for Santorum would mean a loss of a key liason to the national GOP leadership for conservatives. Colin Hanna, head of the conservative group Let Freedom Ring, sums up the stakes this way: "If Rick Santorum were to lose, it would be cited as a turning point in the social conservative movement." Some pastors in Pennsylvania are even stuffing voter guides into their Sunday bulletins in hopes of getting out the vote for him. The L.A. Times's interesting and extensive rundown on this is here.

The national GOP isn't giving any money for ads to help GOP Senator Rick Santorum hang on to his seat against Dem Bob Casey, raising questions about whether national Republican strategists have privately given up on the incumbent's campaign. Today's Patriot-News reports that neither the RNC nor the NRSC has reserved any air time at Pennsylvania TV stations for "independent expenditure ads for Santorum or against Casey. Though an NRSC spokesman denied to the paper that the committee had given up on Santorum, recent polls show Santorum trailing badly behind. And while the RNC isn't really helping Santorum, it's investing heavily in Senate races in Tennessee, Missouri and Ohio.

Why is the Iraq war so unpopular? GOP Senator Rick Santorum claims it's because of George Bush's bad public relations skills. In an interview with the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Santorum said of Bush: "He is managing the public relations on this war very poorly." Santorum added that Bush is more concerned with "making the State Department comfortable" than providing the American people with "a clear message and a clear understanding of what we are up against." There's more: As Think Progress noted, Santorum had sharp words for America's friends abroad, too. "I don't care if we offend our allies in the Middle East," Santorum said. Senatorial.

Dem Bob Casey appears to be pulling away from GOP Senator Rick Santorum. A new Quinnipiac University poll finds that Casey's lead has widened to 14 points, 54%-40%. Casey's lead has doubled since August, when a Quinnipiac poll found him ahead by seven. Today's poll reflected a head-to-head matchup between Casey and Santorum, and didn't include Green Party candidate Carl Romanelli, who was knocked off the ballot by a judge yesterday.

This is pretty interesting. Today at noon local Pennsylvania cable channel PCN featured a debate between GOP Senator Rick Santorum and Green Party candidate Carl Romanelli. But guess what -- Pennsylvania voters can't vote for Romanelli, even if they want to. This morning he was tossed from the ballot by a judge who found that the Greens fell almost 9,000 signatures short of the 67,000 they need to keep a spot on the ballot. As TPMmuckraker's Paul Kiel reports, "that strikes a deadly blow to Pennsylvania Republicans' gambit to draw votes away from Democrat Bob Casey by fielding a Green candidate." So why did they debate at all? A rep for the channel says the judge's decision came down when Romanelli “was already in the studio,” so the decision was made to go ahead with the forum.

Dem Bob Casey holds a 10-point lead over GOP Senator Rick Santorum in a poll just released by the Philadelphia Inquirer, reinforcing other polls on the race which have found Casey enjoying a similar lead. In another ominous sign for Santorum, today's New York Times reports that Casey's lead is holding despite the fact that the Campaign Media Analysis Group looked at the race and discovered that "the Santorum campaign and supporting groups overwhelmingly outspent the Casey forces in television advertising between late May and mid-September." Santorum's ads just don't appear to be moving those numbers -- while he's brought Casey down a bit, he just can't seem to rise much higher than 40% himself.