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State House Speaker Jeff Merkley edged out Portland lawyer Steve Novick last week to become the Oregon Democratic Party's nominee for the Senate. Meanwhile, the incumbent, Sen. Gordon Smith (R), was already busy trying to set the tone of the general election.

Smith spent nearly half a million dollars (subscription) running attack ads (subscription) against both Democrats, but particularly targeting Merkley, before the primary race even wrapped up. And the senator went up with a new spot the day before Merkley captured the nomination, portraying himself as a middle-of-the-road candidate with wide support from both conservative and liberal Oregonians.

In "Middle Ground" (subscription), an announcer proclaims Smith to be "moderate, independent," and "bipartisan," while listing policy issues on which she claims Smith has worked with both Republicans and Democrats. "The Oregonian says 'Smith stands for beliefs on middle ground,'" the announcer proclaims, while also citing National Journal's 2007 Senate vote ratings, which placed Smith "at the center of the Senate." Smith appears on screen at the end of the spot to express his approval for "working together across party lines."

The same day that the TV spot went on air, Smith took out full-page newspaper ads [PDF] in several Oregon publications touting his support from a number of Democratic politicians. "As a Democrat, I’m voting for Gordon Smith," says former Rep. Elizabeth Furse.

The Oregonian points out that in his previous Senate victories, Smith has relied on securing the state's conservative base while winning over enough independents and Democrats to gain a majority, but that task might be more difficult in a year that has already proven tough for Republican incumbents. "Smith has gotten busy trying to burnish his credentials as an independent, bipartisan thinker," the paper says, because the state now leans to the left and Smith cannot risk being portrayed as a Bush Republican.

He is enjoying a head start over Merkley, however, who all but depleted his campaign resources in the hard-fought primary.