(09/18/06) TRENTON ? Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ) is pointing to a fundraiser as evidence of a buddy-buddy relationship between President George Bush and Republican Senate candidate Tom Kean Jr.

The event in question was a fundraiser headlined by Bush?s top aid Karl Rove Monday. Some of that money will go toward the Kean campaign, which Menendez says is a sign of his opponents close affiliation with the Bush administration. The connection could be potentially harmful to Kean as Bush is very unpopular in New Jersey.

Kean did not attend the fundraiser. Instead, he spent the day in Trenton attending committee meetings. Kean says unlike Menendez, he doesn?t accept resources with strings attached.

Menendez is also highlighting his endorsement by former Ambassador Joe Wilson, who claims the Bush administration brushed aside his weapons of mass destruction findings before rushing into the Iraq war.