Senator DeFazio, we hardly knew ye

There's a reason they're called "long shots," and the high-visibility, high-wattage, hi-and-bye arc of the Draft DeFazio movement, in which I had a walk-on role, is a case in point.

(What can I say--it's not the first time I've backed a cause with poor odds: In 1935, I ran guns to Ethiopia, and in 1936 I fought in Spain on the loyalist side. True, I was well-paid for my efforts, but, as a dinner companion once pointed out to me, the winning side would have paid much better.)

Over at Loaded Oregon Orygun, the spell-checker busting blog where the whole thing began, they've spoken last rites over the effort. In particular, they focus on the positives:

• Draft DeFazio created a nationwide buzz for progressive politics in Oregon.
• It put more heat on Smith, probably sooner than he wanted/expected.
• It advertised Smith's vulnerability.
• It got people active and involved by contributing, distributing fliers, blogging, and word-of-mouth (including some that weren't active before)
• It certainly created national/statewide momentum that was there for both Novick and DPO to tap into.
• And we raised some bucks for Pete.

Hard to argue with that. And hats off to TJ and Carla for making the whole thing happen. Those 17 days made a difference, both here in Oregon and in the progressive world beyond our borders.

I'll be happy to vote for whoever the DPO puts against Smith in 2008; any name that's been bandied about so far is already a great improvement over the current holder of the junior Senator position.

Still, I can't let this go without pointing to the message from which this excerpt is drawn:

Given my long record of vocal opposition to this war, I've been asked why I voted Friday to support the emergency supplemental spending bill that includes funds for troops in Iraq.

For the first time since the war began four years ago - and less than three months since the change in control of Congress - Democrats are beginning to impose accountability on the Bush administration's open-ended commitment of American troops and treasure to Iraq. Put simply, this bill will end the war. It sets a binding deadline to bring our troops home.

I sure would have liked the chance to vote for the guy who said that.