Kate O'Beirne is NR's Washington editor. Candidates wage campaigns in battleground states at the direction of their lieutenants to combat the opponent. Usually this language ends when the voting stops, but the Gore camp is back on a war footing. They plan to take Bush territory back, by any means possible.
Republicans give little evidence that they appreciate that the other side has declared war.
Republicans must mount a counteroffensive on the public-relations front. Republicans should know how many ballots were invalidated to underscore the point that voters' mistakes are a feature of all elections. Gore operatives were illegally handing out packs of cigarettes to the homeless to entice them to vote. Republicans narrowly lost the governor's race in Missouri, where a judge ordered St. Louis polling stations to remain open beyond the scheduled closing time for the convenience of Democratic voters. The point is that these complaints are a feature of every election.