Two years ago in this strongly Republican district, Democrat Melissa Bean, 44, shocked politicos when she knocked off Phil Crane, a 34-year congressman and one of only two GOP incumbents ousted in 2004. But the issues that Bean capitalized on during the last go-round–scandals dogging the Illinois Republican Party and Crane's long popularity slide–are but a memory. The self-described "typical soccer mom"–albeit one with a 20-year business career–is now viewed as the most vulnerable House Democrat incumbent. She has irritated some party activists for supporting the North American Free Trade Agreement, the Iraq war, and Bush's tax cuts; last week the state's AFL-CIO refused to endorse her. But the national party is pumping support into her campaign, and she has nearly $2 million in the bank. Her opponent, former investment banker David McSweeney, 40, likes to point out that Bean voted with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi 83 percent of the time. McSweeney, who quit his job to focus on the campaign, won a tough six-way GOP primary in March during which he spent nearly $2 million of his own money. He's getting fundraising help from Rudy Giuliani and Vice President Dick Cheney, and McSweeney wants to lure Bean to the district for two dozen debates.