Linda McMahon, a Republican U.S. Senate candidate in Connecticut, tells National Review Online that she “probably would not join a tea-party caucus.”

A handful of GOP Senate candidates this cycle, like Rand Paul in Kentucky, have floated the idea of founding a “tea-party caucus.” Earlier this month, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R., Minn.) started such a group in the House. While McMahon is leaning against signing up, she says “I certainly would be open to their ideas, their questions, and the debates.”

“I absolutely agree with the tea party’s conservative values, relative to fiscal conservatism,” McMahon explains. “I have talked to different factions and different tea-party groups. On the fiscal issues, we are pretty much aligned.” The tea-party movement, she adds, is not having much influence in the Nutmeg State. “Here in Connecticut, I don’t believe so,” she says.

McMahon is running against Rob Simmons, a former congressman, and Peter Schiff, a libertarian-leaning businessman, in the August 10 primary. Simmons has given McMahon headaches this week. After “suspending” his campaign in May, following the state party’s endorsement of McMahon, Simmons has jumped back into the race, arguing that he provides “Republicans with a better choice.”

McMahon tells us that Simmons is “confused” — “Monday he’s in, Tuesday he’s out, Thursday he’s back in,” she laughs. “The people of Connecticut will decide for themselves whether he has been credible.” Still, the Hartford Courant, the state’s largest newspaper, endorsed Simmons on Thursday. “Over the years we’ve often disagreed with Mr. Simmons, who is 67 and lives in Stonington. But he has a few things his opponents in this primary faceoff lack — congressional, public service and national security experience among them,” the paper writes. “In an increasingly dangerous and unpredictable world, the latter is valuable. It isn’t an absolute requirement, but it’s a plus.”

The Courant also criticizes McMahon for her work as an executive at World Wrestling Entertainment:

Further, WWE’s schlocky, off-color content is not everyone’s cup of tea, as one of her ads admits. To the extent that voters believe — unfairly or not — that the content of her business enterprise reflects her values, it distracts from her campaign message. Likewise, any new whiff of scandal could damage her candidacy.

Wrestling questions have dogged McMahon for months. After pouring millions of her own fortune into her campaign, she went about trying to change voters’ views on the enterprise and her involvement, via numerous television ads. McMahon believes her efforts have led to a “greater understanding” of the company. Still, some hurt lingers: “Nobody asks Jeffrey Immelt at [General Electric] about the NBC division’s programming,” she says. “I’m sure some of that content is not liked by everyone.”

For the most part, however, McMahon shrugs off the paper’s words. The Courant, she reasons, “has more of a liberal bent.”