Here's tonight's run-down of the Congressional races:

Coleman Rebrands Himself As The "Hope" Candidate
Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN), who dramatically announced that he was canceling his negative ads when poll data showed him falling behind Al Franken, is aggressively rebranding himself with some familiar language. The new example: Coleman kicked off a bus tour this morning with the title "The Hope Express." It should be said: Coleman has quite a bit of audacity.

GOP Keeps Up The Attacks Against Franken
Norm Coleman's declaration that he didn't want to run negative ads doesn't seem to have bothered the NRSC, who are making up the difference for him. Here's their new attack ad against Al Franken:

"Al Franken: He'd make things worse," the announcer says. This slogan has come up in multiple ads from the GOP. It's not clear just how effective it could be for an incumbent party to admit that things are bad, and then argue that the other guys shouldn't get elected because they would make it worse.

Cash-Strapped GOP Shifting Ads Away From Challengers, Helping Incumbents
The under-funded NRCC has been forced to reshuffle its ad spending away from non-incumbent candidates -- whether they're running for GOP-held open seats or as challengers in Dem-held seats -- and refocus money on helping incumbents. Money has now been allocated to help once-safe incumbents like John Shadegg (AZ), Lee Terry (NE) and Dan Lungren (CA).

Poll: Dem Congressman Trailing GOP Challenger
A new Research 2000 poll shows Rep. Paul Kanjorski (D-PA) trailing Republican challenger Lou Barletta by a 43%-39% margin. Kanjorski's district leans Democratic -- and Barack Obama is running narrowly ahead here, too -- but he's generally seen as a lackluster campaigner who could end up being outpaced by Barletta's populist campaign against illegal immigration.

GOP Smells Blood In Mahoney Scandal
NRCC Chairman Tom Cole told the Palm Beach Post that Rep. Tim Mahoney's (D-FL) sex scandal serious increases the GOP's chances of defeating the Congressman. "On a scale of one to 10, this is a 12," said Cole. Meanwhile, CQ has changed its rating on the race from "No Clear Favorite" to "Leans Republican."

McConnell Ad: Lunsford's Clinic Killed A Veteran
Wow. Check out this new ad from Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell (KY), keeping up on his campaign's theme of saying that Democratic businessman Bruce Lunsford's clinics gave poor care to veterans:

"I believe that the clinic helped kill my husband," says a widow in the ad. Take this as a sign that McConnell thinks he's in serious danger, and feels the need to pile on the attacks against Lunsford.

GOP Ad Accuses Dem Candidate Of Getting Corrupt Government Contracts
The new NRCC ad in the heated Colorado House race echoes allegations made by Rep. Marilyn Musgrave (R) against Dem candidate Betsy Markey, accusing her of using her position as a Senate aide to steer government contracts to a family business:

The Markey campaign has repeatedly pointed out that Musgrave hasn't offered evidence for her charges, while the Musgrave campaign has said it's up to Markey to prove that she hasn't violated the public trust.

Dem Candidate's Ad: Kansans Are Getting "Hosed" On
Senate candidate Jim Slattery (D-KS) isn't given much of a chance in his race, but he's sure come up with a great ad. The ad shows angry Kansans being "hosed" on by a giant Wall St. executive holding a gas pump, using a very interesting camera angle to depict what's going on:

"As Kansans get angrier, rich executives just get richer," the announcer says. "While they're getting bailouts or gushing record profits, the rest of us are just getting hosed."