Right Side of The Rainbow

It's clear that the Kerry Campaign has all but abandoned Florida and Colorado.  They have instead decided to concentrate on Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Iowa with hopes of a victory on November 2.

Gallup released their latest numbers in Florida on Tuesday showing President Bush opening a commanding lead (51 to 43).  Add to that the shocking news that Hawaii is now a swing state!  The President actually shows a 1 point lead in a state that has gone Democratic for 20 years.  In fact, Bush is forcing the DNC to spend untold ad dollars in states that should long have been locked up for Kerry.

As old Lurch was stumping across Wisconsin he has begun to sound more like an enraged loon than a candidate for the most powerful political office in the world.  Meanwhile, President Bush is making a broader appeal to Democrats to cross over and help him achieve a decisive victory next Tuesday.  This says that internal GOP polls show their base is completely locked up, and they can afford now to court and sway members of the other team in the final days of the campaign.

Conspiracy theorists will blame Bush's "weather machine" for the recent hurricanes for swaying Floridians over to the GOP.  They and the Kerry camp are belatedly recognizing the fact that in addition to bringing some of the older Jewish voters over to his camp, the President has also made inroads with the vast latino population - not only in Florida but throughout the country.  He's even managed to double black voter support from 9% in 2000 to 18% this year.

As for Bill Clinton's singular joint campaign appearance with John Kerry, more people turned out to see Bubba than the candidate.  And let's not forget that the Clinton is still batting a thousand.  Every candidate he has endorsed or campaigned for has lost.

If I was John Kerry I'd be consulting the Weather Channel right now as to ascertain weather forecasts in the swing states for Election Day.  The Bush base is so clearly energized they'd walk through a foot of snow on a subzero day to cast their vote for the Commander in Chief.  The same can't be said for John Kerry.  Look at the crowds Rosie O'Donnell and Cher brought out over last weekend (38 and 200 respectively).

At the end of the day, Kerry's bid for the corn belt will fade as well.  He's tried to be too many different things to too many different people.  It's no accident that only a scant few senators have ever made successful runs for the White House.  No goose hunt and phony country talk ("can I get me a huntin' license here?") can obscure a 20 year anti-military pro-tax voting record.

One friend of mine who worked in Washington D.C. in the 80s and 90s sums Kerry up as a "hanger on, tag along, do nothing liberal".  It's what we may learn about this man after his defeat that may finally open everyone's eyes to the real man behind the curtain, the "congressman with no core".

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