This article borders on the absurd. It claims that Democrats have been too nice in standing up to persistent Republican "attack-dog" assaults on the character of their candidates, accusing them of being "unpatriotic," members of the ACLU, and soft on defense. Oooohhhh, what nastiness. So basically, Republicans have been attacking the policy positions and ideological leanings of their opponents with consistency.
Of course, GOPers are no angels, and some attacks are "mean-spirited," but Democrats always accuse Republicans of being nasty when their policy positions are criticized. For example, when GOP congressman Mark Kennedy noted in his ads that his opponent, Patty Wetterling, had accepted large donations from the very, shall we say, unpatriotic MoveOn.org, he was denounced as engaging in a mean, "smear" campaign.
But of course, if we look at the actual campaigns run by Democrats, and their coordinated media "hits," you will see Republicans labeled as racist, sexist, war-mongering, uncaring about the poor, sick or elderly, scamming elections (note Barbara Boxer here), sacrificing American lives for oil, etc.
Can these people really be serious? The USA Today reporter says it is impossible to imagine Democrats attacking Republicans for eight straight months. Oh, please.