Gary Ingram: Well DFO, you can stomp on Butch Otter and raise up Phil Batt, but you should know that it was Phil Batt who encouraged Butch to enter politics in the first place back in the early 70's and has supported him ever since.

DFO: Our newspaper has endorsed the other guy/gal in Butch's races over the years, more often than not. But his stand on the Patriot Act has won him fans on the Editorial Board. He should win the governorship in this solid-red state. But he has tendencies that are bothersome, like deciding to mess with wetlands without the proper permits and co-sponsoring (for awhile) legislation that called for selling off public land to defray the costs of Hurricane Katrina relief. By refusing to debate his primary opponent, Otter seems arrogant, too. He thinks the job is his for the asking and he doesn't have to go through the process of applying for it. Mebbe he's right.

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