Coleman: I Won't Say War Was A Mistake, For The Sake Of The Dead
At a debate last night in the Minnesota Senate race, Sen. Norm Coleman (R) reiterated his position that he will not say the Iraq War was as mistake. Coleman put it in very stark terms: "I will not tell the parents of any kid who has died in Iraq that their son died because of a mistake. I simply will not do that."

GOP Poll: Mahoney Way Down
We usually don't cover internal polls, but this one probably deserves some attention. The campaign of House candidate Tom Rooney (R-FL) has put out a poll showing Rooney defeating scandal-plagued Democratic incumbent Tim Mahoney by a whopping 55%-29%. We'll probably see an independent poll of this race soon, and don't be too surprised if it also shows Mahoney losing.

Dem Chances Go Up In Eight House Races
CQ has changed its ratings on eight Midwestern House races, five of them Dem-held and three GOP-held, with all eight shifts going in the Dems' direction. The most notable is Rep. Lee Terry (R-NE), who has recently been openly courting "Obama-Terry" voters in a district that should be a slam dunk for the Republicans -- he's gone from "Republican Favored" to "Leans Republican."

Lunsford Ad: Mitch McConnell Has No Shame
This new ad from Senate candidate Bruce Lunsford (D-KY), who is running a surprisingly strong race against Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell, fires back at a McConnell ad that blamed Lunsford for the death of a veteran who was being treated at a clinic owned by a company where Lunsford served on the board:

"The Herald-Leader reports the charge is not backed up on screen or off with any documentation," the announcer explains. "Does McConnell have no shame? He'll say anything to hide his record."

Musgrave Ad: My Opponent Could Go To Prison
Rep. Marilyn Musgrave (R-CO) has another ad accusing Dem opponent Betsy Markey of manipulating federal contracts to go to her family's business, going so far as to declare that Markey faces up to five years in prison:

The Musgrave campaign has not offered any evidence of their claim, and the federal complaint cited here is one that their own local GOP chairman filed with the government. Instead, they have stated that it's up to Markey to prove that she did not abuse the public trust as a staffer for Sen. Ken Salazar (D-CO).

Dem Ad: Your Congressman Is Being Investigated By The FBI
The DCCC is running this tough ad against Rep. Tom Feeney (R-FL), hoping to use ethics as a wedge issue to defeat a GOP incumbent in a district that voted 56%-44% for George Bush in 2004:

"How effective could my Representative be, if he's being investigated by the FBI," says a woman in the ad. The DCCC is also sending around an internal poll showing their candidate, Suzanne Kosmas, way ahead of Feeney thanks to his ethics scandals. Let's wait and see if it gets any corroboration from independent polling.

Another Poll Shows Close Senate Race In Georgia
A new Research 2000 poll shows Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) with a narrow lead of 47%-45% over Democratic challenger Jim Martin, within the 4% margin of error. The two candidates have similar favorable-unfavorable ratings: Chambliss is at 57%-40%, Martin at 54%-40%.

Poll: Freshman Dem Ahead In GOP-Leaning District
A new SurveyUSA poll gives freshman Rep. Jerry McNerney (D-CA) a 52%-41% lead over Republican challenger Dean Andal. McNerney was elected in an upset in 2006 over long-time GOP incumbent Richard Pombo, in a district that voted 54%-45% for President Bush in 2004.