A columnist in The Huffington Post on Friday (May 18) took the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to task for endorsing Linda Lingle for U.S. Senate because of her business background. (Read our post about the TV spot here.)

Excerpt from the article:

Democrats are chuckling over (the) ad …

The Republican who is challenging Democrat Mazie Hirono in Hawaii’s Senate race ran a small newspaper in the late 1970s and early ’80s called the Molokai Free Press, but has since made her living mostly in government.

But the Chamber ad … makes it sound like her two terms as governor — ending in 2010 — were a break from a long, successful business career. …

Spokesman Lenny Klompus said that running a small paper counts. “The governor did start a small business. She had to write and edit the paper. She was the circulation manager,” Klompus said. “I think she would tell you it was a great experience and she learned a lot.”

Of note: We won’t know until the Aug. 11 primary who the general election candidates will be.