October Surprises

I usually wait until the last minute to write these blogs, but after visiting bbc.co.uk at 8:30 am on October 23, I realized I couldn't wait...

This wasn't just the front page of the American Election section... No, it was on the main page of the website. It talked about the 2004 election and the Osama video coming out the week before the election... and this article talked about what can happen with the time before this election dwindling...

The discussion in the article makes it appear that a twist would have to occur to benefit John McCain-- BUT it can't be anything that he can be rash about... He is already known as the 'maverick', but some believe that he makes decisions without really thinking or considering the things necessary for a president to consider. The question, then, is really-- is there going to be something happening having to do with something where McCain is stronger in the coming months that Republicans would have potential power over... For instance, if the White House has a tape of Bin Ladin that has not been released yet... that would magically appear before election day...

Another topic that I hadn't thought about is that so many people take advantage of early voting, that it is hard to say how many would be influenced by this action... I would argue, though, that those that have voted already probably were confident in those that they voted for...

It is funny that this is brought up; I remember the first day of Pete and Rupp's freshmen seminar, and they talked about something happening before the election that could turn things around... Right now, I think that the only thing McCain can do is sit back and pray for the Bradley effect...