Walker: ‘If I was him, I’d be campaigning too’

ST. PAUL -- U.S. Sen. Gordon Smith (R-Pendleton) has conducted a decent re-election campaign, Oregon Republican Party vice chair Russ Walker said Monday.

“He’s done a pretty good job,” Walker said.

Smith, who is a member of John McCain’s Kitchen Cabinet, an informal group of advisors for McCain’s presidential campaign, has spent the summer touting his connections with Democratic Senators, including running television ads featuring his work with McCain's opponent Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and U.S. Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.).

Walker did not fault Smith for playing up those connections, but he did say that it could help his re-election efforts if he worked to shore up base Republican voters in Oregon a little more. Still, Walker did not criticize Smith for staying away from St. Paul this week.

“I think Gordon could reach out to his base a little more. He needs to remind Republicans of things they agree with him on,” Walker said. “But if I was him, I’d be home campaigning too,”