Republican former Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. said today that Sarah Palin's nod to his primary opponent "doesn't change anything" in his bid to win back the governor's mansion.
"It just doesn't mean much at all," the former Princeton linebacker said from the sidelines of the Ravens' training camp in Westminster. Polls show that Ehrlich is running neck-and-neck with Democratic Gov. Martin O'Malley in a general-election matchup.
Some analysts have posited that Palin's support for his opponent could help Ehrlich convince wavering Democrats that he is the moderate Republican that he says he is.
"That school of thought has been advanced," Ehrlich said. "There may be some truth to that."
Palin shocked Marylanders and national pundits Wednesday when she waded into state politics with a endorsement for Brian Murphy, a political novice who is trying to capture the GOP nomination by presenting himself as a conservative alternative to Ehrlich.
Murphy has said that Palin is frequently in Washington, D.C., and might come and stump for him toward the end of the month -- closer to the Sept. 14 primary.