I got a warm, fuzzy greeting card in the mail today from Senator and Mrs. Gordon Smith. They told me they were thankful to count me as a friend, in times of tragedy and in times of happiness.

Sure, it's a robot-produced mass mailing, paid for by the "Friends of Gordon Smith." Granted, the dreamy photo of the senator and his spouse on the front of the card is pretty strange. Plus, I'm a registered Democrat! (How did he know that I voted for him?)

But it's still a nice card to get. As bad as his record is on the irresponsible Bush tax cuts, I like these folks. And my heart goes out to them. Their holidays aren't going to be particularly bright this year.