Here's some comic relief while you're waiting for the Republican Convention programming tonight: Some wacky down-ticket ads.

First up is this spot from GOP Senator Elizabeth Dole, who is in a close race with Democrat Kay Hagan in recent polls. Her new ad fires back at Hagan's attacks -- by calling Hagan a yapping little dog:

"So bark away, fibber Kay," the announcer says. "That dog don't hunt."

Check out some more interesting ads after the jump.

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GOP Senator Gordon Smith of Oregon has found yet another way to tie himself to Barack Obama as he seeks re-election in this blue state, the Oregonian reports.

Smith has been running this ad for a while, replaying news footage of his dramatic turn against the Iraq War from right after the 2006 election:

It turns out his campaign bought ad time with local cable providers for it to run on CNN last night, at the first commercial break right after Barack Obama's acceptance speech.

Smith has previously run ads linking himself to Barack Obama and John Kerry, but this whole pattern seems to be getting even more ridiculous by the day.

It looks like Al Franken is finally using his campaign ads to do what he does best: Comedy.

You really need to watch his latest spot, because it's pretty damn funny. It features a novelty talking fish toy, informing the viewer of Republican Senator Norm Coleman's links to indicted GOP Sen. Ted Stevens and Big Oil businessmen:

"Now one of the oil guys that Norm went fishing with has been convicted of bribery -- and Norm refuses to return the money," the fish says. "Something smells fishy, and it ain't just me."

Franken has taken a serious tone for most of his campaign ads in his uphill fight against Republican Senator Norm Coleman, in an effort to get voters to view him as a more serious figure. But now Franken may be going back to his roots, thankfully.

It isn't every day that the head of a party committee goes public about his unhappiness with his colleagues and their lousy fundraising pace for him, but such is life in today's troubled Republican Party.

Senator John Ensign, who's head of the committee to elect more Republicans to the Senate, has actually put out a press release chastising his fellow Senate GOPers for not opening their wallets for the GOP:

"I recently challenged my colleagues to step up to the plate and help me provide the resources our candidates need to compete in races across the country -- to match the DSCC expenditures in targeted races," Ensign's release says. "It has become clear that my call has gone largely unanswered."

Ensign then added that he now has to cut back the NRSC's ad budget, and can only expand it again if he finally gets some checks coming in. You can almost hear the tears falling.

Meanwhile, CQ points out that Senate Republicans only contributed $1.1 million to the NRSC up through June, the last month for which this number can be calculated, compared to $5 million from Senate Dems to the DSCC.

The strategy being employed by many Republicans in tough races this year -- that is, to disassociate oneself from President Bush -- is naturally a lot tougher for Minnesota Sen. Norm Coleman, whose home city of St. Paul is hosting the Republican convention. And the state Dems there are setting out to make it even more difficult.

The DFL (as the Dems are called in Minnesota) has made a novel offer: A cash reward of over $500 to anybody who can snap a photo of Coleman standing next to Bush on Monday night of the convention.

In an e-mail to Election Central, DFL spokesman Eric Fought acknowledged that this could be a tall order: "It's a safe bet that when George Bush is anywhere near the Xcel Center, Norm Coleman will be far, far away."

DNC Out-Raises RNC For First Time This Cycle
The Democratic National Committee has announced that they raised $27.7 million for the month of July, just edging out the RNC's $26 million, the first time this whole cycle that the usually-underfunded DNC has outdone the RNC. The DNC, including its joint committee with the Obama campaign, has $28.5 million cash on hand, bringing the Democratic total with the Obama campaign to $94.3 million -- just narrowly behind the Republicans' aggregate total of over $100 million on hand.

Obama Leaves Hawaii
Barack Obama's Hawaiian has come to an end last night, as the candidate left the islands to head back to the mainland and the campaign trail. Between now and November, it will be practically nothing but non-stop campaigning.

