Tulsa, OK – Democrat Andrew Rice sought to portray his opponent, incumbent Republican Sen. Jim Inhofe, as tied to the economic policies of the Bush administration in their first and possibly only debate.
Rice yesterday challenged any voters who think they are better off than they were eight years ago to re-elect Inhofe.
Inhofe, Oklahoma's senior senator, branded Rice a ``proud liberal'' and said the Senate race in Oklahoma had probably the greatest philosophic diversity of any in the country.
Rice, a first-term state senator from Oklahoma City, said there were no checks and balances from the Republican Congress and Inhofe.
On the financial bailout package, Rice accused Inhofe of taking a wait-and-see approach as the package came together and said Inhofe showed a lack of leadership.