Check out these photos, the size of the crowd, Kerry's face, Bruce.....

I'm beginning to think this election is over and Bush will soon be on his way to Crawford for good. I don't even think it will be that close. The proliferation of newly registered voters, absentee balloters, early voters and non-military expat voters to me is a signal that people want a change. People don't come out in these kinds of numbers to preserve the status quo.

Barring election day antics or fraud by Republicans in suppressing or counting the vote, I think we'll be saying hello next week to President Elect John F. Kerry.

Does it seem like almost all of the October surprises so far work against Bush? I think so. Two more:

The FBI is investigating Halliburton and researchers and scientists at Johns Hopkins University, Columbia University and the Al-Mustansiriya University in Baghdad have completed a study that estimates 100,000 civilian deaths in Iraq.

Add that to al Qa Qaa and Bush's poor showing in the debates, one has to wonder if he can take much more.

The Pew Research Center for the People & the Press has re-polled more than 500 voters who were undecided in September. More leaned towards Bush than Kerry. Now, they are evenly split. By a three to one margin, they said John Kerry did better than Bush in the debates.

The Ohio GOP lost a big one Wednesday with a federal judge rejecting its attempt to challenge the voting credentials of thousands of Ohio voters ahead of Election Day.

Judge Susan J. Dlott in Cincinnati issued an order preventing local election boards from going forward with plans to notify challenged voters and hold hearings until she hears legal arguments tomorrow. But because her ruling means that those election board hearings cannot take place within the time frame state law requires before the election, Dlott's ruling kills the GOP effort that had targeted 35,000 voters, Democratic and Republican party officials said.

Democrats charged the Republicans had no evidence of voter ineligiblity and that the suit was just an attempt to intimidate voters, particularly minorities. The Republicans aren't giving up, just changing their strategy. They still plan on installing 3,400 monitors at polling places, and will make their challenges Tuesday when they show up to vote.

What it means: There will be longer lines at the polls Tuesday for Ohioans in Democratic neighborhoods. Republicans will be sending out 5,000 monitors in Florida and 350 in Denver for similar purposes.

Don't forget to bring your videocamera when you go to vote so you can capture any improprieties or attempts at voter intimidation outside the entrances to polling precincts.

We're not making this up, read it for yourself. An editor at American Conservative backs John Kerry for President. [Update: Edited to reflect that not all of the magazine's editors back Kerry]

Update: With Pictures.

On Thursday, October 28, 2004, Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry will be joined on the campaign trail by Bruce Springsteen for rallies in Madison, WI, and Columbus, OH. Springsteen is expected to perform one or two songs. Here are the details, as received from the Kerry campaign:

President Bush invoked the name of John F. Kennedy in a stump speech the other day. In response, JFK daughter Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg issued this statement.

“It’s hard for me to listen to President Bush invoking my father’s memory to attack John Kerry. Senator Kerry has demonstrated his courage and commitment to a stronger America throughout his entire career. President Kennedy inspired and united the country and so will John Kerry. President Bush is doing just the opposite. All of us who revere the strength and resolve of President Kennedy will be supporting John Kerry on Election Day.”

[Source: email from John Kerry campaign]

Before getting to the surprising Bush comment, here's the background. This AP article concerns Pete Coors and Ken Salazar and their race for Colorado's open Senate seat. A few eyebrow raisers-- Republican Coors opposes the death penalty while Salazar, (not suprisingly for an Attorney General,) favors it. Coors also suggested recently that "Congress might have balked at authorizing war in Iraq "given what we know today."

Coors has stumped with Bush on most if not all of his Colorado visits. Bush has supported Coors. So what does Bush have to say about Coor's non-supportive war statement?

President Bush brushed off the comment as he stumped for Coors the next day, saying he would be able to count on the beer executive "on the big issues."

What's a bigger issue than Iraq to American voters? To the soldiers and their families? Maybe Bush thinks opposition to gay marriage, which Coors supports him on, is a bigger issue than Iraq?

Reuters reports on the latest Reuters/Zogby tracking poll released today...Bush has a one point lead over Kerry....that's great news for Kerry who has been shoring up his base:

Kerry has consolidated his base support just as Bush did early in the race, taking a 2-to-1 lead among Hispanics, 90 percent of blacks, 84 percent of Democrats, 55 percent of union voters and 65 percent of singles.

Only 4 percent of likely voters remain undecided.

The number of likely voters who thought Bush deserved reelection, 48 percent, was equal to those who wanted someone new. Bush's presidential performance was rated as excellent or good by 49 percent, and 51 percent said it was only fair or poor.

Six days left. Volunteer to get out the vote. In Colorado, go here. In other states, start here.

The Kerry campaign is recruiting people to help get out the vote. Thousands of volunteers are needed! Many of you have been volunteering all this time, but for those of you who haven't....make the call or go on line. They are looking for volunteers who can give at least two hours of their time this weekend, on Monday, or on election day.

You can also voluntee through MoveOn. It's all about getting out the vote now. We can do this.

The Broward County Elections office blames the Post Office. The Post Office denies responsiblity. Voters can't get through on phone lines. More than 58,000 mailed absentee ballots failed to reach their intended recipients.

Broward election officials say they are overwhelmed. Their phone lines were never equipped to handle the volume of calls they have experienced, they say, and they blame their limitations on the confined spaces within the county administration building. "It's a real, real problem," Salas said.

Democrats have already filed nine voting-related lawsuits in Florida.

This has got to be making Republicans crazy. So far, 36 newspapers have abandoned Bush and are endorsing John Kerry. That's 36 papers that endorsed Bush in 2000.

These include the Chicago Sun-Times, the Los Angeles Daily News and the Memphis Commercial Appeal, according to industry magazine Editor & Publisher. Bush has won over only six papers that backed Al Gore, including the Denver Post, which received 700 letters -- all of them protesting the move.

How many papers that endorsed Al Gore in 2000 are now endorsing Bush? A paltry six. Factor in another nine papers that have abandoned Bush without endorsing Kerry. That's 45 newspapers that once supported Bush but have changed their opinions of his ability to lead this country as our President.

Are Bush's advisors losing it? They let Bush go on national tv yesterday and say that the bulge viewable on his back during the debate was from a poorly made shirt.

"I don't know what that is," Mr. Bush said. "I mean, it is — I'm embarrassed to say it's a poorly tailored shirt."

As we reported on October 10, his tailor has spoken and said the bulge was a pucker that came from the jacket's back seam.

Georges de Paris, who made the suit worn by Bush, said the bulge was nothing more than a pucker along the jacket's back seam, accentuated when the president crossed his arms and leaned forward.

Earth to Bush: The back seam of a jacket is not the same thing as a shirt.