We wondered aloud yesterday why Knute Buehler, the Republican candidate for Oregon secretary of state, wasn't being more aggressive in criticizing his opponent, incumbent Democrat Kate Brown, over her spotty performance record. We got a blog comment, and a note later in the day, from Joel Thomas, Buehler's campaign manager, in which he pointed to this video; it does contain some pointed criticisms of Brown.

It's an interesting clip to watch on YouTube, but on last night's late news, there was another kind, gentle Buehler ad and another Brown attack ad. If there's a negative message being generated about Brown, it's arriving late and not too loudly.

Thomas was upbeat in his e-mail. He notes that there are still many undecided voters, and he thinks Buehler can get a good majority of them. He's got our vote, and he has a decent shot for a rookie, but the machine has rolled out big money to keep Brown in place. Heaven forbid that a Republican -- or anyone else who might question government employee pensions -- should ever hold statewide office, ever again.