West Virginia Republican John Raese hopes that the third time is the charm for him as his party's Senate nominee. Raese lost an open Senate race to Democratic then-Gov. John Rockefeller in 1984, and he lost a challenge to Democratic Sen. Robert Byrd in 2006. This year, he faces the popular Democratic Gov. Joe Manchin in the race to fill Byrd's seat, and the race has grown more competitive than most political observers expected.

Raese mentioned that the logistics of campaigning have changed slightly since some of his past races due to the advent of "Facepage" and "Tweeter."

The candidate has contributed a chunk of his personal wealth to his campaigns in the past, but he told RealClearPolitics on Sunday that he has still been enormously outspent in cycles past. He hopes to join Rockefeller, one of the Senate's wealthiest members, in representing the Mountaineer State -- next to the poorest state in the nation.

Raese fits right into both settings. He appeared equally at ease in sharing memories of his nonagenarian grandmother's aptitude with a shotgun as he did in offering his favorable impressions of Sean Connery, which he formed upon meeting the actor at a party in Palm Beach.

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