For nearly 70 years, New York Senate Republicans were riding high. Flush with cash and protected by a typically unassailable majority (save for the 1964 Democratic wave), GOP Senate candidates could always count on a high-powered, high-spending campaign apparatus to save their seats. Until now.

The Capitol recently got an inside look at that once-proud GOP operation and the difference from as recently as one cycle ago. The collapse is nothing short of breathtaking:

The special-interest money that once flowed has dried to a trickle. As of January, the Senate GOP had about one-fifth of the cash on hand as they did at the same point in 2008. (…)

When they were in the majority, the SRCC operated out of a luxury 20-story building with 9,000 square feet of floor space. In the minority, with the threat of Republican-eviscerating redistricting oblivion looming, a shoe-string operation to retake the majority is being run from the second floor of a modest three-story building a few minutes’ walk from the Capitol, about a third of the size of the old one.

With less than $1 million on hand as of January, [State Sen. Tom] Libous has cut SRCC spending to the bone, from $158,000 a month to $48,000. In 2008, Libous did not even know the name of everyone on the SRCC payroll. Now, because they can afford much fewer, Libous can run down the entire list of staff in 10 seconds (…)

Senate Republicans will also have to do without their secret, taxpayer-funded communications and research shops that employed dozens of people and cost millions of dollars before Democrats discovered it last February. And fundraising has also dried up with most of the traditionally progressive sources that previously had to play ball with the GOP Senate majority in order to have any hope of legislative success.

And without their usual hoards of cash, the statewide GOP Senate committee is finding it has far less control over individual campaigns. But the committee is still inserting itself into local primaries - going so far as to publicly trash one likely GOP nominee - which is causing even more headaches for the party:

After [Republican Sen. Vincent] Leibell retired, meanwhile, the SRCC stepped in to endorse Somers Town Supervisor Mary Beth Murphy. She has also won the Conservative line. But these maneuvers have infuriated Assembly Member Greg Ball, who on paper would seem like a perfect candidate for Senate Republicans this year. He is a young Air Force veteran who has strong Tea Party support (…)

There is only one problem: Greg Ball.

“We think Greg Ball’s voting record is too erratic. We think his behavior is too erratic,” Libous said.

Ball said that he still holds out hope that the SRCC will see the writing on the wall and work to get Murphy off the Conservative line between now and November. But if Ball emerges from the primary without the Conservative line, Republicans could very well lose the seat, according to both Democratic and Republican strategists.

Of course, with 2010 shaping up to be a challenging climate for Democrats, no one is taking victory for granted. But in New York at least, Democrats have enough organizational advantages to feel confident.