Keeping Expectations Low

Okay, so who watched the presidential debate Tuesday night? Can you say borrrr-ing?? I’m a political junkie, and I live for this shit, but my God, 30 minutes into the debate and I was passed out in an alcohol free coma. I blame McCain mostly – the man cock blocks excitement like a pro – but even my man Obama was a bit dull. Strategically speaking, I suppose Obama is playing it smart. He’s ahead, so why rock the boat? That logic doesn’t hold for ole’ Walnuts, but I guess he figures his little prairie home companion is enough excitement for one ticket.

Anyway, I was going to use this post as a debate review, but since I fell asleep, I guess that’s out of the question. So instead, I’m going to talk about the little psychological trick I’ve devised for myself in an attempt not to jinx this election.

On Election Day in 2004, I was holed up in CNN’s Washington bureau, working as a college intern for a show that has since gone off the air. If you remember The Capitol Gang, congratulations on being a political super dork. Anyway, I was supposed to be doing research for the show, but was instead transfixed by the exit polling data that was coming in – information that hadn’t yet reached the public. The numbers were looking good for Kerry, and at one point I even answered a phone call from an ecstatic James Carville. Convinced that this election was in the bag, I called my roommate and told him to pick up a bottle of champagne on his way home.

Watching the actual results on tv that night, things began swinging in the other direction. We all know how the story ends, but for me, having thought that my guy had won, losing was that much more painful. And as such, until the networks officially call this thing on election night, I’m going to refuse to acknowledge that Barack might actually win.

With that said, let me share some of the latest polling data with you. In the latest national Gallup Tracking poll, Obama is up by 11 points. In the battleground states, Obama is up 12 points in Pennsylvania, 6 points in Colorado, 2 points in Florida, 3 points in Ohio, and 2 points in Virginia. It’s looking good folks, but let’s not count these un-hatched eggs just yet.