Republican House hopeful Matt Doheny announced something of a coup this morning with former hedge-fund manager Harry Wilson leading his fund-raising efforts.

“Harry Wilson is a premier financial expert, well respected in both business and politics, and has been tapped at various levels of government for his advice and professional counsel,” Doheny said in a statement. “His skills, qualifications and national reputation made him my top choice for the job.”

Wilson, a Westchester County resident who has a resume longer than your arm (leader of the president’s auto bailout task force among them), came within spitting distance of unseating Comptroller Tom DiNapoli last year.

Doheny says Wilson will be in charge of a 50-person finance committee that will target welath donors who back the candidate’s “vision for a pro-growth government that supports free market ideals and rejects high taxes, runaway spending and burdensome regulation.”

No doubt Wilson’s financial acumen will help, but he also has deep ties to wealthy Republicans on Wall Street and in Washington.

Wilson has also been named as a possible candidate to take on Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand in 2012, though he has not taken the plunge yet on a candidacy. Look for Democrats to hit back at Doheny by dredging up the “Hedge Fund Harry” nickname DiNapoli deployed during the 2010 campaign.

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