BOSTON (AP) — U.S. Sen. Scott Brown swept into office riding a wave of frustration with President Barack Obama's push for a health care overhaul and his handling of a faltering economy — a win that was also a banner victory for a nascent tea party. Now, as he gears up for a re-election campaign, the Massachusetts Republican is busily casting himself as a bipartisan bridge builder in a bitterly divided Congress.

Democrats have been quick to portray Brown as beholden to Washington Republicans, however, while also calling a recent remark he made about Democratic front-runner Elizabeth Warren demeaning to women.

In the past week, Brown has decried political divisiveness on the Senate floor, sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell echoing the same sentiments, and urged Reid in a phone call to craft a bipartisan version of Barack Obama's jobs bill.