Senate '08: $2 million edition

Kari Chisholm

• The Democratic Party of Oregon is demanding that Gordon Smith release the public records of his Oregon travel. It seems that the Smith campaign told the Oregonian's Jeff Mapes that he's visited "more than 20 counties in each of the last three years" - while the DPO's accounting shows a much smaller number of visits. (By way of comparison, Ron Wyden's listing of town hall meetings is entirely public.)

• Jeff Merkley announced that his campaign had raised over $2 million in the last three months - more than any Democrat has ever raised for a federal race in a single quarter. In particular, the netroots have been a strong source of funds - with some $850,000 coming in online.

• Pundit Larry Sabato has upgraded the Senate race to Toss-Up, up from Leans Republican.

• Here's the latest ad from Jeff Merkley:

• And the latest ad from the DSCC's IE team:

Lots more news coverage on the jump...

• Make no mistake: Gordon Smith wants to end right-to-choose for women.

• The Register-Guard endorsed Merkley and explained why he's come from behind in this campaign:

  Three things are fueling Merkley’s increasing momentum:

  The Bush administration’s anything-goes economic policies, which Smith has supported with clockwork consistency, have contributed to a meltdown in the U.S. economy that worsens by the day. Smith has been a reliable Republican vote for administration tax cuts and spending that erased a $128 billion surplus at the beginning of the Bush presidency and has led to a projected $409 billion deficit for 2009. ...

  Smith can’t simply wish away his association with a president he has loyally supported by pointing to some contrarian votes. ... For the seven years that his Senate membership overlaps Bush’s presidency, Smith has received an 85 percent rating from CQ for his level of presidential support. ...

  And Jeff Merkley has been erasing his name-recognition deficit the old-fashioned way, by pounding the pavement from Astoria to Ashland and from Beaverton to Baker City, introducing himself to Oregonians and explaining his platform. Clearly, many voters like what they’re seeing and hearing from the speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives.

• The Wall Street Journal talks about our Senate race and the "tricky politics of the bailout." In particular, they note a hilarious new NRSC ad that claims that Jeff Merkley is responsible for deficit spending in Oregon. Ooops. As Jeff Mapes notes:

  Except, that's not really the case. Oregon, like almost all states, can't run a deficit like the federal government. So the state continued to balance its budget while Merkley was speaker.

  And the increase in debt? Well, as the report cited by the ad makes clear, the biggest increase in the debt came because the state used low interest rates to refinance its long-term pension obligations. The state says it is a smart financial move that will save millions.

  The real hoot is even trying to compare this to the record of the Bush administration, which has seen the deficit increase from $5.7 trillion to more than $10 trillion. And, of course, it's come about through deficit spending, aided and abetted by Congress, which Republicans have controlled for most of the last eight years.

By Kari Chisholm Oct. 07, 2008