October 14, 2006 [LINK / comment]
With three weeks to go, it's starting to look like Jim Webb may be a serious candidate after all, as his TV spots are appearing more frequently. I have not been dismissing outright the possibility of his winning, mind you, but if he does win, it will be "by default," more of a vote against Allen than a vote for Webb. Fortunately, George Allen's campaign Web site has done a pretty good job rebutting the bogus allegations contained in Webb's TV ads.
In general, I would agree with Allen's criticisms of Webb for wanting to taxes, but there is a small problem. Because of the enormous fiscal deficit and the rising cost of the war in Iraq, tax hikes are something that need to be considered, unless Congress figures out how to cut spending.
Now here's a Republican candidate for Senate that I could get excited about: Michael Steele. Not only does he come across as very intelligent and sincere in his television ads, his unapologetic independent stance are very appealing to centrist voters. In Maryland, you're not going to get elected by campaigning as an ideological conservative. Some polls say he is within striking distance of Democrat Ben Cardin, who is as dull as can be.