By Chris Cillizza & Paul Kane
PLAYERS and PLAYERS
Sunday, July 20, 2008

Much has been made of Senate Democrats' two-to-one cash advantage over their Republican counterparts as the November elections approach.

But less attention has been paid to how the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee will try to maximize that edge in the final four months of the election. And the answer might surprise even the most hardened of political operatives.

Rather than focus exclusively -- or even primarily -- on television advertising, the DSCC has already begun to put field organization in place in 17 states to ensure that no potential voter is missed in what is shaping up to be a very good year for Democrats.

The DSCC has already channeled $5 million to state parties -- the leading edge of what DSCC Executive Director J.B. Poersch described as a "significant" investment in ground operations. By way of comparison, the committee spent $29.5 million on field operations in the 2006 election cycle while spending $42 million on television ads.

Senate Democrats picked up six seats in 2006 and retook the majority in the chamber, thanks to a trio of very narrow wins. In Montana, Sen. Jon Tester beat Conrad Burns by less than 3,000 votes out of almost 200,000 cast; Sen. Jim Webb triumphed in Virginia by a mere 7,000 votes; and Sen. Claire McCaskill (Mo.) prevailed by 46,000 out of more than 2 million total ballots.

Following the successful 2006 blueprint, DSCC political director Martha McKenna worked with each state party to design a field plan aimed at taking advantage of national Democrats' considerable funding advantage. In each of the 17 targeted states, the DSCC has a staffer on the ground to organize voter identification and turnout efforts.

So far this election cycle, the National Republican Senatorial Committee has transferred $47,000 to state party committees. And the Republican National Committee is not likely to provide much relief to endangered GOPers in targeted states. The RNC seems certain to focus its full financial attention on the presidential race, where it will be relied on to try to make up the fundraising disparity between Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.).

"We have always felt field is crucial," said Sen. Chuck Schumer (N.Y.), DSCC chairman. "For the first time, we had a better field operation than the GOP in 2006, and we're working hard this year to maintain that edge."

The Democratic faithful on Capitol Hill have had plenty to boast about recently, with special-election wins in the Deep South and legislative victories over President Bush on key domestic issues.

But it's been eight years since they had anything to cheer about on the baseball diamond -- until Thursday night.

That's right, late in the annual Congressional Baseball Game, the Democrats took a 4-3 lead and appeared on the verge of their first victory over their Republican rivals since 2000. Buoyed by an optimism rooted in their new majority status on the Hill -- and a presidential nominee-in-waiting who's ahead in most polls -- the Democratic fans began to believe. "Yes, we can!" the Democratic crowd thundered, echoing the campaign slogan of Barack Obama.

In the bottom of the sixth inning, Rep. Joe Baca (Calif.), the wily 61-year-old pitcher for the Democrats, tired and surrendered five runs, giving the GOP a commanding 8-4 lead heading into the last frame of the seven-inning game. But the Democrats rallied again, keyed by a pair of two-run singles by Baca and Rep. Adam Smith (Wash.), giving the Democrats a 10-8 lead with the Republicans' last at-bats approaching.

Rep. Mike Doyle (Pa.), the Democratic manager, removed Baca in favor of Rep. Bart Stupak (Mich.) to try to close out the game. But Stupak proved wild, and soon the bases were filled with Republicans. Using the game's liberal multiple-substitution rules, Doyle sent Baca back out to the mound. (The Fix would have to consult official baseball scoring manuals to determine if this would have given Baca the chance for both the win and the save.)

After a wild pitch made the score 10-9, the Democrats chose to load the bases, looking for a game-ending double play. Sure enough, Baca cleanly fielded a one-hopper hit straight to him, pivoted and threw to home, where Rep. Chris Murphy (Conn.), the freshman Democratic catcher, fielded the ball and tagged home plate. Two outs. Murphy looked down the first base line and had a clear shot to throw out the GOP runner, Rep. Connie Mack (Fla.), for the double play.

Then, disaster struck for the long-suffering Democrats. Murphy's throw sailed high above the first baseman and deep down the right field line. One Republican runner scored, and then Rep. Adam Putnam (Fla.), who started the play on first, scurried home with the winning run. Republicans prevailed, 11-10.

"The Democrats deserved to win the game," Rep. Zach Wamp (Tenn.), the Republican shortstop who had two hits, told the Roll Call newspaper, the sponsor of the game. "I've played for 12 years, and this was the best baseball game I've played in."

PLAYERS

The inner circle of advisers who formed the strategy team for former North Carolina senator John Edwards's presidential bids in 2004 and 2008 is (finally) splitting up. Several have signed on to the Obama cause in one role or another. Jonathan Prince, one of Edwards's most senior advisers, agreed late last week to run the independent expenditure arm of the Democratic National Committee; Christina Reynolds, who served as Edwards's research director in both of his presidential races, is now the director of rapid response for Obama. Eric Schultz, the national spokesman for Edwards's bid earlier this year, is headed to Minnesota to help steady Al Franken's Senate bid. And Chris Chafe, an Edwards labor adviser during the primary, is returning back to the organized labor fold -- as executive director of the Change to Win coalition.

1 day: Sen. John McCain travels to Kennebunkport, Maine, to raise cash with the former first couple: president George H.W. Bush and first lady Barbara Bush.

19 days: The Beijing Summer Olympics begin. And, for two weeks, politics takes a back seat.