Grayson Falls to 'Taliban Dan'

In one of the nation's most keenly watched House races, voters in central Florida rejected combative liberal incumbent Rep. Alan Grayson in favor of veteran Republican state lawmaker Dan Webster. The Democrat—who drew the wrath of GOP leaders for saying the Republican health care plan was to "die quickly"—was widely criticized for an attack ad that labeled his opponent "Taliban Dan."

Outside groups spent heavily on anti-Grayson attack ads but Webster, who refused to debate Grayson, credits his victory to his decision to run a positive campaign. "Most of the time, negative campaigning works, and a lot of people cringed when I said I would run a positive campaign. We just felt like it was the right thing to do," he told the South Florida Sun Sentinel. "I'm not going there to change places with the Democrats. We've got to do things differently. We've got to change the process." (More Alan Grayson stories.)