By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

-- The Washington Times newspaper in Washington, D.C. filed a report this morning on the close ties between WWE and former WWE CEO Linda McMahon, focusing on WWE being paid thousands of dollars to film campaign ads for McMahon's Senate run in Connecticut.

WWE and McMahon's campaign disclosed that McMahon's campaign hired a P.R. firm to do promotional work, then the P.R. firm subcontracted to WWE to film the campaign ads.

WWE was paid $162,000 to film the ads, which now include WWE VP Stephanie McMahon in one spot with Linda. According to a disclosure statement, WWE was paid "fair market value" for the work.

"The arrangement, which is legal, sheds light on a side of the federal election law that allows campaigns to spend millions of dollars on media consultants, yet requires no public paper trail to show how these same consultants pay out substantial sums of campaign cash," reports the Washington Times.

The item became public record when WWE reported the income on a recent SEC disclosure that is required as a publicly-traded company.

"Mrs. McMahon's election team engaged the Company to produce certain television advertisements during the initial months of the campaign," WWE reported in the SEC filing.

WWE spokesman Robert Zimmerman also classified the work as general promotional work WWE does for other companies using their TV studios facility.

"WWE has done outside production for others at which WWE charged/charges fair-market value, such as THQ and MyNetwork TV," Zimmerman told the Times. "This is done on an 'as able' basis, if asked. WWE agreed, at the request of the campaign and for a fair-market fee, to provide production services for the short period in question."

-- The campaign for McMahon's Republican opponent in the Senate race, Rob Simmons, circulated the Washington Times story this morning. Simmons also issued a direct comment this morning on McMahon and WWE continuing to ignore their Big 10 Questions on McMahon's role in overseeing the most visible and powerful wrestling company in the industry as occupational health problems have plagued the wrestling business.

"Using money earned at WWE and working out of an office at WWE, Linda McMahon touts her experience at WWE in advertisements produced at WWE. But she is unwilling to answer the difficult questions about her real record at WWE. This troubling duplicity is characteristic of Washington, D.C. insiders who love to have it both ways," Simmons said.

"McMahon can no longer hide behind her WWE fortune without answering the deeply troubling questions about how she earned that money - including eliminating drug and steroid testing at the expense of her workers, and marketing steroid-fueled violence against women and the mentally handicapped and graphic sex to young children.

"I answer tough questions about my record every day, and have done so for years, as is the responsibility of a candidate for public office. If she feels Connecticut voters don't deserve answers to questions about her sole credential, she shouldn't be running."

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