The problem: Lockhart's state GOP sent out the fundraising letters under the state GOP mailing privilege, while the state party is supposed to be neutral. And four of those five House Republicans are being challenged this year by fellow Republicans.

Asked why he did such an unfair thing, Lockhart tried to explain that he was planning on sending out the Fab Five brochure BEFORE the candidate filing opened. And thus the party would be helping GOP incumbents before any intra-party challenge(s).

But he just got so busy recruiting candidates (probably not trying to recruit candidates to run against the Fab Five), that the invitations went out late — after the candidate filing deadline and four of the five had intra-party challengers.

It violates party rules for the party to get involved in such favoritism during a contested GOP election. Lockhart said sorry, and offered to pay for a fundraising letter for the challengers.

Second screw-up: Back in Happy Valley, the Utah County GOP chairwoman decided that no GOP candidates would get the e-mail addresses of newly elected delegates — complaints about getting spammed in 2006 were made by some delegates. E-mails make it easier for the candidates to contact delegates who will be voting on them in the upcoming Utah County Republican Convention.

And, get this, the Utah County GOP secretary, who has all the delegate e-mails, is Susan Bramble — wife of Sen. Bramble, who also is being challenged by two Republicans for his own re-election this year.

Sen. Bramble told the media he would not get the e-mail addresses from his wife — but even some Happy Valley Republicans didn't buy that one.

While that argument is going on, some GOP district chairmen gave out the delegate e-mail addresses to candidates anyway, others didn't, so the Utah County GOP chairwoman bowed out and gave all the party candidates all the delegate e-mail addresses in their respective districts.

Third screw-up: At a meet-the-delegate night in Spanish Fork, a Utah County GOP committeewoman told Republican candidate Chance Williams, who is challenging Rep. Mike Morley, R-Spanish Fork, that if Williams mentioned the $3 million lawsuit brought against Morley by the federal government over a soured business deal, she would close down the meeting. Williams didn't bring it up, but one delegate said he's disgusted with party leaders trying to protect their own. Who cares about the First Amendment and freedom of speech anyway?