DNC no-show list grows, and GOP crows. But are Democrats being smart?

What if you throw a party and nobody shows up?

That’s what the Democratic National Convention in early September is starting to feel like. The list of major Democratic politicians sending in their regrets is now at 12, at least according to the Republicans, who are gleefully publicizing each no-show.

“Debacle: Dozen Dem Defectors Ditch DNC,” blasts an email from the Romney campaign.

We’re talking Democratic senators and House members, not dog-catchers. People like Sens. Claire McCaskill of Missouri and Jon Tester of Montana, and just about all the top Democrats in West Virginia, a state that is now solidly Republican in its presidential vote. Sen. Jay Rockefeller looks to be the only major West Virginia Democrat still planning to show up in Charlotte, N.C., Sept. 3-6 for the convention, as Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin, Sen. Joe Manchin, and Rep. Nick Rahall have all said no thanks.

Here’s the kicker: At least one top Democratic campaign official thinks they're right.

“If they want to win an election, they need to be in their districts,” Rep. Steve Israel of New York, chairman of the party’s House campaign committee, said Tuesday at the Reuters Washington Summit.

Congressman Israel says it has nothing to do with President Obama’s job approval ratings. It’s all about maximizing campaign time at home before the election.

This trend toward skipping the national convention “is something that’s been sort of happening slowly over the years,” says Jennifer Duffy, a longtime campaign-watcher at the nonpartisan Cook Political Report. She says she started noticing this trend in 2004, with both parties. Some candidates stay for a day or two, but not the whole convention.

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