KANSAS CITY – Even as Missouri and national Republican were piling attacks on Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Jason Kander, Republican U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt said he is not ready to join them.

“I’m focused on my job. It’s way too early to talk about politics,” Blunt said in a brief interview over the weekend at the Missouri Republican Party’s annual Lincoln Days gathering – an event focused entirely on politics.

At the annual event hosted by the party to rally its base, Blunt did talk about politics, but focused instead on national policies and leveled his charges at President Barack Obama’s criticizing his immigration policies.

Blunt also highlighted his opposition to abortion in the context of “religious freedom” while introducing former Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum on Saturday night.

“There is a reason in the first amendment the first freedom is freedom of religion,” Blunt said. “There has been no greater advocate for it in the Congress in the years I’ve served here or in the country than Rick Santorum.”

While Blunt never directly addressed Kander, other Republicans, like outgoing state party chairman Ed Martin, did. “I revel the contrast between a conservative guy who defends pro-life,” Martin said, and Kander’s, “pro-abortion record.”

While Blunt, himself, stayed mum on the race, his campaign is quickly kicking into gear. On Monday, the senator’s son and campaign manager, Andy Blunt, emailed the former Romney for President email list, where he referred to his dad’s race as on that is, “becoming one of the most-watched and talked about in the country,” and asked donors for small contributions.

“Last week, the Democrats in Washington D.C. settled on a challenger. And major liberal donors and big money Super PACs are lining up to spend millions of dollars to turn Missouri’s Senate seat blue,” he wrote.

On Monday, Kander will make his first appearance of the campaign at a Democratic chili supper in Columbia.