Obama And McCain To Appear At Saddleback Church Tonight
Barack Obama and John McCain will both be at Pastor Rick Warren's Saddleback Church tonight, where they will take questions separately from Warren on various national issues. Note that this is not a debate, in which the candidates would take questions simultaneously, though they are expected to share the stage for a brief photo opportunity. The event is scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. ET.

Loretta Sanchez: Half Of House Dems Could Vote For Hillary At Convention
In an indication that the Democratic Convention could unintentionally give an appearance of Democratic disunity, Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez of California is predicting that up to half of the House Dems could end up voting for Hillary Clinton under an open roll call. "I felt she was the most experienced and the best candidate and I still feel that way," Sanchez added -- though for the record, it should be noted that Hillary herself has said she personally plans on voting for Obama.

McCain: Western State Water Compact Should Be Reopened
John McCain may have just gotten in trouble in the key swing state of Colorado, telling The Pueblo Chieftain that the 1922 water compact among Western states should be renegotiated. Democratic Sen. Ken Salazar responded by saying Mccain's position is "absolutely wrong and would only happen over my dead body," and that Colorado should fear losing more its water resources if negotiations are opened up again.

GOP Senate Candidate: Feds Raking In Cash On The Backs Of Oil Companies
And speaking of Colorado, the campaign of Democratic Senate nominee Mark Udall is sending around this tracker audio of Republican nominee Bob Schaffer complaining that the federal government is taking too much money from the oil companies. "But because prices are soaring, the reality is the federal government is raking in a bunch of cash right now on the backs of energy producers," Schaffer says -- perhaps not the most popular message this year:

What do you do if you're a GOP Senator who's held office for 40 years in a deep-red state, but you're now on the verge of losing your seat amid an indictment for public corruption?

You roll out your first ads of the season, reminding the voters of how much you've done for them and how they shouldn't forget you, just as Alaska Senator Ted Stevens' campaign has announced. The ads feature regular Alaskans singing the praises of Uncle Ted:

Stevens is heavily favored to win his Republican primary in two weeks, but then comes the tricky part: The polls all show Stevens losing very badly against Democratic candidate Mark Begich. Dems haven't won a federal election here since 1974, and it will be a very big event if they end up taking Stevens down in the end.

Stevens also has two other ads, which can be viewed here and here.

One has to wonder whether it's appropriate for a sitting U.S. Senator to gossip about these topics on a live radio show. While appearing on local radio in Maine, Republican Senator Susan Collins said she believes John Edwards is the father of Rielle Hunter's baby:

The discussion of the Edwards scandal begins at the two-minute mark, with Collins saying at around 3:30, "But also, don't you think he is the father of the child?"

(Via Collins Watch.)

Republican Sen. Gordon Smith of Oregon has taken yet another step to distance himself from the national GOP as he runs for re-election: The Oregonian reports that Smith has resigned his role as a state co-chairman for the McCain campaign.

The official reason Smith is doing this is so he can focus his time and effort on his re-election campaign in this blue state. But bear in mind that these co-chair roles are really honorary titles -- he wouldn't have to actually do anything except lend his name to the campaign, at any rate.

But for a senator who has now been airing ads tying himself to Barack Obama and John Kerry, it seems like even an honorary role on the McCain campaign is too off-message.

Wow, talk about taking right-wing attacks against Dems on Iraq to the next level. At a debate in New Mexico for the open GOP-held Second District late last week, Republican nominee Ed Tinsley accused his Dem opponent Harry Teague of wanting to cut the throats of American troops in Iraq:

"How can I call my two nephews over there right now ... and tell them I'm running against a guy that will cut your throat -- that will cut the bottom out of your funding," Tinsley said.

At this point Tinsley was drowned out by boos from the audience.

(Via New Mexico FBIHOP.)

Mark Warner To Keynote Dem Convention
The Obama campaign has announced that former Virginia Governor Mark Warner, who is on track to pick up a Senate seat this November, will be the keynote speaker at the convention. This should be seen as another major play for Virginia, by putting a very popular Democratic name there in prime time to advocate for Obama's election.

