Happy Flag Day

Today is Flag Day. For me, the genius of the flag is that it is a symbol whose purpose is to remind us that the rights, freedoms, privileges, and responsibilities that the symbol represents are more important than the symbol itself.

Statistics of the day: courtesy of that bastion of left-wing liberalism, The Wall Street Journal (emphasis added by me):

Of greater concern for Republicans generally, however, is the party's weak state heading into the 2008 election. By 52% to 31%, Americans say they want Democrats to win the presidency next year.

Americans give the Republican Party their most negative assessment in the two-decade history of the Journal/NBC survey, and by 49% to 36% they say the Democratic Party more closely shares their values and positions on the issues.

"The political environment for Republicans continues to erode," says Republican pollster Neil Newhouse, who conducts the Journal/NBC survey with Democratic counterpart Peter Hart. A long-term worry for the party: Republican gains among the Hispanic constituency, long a target for President Bush, have vanished at a time when Washington is enmeshed in a debate over immigration policy.

The party's woes can be partly traced to the political decline of President Bush. His approval rating in the Journal/NBC survey has fallen to its lowest ever, 29%, while 66% of Americans disapprove of his performance. The telephone survey of 1,008 adults, conducted June 8-11, has a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points.

Very foreboding news for Republicans running for office in 2008.

Oregon: Blue Oregon's invaluable Kari Chisholm wonders where Gordon Smith's money is coming from and offers this reminder:

After all, this is the guy who raised $47,000 at a 2005 fundraiser in the Virgin Islands -- more than he got from any state except Oregon, Washington, and Virginia. Immediately after that fundraiser, he switched his views on off-shore tax shelters.

Disgusting and indefensible.

New Hampshire: Portsmouth Mayor Steve Marchand is going all in on the Senate race.

Texas: The Express-News runs through the potential Democratic Senate candidates' positions on abortion rights. The nutshell is that State Representative Rick Noriega, 2006 Senate candidate Barbara Ann Radnofsky, and attorney Emil Reichstadt all appear to be pro-choice. Attorney Mikal Watts says "I hold the pro-life position with three exceptions: one for rape, one for incest, one for the life of the mother," but the article adds that "he would not judge judicial nominees based on their support for or opposition to Roe vs. Wade." I hope that's true. Watts also says something fuzzy about "clean" stem cells that I hope he will clarify his position on. Speaking of Watts, a Burnt Orange Report diarist offers his take on a recent Watts fundraiser, speaking highly of Watts' strength of message and ease connecting with people.