Is It Morning in America, Yet?

George Bush lost the suburbs when his party's candidates went down in Virginia and New Jersey's gubernatorial elections yesterday. I only hope this really represents -- at long last -- the start of the comeuppance that our feckless, ineffectual yet confoundingly resilient president so richly deserves.

Tim Kaine's victory has lots of people talking about current Gov. Mark Warner's own presidential ambitions, despite one pollster's opinion that "Virginia's never been a trend-setter. It's never said anything about the nation." (Consider whether those ambitions could be stymied by the only even mildly pro-gay action taken by Warner in four years as governor.) Meanwhile, hopes hang on for Democratic Attorney-General candidate Creigh Deeds, who came from behind to score a statistical tie with "Pat Robertson's candidate," Bob McDonnell from Virginia Beach.

Finally, a sad denouement to the valiant fight to oust "far right demagogue" Del. Bob Marshall in Prince William County. Although well-financed challenger Bruce Roemmelt ran a close campaign, the pathologically homophobic Marshall, who championed Virginia's HyperDOMA and its prohibitions on DP health insurance, was not one of several right-wingers knocked out of office in the 2005 contest. He will, however, be returning to a General Assembly with a more moderate flavor than recent sessions.