Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.) has entered a grim new stage in the aftermath of the secret affair that went so publicly wrong.

As Roll Call reported yesterday, subpoenas have been issued to the National Republican Senatorial Committee, which Ensign used to head. Back in Ensign's home state, local media reported on other subpoenas.

And now, in one of the state's big newspapers, columnist Jon Ralston lays out reasons he thinks Ensign should just quit.

Writes Ralston:

"It's clear from interviews conducted here and by national newspapers that Ensign abused his power as a senator to cover up his affair and to try to buy Hampton's silence. But the senator may never admit to wrongdoing or be found technically guilty of anything. He is hardly innocent, though -- guilty at least of unethical conduct by normal barometers, and of selfishly using those close to him to help cover his tracks and then jeopardizing their livelihoods.

Hmm. Sounds almost exactly what President Bill Clinton did to cover up his indiscretion. And John Ensign called on him to resign. Senator, heal thyself."

The Las Vegas Sun describes an interesting dynamic as Nevada gets ready to choose its next governor. To innoculate himself against being called a quitter, a candidate is on the air with an ad patting himself on the back for leaving one job to run for another.

The radio ad for Republican candidate Brian Sandoval tells voters he's "the first federal judge in Nevada history to give up a lifetime appointment to run for governor."

What the ad doesn't mention (but which his opponents do mention, according to the story), is that Sandoval left an Assembly seat to join the Nevada Gaming Commission, left the commission to run for attorney general and failed to serve out his attorney general post because he got a lifetime appointment as a federal judge.

As House Democratic leaders and liberal groups ratchet up the pressure on vulnerable Democrats to support the health care bill this week, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is warning 10 of them of risks at the ballot box if they vote "aye."

The Chamber commissioned polls in 10 battleground districts held by Democrats. In all 10, voters told the group's pollster they overwhelmingly oppose the health care legislation, and would be more likely to vote for their local representatives' re-election if they vote "no" on the health bill.

The targeted 10 were:

Former Nevada state Sen. Sue Lowden (R) may not be generating the sort of photo-op she intended with her "Protect Your Freedom Gun Shoot" and fundraiser at the Clark County Shooting Park on Wednesday.

Turns out that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), Lowden's prospective general election opponent, is the public official roundly credited for obtaining the funding and the land transfer for the park. National Rifle Association CEO Wayne LaPierre even attended the opening ceremony of the park with Reid in August 2009 and said in a statement, "We wouldn't be here without his vision and hard work."

That doesn't help bolster Lowden's assertion that Reid hasn't delivered for the state as majority leader, a point she and other Republicans have reiterated in countering the incumbent's central pitch. Reid has worked to portray himself as indispensable to Nevada as he gears up for what is likely to be the toughest re-election battle of his career.

The star of a new ad being aired in Nevada by Senate candidate Danny Tarkanian is a name you may not know: Chuck Heath.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports that the ad makes this appeal to Republican voters: "You supported my daughter Sarah Palin, now please join me in supporting another strong conservative: Danny Tarkanian."

One of Tarkanian's rivals, former state Assemblywoman Sharon Angle, also is up with a new ad campaign.

(Hat tip: BNN Frontrunner)

Former Nevada Assemblywoman Sharron Angle (R) will be the second Republican to go on the air in the Senate primary with a new radio ad starting Monday.

The 60-second spot, airing statewide for the next two weeks, critiques the the federal government's bailouts for Wall Street and also talks up a Tea Party rally taking place in Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's hometown of Searchlight, Nev. on March 27.

The rally, organized by the group Tea Party Express, will feature former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, conservative commentator Andrew Breitbart and others.

Angle, an outspoken conservative, herself, trails fellow Republicans former state Sen. Sue Lowden -- who has already aired several television commercials -- and Las Vegas real estate developer Danny Tarkanian in recent primary polls, but tops Reid in a hypothetical general election match-up.

CQ Politics rates the general election contest a Toss Up.

To follow all the 2010 Senate races, check out our election map.

You decide: Scare tactics or important information sharing?

More health care advertising began airing Friday, with groups both for and against the Democrats' legislation dropping approximately $1.5 million on television and radio buys to push their side of the debate.

Two conservative advocacy groups are up with new television ads opposing the bill. Americans for Prosperity is targeting 18 Democratic House members with a $750,000 buy, while the American Future Fund is going after Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Pa.) a 60-second spot airing statewide through next week at a cost of $250,000.

The AFF ad is the second in a series targeting Democratic Senators, which started Thursday with another $250,000 buy in Nevada criticizing Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.).

Nevada's filing deadline is today, and another filing deadline looms Monday in California, Maine and Montana.

