Harry Reid Can't Bury 'Wingnut' Angle

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid probably never thought he'd be running neck and neck with the woman who recently topped the Daily Beast's 'Wingnuts Index.' But, try as he might, he can't seem to shake Tea Party challenger Sharron Angle, finds the New York Times. The closely watched race has become, as the Times puts it, a "proxy" for a national battle between the Obama camp and a Tea Party-led conservative insurgency.

In Nevada, as elsewhere, things are getting ugly. “Sharron Angle: ideas so extreme they are dangerous,” says Reid's latest ad. His strategist says Angle has “a rigid worldview, cloaked in a smile, that borders on crazy." Angle counters that Reid's message has gone "from hope and change to fear and smear.” Both sides predict victory in November. (Click here for the latest on the Nevada race, and here to find out why Angle topped the 'Wingnut Index.')