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

Right-Wing Group Jumps In Against Murtha
The right-wingers smell blood in the water in the wake of Jack Murtha's comments calling his constituents racists and rednecks, and now Vets For Freedom is going in with this ad buy of more than $50,000 against Murtha:

This ad avoids the "racist" comments, but instead features Marines saying that Murtha, a veteran of the Vietnam War, smeared and betrayed American troops when he said civilians were killed in cold blood at Haditha: "I expected to be attacked by the insurgents -- not from Congressmen at home."

DCCC Airs New Ad Against Murtha's Opponent
The DCCC is now having to come to Murtha's defense, as well, running this new ad attacking Murtha's opponent William Russell:

The DCCC has not yet disclosed the exact size of the ad buy, but it will be more than the $84,000 that the NRCC has put into advertising on this race.

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Here's today's run-down on the Congressional races:

House Dems Spend Millions In One Day, GOP Way Behind
The DCCC spent a whopping $8.25 million yesterday, according to FEC records, with the vast majority of it being spent on offense in GOP-held districts. By contrast, the NRCC only spent $746,106.17, with most of it coming from an expenditure of over $500,000 to defend Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart (R-FL).

Dems Going On The Air In Deep-Red Districts
The DCCC has been feeling bold thanks to strong national poll numbers and a huge cash advantage over the NRCC. The Dems' latest spending shows that they're intervening in some usually GOP districts: Against Rep. John Shadegg (R-AZ), Rep. Mark Souder (R-IN), and Rep. Lee Terry (R-NE). Here's their ad in Souder's district, which voted 68%-31% for George W. Bush in 2004:

"For too long now, Souder has been been looking out for himself," the announcer says. "Hoosiers need to look in a new direction."

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Until now, most of the talk about vulnerable GOP incumbents in Indiana has focused on Reps Chris Chocola, John Hostettler and Mike Sodrel. But now CQ Politics says another Indiana GOP Rep. isn't completely safe: the Third District's Mark Souder. CQ has changed its rating of the race between Souder and Dem Tom Hayhurst from "Safe Republican" to "Republican Favored," saying that he "finds himself in his most competitive race in years." More from CQ after the jump.

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