This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2006, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The National Bank of Republicans has been closed for LaVar Christensen, and it's likely to stay that way.
Hyped early on as a premier House race, destined to draw the attention and dollars of the national Republican Party, Christensen's challenge to Democratic Rep. Jim Matheson has dropped off the national radar, the hype giving way to the reality of national political trends.
In what had already shaped up as a bad year for Republicans, Florida Rep. Mark Foley's scandal has only compounded problems. As Republicans scramble to do damage control, experts say chances are slim the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) will cough up cash to help Christensen or any other challenger.
"I would be dumbfounded if another dollar goes to another challenger race anywhere in the country," said Eddie Mahe, a former deputy chairman of the Republican National Committee who also ran two of Mike Leavitt's gubernatorial campaigns. "It's a lost cause for getting any national support."
In 2004, when former state Rep. John Swallow ran against Matheson, the national party had pumped $475,022 into the contest four weeks from election day. By the time voters cast ballots, the party spent another $596,988, most of it attacking Matheson.
Now, forced to play defense to protect dozens of endangered incumbents across the country, the NRCC has been able to offer Christensen nothing more than words of encouragement.
For his part, Christensen says he doesn't need the help. He has put $600,000 of his own money into the race. He says he is in regular contact with the NRCC but hasn't had to ask them for assistance.
"I haven't gone to them for anything. They don't need to do as much because I'm doing so much more than other candidates have done," Christensen said. "I'm keeping my eye on Election Day. I'm pressing on, trying to communicate with Utahns."
If he were to ask, the party would consider the request, said NRCC spokeswoman Mary-Sarah Kinner.
"Our funding decisions are fluid at this point," she said. "There's always a possibility of anything."
Possible, but extremely unlikely, says Kirk Jowers, a campaign-finance expert and director of the Hinckley Institute of Politics at the University of Utah. The party's unwillingness to put money in the 2nd District "is one of the big signs that they don't consider it a competitive race."
"It's essentially the party throwing up the white flag that they know this is over for this seat" and is now focusing its finances on defending one of the multitude of vulnerable Republicans in other states, Jowers said.
Matheson, however, isn't counting the national party out, yet.
"There's no guarantee they won't come in. There's five weeks to go. I can't assume it's not going to happen. It's happened every other year."
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) also has not poured the flood of money into the state that it did in 2004, setting its sights on other battles.
Democrats need to win 15 Republican seats to take control of the House of Representatives, and the battle was pitched even before the Foley scandal hit the headlines.
Through last week, the NRCC had spent more than $23 million in "independent expenditures," the overwhelming majority of it going to protecting sitting GOP members. The DCCC has countered with nearly $10 million in spending, according to party disclosures.
A review by CQPolitics.com, which covers Congress, found that 89 percent of the money the NRCC spent in September went toward protecting Republican seats. By comparison, in the 2004 election, only 56 percent was spent playing defense.
Said Mahe: "This is just not a good year to be looking to Washington for help as a challenger."
If the NRCC doesn't get into the race, what does it mean for Utah voters?
Primarily, that Utahns won't be bombarded with attack ads on their televisions and in their mailboxes. In years past, both the NRCC and DCCC swamped the airwaves with back-and-forth "issue ads," much harsher and more negative in tone than ads produced by the campaigns.
In 2004, for example, the NRCC hit Matheson for his Medicare prescription-drug benefit vote, calling the program, proposed by the Bush administration, a giveaway to big drug companies.
Utah Republican Party Executive Director Jeff Hartley said he hopes the national party comes around but recognizes it may be difficult this election.
"[Christensen] is still putting cash in and raising cash, but the level of support that the national committee has given in the past is significant, and we think if we had that this year we could put this seat in play," Hartley said. "But given the contested races around the country and the need for NRCC to defend incumbents first, the pot of money will empty quite quickly."