Mike Callaghan was young when he realized he loved politics.
As a 10-year-old, he canvassed Nicholas County with his father,who was running for the school board. Those long days driving theback roads of the county in a wood-paneled station wagon with abullhorn on the roof imbued in the young Callaghan a fierce desire toenter public life.
"Call it fire in the belly, if you want," he says. "My whole lifehas been dedicated to public service."
That fire is being tested this year by a bid to unseat three-termRep. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va. Observers say Callaghan, aDemocrat, has a formidable task, and will need more energy - and moremoney - than his campaign has so far been able to muster.
The scope of his challenge could be glimpsed on a recent day atCelebration Station, a playground in the capital city's East End.Callaghan was unveiling his new Internet ad focusing on children'sissues, specifically the contention that Capito has neglected them.
There was just one problem. On an overcast day, with the park fullof adults, there wasn't a child in sight for a news conferencefocusing on their needs. As an aide scoured the neighborhood forsuitable tots, Callaghan plunged ahead, reeling off votes by Capitoand returning again and again to the central talking point of hiscampaign: that his opponent is arm-in-arm with the Bushadministration.
In a state where Democrats control both houses of the Legislatureand the Governor's Mansion, and hold four of five seats in Congress,Capito has become a favorite of the national Republican Party and anable deflector of Democratic challengers.
In Internet video messages, at his campaign headquarters inCharleston, and face-to-face with the people of the district,Callaghan, 43, has developed an overarching theme: the Bushadministration is taking the country in the wrong direction, andCapito is the administration's willing partner.
"I haven't found a person yet who's happy with the way thecountry's going," says Callaghan, a former assistant U.S. Attorneyand secretary of the West Virginia Department of EnvironmentalProtection. "If you like the direction this country is headed in,vote for her."
Tying Capito with Bush has been the keynote of Callaghan'scampaign, to the point where the words "Shelley Moore Capito is arubber stamp for the failed Bush administration" has almost becomehis mantra.
"Did you get that?" he joked at Celebration Station. "ShelleyMoore Capito is a rubber stamp for the failed Bush administration. DoI need to say it again?"
In particular, Callaghan says that despite areas where Capito andBush disagree - such as abortion and immigration - Capito would nothave become such a high-profile Republican if she were trulyindependent of the administration.
"She sits on the Republican leadership committee for one reason:she votes the way George Bush wants her to vote," he says.
Allan S. Hammock, a professor of political science at WestVirginia University says Callaghan's strategy seems like a goodapproach in a year when pundits are predicting Democratic gains inCongress.
"I don't blame him for taking that approach," Hammock says, butadds that tying Capito to Bush is anything but a sure bet.
"It's not necessarily what's happening nationally that matters themost," Hammock says. "There are other, local issues in any race thatalso play a role."
There are other factors, too.
Bush won West Virginia in 2000 and 2004, and Capito can blanketthe airwaves with her message, thanks to her huge advantage infundraising.
According to Federal Election Commission figures for the periodending June 30, Callaghan had raised $227,296, compared to Capito's$1.4 million. Capito's contributions from political action committeesalone almost tripled Callaghan's entire intake.
So far, Callaghan has responded to TV ads with Internet messagesand direct mailings.
"Television is expensive," he says. "I'm putting these ads up onour Web site."
None of this - the fundraising disparity, the seeming lack ofinterest in the race by national Democrats - means that Callaghan isa bad candidate. Even Republicans say he might be the Democrats' bestchance to take the seat, although they naturally expect Capito to winhandily.
"He's not a sacrificial lamb," says state Republican ChairmanDouglas McKinney. "He's the highest-profile candidate they've got."
Callaghan is having a difficult time, McKinney says, becauseCapito is popular with Republicans and Democrats, even with thosevoters who disagree with President Bush.
"There's no great energy displayed on the Democratic side,"Hammock says. "That doesn't really say anything negative about theDemocratic candidate. In general, Capito is just such a strongincumbent that anyone would struggle with beating her."
Callaghan, though, is undaunted. He is taking to the roads ratherthan the airwaves, visiting all 18 counties in the sprawling districtthat runs 300 miles from the Ohio River west of Charleston to theEastern Panhandle.
"It's like playing a football game," he says. "Everyone predictsthe outcome, but you play the game and you see how it comes out."
Such optimism seems natural from someone who compares politics toa religious vocation.
"In terms of time, expense, wear and tear on your body, it's ahard lifestyle," he says. "But you hear preachers talk about beingcalled to the ministry. I really feel like I've been called by God toenter politics, to a life of public service."
Callaghan, often seen campaigning in his trademark cowboy boots,was born in Richwood in Nicholas County. A graduate of the Universityof Virginia, he holds a law degree from West Virginia University.Married for 16 years, he has three children and attends the FirstPresbyterian Church of Charleston.
He is betting that the last phase of the election will be the mostcrucial, and points to two important fundraisers thrown on his behalfthis month by prominent Democrats. The first was hosted by Gov. JoeManchin at the University of Charleston. The second was hosted by thestate's congressional Democrats in Washington, D.C.
Callaghan's allies also are counting on a last-minute surge to puthim ahead of Capito.
"The last two weeks of a campaign are the most important," Manchinsays. "I've seen many of them, and things do change in those last twoweeks."
While those last two weeks aren't far off, in between now and thenis a whirlwind of appearances, debates, fundraisers and trips acrossthe district. In terms of time, expense, and wear and tear, Callaghansays, full-time campaigning is a hard life.
"But when you sit down and you look at the pros and cons," hesays, "on the pro side, I have a chance to improve a lot of people'slives."
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