Hey, Rhode Island DU'ers, got anybody to challenge Linc Chafee?

This guy knows his beloved party has turned into a nest of vipers, but wants his job so bad that he'll continue to play along with their atrocities. I used to think that the moderate Republicans might be our hope, but now I see that they're as useless as centrist Dems. Do we have anybody out there that can take Chafee on in '06?

problem in their brain that always tweaks them at the wrong times.

Even a centrist Dem counts towards whether or not we have a majority in Congress and has more proDem votes than any moderate Republican.

thus far who have announced their candidacy for his seat.

I wish there was just one as it so-o-o early they're more than likely to shoot each other in the feet during the year and a half between now and the primaries.

Sheldon Whitehouse is the former Attoney General and is super super smart but will more than likely be construed as an erudite elitist. Though he was born to advantage he's got the civic duty thing down .

Matt Brown is the present Secretary of State that is taking the approach that he has more hands on experience because of his involvement with a project helping kids in Providence called "City Year."

I was totally unimpressed with Brown's handle on the problem with optical scan voting machines last summer. But he's kind of got the "guy from next door" schtick down.

I'm sure Whitehouse has a much better handle on the voting machine issue, I really can't overstate how bright this man is.

From today's Congressional Quarterly newsletter:

According to the Woonsocket Call, Rhode Island Democratic Reps. Patrick J. Kennedy and Jim Langevin publicly endorsed Sheldon Whitehouse for the Senate on Monday, and announced they will be national co-chairmen for his campaign. Whitehouse, a former state attorney general and U.S. attorney, faces a primary challenge from Secretary of State Matt Brown. Republican incumbent Lincoln Chafee is considered to be one of the most vulnerable Republicans up for re-election in 2006. Kennedy and Langevin had both been mentioned as potential candidates, but they dropped out of consideration.

Announcing they would be co-chairs of his campaign it looks like Whitehouse has the Democratic establishment behind him, which would make him the odds-on candidate to win.