GOP urging extra help for McMorris, Sali

WASHINGTON – With Democratic momentum surging, Republican congressional strategists are urging donors to help 33 GOP candidates who are “most in need of support right now.”

The list by the National Republican Congressional Committee has some surprises, including Reps. Cathy McMorris in Eastern Washington and J.D. Hayworth in Arizona, as well as candidates for two open seats now held by Republicans: Bill Sali in Idaho and Doug Lamborn in Colorado.

All are running in districts that had been considered safe for Republicans.

The list also includes Reps. Dave Reichert, R-Wash., and Heather Wilson, R-N.M., who have been targeted by Democrats for more than a year. The GOP list, which includes 29 seats held by Republicans and four by Democrats, was first obtained by The Hill, a newspaper that covers Capitol Hill.

Jonathan Collegio, a spokesman for the NRCC, said placement on the “final push” list does not necessarily mean that candidates are in deep trouble – but rather that they need continued financial support.

“The funds our candidates receive now will allow them to increase their TV buys and will make the difference on Nov. 7,” NRCC PAC Director Jenny Sheffield said in a memo.

Kate Bedingfield, a spokeswoman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said the GOP list shows the party’s vulnerability in a year in which Democrats are expected to make significant gains in Congress.

“I think the fact that Republicans are having to spend money in places that are traditional Republican strongholds obviously says a lot about the level of frustration and dissatisfaction with voters across the country,” she said.

In Eastern Washington, where McMorris faces a stiff challenge from Democrat Peter Goldmark, Republicans have decided that they must counter about $186,000 spent on Goldmark’s behalf by Democrats, Collegio said.

“We’re directing resources to Cathy McMorris’ campaign because voters have a right to know that wearing cowboy boots and a belt buckle in no way makes Peter Goldmark a conservative for Eastern Washington,” he said.

McMorris won the Spokane-based 5th District seat with 60 percent of the vote in 2004 and has been generally considered a safe bet for re-election. But Goldmark, a scientist and rancher, has been running a spirited campaign that has hit McMorris with allegations that she is a pawn for special interests and a rubber stamp for failed policies of President Bush.

In Idaho, Republicans are hoping to buck up Sali, a conservative state lawmaker whose abrasive manner has put off many GOP leaders. He is running against Democrat Larry Grant in a seat now held by Rep. C.L. “Butch” Otter, who is running for governor.

The 20-county 1st District, which spans western Idaho from the Canadian border to the Nevada line, is one of a handful of late-breaking races that complicate GOP efforts to salvage their 12-year majority in the face of widely expected Democratic gains.

Clear evidence of the party’s concerns came last week when the NRCC spent $135,442 for ads against Grant, a former executive at Micron Technology Inc., the state’s largest private employer.

In the Northwest’s most competitive race, Collegio said Republicans will continue to pump money into the 8th District of Washington, in Seattle’s Eastside suburbs. Reichert, a freshman former sheriff, faces a strong challenge from Democrat Darcy Burner.

The NRCC has already spent more than $1.5 million in the district, compared with nearly $1.4 million spent by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Burner has raised more than $1.9 million, compared with nearly $2.5 million for Reichert. Both campaigns expect total spending on the race to top $5 million.