Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) on Thursday waded into the Washington Senate race in a Twitter post praising former pro football player and tea party activist Clint Didier, a move that probably won’t be helpful to ongoing national party recruiting in the state.

Palin asked her followers to go to Didier’s Web page to “be inspired by [a] patriot running for U.S. Senate to serve his state & our country for all the right reasons.”

That comes as the National Republican Senatorial Committee continues to try to woo former state Sen. Dino Rossi to join the race against Sen. Patty Murray (D).

Last month, NRSC Chairman John Cornyn (Texas) met with Rossi at NRSC headquarters to try to persuade him to run.

“I told him we will do whatever it takes to help him, and that’s a fact,” Cornyn later said.

If Rossi, who lost gubernatorial races in 2004 and 2008, did decide to run, he would be the favorite among the crowded primary of little-known GOP candidates, and polling has shown that the contest would be competitive. Washington’s filing deadline is June 11.