The Game 'Bout To Change, Yo

Two predictions on Election '04:

1. The Bush team has shrewdly let Kerry build on his core plank - honorable service in Vietnam - knowing that they have the ammunition to shred that plank in the closing months. This will be big. No, huge.

2. The debates will be the decisive factor in the race and will break open the roughly evenly-divided race in favor of the overall perceived debate winner. And to that end, I believe the Bush/Rove team is already hard at work in preparation, perhaps even already conducting mock debates.