A collection of gossip, scuttlebutt, and odds and ends from our reporters' notebooks.

HITTING HARD: It’s looking like the race between the man who Jimmy Fallon called the “Preezy of the United Steezy,” Barack Obama, and presumptive GOP nominee Mitt “Stormin’ Mormon” Romney, won’t be the only bare-knuckled contest this election season. Just look to our own backyards, where you’ll find — not literally, of course, because that would be creepy — Oakland County Clerk/Register of Deeds Bill Bullard, Jr., a Highland Township Republican, and state Rep. Lisa Brown (D-West Bloomfield, Commerce, Wolverine Lake), who has jumped into the clerk’s race, which also features Clawson Democrat Tim Burns. Bullard recently scolded Brown for not relinquishing the alleged endorsement of county Democratic Party Chairman Frank Houston (who denies making an endorsement “out of respect for the two candidates” in the primary). Willis-to-the-B (Bullard, not Bruce Willis, mind you) also said Houston hasn’t filed the party’s campaign finance paperwork (Houston said neither the state nor county has provided “any notification of any missing report”) and has made some remarks that Bullard said takes the county Democrats’ 2010 “Tea Party” election fraud fiasco lightly. Bullard also blitzed Brown for taking campaign contributions from Michael McGuinness and Jason Bauer, the two former county Democratic Party officials who were apparently behind the “Tea Party” candidate charade of ’10. For the record, the duo both made their contributions to Brown well before the “Tea Party” debacle came to light — and apparently before the idea was even hatched — and resulted in McGuinness, the former party chairman, and Bauer, its political director, in front of Oakland County Circuit Court Judge James Alexander for sentencing earlier this year. “As someone who has a proven record of working with Republicans and Democrats in several states to promote fair, safe elections and ethics in government, I take very seriously the mistakes that Mr. McGuinness and Mr. Bauer made and stand behind the fine and community service hours that Judge Alexander included in his sentencing,” Houston said in a written statement in response to Bullard. “I have no tolerance for high school student government tricks [Oakland Confidential sidenote: SNAP!] and/or breaking the law, which is why neither individual has been affiliated with the Oakland County Democratic Party since I have been chair. That being said, making these two guys into some kind of boogeymen seems like little more than Bill Bullard trying to deflect from his own, well-documented lack of integrity. Keep in mind, we are talking about a man who was in charge of three different PACs that received money from people who have county contracts and then proceeded to illegally funnel that money to Republican county commissioners, just as one example.” Bullard responded to that by saying “Mr. Houston’s statement proves my point. His comments compare a conspiracy to commit major election fraud to ‘high school government tricks’ and a ‘mistake.’ This is outrageous and I am sure most Oakland County voters would agree. To equate my legal and very common practice of acting as treasurer of a political committee with these election crimes is ridiculous on its face.” Oh, we almost forgot to mention that he referred to Houston as McGuinness’ and Bauer’s “chief apologist.” It looks like a Bullard/Brown contest in November could become — how to put this mildly? — testy. “It’ll be interesting,” said (unofficial) Bullard-backer, state Sen. Mike Kowall (R-Name a Community in West Oakland County and He Probably Represents It).