Newspaper That Made Smith Allegations Hosts Party With Democrats

• By David M. Drucker
• Roll Call Staff
• Dec. 18, 2008, 2:57 p.m.

Down the stretch of the bitter 2008 race that incumbent Sen. Gordon Smith (R-Ore.) lost to state Speaker and now-Sen.-elect Jeff Merkley (D), the Willamette Week newspaper wrote a couple of scathing stories on Smith’s business practices at his frozen food plant that Democrats immediately turned into a series of effective political hits.