"Striving to preserve" a Dem Senate majority, Pres. Obama stumped in Seattle 10/21 for Sen. Patty Murray (D), framing her re-election fight as a choice between "falling backwards and moving forwards." During "a serene backyard chat at a North Seattle home and a raucous campaign rally" at the Univ. of WA, Obama "pressed his case" that GOPers had wrecked the economy and were now playing politics instead of helping him fix it.

Obama headlined a rally at Univ. of WA, where "he and Murray were frequently interrupted by loud cheers and chants of 'Yes We Can!'" Obama and Murray "directly assailed" '04/08 GOV nominee Dino Rossi (R). Murray called Rossi "Di-NO," citing his opposition to just about everything the Obama admin. has proposed. Murray: "This election is about pushing forward. It's about putting middle-class families ahead of special interests. It's about putting Main Street ahead of Wall Street."

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Obama "slammed Rossi" for being "the first candidate in the country" to call for repeal of the Wall Street regulation overhaul he recently signed into law.

For their part, GOPers derided Obama's visit as another leg of "Murray's D.C. bosses tour" -- referring to the stream of Dem icons who have campaigned for her lately (Brunner, Seattle Times, 10/21).

Just Kent Get Enough

On the day Murray hosted Obama in Seattle, Rossi toured a Kent aerospace company and later "rebuked Murray for requesting millions in earmarks during her time in the Senate."

Rossi held a news conference later that day where "he attacked Murray for her use of earmarks," including a $3M appropriation in '01 for a maritime museum on Seattle's waterfront that failed. He criticized Murray for defending AK's "Bridge to Nowhere" and for requesting a $1M earmark this year for a Canadian company that's a client of her former CoS, who is now a lobbyist (Tsong, Seattle Times, 10/21).

Rossi "pledged again" 10/21 that he wouldn't use earmarks. Rossi said he'd forego the practice -- even if he couldn't convince others in Congress to stop the special budget allocations until the gov't is back in the black (Grygiel, "Strange Bedfellows," Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 10/21).

Hello, Ladies

The DSCC has launched a new TV ad. Full script, "Why":

ANNCR : "Why would the women of Washington ever trust Dino Rossi? He voted to deny unemployment benefits to women who were fleeing domestic violence. Voted to let insurance companies deny covering women's contraceptives. And Rossi wants to take away a woman's right to choose and, in almost every circumstance, make abortion illegal. Ask yourself -- Why would we ever trust Dino Rossi? The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee is responsible for the content of this advertising" (youtube.com, 10/22)

Cash Money

A "torrent of campaign cash continues to surge into the race" as independent groups spent almost $4.5M in three days this week. More than $11.4M in IEs in the race have been reported, according to the Sunlight Foundation, a nonpartisan, nonprofit watchdog group that tracks such spending using Federal Election Commission filings (Blumenthal, Tacoma News-Tribune, 10/22).

Maria, Maria

When Maria Gianni "is knocking on voters' doors, she's not bashful about telling people she is in the country illegally. She knows it's a risk to advertise to strangers that she's here illegally -- but one worth taking in what she sees as a crucial election."

She "is one of dozens of volunteers -- many of them illegal immigrants -- canvassing neighborhoods in the Seattle area trying to get naturalized citizens to cast a ballot for candidates like" Murray.

Pramila Jayapal, head of OneAmerica Votes, says the campaign is about empowering immigrants who may not feel like they can contribute to a campaign because they can't vote.

"So far the illegal immigrants going door-to-door aren't meeting opposition." Craig Keller, an organizer for Respect WA, a "group pushing for stricter immigration law" in WA, said he doesn't mind illegal immigrants volunteering for vote drives, he just wants to make sure mistakes on the voter rolls don't allow them to vote.

OneAmerica Votes "launched one of the largest get-out-the-vote campaigns in the state" on behalf of Dem candidates. The organization "is an offshoot of OneAmerica, one of the state's largest and the most influential immigrant-rights advocacy group." About 150 volunteers rolled out in nine cities across WA this past week, knocking on 3K doors (Valdes, AP, 10/22).

Opine With Me

Portland Oregonian's Hovde writes, Rossi "should running away with this one and if he doesn't, it can only be explained by the Puget Sound area's misguided allegiance" to Dems" no matter who is in the running: Have a 'D' next to your name, pass go and head straight to" DC.

Murray's "best has been seen in her persistent fight for veterans, helping increase their access to quality care and benefits. But there is no reason to believe Rossi wouldn't be similarly dedicated."

And "on the whole, the nation needs" sens. "with a passion for reigning in spending rather than pushing pork, so we can continue to help those in the most need." "Let's hope" WA voters "pass this easy Senate test, putting Rossi in the game" (10/21).