Earlier: Bryant’s race against Inslee lacks GOP energy, money, support

The Washington State Republican Party took exception to my latest column about the level of its support for gubernatorial candidate Bill Bryant.

The party issued a statement Thursday in response to what it deemed “incorrect media reports” to make clear it “wholeheartedly supports” Bryant’s bid to unseat Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee.

“We’ve given far more money to the Bryant campaign than to any other campaign this year, and we’ve given the Bryant campaign more money so far than we gave to the (Rob) McKenna campaign by the same date in in 2012,” the statement reads.

In the column, I wrote the party had given no money to Bryant since the primary. On Tuesday, the state GOP contributed $150,000 to Bryant’s campaign. The donation was posted online after I filed. That brings the party’s total cash contributions to Bryant this election to nearly $700,000.

Meanwhile, the party continues to have paid staff in the field, knocking on doors to contact voters and seek their support for Bryant.