NEWS SUMMARY
THE NOTE
The new joke in Washington -- told by all gallows, quasi-panicked Democrats -- goes like this:
"John Kerry read in The Note that this was his race to lose, and he's giving it his best shot."
Someday, Karl Rove's precocious grandchildren will say to him, "Grandpapa, what's it like to run a presidential campaign against an opponent who has had his own background thoroughly researched well before the general election; who is broadly personable and possessed of great campaign skills; and who projects an image of constancy?"
To which Grandpapa Rove will reply, "I haven't the slightest idea."
Both of which explain why, as they gather in New York this weekend -- from L'Affaire Kirtzman in the south, to the best alcove table at 'Cesca in the north, and at Madison Square Garden in between -- Republicans are arriving in Gotham City more upbeat and optimistic about their chances of keeping the White House than they have been in a long, long time.,p> Iraq is still a mess, the economy is still uneven, sure -- but, the thinking goes in GOP circles, when it's a good man versus John Kerry&.. |