McCain In Michigan Today
John McCain is campaigning today in Birmingham, Michigan, in a big swing state that hasn't voted Republican since 1988. McCain has a media availability scheduled for 5:15 p.m. ET.

Obama Brings In $1.3 Million In Hawaiian Fundraiser
Barack Obama had a good evening last night in Hawaii, with a Honolulu fundraiser taking in $1.3 million. Obama offered this joke about why he's vacationing in Hawaii, a state he's virtually guaranteed to win this November: "It's going to be really embarrassing if we don't pull it out. I think I need to spend two or three days campaigning."

Poll: McCain Leads With Hunters, But Not By Much
A new poll from the Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation finds John McCain ahead of Barack Obama among hunters, but by less of a margin than the Republican should be able to count on. McCain is ahead 45%-31%, compared to to a 27-point lead that George W. Bush had in 2004.

Right-Wingers Oppose Drilling Compromise
The Wall St. Journal reports that some conservative Republicans are coming out against the "Gang Of 10" energy compromise, which increases offshore drilling while simultaneously increasing funding for alternative energy. The Journal notes that drilling could cease to be an effective wedge issue if both parties actually came together and agreed to a compromise plan.

McCain Not Canceling Fundraiser With Ex-Abramoff Partner
The McCain campaign is ignoring calls from good-government groups for him to cancel an upcoming fundraiser with Ralph Reed, the former Jack Abramoff business partner. For his part, Reed is employing some interesting logic to say he isn't actually hosting a fundraiser: "I am just strongly supporting Senator McCain. I'm contributing to him and encouraging others to do so."

Bob Perry, the wealthy businessman who bankrolled the Swift Boat Veterans For Truth to the tune of several million dollars, has a new cause: He's lavishing huge funds on the conservative group Club for Growth, which is in turn putting big money behind GOP candidates in key Senate races.

Perry has just plowed a whopping $400,000 into the coffers of the Club for Growth, the big right-wing group that advocates for conservative economic policies, the latest FEC records show.

Club For Growth, in turn, is now spending about $227,000 of that money to air an attack ad in Colorado against Mark Udall, who is the presumptive Dem nominee is going up against scandal-plagued GOP Senate candidate Bob Schaffer. The battle is playing out in a state where Dems have made strong gains after many years of Republican dominance.

Polls show Udall leading Schaffer by a fairly consistent margin in the mid-single digits. So Schaffer will be relying on wealthy funders like Perry to be funding, via Club for Growth, attack ad campaigns that just might enable him to hang on to his seat despite the scandals engulfing him.

At any rate, the big Swift-Boat-Vet financier now has a new cause.

Here's yet another sign of just how reluctant people are to run for Congress under the tattered GOP brand: Sen. John Ensign, the Nevada Republican in charge of the Senate GOP's recruitment efforts, has now admitted that he resorted to begging people to run for office for the sake of America.

"This is America, and it's worth fighting for," Ensign said he told potential recruits, in an interview with the Detroit Free Press. "I appealed to their patriotism."

The problem is that Ensign admits he failed in many cases to recruit strong candidates, leaving us all with a cycle in which the Democrats have only one vulnerable seat. In short, this cycle is so daunting for the GOP that not even the most vigorous flag-waving can convince a solid Republican to run.

Check out this new ad from Al Franken, going after incumbent GOP Sen. Norm Coleman: It's one of the first Dem ads of this whole cycle to go directly after a Republican incumbent over a story involving political muck. It's also a clear sign that Franken, who's trailing in most polls, knows he needs to really step up the attacks:

"Coleman is being investigated for paying only $600 a month rent to live in a million-dollar D.C. home owned by a Washington insider connected to powerful lobbyists," the announcer says, before hinting at more attacks to come. "And it gets even worse. Stay tuned for more."

