In a new Rasmussen poll out today, Senator Arlen Specter is getting crushed by former Club for Growth head Pat Toomey in the 2010 Republican primary. Toomey has even broken the 50% barrier, and Specter is only viewed favorably by 42% of Pennsylvania Republicans.

Fifty-one percent (51%) of Republican voters statewide say they’d vote for Toomey while just 30% would support Specter.

Specter is viewed favorably by 42% of Pennsylvania Republicans and unfavorably by 55%.

Specter’s longtime tenure in the Senate and his support for the new administration’s bailout efforts look to be a prime factor for his loss of support among the trending conservative GOP in his state.

79% of Pennsylvania Republicans have a favorable opinion of the “Tea Party” protests against big government spending and higher taxes held across the nation last week…. 82% of Pennsylvania Republicans say that the federal government has too much money and too much power.

Those Republicans in Pennsylvania who attended the Tea Parties last week where protesting exactly what Arlen Specter has come to stand for in the last several years – Washington. That is an energy that Toomey seems to have harnessed, at least in the polls. This is a great starting point for the challenger, who is really just beginning his campaign in earnest, and may indicate a broader trend in the GOP across the country. Incumbents steeped in the mess of Washington are going to have a tough time selling their wears to Republican voters come election time.