Quick Hits Politics

We're just a bit over two weeks before the elections, and tensions are rising. Have Democrats peaked just a bit too early? Have Republicans finished licking their wounds and started to rise again?

• Don at Article 19 is concerned that Harold Ford is acting a bit flaky in the Tennessee senate race. He confronted opponent Bob Corker at an airstrip in Memphis where Corker was conducting a press conference. On the other hand, Josh Marshall admired the fact that Ford was "gettin' in his face." However, Don also points to an article detailing other problems that have cropped up in the Ford campaign. Ford is currently a Congressman from Memphis. His brother Jake is running as an independent in that seat against Democratic nominee Steve Cohen and Republican Mark White. Harold Ford has tied Cohen to Repub Senate nom Corker in attacking his family. Ford has a decent chance, but he doesn't have any margin to cause Tennessee voters second thoughts.

• Speaking of well-connected independents running against Democratic nominees, Matt Stoller writes at MyDD about the Connecticut senate race. According to him, Tuesday's five-way senate debate (including candidates from the Green and Concerned Citizens parties) was explosive, with Democrat Ned Lamont and Republican Alan Schlesinger showing up the Connecticut for Lieberman candidate Joe Lieberman. Here's how Stoller describes the election as a whole:

It's not your normal white picket fence suburban election, with attack ad facing attack ad. No, this is more like a white picket fence election that suddenly gets bored with life and decides to live in the forest, take a bunch of LSD, trout-fish naked, and taunt a bear cub before ending its life suddenly and with total and inexplicable resolution on November 7.

Unfortunately, he follows that with, "Well not really, but there's no analogy that I can think of summarizing what's going on." Read the entire post for some fascinating insight.

• John McCain isn't running for anything this time around (except he's already running for president for next time), but as Andy Towle points out (via Aravosis), he's again doling out some of that straight talk he's so famous for. Trying to somehow split the difference on the issue and keep everybody happy (because that's what "straight talk" is for), McCain declares that he supports gay weddings, but he's against gay marriage. Which is perfectly reasonable, because everybody knows the ceremony is the most important part.