Shrub as Millstone

Paul Hackett ran against the war. He ran against Bush. He ran against Republican corruption and abuse of power.

And he ran 25 points ahead of either Gore or Kerry in this district.

Everyone thought this was a hopeless quest. Let me quote from my just-arrived 2006 Almanac of American Politics:

"The contest to replace Portman in the House almost certainly was decided by the June 14 Republican primary...Democrats nominated Iraq war veteran Paul Hackett, but the August 2 general election in this heavily Republican district was expected to be a mere formality."

That "mere formality" turned out to be only 3,500 votes, just 3% short, and leading much of the night...in Cincinnati, for crying out loud.

The truth, though little reported, is that most Americans no longer trust Bush; most Americans no longer believe that Iraq is part of the "global war on terror" (or whatever fake name they've pinned on it this week); most Americans now think we rushed to war, and that we were misled into war.
George W. Bush--and his war of choice--have been hitting record lows lately.

Kudos to Paul Hackett for having the guts to speak truth to power.