Gilchrest and Pipkin DON'T share a pollster

UPDATE: Apparently the victim of a misprint, McLaughlin is not polling for Gilchrest.

Getting past primary season, National Republican Campaign Committee Chair Tom Cole tells The Hill this morning that this fall, President George W. Bush will stump for GOP House candidates throughout the country.

Maryland’s First District came into the discussion via Bush’s endorsement of moderate incumbent, Rep. Wayne Gilchrest, and prompted a response from challenger state Sen. E.J. Pipkin.

Pipkin, who implies that he is more conservative than the president, cited that both Bush and Gilchrest backed the immigration reform plan last year, which was widely rejected by the Republican base.

“I am sure the president took into account Congressman Gilchrest’s support of amnesty for illegal aliens,” he told the paper.

But even more interesting is what the paper unwittingly discovers Pipkin and Gilchrest to be sharing: New York-based pollster John McLaughlin.

You may recall Pipkin’s gloating over a poll his campaign released last month, showing him four tenths of a point ahead of state Sen. Andy Harris – though six actual points behind Gilchrest.

The poll was done for the campaign by the Republican firm, John McLaughlin and Associates. In this morning’s article, McLaughlin identifies himself as a pollster for Gilchrest.

While it is not unheard of for a pollster to be working both sides in a race, it’s usually frowned upon.