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Almost lost in the Clinton-Obama hubbub were the results of last night’s special election to fill the 1st Congressional District seat in Mississippi.
Democrat Travis Childers eked out a victory over Republican Greg Davis in the northern Mississippi district that includes the cities of Southaven (where Davis is mayor), Corinth, Tupelo, Columbus and Grenada.
This special election is the third such contest where Democrats have beaten Republicans this year; Davis’ defeat was just the latest in a series of bad signs for the GOP. The special election was required to fill the seat of Roger Wicker, who left to fill the seat of Trent Lott—both Republicans. Mississippi has a popular Republican governor and is a red, red state when it comes to national contests. Danny from Doc’s Political Parlor points out that President Bush won the district with 62 percent of the vote in 2004.
So it should have been a lock for the GOP, right?
Um, no.
Republicans were left to play defense, and, as Dan Fouts would say, they “didn’t hold anything back.”
The National Republican Congressional Committee has spent more than $1.3 million in advertising and direct mail. Mr. Davis also has benefited from funding from outside Republican groups. Freedom’s Watch, a group working to elect Republicans to the House, has spent an additional $550,000 on advertising. The NRCC has sent staff to Mississippi to help boost Republican voter turnout, which will be critical to Mr. Davis’s chances.
Republicans have drawn on a long roster to campaign for Mr. Davis, including Gov. Haley Barbour, Sen. Thad Cochran, Mr. Lott, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and Vice President Dick Cheney, who appeared Monday at an event with Mr. Davis.
The Mississippi First was also the latest test of the GOP strategy to “Obamify” Democratic congressional candidates:
The race has attracted national attention, with Vice President Dick Cheney campaigning for Davis on Monday, and Davis running ads trying to tie Childers to Obama and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Childers has brushed aside those comparisons, countering that with his own support of gun rights and opposition to abortion, his social values match those of most voters in the deeply conservative district.
As Republicans are finding out, “Obamify” means something totally different.
And the GOP doesn’t need to add insult to injury, but when it rains, it pours: Politico reported that the NRCC spent NEARLY 20 PERCENT OF ITS ENTIRE CASH-ON-HAND to save the seat.
That’s bad, bad news, because I’m pretty sure there are more than four congressional seats for Republicans to defend.
All of this is why “a GOP House leadership aide told Politico last week that ‘if we don’t win in Mississippi, I think you are going to see a lot of people running around here looking for windows to jump out of.’”
Of course, Childers will have to stand for re-election in the fall. But for now, at least, three of Mississippi’s four congressional seats are blue.
I hope Capitol windows have bars.
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