Is the worst yet to come . . .

I had hoped the worst of this election was behind us - evidently not. Governor Palin today accused Barrack Obama of "palling around with terrorists." This is in reference to Obama's connection with Bill Ayers, a founding member of the Weather Underground. A more accurate statement might be about a lack of connection. The very same New York Time's article Palin quotes from points out that there is no substantial connection between Ayers and Obama and that Obama has denounced the radical actions of Ayers. More importantly, one should remember that when Ayers was a part of this radical group, Obama was eight years old.

It is interesting to note that this is not new news. Hillary Clinton brought this connection up in the primaries and it was shown to be nothing. So why now?

I think there is something in the wind. If you look at what the polls are saying, this is an act of desperation. A quick look at RealClear Politics shows that if today's polls are accurate, Obama has 353 electoral votes. Remember you need 270 to win. When you categorize states as either solid or leaning, Obama has 264 electoral votes whereas McCain only has 163 with 111 still up for grabs. While you can't always believe the polls, this is clearly a substantial lead for Obama.

Sadly, perhaps the worst is yet to come. McCain's pull-out of Michigan may be an admission that the polls aren't far off. It may also be the reason for the start of what could be some of the nastiest attacks we've seen yet. I wouldn't be the first to say that the Republicans may go extremely negative in order to try and reel this election back in. Moreover, I have to wonder if Palin isn't going to become the sacrificial lamb. If the attacks don't work, she'll be the one to take the fall while McCain stays above the fray.

In either case, it's a sad day for American politics, especially in an election that at first, seemed that it might actually be different. So much for country first.