Will Westlund make the leap?

Former-GOP-now-Independent Senator Ben Westlund begins the 2007 Legislative Session without an automatic place to caucus. This morning I heard him tell Thom Hartmann that he hopes the Dems will invite him to caucus with them.



Westlund's surge to the left (or perhaps his former party's surge to the right, leaving Westlund behind) has put him out of step with the Oregon Republican Party and in many ways, the national GOP as well.

Which begs a few questions:

1. Will Westlund come over all the way to the D's?

2. Will Westlund run against US Senator Gordon Smith in 2008?

3. If Westlund runs against Smith, does he need to be a Dem to mount a serious challenge?