Louisiana's U.S. Senate race gets personal early

[ccharles000]

More than a year before Louisiana voters head to the polls in what promises to be one of the most closely watched U.S. Senate races in the country, the rhetoric already is heating up between incumbent Republican David Vitter and his Democratic challenger, Rep. Charlie Melancon, D-Napoleonville.

The standard political playbook says incumbent politicians should ignore their opponents as long as possible, as mentioning them by name only gives them free publicity. But Vitter, who is seeking a second term after becoming Louisiana's first Republican senator since Reconstruction in 2004, turned that theory on its head during August.

In speeches, press releases and Internet-only campaign ads, Vitter launched a series of attacks against Melancon for his out-of-state fundraising travels, and tried to lump him with Democratic congressional leaders and the administration of President Barack Obama.

"Life sure is swell when you're a liberal-loving, Obama-endorsing congressman like Charlie Melancon, " says one of the ads, which started weeks before Melancon announced his candidacy Aug. 27.

Whether the early barbs will translate into a tight race remains to be seen, as most analysts rate Vitter as a decided favorite to win re-election. While Vitter is rated as the most vulnerable Republican senator, that's not saying much in an election year that's expected to be a tough one for Democrats. History shows that the president's party typically loses congressional seats in mid-term elections.

http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2009/09/louisianas_us_senate_race_gets.html

[dionysus]

1. ah, diaper dave getting in the gutter early. smells like desperation.

[burning rain]

2. "A liberal-loving, Obama-endorsing congressman."

Sort of an odd phrase, but it makes more sense as a reworking of the old (Southern, especially) "nigger-loving liberal" epithet--and that's what it will suggest to many, particularly in a Deep South state like Louisana. It helps get the message out there, and divides people by race--without causing a media shitstorm and problems with the national GOP. Gotta expect dog whistles in this Senate race--particularly if it gets close.

[damntexdem]

3. A lot of mud over there in Louisiana.

And I guess it's hard to keep it all in one's diaper. ;-)