In between Republicans in California have their state convention.

Last night, Republicans in Pennsylvania filled their part of the ballot for the special May 18 election to choose someone to fill the seat -- for the rest of this year -- of the late Rep. John Murtha.

As our Shira Toeplitz reports, businessman Tim Burns is the GOP choice.

The conservative advocacy group American Future Fund has made a new $250,000 television ad buy going after Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) over Democrats' procedural maneuvering on the health care bill.

The 60-second spot, airing statewide on network and cable television starting tonight, comes as Republicans step up their rhetoric opposing Senate Democrats' plans to pass a controversial health care overhaul via a process called reconciliation, which requires a simple majority, rather than a two-thirds vote to break a filibuster.

Republicans have dubbed the procedure the "nuclear option," which the AFF ad picks up on.

Republican Brain Sandoval now has an 18-point lead over Democrat Rory Reid in the Nevada governor's race, a new Rasmussen poll reports.

The telephone survey of 500 likely voters, conducted March 3, found that Reid, son of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, trailing Sandoval 53 percent to 35 percent, while 7 percent prefer another candidate and 5 percent are undecided.

Another GOP hopeful, North Las Vegas Mayor Mike Montandon, posts a 42 percent to 37 percent lead over Reid.

Reid still leads the state's unpopular incumbent Republican Gov. Jim Gibbons, 44 percent to 36 percent, while 15 percent prefer someone else and 4 percent are undecided.

It was only this morning -- wasn't it? -- that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid remarked on the declining numbers of newly unemployed Americans by saying, "Today is a big day in America. Only 36,000 people lost their jobs today... which is really good."

Republican Danny Tarkanian jumped on the opportunity to engage in what Internet professionals call user engagement. The campaign's web site now includes a section called "Reidisms" that's meant to create some buzz and repeat traffic from people who want to "vote on the worst Reidism."

The game demands an e-mail address before partisans are allowed to play, so the campaign will be able to feed new names to its fundraising folks at the same time.

Tarkanian (R) isn't alone in the Reid-bashing department.

Veteran Nevada political reporter Jon Ralston got the dirt on mysterious "Tea Party" Senate candidate Scott Ashjian and his campaign to take on Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) in an interview on his "Face-to-Face" program Tuesday night (Ashjian appears in the third and fourth video segments).

Ashjian, an unknown Las Vegas businessman, came out of nowhere to announce last month he would challenge Reid as well as the GOP's slate of candidates. He told Ralston that he is the "only real conservative on the ticket." He filed his paperwork to run on Tuesday.

Ashjian rejected rumors that he might be secretly aligned with the Reid campaign -- recent polling shows his candidacy would help Reid close the gap with Republicans and other Tea Party activists have disavowed him.

"I've never met Harry Reid, don't plan on meeting Harry Reid, don't like Harry Reid. ... The bottom line is Harry Reid needs to go," he told Ralston.

Former state Sen. Sue Lowden (R) is up with her third ad of the Nevada Senate campaign, a spot that shifts the dialogue from jobs and economy to health care.

And this 30-second ad goes directly after Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.)

"Harry Reid's big government health care will raise taxes, put a bureaucrat between you and your doctor, weaken Medicare, kill jobs, push us further into debt," says Lowden, ticking off the litany of conservative complaints against the Democrats' health care overhaul proposal.

Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is trying out a political tactic perfected by none other than Republican strategist Karl Rove -- taking an opponent's political strength and turning it into a weakness.

In this case, Reid is going after former state Sen. Sue Lowden's (R) record on job creation, one of the central platforms of her campaign. The header on her campaign Web site: "Fighting for your job ... is my job."

Reid's campaign is seeking to undermine that narrative with two releases in the past week detailing instances where Archon Corp., the company helmed by Lowden and her husband, shed jobs while also doling out bonuses to Paul Lowden.

A third party candidate could be the key to Majority Leader Harry Reid's (D-Nev.) political survival.

A new poll of likely voters conducted by Mason-Dixon for the Las Vegas Review-Journal found that Reid leads against a generic Republican and a generic Tea Party candidate.

The "Tea Party of Nevada" recently filed the paperwork to become an official party in the state, and a political unknown, businessman John Ashjian, has indicated he wants to run on the Tea Party line.

In the three way match-up it's:

Reid 36 percent GOP nominee 32 percent Tea Party candidate 18 percent Undecided 14 percent

Reid has the lead among the all-important independent vote in that scenario, although the plurality of independents -- 30 percent -- are undecided. The poll, conducted Feb. 22 to 24, has a margin of error of 4 percent.