As you may have read on Jeff Mapes' blog, the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) has christened its first hit site off the 2008 U.S. Senate campaign: they're going after Jeff Merkley's record and calling him the laughable name "Must Tax" Merkley. Here's the link to the Must Tax Merkley website for your amusement.

First, how pathetic is this? In an era with the Iraq War (which Gordon Smith has supported on many occasions) and a national healthcare crisis, all the Republicans can muster is, gasp, taxes? Taxes! With Americans and Iraqis dying over in the Middle East in the expensive quagmire that President Bush lied us into, and with the need for real healthcare and wage reform, and considering the continuous breaches of the Constitution under the Republicans in Washington, Jeff Merkley is the dangerous one because of his record on taxes? They're calling him the irresponsible one? Excuse me while I throw up in my mouth a little.

So far, the site is nascent at best, with all of two points against Jeff's record. Matt Canter, spokesman for the Merkley campaign, came out with a statement against the site, noting how this is a standard play for the NRSC:

“The web site… attacks Merkley’s record fighting for middle class tax relief in the Oregon House,” Canter writes. “The NRSC is using the same tactic to attack Democrats running against the most vulnerable Republicans in the country, including Senator John Sununu of New Hampshire and Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska.”

In contrast, the impressive Stop Gordon Smith has been running at full speed for months, working to inform Oregonians about Smith's horrible record in the U.S. Senate.

But the most pathetic and funny part of the effort is the group's silly little Facebook page. As of writing this blog post on March 27, the "Must Tax Merkley" Facebook group has all of 15 members. As far as I can tell, not one of them lives in Oregon. In fact, most of them are based in Washington D.C. or work for the NRSC. I don't know whether to laugh or throw up again.

This is typical of the NRSC and Republican politics. Instead of working on an honest-to-goodness grassroots movement in Gordon Smith's home state, they are contented to snipe from over 2,800 miles away in the safe confines of their stuffy Washington offices while their candidate continues to cancel out most of the good that Senator Ron Wyden can do.

You know what we have to do: send Gordon Smith packing. Head on over to Stop Gordon Smith to continue to learn about his disastrous record and why he's wrong for Oregon. Volunteer your time. Donate to the cause. Or just be supportive with your vote. We can make a difference in November, showing Smith and his NRSC buddies that Oregonians -- not Washington insiders -- know what's best for our state.