Here's tonight's run-down of the Congressional races: The bailout and the economic crisis continue to dominate the campaigns -- which is never good news for the GOP -- while the Republicans are fending off the attacks by charging that the Dems don't have any solutions, either.

Al Franken Opposes Bailout Bill
Al Franken has put out a press release strongly opposing the bailout bill, which incumbent GOP Sen. Norm Coleman voted for: "Last night the United States Senate voted to take $700 billion from taxpayers who did nothing wrong and offer it as a sacrifice at the altar of financial mismanagement."

Smith And Merkley Joust Over The Bailout
Senate candidate Jeff Merkley (D-OR) is criticizing the bailout package, as well: "I have dedicated much of my life to advocating for consumers and I believe it is just wrong to spend $700 billion of taxpayer money to bailout the very Wall Street financiers who created this crisis." Incumbent Sen. Gordon Smith (R) has fired back at Merkley, saying Merkley has "shamefully placed his partisan ambitions ahead of the retirement, financial and economic security of the people he seeks to serve."

Poll: McConnell Has Solid Lead In Kentucky
A new Rasmussen poll of Kentucky has some good news for Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, giving him a 51%-42% lead over Democratic businessman Bruce Lunsford. Other recent polls have shown the race to be closer than that, and McConnell's campaign and outside groups have taken to running more negative ads against Lunsford as a result.

Southern GOP Senate Candidate's Ad Ties Dem To Obama
Senate candidate John Kennedy (R-LA), who is lagging in the polls against incumbent Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu, has this new ad attacking Landrieu for voting the same way in the Senate as Barack Obama, who is himself on track to lose Louisiana by a pretty big margin:

"I'm John Kennedy, and I'm for John McCain -- and I approved this message," Kennedy says. There's also a radio ad covering the same theme, which you can listen to here.

Poll: Colorado Senate Race Going in Dem's Favor
A new Ciruli poll shows Rep. Mark Udall (D-CO) with a 45%-38% lead over former Rep. Bob Schaffer (R), in the race for the seat of retiring Sen. Wayne Allard (R). Other recent polls have shown a Udall lead between two and eight.

Dem Chances Improve For Two Michigan House Seats
CQ has changed its ratings for two key Michigan House races, where Democrats are running well-funded campaigns against Republican incumbents. The seats of Reps. Joe Knollenberg and Tim Walberg are now both rated "No Clear Favorite," after both had previously been "Leans Republican."

Polls Show Dems On Track To Win GOP's Open Senate Seat In New Mexico
Two new polls in New Mexico confirm that Rep. Tom Udall (D) is leading Rep. Steve Pearce (R) by a wide margin for this open GOP-held Senate seat. From Rasmussen: Udall 55%, Pearce 41%. And from SurveyUSA: Udall 58%, Pearce 39%.

Senate GOP Ad: It's The Dem Candidate Who Is Like Washington
The NRSC has this new attack ad against former Gov. Ronnie Musgrove (D-MS), who is running a surprisingly strong challenge against appointed GOP Sen. Roger Wicker, saying he mismanaged the state's finances:

"Ronnie Musgrove in Washington? He'd fit right in," the announcer says.

Again, we must quote O Brother, Where Art Thou?: "How we gonna run reform when we're the damn incumbent?"