Still more on Gordon Smith

A few days ago I had a post, A wingnut in moderate's clothing, where I talked about Gordon Smith's image as a moderate is the result of him rarely taking a stand on anything. When it comes right down to it Gordon Smith is a wingnut. The fact that this has been a successful tactic for Smith is demonstrated by a poll over at Blue Oregon.

Digging into the details, there are some interesting tidbits:

* Unlike many Republicans, Gordon Smith does better among women (55%) than among men (49%).

* Democrats actually give Smith higher marks (45%) than do independents (42%). Even 34% of self-described "liberals" approve of his job-performance.

* His approval ratings in Portland (54%) are better than his approval in the rest of the state (49%).

All three of the above results are surprising and indicate how successful Smith has been at maintaining the appearance of false moderation. The question is asked: can Smith be defeated? The Willamette Week story referenced in my post linked above reports that the state Democratic Party is doing the right thing to unseat Smith.

Smith has long tried to bridge the gap between the right-wingers controlling his national party and the average Oregonian. But now, thanks to a new staffed-up party apparatus for the Dems, he will have to walk that tightrope with someone constantly lobbing eggs at him.

"He's clearly someone who tries to position himself as a moderate," says spokesman Kelly Steele of the state Democratic Party. "He's not.''

Steele's efforts reflect a new level of activity for Oregon Democrats who, as one GOP consultant put it, for the first time "have their shit together."

A candidate is less important now than convincing 45% of the Democrats and the 54% of the voters in the Portland area that Smith is not the moderate he appears to be. Without that the candidate does not matter.