Shaheen-Brown: The Battle Begins

Less than 24 hours after Republican Scott Brown announced he was forming an exploratory committee to run for Senate here in New Hampshire, his potential Democratic opponent, Jeanne Shaheen, sent an open letter to Brown asking him to take the "People's Pledge" agreeing to keep "outside money" out of the race.

The pledge proposed by Shaheen would be similar to one Brown took in the Massachusetts Senate race with Elizabeth Warren in 2012.

"Dear Scott," Shaheen's letter starts. "I very much admired the People’s Pledge that you and Elizabeth Warren signed in your 2012 Massachusetts Senate race. I believe it limited the influence of outside groups and allowed the people’s voices to be heard.

"I have signed and attached two copies of an agreement with the exact same terms for the New Hampshire 2014 Senate race. I hope you will join me in once again committing to the same People’s Pledge you signed in Massachusetts and limiting the influence of outside groups in New Hampshire this year."

Brown was quick to respond, issuing a press release calling Shaheen's request hypocritical.

"My focus in this early stage of the race is to meet with the people of New Hampshire in the places where they live and work to talk with them about their issues of concern, including the negative effects of Obamacare," Brown said. "Before I even thought of becoming a candidate, Jeanne Shaheen's allies in Washington were running negative ads against me for months. And right now, while I'm meeting with the people of New Hampshire, she is on the West Coast raising money so third-party groups in DC will have money to run even more outside negative ads against me.

"It's hard to view Jeanne Shaheen's actions as anything other than hypocritical and self-serving. The people of New Hampshire can see through the Washington-style game she is playing."