Now this is some novel push-back. In a sign of just how worried Republicans are about Dem efforts to tie GOP Senators to Bush, the Minnesota GOP is charging that a new Al Franken attack ad linking Senator Norm Coleman to the President is illegal and must be pulled off the air:

The state party's press release says the ad is illegally using the image of the Presidential Seal on a campaign list of "10 Critical Issues" of the Bush presidency -- which the GOP says would create the impression that this is an official government document, in violation of federal law.

"Mr. Franken's campaign appears to have created a fake document and placed the presidential seal on it in an effort to make a political point ... On just the basic matter of law, Mr. Franken's ad must be pulled and corrected immediately." the release says.

Even if this ad did technically violate the law -- and that's a doubtful proposition -- it would almost certainly never be prosecuted, because doing so would create a chilling effect on political speech.

Late Update: We asked Franken spokesman Andy Barr if a reasonable person might think the use of the Presidential Seal here implied a real government document. "A reasonable person might note that we released extensive documentation with scores of votes detailing how Norm Coleman has voted with George Bush nearly 90 percent of the time," Barr told us via e-mail, "and the only complaint the Coleman campaign had was with the clipart."

Obama: McCain Team Aren't Racist -- They're Cynical
Speaking to reporters today in Florida, Barack Obama said the McCain campaign has tried to district voters from the real issues by focusing on his background. "In no way do I think that John McCain's campaign is being racist, I think they're being cynical," Obama said.

Obama In Florida Today
Barack Obama is in Florida today, where he's speaking before the National Urban League's annual convention -- a minority audience where the racial tensions of the current campaign are surely on many people's minds. John McCain spoke there yesterday, and was received politely.

McCain Off The Trail Today
John McCain has no public events scheduled for today.

Obama Offers Support For Energy Compromise -- Including Offshore Drilling
Barack Obama has shifted his position somewhat on offshore drilling, telling the St. Petersburg Times that he could support the "Gang of Ten" energy compromise unveiled yesterday by a group of Republican and moderate Democratic Senators: "My attitude is that we can find some sort of compromise." In addition to supporting offshore drilling, the proposal would also fund alternative energy sources and further other policy goals typically favored by Dems.

Poll: Ted Stevens Losing To Democratic Candidate By A Landslide
Another poll in Alaska, this time from local firm Ivan Moore Research, shows indicted GOP Sen. Ted Stevens' political fortunes plummeting in the wake of his indictment. Stevens remains a safe bet to win the Republican primary, leading his closest challenger by 40 points -- but in the general election against Democratic Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich, Steven is trailing by a whopping 56%-35% margin.

Poll: McCain Up In Missouri
A new SurveyUSA poll gives John McCain a 49%-44% lead in the perennial swing state of Missouri, not significantly changed from a 50%-43% lead in late June. Other recent polls have given Barack Obama the lead here, making the reality of the situation something of an unknown.

McCain's "Country First Concert" Only Gets Hundreds Of People
Despite having the free entertainment of country music star John Rich, premiering his new song paying tribute to the candidate, the Washington Post reports that a McCain rally in the Florida Panhandle was only able to attract several hundred people. That's just a tiny fraction of the thousands of people who typically show up for John Rich at his own concerts -- meaning that John McCain is a serious drag on any marquee bill.

Here's about as clear a sign of GOP desperation as you could wish for: GOP Senator Gordon Smith, who's locked in a brutal re-election battle in Oregon, has a new ad out hailing his work with not one but two Democratic nominees for president: Barack Obama and John Kerry, whom he routinely insulted back in 2004.

And Kerry is now taking a hard whack at Smith over it. First, here's the ad:

"Gordon Smith is my friend but the problem is that when it's come time to vote in the Senate he's been a much better friend of George Bush. Voting with George Bush ninety percent of the time just isn't good for the people and issues I've fought for over a lifetime," Kerry said in a statement.

