--> The electoral math of this race is looking more and more painful for Senator McCain and his slim hopes to pull this one out of the bag. Let's look at where some of the key states are for the Republican ticket:
--> Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa - basically given up, as recent polls all confirm a double-digit lead for Obama.
--> New Mexico - given up.
--> Colorado - still hoping but many campaign officials are acting like this one is already over.
Now, let's pause for a moment. John Kerry finished with 252* electoral votes. Add in Iowa, New Mexico, and Colorado, and Obama get 273.
That's right, ABOVE the threshold for winning the presidency.
Thus, with those expected losses ALONE, even if McCain takes every swing state (many of which show Obama with moderate leads anyway), Obama wins.
--> It is with this in mind that McCain's campaign has decided to go for the Hail Mary pass as their only option (thankfully they have John Elway with them on the campaign trail today). John McCain and Sarah Palin's ONLY HOPE for victory now rests in Pennsylvania. Even Tom Ridge today affirmed that McCain needs PA to have any hope. A surprise, comeback victory here, to capture its 21 electoral votes, might actually give them a chance on election night if all other swing states go their way. And by swing states, I don't just mean Ohio and Florida anymore. This list also includes Montana, North Dakota, Missouri, Indiana, Georgia, North Carolina, West Virginia, Nevada and Virginia.
Turns out that Obama's expand-the-map strategy worked.
--> And speaking of Tom Ridge, former Republican governor of Pennsylvania and prospective running mate, he also went on to suggest fairly explicitly that McCain would be in better shape had he picked Ridge instead of Palin. The finger-pointing and blaming has already started in full force within the Republican ranks, and this is merely the most recent, notable example.
--> Of course, Pennsylvania is in some ways still a battleground. I don't mean in the sense that McCain really has a chance here. I mean that it's really violent. On Wednesday night, a 20 year old woman volunteering in Pittsburgh for the GOP reported being attacked by an enraged Obama supporter. She claimed that the man punched her in the head, robbed her at the ATM< href="http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/p_136090.html">carved a "B" into her face to "teach her a lesson for supporting John McCain." This horrifying news captured both campaigns' attentions, as Senator Obama expressed concern for the victim while both McCain and Palin called to check on her.
Unfortunately, this turned out to be a scary example of a person whose lie spiraled out of control. Earlier today, the woman admitted to having made the entire story up; she was neither robbed nor attacked, and the wound may have actually been self-inflicted.
I would like to remind all political junkies: Halloween may be coming up, but your face is not a pumpkin.
--> Just one week after I warned Congressman John Murtha (D-PA) about the wisdom of calling all of his constituents "racist," it appears that the veteran legislator has gotten his comeuppance. A new poll released today shows him facing a startling 13-point deficit in a race that was supposed to be a blowout in the other direction. Murtha has served his district for 38 years, and to see him as likely the only incumbent Democrat to lose their seat in Congress this year will be relatively depressing.
--> On the brighter side (and by bright I mean depressing for Republicans), Alan Greenspan announced yesterday that his free-market ideology was flawed. Dear God we really are in a changed world. Alan Greenspan just claimed that capitalism isn't perfect.
--> Another really weird story that isn't getting noticed by the mainstream media but once more makes John McCain look like a liar: in 1985, Senator McCain sat down WITHOUT PRECONDITIONS with General Augusto Pinochet, the brutal dictator of Chile and "one of the world's most notorious violators of human rights." I think you know what it's time for:
--> Senator Barack Obama is actually in Hawaii right now, visiting his ailing grandmother. We wish her a speedy recovery.
--> And finally, one of the best SNL sketches in quite some time:
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