Thanks to Matt Stoller for bringing attention to the 2008 campaign to defeat Gordon Smith in Oregon.  Over at BlueOregon, I've probably written more about Gordon Smith and the reasons he needs to be ejected than anybody else in the lefty blogsphere.

But Matt misses some important details about Senator Ron Wyden.

Before I go further, a little disclosure is in order:  I was an intern for then-Congressman Wyden in '93 and a volunteer on the '96 campaign that defeated Gordon Smith.  Today, I'm managing Senator Wyden's campaign-funded policy website, Stand Tall for America.  That said, my comments here are my own.  I don't speak for the Senator or his staff.

Quoted in Oregon's most conservative newspaper, the Senator's chief-of-staff  - Josh Kardon - said "he won't campaign against Gordon" and Matt Stoller thought he heard something like "he won't help the Democratic candidate in 2008."

I am absolutely, positively 100% certain that Senator Ron Wyden will do everything he can to help Oregon's Democratic candidate defeat Gordon Smith.

Here's the deal...

Out of every six years, Gordon Smith will be in-cycle two years and Ron Wyden will be in-cycle two years.  If they start bashing each other during election years, they'd be at war for four years out of every six.  (And good luck making peace during the other two.)  If they - and more importantly, their staffs - are going to get basic nonpartisan things accomplished (especially for a small state like Oregon) they've got to get along.

But that doesn't mean that Ron Wyden won't help the Democratic candidate with everything he's got.

I'm a partisan guy, and I'd like to think that I throw political punches as hard as the next guy.  And here's why I'm proud of Ron Wyden - and his partisan political operation:

• For the 2006 cycle, Senator Wyden donated over a million dollars to the DSCC.  (About $250k in Dec '04 and $770k thru Dec '06.)  As Markos pointed out, that's "most impressive since [he's] not in the leadership."

• When Governor Ted Kulongoski's campaign looked to be in trouble, he loaned his chief-of-staff (the aforementioned Josh Kardon) - who joined the turnaround team that turned a loss into a landslide.

• And he didn't just focus on the big races.  The other big fight in Oregon in 2006 was the takeover of the Oregon House (where we picked up an historically unprecedented four seats to take a one-seat majority.)  And Senator Ron Wyden was a huge asset in that fight.

The Oregon House Dems campaign director Jon Isaacs had this to say back in January (my emphasis):

...Just the other day I was talking with a political acquaintance who was making another one of these arguments I'm sure you've heard before - Ron Wyden will never help us beat Smith, in fact he'll probably parade around the state helping Smith win re-election.

To that I say phooey, hogwash, bullocks and so on and so on.

The truth is, no one has done more to help get Oregon's Democrats get where we are today than US Senator Ron Wyden. And you know, he's never asked for any credit for all of his hard work. So I think its time to give US Senator Ron Wyden the credit he deserves. ...

The most important thing Senator Wyden does for Oregon Democrats is he gives every voter a reason to elect more Democrats like him. ...

Ron Wyden did over 20 local events with Democratic candidates in the most important house races in Oregon. Again, he didn't go around lobbing bombs or doing press conferences. He quietly went about his business doing local events with the most important Democratic candidates talking about issues that matter to Oregonians. ...

Most political strategists will tell you that very few public endorsements actually have an impact on the outcome of an election. That isn't the case with Senator Wyden. His support for House candidates truly mattered to voters. Truly persuaded voters. Again, the reason he's different is his genuine leadership. If Wyden spent his time as a US Senator playing high profile partisan political games (like, for example, former US Senator Rick Santorum) he wouldn't have that type of credibility with the public.

I'd suggest heading over to BlueOregon and reading the rest of that Jon Isaacs post.

I'll say it again:  I am absolutely, positively 100% certain that Senator Ron Wyden will do everything he can to help Oregon's Democratic candidate defeat Gordon Smith.

But he'll do it in his own quiet way, putting his political operation in play, introducing the candidate to the right people, and making a critical contribution to the effort.

Just don't expect him to go around bombing Gordon Smith at every turn.  Heck, that's our 2008 candidate's job.  After all, in 2008, we want our candidate to take the lead and look like a strong alternative -- not Ron Wyden.

One last thing: A few moments ago, I helped launch StopGordonSmith.com for the Democratic Party of Oregon.

If you're serious about helping defeat Gordon Smith in 2008, c'mon over and sign up!  We're counting on you.