This is a good one. Check out this new ad that GOP Senator Gordon Smith, who's locked in a tough re-election fight in Oregon, has just released. The spot highlights his work with Barack Obama, who, last we checked, is the Democratic standard bearer...

"Who says Gordon Smith helped lead the fight for better gas mileage and a cleaner environment?" the ad asks. "Barack Obama! He joined with Gordon and broke through a 20-year deadlock to pass new laws which increase gas mileage for automobiles."

This obviously is helpful to Obama, who can cite it as proof that even Republicans agree that he has been successful working across party lines.

Late Update: The ad is also further proof of just how far Smith will run away from the Republican brand in this blue state. -ek

Late Update: The Obama campaign has now responded in a statement e-mailed out to reporters:

"Barack Obama has a long record of bipartisan accomplishment and we appreciate that it is respected by his Democratic and Republican colleagues in the Senate. But in this race, Oregonians should know that Barack Obama supports Jeff Merkley for Senate. Merkley will help Obama bring about the fundamental change we need in Washington," said Obama campaign spokesman Bill Burton.

Oregon Sen. Gordon Smith's campaign makes an interesting claim in its latest ad: That the Republican incumbent who came out publicly against the Iraq War just after the 2006 elections was in fact "one of the first to stand up to George Bush and other Republicans to end this war," a questionable claim clearly meant to boost his image in this liberal anti-war state:

Obviously, a whole lot of other people were against the war well before November 2006 -- and Smith himself voted for the war in 2002 and remained a supporter for four years. As senior Oregon political columnist Jeff Mapes points out, the ad "might have been accurate if she called Smith one of the first Republicans to oppose the war."

"Sen. Smith is proud to have been one of the first Republicans to advocate an end to the war in Iraq," Smith campaign spokesperson Lindsay Gilbride told Election Central via e-mail. "Regardless of the political season, he will continue working with his colleagues on both sides of the aisle to advance our national security, strengthen our economy and promote energy independence."

As we noted the other day, GOP Sen. Gordon Smith of Oregon touched off a firestorm of outrage last week -- not to mention some serious puzzlement -- when he compared opposition to gay marriage to the persecution of his polygamous Mormon ancestors. We even tried to get in touch with Smith's office in order to find out exactly what he meant by that, but they kept silent.

Well, now Smith has apologized, saying he did not mean to compare gay relationships to polygamy.

"If you'd grown up a Mormon, and spent your life trying to get out from the shadow of that legacy -- it's an emotional scar that you carry," Smith told the Oregonian. "I meant no offense by sharing that part of my history."

Good thing he cleared that up.

This has to be one of the strangest things we've seen in some time.

Take a look at this video of Senator Gordon Smith of Oregon -- a Republican who has supported both the anti-gay Federal Marriage Amendment and anti-discrimination laws and domestic partner benefits -- struggling pretty hard to clarify his position on gay marriage and equal rights for individuals.

Smith appeared to be likening discrimination against gays to the persecution faced by his Mormon ancestors for their views on marriage:

Smith:

"Part of what I fear, as you start defining marriage -- we have a long history of doing that in this country, and my Mormon pioneer ancestors were the victims of that. They were literally driven from the United States in the dead of winter for following their religious beliefs. I don't want that coming back."

Huh?

We're still not entirely sure what Smith's position is on gay marriage, or how exactly it relates to the persecution of Mormons over a century ago. Unsurprisingly, calls and e-mails to his office asking for clarification yesterday were not returned.

Democrats just got some good news in the Oregon Senate race, with an independent candidate who might have siphoned votes from the Democratic nominee now deciding to drop out of the race, leaving the Dem free to focus all his energy on taking out vulnerable incumbent Gordon Smith.

The liberal candidacy by John Frohnmayer, a former chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, might have eaten into support for Democratic nominee Jeff Merkley, who has narrowly trailed Smith in the most recent polls. With the race whittled down to two candidates now in a state that is likely to be carried by Barack Obama, the Dems' chances are now helped by them not having to worry about a third-party spoiler affecting the outcome.

