By Libby George, CQ Staff

The dissipation of Hurricane Gustav across the South has signaled the political coast is clear for the return of accusatory rhetoric at the Republican National Convention — from Republicans and Democrats alike.

The convention picked up the partisan pace at the Xcel Energy Center on last night and the Democratic National Committee reopened its “More of the Same Media Center” a few blocks away in St. Paul today, signaling an end to the uneasy partisan truce that went into effect as both sides watched to make sure there would not be a Katrina-style cataclysm.

Republicans ran a similar counter-programming operation during the Democrats’ convention in Denver, but Democrats had little choice but to delay their own plans when John McCain said he would tamp down the politics while Gustav battered the Gulf. His effort, which segued nicely with his “Country First” convention theme, included having the delegates pledge money to storm relief from the convention floor — a move that made the opening session of the convention essentially immune to Democratic derision.

But Rep. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, the chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said that the effort to avoid politics ended with Tuesday night’s speeches.

“We saw last night that they decided to take off their American hats and put on their Party hats,” said Van Hollen, who flew into the Twin Cities Tuesday night. “We’re here to present the Obama case to the American people.”

And today the Democrats held the first in a series of daily press conference calls that had been secheduled for all four days of the convenion. Senior Strategist Robert Gibbs led the call — and plans to stay in the Twin Cities until Thursday seeking out opportunities for media interviews.

The chairman of the Democratic National Committee, Howard Dean, has also revived plans to bring his “Register for Change” bus to St. Paul before the end of the convention, after some aides suggested it could bypass the Twin Cities because of the lull in political bantering.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, who along with Rep. Betty McCollum of St. Paul, will appear at Dean’s event on Thursday, is also making the rounds on media events. Earlier in the week, many of Klobuchar’s appearances were cancelled by news organizations more interested in Gustav coverage than Twin Cities bickering.

“I’ve got the dual role of being a host and also defending Barack Obama from smears,” Klobuchar said.

Even while they were laying low — and not launching many public events — the DNC had its eye on the GOP actions. Rumors of McCain surrogates launching political attacks — despite the alleged cease-fire — were monitored carefully and passed along to reporters, as were news stories on everything from “false” claims to presumed vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin ’s alleged lack of experience.

On Tuesday, while DNC spokesman Damien LaVera said they were still “playing it by ear” in terms of strategy, former Gov. Tom Vilsack of Iowa unveiled a new Party website, www.JustMoreoftheSame.com. Later in the day the chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, Rahm Emanuel , did a series of broadcast interviews in his hometown media market of Chicago.

LaVera said the party plans to unveil an advertisement with an identical “more of the same” theme at some point before the week’s end.