Francis Marion

UPDATE: This afternoon, the Washington Post's Aaron Blake wrote a story for The Fix asserting that "even before this week, Republican strategists in Missouri privately described a 'vacuum' in the GOP field, and "depending on who you ask, none of the above names [Steelman, Martin, Todd Akin or Ann Wagner] is the party’s ideal candidate for the seat."   Which DC reporter paid to be an expert analyst about these things should we trust?
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Steelman campaign spokesman Politico reporter Dave Catanese has declared Sarah Steelman one of "the top GOP gets" in the entire country in a new article about candidate recruitment for 2012 races. 

Just three months into the election cycle, the GOP has locked down heavyweight candidates in seven key Senate races, with top contenders seriously thinking about running in two others...

Among the top GOP gets to date: Attorney General Jon Bruning in Nebraska, former state treasurer Sarah Steelman in Missouri, former Sen. George Allen in Virginia, Rep. Denny Rehberg in Montana, former Rep. Heather Wilson in New Mexico, Rep. Jeff Flake in Arizona and Rep. Dean Heller in Nevada.

Have trusted GOP sources signed off on this analysis?  We know Dick Morris is on board with a Steelman campaign, but everything the rest of us hear and read indicates that Missouri GOPers are far from settled on Steelman.  Ed Martin, Francis Marion and some tea party types are concerned she isn't quite extreme enough for a 21st century GOP primary.  And it's not hard to decipher what Ann Wagner was talking about when she said she'd be the "most articulate" candidate in the Race to the Bottom.  

Maybe we just haven't seen enough of Steelman on the stump to appreciate her status as one of the "top GOP gets" in the entire country?