State Sen. Tom McClintock and former Rep. Doug Ose, running for the GOP nod in the 4th district, each received potentially key endorsements over the weekend, with Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-Colo.) backing McClintock and the Sacramento Bee coming out for Ose.

In a statement released by the McClintock campaign, Tancredo criticized Ose’s voting record on immigration. Ose represented the 3rd district until 2004, when he retired to honor his pledge to only serve for three terms.

The Bee, the 4th district’s largest newspaper, picked Ose, arguing that the former Congressman will prove to be more practical and get more things done for the district than will McClintock.

Meanwhile, presumptive Democratic nominee Charlie Brown, a retired Air Force officer who nearly defeated Rep. John Doolittle (R) in 2006, has been endorsed by IndependentMovement.org, a political action committee that bills itself as the nation’s largest advocacy group representing independent voters.

IndependentMovement.org is run by Jim Mangia, a founding member of the Reform Party.

— David M. Drucker