Early in the presidential primary season, Michigan got a cold shoulder, mostly from national Democrats who were more adamant than GOP leaders in opposing the state's challenge of the stranglehold that New Hampshire and Iowa have on the early nominating process.

Cold shoulder no more. It's a hot embrace here now by the nomineesin waiting: Senators John McCain, the Republican who's an old hand on Michigan primary trails, and Democrat Barack Obama, who's making up big time for lost time when he earlier bowed to party rules and boycotted Michigan's primary.

Since becoming the presumptive nominee, Obama, even before the nominating convention, already has campaigned in Grand Rapids, Troy, Flint, Detroit, and Lansing. He has, according to the Wall Street Journal, spent $3.15 million on TV ads here, a figure surpassed only in Florida, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Ohio.

McCain, winner of the 2000 Michigan GOP primary over George W. Bush, last week made his fifth Michigan visit since clinching nomination. Underscoring the importance he places on Michigan is that he has spent $4.1 million on TV ads, surpassed only in Ohio and Pennsylvania.

Karl Rove, campaign-savvy former chief strategist for Bush, calls Michigan one of four key battleground states.

While seeing "serious competition" in Florida, Pennsylvania, Nevada, New Hampshire, Missouri, and Wisconsin, Rove, writing in the Wall Street Journal, said, "Colorado, Virginia, Michigan, and Ohio are likely to be the center of the action."

He said Obama's prospects in Michigan, which has voted for Democratic presidential candidates since 1988, are hurt by the "near meltdown" of the Democratic machine in Detroit in the wake of its mayor's scandals, and "adverse reactions" to Governor Jennifer Granholm.

During his winning campaign in Michigan's 2008 Republican presidential primary, ex-Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney attacked Granholm's record. Last week, Democrats made a preemptive attack on Romney as a possible McCain running mate.

Oakland County Commissioner Dave Woodward (Oakland is Romney's native county) joined Massachusetts Democrats in a media conference call to launch the Romney section of TheNextCheney.com Web site of the Democratic National Committee.

He said, "nothing is more scary" than the thought of a Vice-President Romney. He "has embraced the failed Bush policies that have pretty much enabled our auto industry to die on the vine."

U.S. Representative Barney Frank (D-Massachusetts), said Romney "has zigzagged extraordinarily" on issues. As, on occasion, have Obama and McCain.

Fallen Leader

It is but a distant bleep in a rising chorus that includes Detroit daily newspapers, its black weekly, and much of the city's business and African-American religious leadership.

But last week's call by an outstate Democratic candidate for the state House for scandal-plagued Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick to resign brought back memories of 2001-02 when Kilpatrick was the House's most powerful Democrat and had a close working relationship with House Speaker Rick Johnson (R-LeRoy) and other northern Republicans.

It was interesting to watch House Minority Leader Kilpatrick, a towering collegiate All-American lineman, maneuver in the narrow House aisles as he pumped up fellow Democrats.

Now comes Leelanau County's Dan Scripps, the Democratic nominee for the toss-up open seat now held by term-limited Representative David Palsrok (R-Manistee) with this statement:

"…Mayor Kilpatrick has harmed the reputation of Michigan, and that affects us all. As long as Kwame Kilpatrick remains Mayor of Detroit, job growth in our state will be stunted, and that's simply unacceptable."

Over the years, there has been too much Detroit-bashing by outstate Republicans. But now an outstate Democrat has piled on against a Detroit mayor - with just cause.

George Weeks retired in 2006 after 22 years as political columnist for The Detroit News. His weekly Michigan Politics column is syndicated by Superior Features.