Smith spends $500,000 hitting Merkley

Sen. Gordon Smith has inserted himself in the Democratic U.S. Senate primary over the past couple of weeks, spending half a million dollars on ads attacking the candidates.

Smith’s focus has been primarily on Speaker Jeff Merkley, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee’s hand-picked candidate. After an initial double-hit on both Merkley and primary opponent Steve Novick, Smith has been narrowing his sights, airing radio and television ads attacking Merkley’s fundraising history, and his inability to understand the rural economy and way of life.

Merkley’s campaign said that Smith has been “distorting” the record, pointing to the senator’s wealth of special interest money and noting that the speaker did not accept a dime from any interest registered in Oregon during the February session.

The campaign is also riled over Smith $35,000 radio buy which attacks the speaker’s record of working for rural eastern Oregonians.

“Portland politicians like Jeff Merkley just never seem to get it - failing to understand our rural economy and our way of life.  Instead of bridging the rural-urban divide – they make it worse,” one spot claims, taking on water and health care issues in the region. The ad also derides Merkley’s “failing grade” from the Oregon Farm Bureau.Merkley, who was raised in a rural community, did split his votes in the 2007 session; five out of nine times, he voted with the Oregon Farm Bureau’s stance on bills.

His campaign, however, noted the positive view the OFB took of the session generally: “Any way you slice it, Oregon’s family farmers and ranchers — and by extension every Oregonian who enjoys local ag products and rural scenery — have a lot to celebrate from the 2007 Session of the Legislature.”

Smith’s decided financial advantage has allowed him to run the blitz, but the DSCC has been jumping to Merkley’s defense, releasing two spots defending the Speaker and ignoring Novick.

According to politico.com, a Democratic operative has estimated that the DSCC has spent over $300,000 taking on Smith’s claims about Merkley.