Under the shadow of tomorrow's presidential primary, there's another very big race with national implications taking place in Oregon: The Dem Senate primary, where two candidates are locked in a brutal struggle for the right to take on vulnerable GOP Senator Gordon Smith.

The outcome tomorrow could determine whether Democrats have a chance at winning a big Senate seat that national strategists would absolutely love to capture -- and one that they think could be winnable, in a state that hasn't gone Republican since 1984 and where Barack Obama has led John McCain by double-digit margins.

What has national Dems on the edge of their seats is the fact that the candidate preferred by the national party -- state House Speaker Jeff Merkley -- might not prevail against his spirited primary challenger. Merkley is also under sustained attack from GOP incumbent Smith, who's launched an almost-unprecedented pre-primary ad campaign against him -- prompting some to charge that Smith is trying to swing the race to his lesser-funded opponent.

The guy who just might beat Merkley is attorney Steve Novick. An unorthodox candidate by any measure, he has become a surprise YouTube hit for his ad where he opens a beer with his prosthetic hook. Surprisingly, Novick has managed to lead Merkley by narrow margins in most polls.

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If this new attack ad from GOP Senator Gordon Smith is any indication, he may recognize that he's facing a tough reelection fight and that the Dems have a shot at picking up this plum Oregon Senate seat this fall.

What's particularly interesting about this attack ad is that Smith doesn't know who is opponent is yet.

Jeff Merkley, the state House speaker and the target of this ad, is still locked in a tough fight against attorney Steve Novick for next week's primary. So the attempt by Smith to drive up Merkley's negatives at this point could be a sign that he'd rather face Novick.

A new poll shows another Republican senator just slightly ahead of the opposition, another sign that the Senate GOP will have to seriously play on defense this year.

The new Rasmussen poll of Oregon has two-term Sen. Gordon Smith below 50% against state House Speaker Jeff Merkley and Democratic activist Steve Novick:

Smith (R) 45%, Merkley (D) 42% Smith (R) 47%, Novick (D) 41%

Smith is a relative GOP moderate who has turned against the Bush Administration on many Iraq-related votes. However, this remains a state that is likely to go Democratic in the Fall, so he'll need quite a few ticket-splitters to get across the finish line.

This is kind of fun. The Huffington Post reported today that GOP Senator Gordon Smith defended Trent Lott's 2002 segregationist comments on the floor of the Senate during a send-off for the retiring Lott this morning:

"I was half way around the world when an event befell Trent Lott that shook me deeply," Smith said, referencing Lott's 2002 remarks in praise of Dixiecrat Strom Thurmond's 1948 run for the White House. "I was celebrating my re-election and on vacation. I watched over international news as his words were misconstrued, words which we had heard him utter many times in his big warm-heartedness trying to make one of our colleagues, Strom Thurmond, feel good at 100 years old. We knew what he meant. But the wolfpack of the press circled around him, sensed blood in the water, and the exigencies of politics caused a great injustice..."...

Smith said Lott should never have stepped down from his leadership position. "It was a wrong," Smith said of Lott's 2002 resignation, "but it was a wrong that was righted."

Hmmm -- Smith thinks Lott's words were misconstrued, that he was wronged, and that he should never have resigned?

Turns out that isn't what he said at the time. According an Associated Press article on December 17, 2002, Smith reacted as follows:

"However they were intended, Senator Lott's words were offensive and I was deeply dismayed to hear of them," Smith said in a brief statement. "His statement goes against everything I and the people of Oregon believe in. I look forward to working with my Republican colleagues to arrive at a decision that is best for the U.S. Senate and the country."

Three days later, according to the AP, Smith also said:

"I appreciate that Senator Lott has stepped down, it was a courageous thing for him to do..."Senator Lott's decision is best for the Senate and best for the country."

Classic Gordon Smith -- condemns Lott when the pressure is on, but completely exonerates him when no one's paying any attention.

A new round of Senate polls from SurveyUSA, commissioned by Roll Call, show the Republicans in serious trouble for the 2008 Senate races.

In Oregon, Republican incumbent Gordon Smith is ahead but under 50% against two Democrats, leading state House Speaker Jeff Merkley 48%-39%, and leading Democratic activist Steve Novick 45%-39%.

In Minnesota, incumbent Republican Norm Coleman is statistically tied with both his Democratic opponents, with a one-point 46%-45% lead against Al Franken, and a 44%-44% tie against attorney and 2000 Senate candidate Mike Ciresi.

For the open seat in New Mexico, Republican Representatives Steve Pearce and Heath Wilson both trail Democratic Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chávez, with Chávez at 48%-43% against Pearce and 48%-44% against Wilson. This is a turnaround from earlier polls that showed Chávez to be a weak Democratic nominee. Dem Congressman Tom Udall, who is also looking at the race, was not polled.

In the open-seat race in Virginia, former Democratic Governor Mark Warner leads former GOP Governor Jim Gilmore 57%-35%, and leads former Senator George Allen — who has not indicated that he would run — by a 52%-42% margin.

In New Hampshire, incumbent Republican John Sununu trails his 2002 opponent Jeanne Shaheen by a 53%-42% margin.

The Republicans' only bright spot is Maine, where Senator Susan Collins leads Dem Congressman Tom Allen 55%-38%.

Late Update: In another poll result I missed before, Democrats are also ahead in the open-seat race in Colorado, with Dem Congressman Mark Udall leading former Republican Congressman Bob Schaffer 48%-41%.

Jeff Merkley — the Oregon House speaker who announced last week that he'll run to unseat GOP Senator Gordon Smith — is predicting that he'll succeed in taking out the incumbent with a campaign about Smith's opposition to universal health care and about the GOP Senator's "election night conversion" on Iraq.

In a preview of his electoral strategy, Merkley said in an interview with Election Central that while Smith has voted against Bush and the GOP in recent votes, Oregon voters would still hold him accountable for his previous war support and would show him the door.

"Smith had an election night conversion," Merkley said, speaking of the GOP Senator's newfound call for withdrawal from Iraq.

"Smith says now that last year he read a book that persuaded him he was on the wrong track. If that's the case, he stayed silent until the election occurred, he saw that he was fully out of sync with the American public, and then he made his conversion. We don't need a senator who makes election night conversions."

More from Merkley after the jump.

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Senator Gordon Smith (R-OR) — a conservative who has broken with the White House on Iraq since this past November — officially has a Democratic opponent. State House Speaker Jeff Merkley declared his candidacy today, which had been expected since last week.

In his announcement statement, Merkley talks about his working class background and positions on education and health care — but also makes it clear that he does not intend to cede any advantage to Smith on the Iraq issue despite Smith's breaking with the White House over the war.

"Sadly, Gordon Smith is unwilling or unable to take a firm stance against the Bush Administration's tragic mistakes," Merkley says. "Unlike Gordon Smith, I have opposed the war in Iraq from the beginning, and as Oregon's United States Senator, I will work every day to bring our sons and daughters home."

Merkley's campaign Web site is here.

Uh, oh -- looks like GOP Senator Gordon Smith may be facing a new Democratic challenger: Oregon House speaker Jeff Merkley.

Smith is vulnerable to a 2008 challenge in larger part because of Iraq, though he is not a member of the GOP WINO caucus, having voted in favor of withdrawal timetables. The question now is whether his votes in favor of withdrawal will cancel out his previous support of the war and the generally dismal level of popularity the GOP brand is enjoying these days.

From the Associated Press:

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Oregon House Speaker Jeff Merkley plans to file notice with the Federal Election Commission by Aug. 1 that he'll be running for the U.S. Senate against incumbent Republican Gordon Smith, two sources close to the campaign told The Associated Press Tuesday.

Merkley is on vacation in Central Oregon with his family this week, and wants to consult with them one last time before making the final, firm decision to challenge Smith, according to a strategist who has been advising Merkley.

"He could come back and say, 'We've decided that we are just not ready for this," the strategist said. "I strongly believe that is not going to happen."

