Statesman Journal
October 12, 2008

Oregon’s U.S. Senate race long ago disintegrated into a gutter of slimy, embarrassing campaign ads.

But look past those ads and you’ll find two good candidates: the Republican incumbent, Gordon Smith, and a credible challenger, Jeff Merkley, the Democratic speaker of the Oregon House. Also running is Dave Brownlow of the Constitution Party.

Smith, who is seeking a third term, remains the best choice. He is in tune with Oregonians’ common-sense, middle-of-the-road values.

Republican Smith from rural Eastern Oregon makes a good team with Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden from liberal Portland.

Lots of candidates talk about bipartisanship. Smith delivers on it. He and Wyden collaborate on issues that affect everyday Oregonians: the environment, health care, children’s welfare, veterans’ affairs, immigration and more.

Smith and Wyden hold joint town hall meetings throughout Oregon, and their perspectives rub off on each other.

The state benefits from having both a Democrat and a Republican in the Senate; Oregon has influence with both parties’ leadership.

A divided but collaborative Senate delegation also contributes to our system of checks and balances, of governing from the center.

The center is where voters will find Smith. Indeed, he is ranked right in the middle — 50 out of 100 senators — in the ideological spectrum.

A productive lawmaker, Smith can be found teaming up with Democrats such as Wyden, Ted Kennedy and Barack Obama. Such teamwork has led to advances in mental health care, environmental regulations, hate-crime protections and other areas.

Smith has shown that he can disagree with Democrats without being mean-spirited or questioning their motives.

Oregon can ill afford to start over in the Senate by dissolving the Smith-Wyden team or by giving up Smith’s seniority. Oregon is in the unique position of having both of its senators serving on the powerful Finance Committee.

And assuming that either Obama or Sen. John McCain is elected president, Smith already has a working relationship with our nation’s next leader.

Smith has a thoughtful approach on the economy, and his pro-business philosophy serves rural and urban Oregon alike. As for the current international economic mess, if Smith bears any political blame, so do Wyden, the rest of Congress and the current and past presidential administrations.

Given President Bush’s dismal approval ratings, this is a tough election season for his fellow Republicans. But voters would err if they equated Smith and other Oregonians with Bush.

Smith has distanced himself from the Bush administration, especially on the Iraq war. In the summer of 2006, Smith met with the Statesman Journal Editorial Board and began calling for military and financial limits to U.S. involvement in Iraq. That ability to learn from one’s mistakes is a healthy attribute for a politician.

Merkley is running a hard-hitting campaign against Smith. Along with attacking an incumbent’s records, a challenger must show that he would perform better. Merkley has not made that case.

He is knowledgeable to the point of being a policy wonk. He has provided detailed position papers. He is engaging and thoughtful in small-group discussions, and he has been an effective legislative leader. But in his campaign appearances, Merkley comes across almost as one-dimensional — vote-for-me-because-I’m-not-Gordon-Smith.

As the campaigns near their end, Merkley and Smith — and their surrogates — should do Oregon a favor by halting the slimy, misleading ads.

And Oregon voters should do themselves a favor by keeping Gordon Smith as their U.S. senator.