First the good: the state's largest newspaper,
The Idaho Statesman gave Grant a
strong endorsement:
Idaho voters can't replace 435 members of Congress. However, 1st District voters can elect a successor to Otter with the temperament, the intellect and the maturity to focus on complicated issues from Iraq and Iran to immigration to the deficit.
Democrat Larry Grant would be that kind of congressman -- the right choice for this district and for these times. Grant gets our enthusiastic endorsement in the Nov. 7 election.
Grant, a former vice president and general counsel at Micron Technology, is a first-time candidate -- yet he shows a studied, nuanced command of the issues.... In the end, this decision comes down to effectiveness -- and focus. If voters want more of the same from Congress, an unproductive fascination with gotcha politics, then this historically Republican district should elect Sali. If voters want substance and results, Grant is a great choice.
Now for the rest. Actually, the bad and the ugly are pretty much one in the same. James at Swing State has the story:
With several polls showing Grant nipping at Sali's heels, the NRCC has dumped almost $200k into this state in order to prevent a Democratic rout in Idaho, according to the latest FEC filings. And they're not done yet: the Club For Growth has scurried back into the fray, pumping in an emergency transfusion of $180k for oppositional TV ads against Grant earlier today. And knowing the Club For Growth, they're going to be leaving their kid gloves at home. Grant is within striking distance of costing them a crucial ally in the House, and they're not happy about it.
Grassroots for Grant has more about the ads:
The Club for Growth said Friday on its blog that it has spent $168,000 on the Idaho ad buy and that it may run similar ads in other states. The East Coast-based Club has been by far the biggest backer of Bill Sali's campaign, bundling hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations to him from its members. The Club also spent $133,000 to run last-minute attack ads against two of Sali's GOP primary opponents in May, accusing them of raising taxes. Ironically, Sali himself voted for the recent 20% hike in Idaho's sales tax, despite continuing to claim he has never voted for a tax hike.
The CFG is in a little hot water for it, from the non-partisan voter education organization, Project Vote Smart:
A national special interest organization, the Club for Growth PAC, has attacked Larry Grant (D), a candidate for the 1st Congressional District in Idaho, with misleading information and used Project Vote Smart's name to give their accusations credibility.... By using the Project's name to give credibility to these attacks, the Club for Growth PAC is cheating the public out of their need for trusted, abundant, accurate, factual information.... It is our policy to condemn this misuse of Project Vote Smart's name and reputation and to alert the public to any misuse of our name or programs for negative political activities.
Not that this will deter the Club for Growth from producing or airing these ads, but it's good to see Project Vote Smart set the record straight on this one. And it's good to see the Grant campaign fighting back with this: