Because the first debate is when many people actually started thinking about the election. The old joke about polls is “if the election were held today, most people would be very surprised”. But voters start making up their minds in October and many of them have already voted.

My guess is that the Romney surge involved a lot of people suddenly passing the likely voter screen based on the fact that they were now paying a lot of attention to the election. As more people make up their minds, there is less room for subsequent bounces in the polls.

As I’ve said I don’t know how many times before, in a sane Universe, Mitt Romney would be down by 90 points in 49 states plus DC (Utah would have Romney down by only 60). In our Universe, Romney looks to lose but not get the drubbing he so *ahem* richly deserves. And don’t get me started on congressional elections.

I believe Mayor Robert Chisholm said it best: “Idiots. I’m surrounded by idiots.”

–alopecia

And Republicans keep moving the goal posts. I remember when 8% unemployment was the number that we were supposed to use as some measure undisputed of success. Now it’s 5.4%. When the president pulled us out of Iraq, he didn’t do it fast enough, or slow enough, or whatever it was he didn’t do to appease the torture and rape party. Got Bin Laden! No he didn’t. George W. Bush did! Saved American auto manufacturing! No he didn’t! Mitt Romney saved it, too! Republicans have conspired to overthrow the president through a sort of legislative coup. No they didn’t! Obama just can’t work with the other side! Get the leader of the Republican terrorist network in there!

It never fucking ends with these psychopaths.

Right now, in Illinois, Republicans are running ads that are co-opting the Democrats’ message. They’re co-opting populism! Attacking democrats(Bill Foster, for instance) for owning a business that “laid off workers and shipped jobs to China.” Attacking Democrats for not looking out for the Middle Class. The party of concentrated wealth, who never complained about Bush’s McJob economy, or “uniquely-American” economy, are now outraged, conveniently, that this president actually turned all the lights on– scattering all the right wing cockroaches and their lobbyists. The hookers and blow parties at the Department of the Interior was a prime example. Off-the-books War accounting is another. Don’t Ask Don’t Tell is another. Fraudsters scamming Medicare is another. The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act is another. Health insurance corporations and their pre-existing conditions policies is another. The $1.2 trillion deficit another. And another. And another…

Republicans have no idea where all these roaches and rats came from! Those vermin weren’t there when Bush was running things!

It’s a near total rewrite of history and a magnificent trick getting your head all the way up your own ass, and in record time! That’s what happens when you let the Republican party control the electricity, or the narrative. They will literally turn the lights out on truth and Democracy to hide their pro-rodent policies.

They know their shit stinks and doesn’t poll well. It turns people off. The focus groups tell them so. And when Mitt Romney, their idiot leader who they never liked anyway, says he doesn’t have a plan to cut taxes for the very wealthy, or when he stands in front of big ass lying signage that says some bullshit about “the Middle Class” and “Jobs,” it’s always in daylight hours, when their pro-rodent policies are naturally hiding in the walls. Their party’s leader is named, Willard, for fuck’s sake!

Since Citizen’s United, this is all uncharted territory for American presidential elections, in more ways than one. The dark money pouring in is frightening enough, but we have one candidate resorting to unthinkable lies and fraud and secrecy, and President Obama is not only hanging in there, buy he’s going to win this thing.

*Cpt. Picard slowly clapping*

Those machines should be immediately dismantled and a hand count ordered.

Can you imagine the outrage if President Obama had a dip shit son who owned voting machines in Ohio?

Reason #2: Mitt Romney looks like what a proper U.S. president should look like (white).

But don’t worry. Just because the debates haven’t restored Obama’s large margin, pre first debate, the trend seems to be pointing in the right direction, with about ten days to go.

Amen brother!

In their dangling chads, no less.

I’m getting the feeling that this race won’t be as close as everyone says it will be. Same thing happened in ’08.