Of course, Smith didn't always cozy up to Kerry. During the 2004 campaign he regularly bashed the Dem nominee for president. "It's not John Kerry's fault that he looks French," Smith said. "But it is his fault that he wants to pursue policies that have us act like the French."

Smith also said at the time: "So John Kerry to me represents socialism."

Under fire from Al Franken, GOP Senator Norm Coleman claimed he'd dumped the contributions he got from indicted Senator Ted Stevens. But it turns out he's only gone halfway in dumping them -- and a personal connection to Stevens might explain why.

It turns out that Coleman's chief of staff is married to Stevens' chief of staff. But more on that in a bit.

Coleman donated to charity the $20,000 he's received from Stevens PAC -- but that's only the amount he's received for this cycle. The campaign told the Star Tribune that the additional $10,000 he also received during the 2002 cycle was long since spent, and he couldn't get rid of money for a campaign that had been over years ago.

But as it turns out, that wasn't a problem for him in January 2006, when the Star Tribune reported that he got rid of money connected to Jack Abramoff that in fact dated to 2002. So why the differing standard this time around?

Read more »

Just in case there were any doubts that GOP Sen. Ted Stevens' indictment would damage his political fortunes back home in Alaska, here's some confirmation: The new Rasmussen poll has him trailing his Democratic opponent by a double-digit margin in this deep-red state.

The numbers: Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich 50%, Stevens 37%. The poll was conducted yesterday, the day after Stevens' federal indictment came down the pike. Ten days ago, Stevens was trailing by eight points, as a result of the corruption investigations going on against him -- and which the indictment has clearly made worse.

A Democratic win here would be a huge victory, as this state hasn't elected a Dem to Congress since 1974.

The stampede of Republicans dumping contributions from Ted Stevens picked up speed today:

• Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell's campaign spokesman tells us that McConnell is donating $10,000, the amount McConnell has received this cycle from Stevens' leadership PAC, to the Wayside Christian Mission. Still no response on whether McConnell is endorsing Stevens for reelection.

• The Pioneer Press is reporting that Sen. Norm Coleman of Minnesota is donating the money to support childhood cancer research. Interestingly enough, he'd previously said he wouldn't dump the money, on the grounds that Stevens is innocent until proven guilty. But a Franken radio ad tying him to Stevens might just have changed his mind.

• Mike Johanns, the Republican nominee favored to win the open seat in Nebraska, is also donating the money he's received from Stevens to charity.

Uh oh. Here's another sign that top Republicans are backing away from Sen. Ted Stevens: Roll Call reports that NRSC chairman John Ensign refused to give a definite answer when asked if he was endorsing Stevens for re-election.

"I'm not going to make any comment," Ensign said. "There's a process in place and we're going to wait to see how that process plays out."

We've also asked the campaign spokesman from Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell -- who is himself facing a tough re-election fight this year -- whether he supports Stevens, and whether he'll keep contributions he's received form Stevens' PAC. No answer yet.

Here are two more Republicans getting rid of money from Ted Stevens: Sen. Gordon Smith of Oregon, who is in a close re-election battle in his Democratic-leaning state, and Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, who is running ahead in the polls for her own re-election bid.

"Money donated by Ted Stevens to Gordon Smith's reelection campaign will be donated to charity," said Smith campaign spokesperson Lindsay Gilbride, in an e-mail to Election Central.

Collins is also dumping the money, with the campaign's communications director telling Maine Politics that Collins will donate the money to charity.

Another GOP Senator is getting rid of money he's received from Sen. Ted Stevens' Leadership PAC: Sen. John Sununu of New Hampshire, who is trailing his Dem opponent Jeanne Shaheen in the polls.

"Team Sununu will be donating to charity the $10,000 received during this 2008 campaign cycle from Northern Lights PAC," said campaign manager Paul Collins, in a statement sent to Election Central. "The campaign had previously donated to charity contributions received from VECO employees who pled guilty to wrongdoing."