I am so nervous I can barely breathe. We’re going canvassing again Sunday and I will try to do more phone calls before then and after but seeing these polls closing – listening to Chuck Todd on MSNBC talk about states that are "tightening" – it’s really scary. I’ve felt all along that everyone is putting this election away way too soon. As I sat with friends and listened to Joe Trippi this week, all three of us were troubled by the seeming assumption that the race is "in the bag." It’s so easy to get complacent and stay home, make fewer calls, do a bit less, if you think things are going your way anyway.
In addition, we don’t know what the "young people" and first-time voters will do. Will they show up? Can they translate quotes like this one from college student Lauren Masterson, on the NewsHour:
"We see ourselves in him, I think. Even though he is of another generation, people are excited about him because he
seems to understand young people.
into turning out and waiting in line and casting that vote? Here’s a nice consideration of younger voters and their commitment.
I suppose if I just watched TNT and the endless, comforting Law and Order broadcasts instead of MSNBC, Your Place for Politics, I’d feel better but after all the years I spent covering campaigns, I can’t imagine avoiding information when it’s available. And it’s really the first presidential election where I’ve had no editorial responsibility (except my blog) so I have all these habits and nowhere to put them. I have to sit and listen and worry and watch and bounce from website to website, and to the links provided by friends on Twitter. Can’t stop. It’s not that I think I’ll miss the Important Moment, it’s that I keep hoping to hear some good news. We all know that races tighten at the end but many states are moving into the margin of error and that’s really scary.
At least I have to go offline for Shabbat, which is going to make me nuts but may be healthy. Keep an eye on things for me, will you?