Oregon is a Democratic-leaning state, and Merkley, a Portland Dem who led the Democratic takeover of the Oregon House last year, appears to be a top choice of national Democrats, who have been searching for a high-profile challenger to Smith for months now.

National Dems unsuccessfully tried to recruit U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio to challenge Smith, but that fell through. Merkley has been meeting with freshman Dem Senators around the country, all of whom are encouraging him to run.

Looks like Dems are going to have to keep looking for someone to challenge vulnerable GOP Senator Gordon Smith next year.

One of the most promising candidates who was thinking of challenging Smith — Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) — has just announced that he won't be making the run. One the Blue Oregon Web site, Blumenauer himself has posted the following:

"At this unique moment in history there is too much work to be done in the House of Representatives to take on a campaign for the U.S. Senate. The winning candidate should devote 100 percent effort for the next 18 months to overcome the onslaught that will come from the incumbent, Karl Rove and the Bush White House, and the many special interests who want to keep Smith in office."

This leaves Dems without a top-tier challenger to Smith after multiple recruitment attempts, including a recent failed effort to convince Rep. Peter DeFazio to mount a bid.

Despite a DSCC-commissioned poll showing that Dem Rep. Peter DeFazio was running ahead of hyper-vulnerable GOP Senator Gordon Smith, DeFazio tells The Oregonian today that he won't make the race.

In another indication of Smith's vulnerability, the incumbent Senator was the only Republican in the Senate to vote for a Harry Reid-sponsored resolution on Iraq a few weeks back. But that and the DSCC poll weren't enough to persuade DeFazio to give up his slot on "a powerful House Transportation subcommittee responsible for doling out hundreds of billions of dollars of highway funding," the paper says.

"This was not an easy decision," DeFazio said. "You don't get a poll that shows you're ahead of an incumbent senator and generous offers of support from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and just blow it off. It was a long and serious deliberation on my part."

GOP Senator Gordon Smith should theoretically be vulnerable in 2008 thanks to his initial support of the war and the fact that his seat is in a Dem-leaning state — but national Democrats are struggling to come up with a good candidate to take Smith out, Roll Call reports.

At first glance, Smith wouldn't appear to be in danger. Smith is known as a genial campaigner who has historically run ahead of the rest of the Republican ticket. He was first elected to his seat in 1996 despite Bill Clinton's victory, and his reelection in 2002 coincided with a Democratic victory in the open-seat Governor's race. And he's got $2 million in the bank — a healthy stockpile for such a low-profile state.

National Democrats, however, think Smith is more vulnerable this time around thanks to the national climate created by the war. As one Dem operative put it to Roll Call: "Iraq is his biggest vulnerability." Smith, for his part, has put as much distance as possible between himself and the rest of his party on Iraq: Yesterday he was the only Republican to vote for the failed Democratic resolution calling for phased withdrawal from Iraq in 2008.

Nevertheless, the right Dem is proving elusive. Potential top candidates who have taken themselves out of the running include Congressman Pete Defazio, former Governor John Kitzhaber and others.

Here's another Republican Senator who intends to break ranks and support Senator Majority Leader Harry Reid's new move to bring an anti-escalation resolution up for a vote tomorrow: Senator Gordon Smith.

Smith's press secretary, R.C. Hammond, tells Election Central that Smith will vote for cloture, despite Minority Leader Mitch McConell's call for Republicans to block a vote.

Smith had previously voted against cloture on the earlier Warner measure, joining with GOPers upset with Reid's refusal to bring up an additional resolution of support for funding of the troops. Smith subsequently signed on to a letter with six other GOP Senators about their determination to bring the Warner anti-surge resolution to the floor.

Dem Senate leader Harry Reid has called their bluff by calling for a vote tomorrow on whether to allow the simpler House anti-escalation resolution to go to the floor. And now Smith has indicated that he'll support it.

That brings our total of GOP Senators who are either likely or certain to support cloture tomorrow to four: Senators Smith, Warner, Snowe, and Collins. By our count, the Dems may need 11 GOP Senators to get to the magic number of 60. More soon.