Ready or not, the 2008 campaign in Indiana's "Bloody 8th" congressional district has begun.

In the first paid advertising of a campaign in which Rep. Brad Ellsworth, D-Ind., is expected to seek re-election, national Republicans have launched a radio blitz against him.

The first official step in the 2008 campaign was taken by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which named Ellsworth as a beneficiary of its Frontline incumbent protection program on Feb. 15 — just six weeks after he was sworn in to his first term.

"We'll provide (Ellsworth) with money, message and strategy, if he needs it," said Ryan Rudominer, Midwest regional press secretary for the DCCC.

The National Republican Congressional Committee's radio ad accuses Ellsworth of "voting with liberal (House Speaker) Nancy Pelosi" to Indiana's detriment.

The ad charges Ellsworth with voting for "pork-barrel spending" and voting to "give union organizers more power to intimidate employees by taking away secret ballots."

On March 1, the House passed a bill that would take away employers' right to demand federally supervised secret-ballot elections by workers before unions could be recognized. Ellsworth backed the bill, joining other Democrats in a party-line 241-185 vote.

Ellsworth declined to respond to the Republican ad, saying through a spokesperson that he prefers to focus on congressional business. But he told a Washington-based newspaper he supports labor.

"As the sheriff of Vanderburgh County, I backed my deputies when they sought representation because I believed they, and all American workers, should have the opportunity to work together to better their lives," Ellsworth told The Hill.

Republicans acknowledge they think Ellsworth could be vulnerable in 2008 because the 8th District has been fertile territory for the GOP. Republican John Hostettler represented the district for 12 years before Ellsworth defeated him last year.

In March the NRCC launched a viral marketing campaign against Ellsworth and 10 other freshmen House Democrats it calls "endangered."

"Our new Web site (www.TheRealDemocratStory.com/brad.ellsworth) will be a real-time way for voters to compare how their once-congressional candidates' rhetoric matches with their newly elected congressman's record," said NRCC spokeswoman Jessica Boulanger.

Ellsworth's reaction

During a May 4 meeting with Courier & Press editors, Ellsworth said he was surprised to see how early both major parties began 2008 campaign-related activity.

"That's their job," he said. "That's what those two entities pay their people to do — to look for the best way to make the other side look the worst they can. And if you've got 16 hours a day to sit there and think, 'How can I do this?' more power to them. I hope that brings them pleasure in life.

"It wouldn't be anything I'd choose to do, and sometimes I feel a little bit sorry for them, that they're sitting there in a cubicle in Washington, D.C."

Ellsworth said he anticipates seeking re-election but he has been too busy in Washington to concentrate on campaign fundraising.

If he does his job well, Ellsworth said, "the politics will take care of itself."

First-quarter campaign finance reports with the Federal Election Commission indicate Ellsworth had raised $227,731 for his 2008 re-election as of March 31. He had $215,682 on hand with $114,781 in debt.

Vanderburgh County Republican Chairman Nicholas Hermann, head of the 8th District's largest GOP organization, said the early front-runner for the party's 2008 nomination is Greg Goode, executive assistant to the president of Indiana State University.

Earlier this month Goode, who has not announced whether he will run, attended a two-day NRCC candidates school in Washington. The ISU lobbyist also has been attending GOP events all over the district.

"I would anticipate having to make a final decision here fairly shortly if I want to be considered a serious candidate," Goode said Friday.

Before he decided against challenging Ellsworth, Republican Gibson County Prosecutor Rob Krieg told the Courier & Press he wasn't sure he had time to participate in a campaign that would require him to start more than 18 months before election day.

"The general public's not going to see you in April or May of 2007, but you've got to be out there laying the groundwork," Krieg said.

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