Mitt Romney Republican candidate looking happy

Washington D.C: The contrast in confidence between Democratic and Republican supporters here in Washington is striking.

Our newspaper Irish Voice hosted our annual Legal 100 event here last night at the residence of the Irish Ambassador Michael Collins, and the talk among the well connected from both sides who showed up was all about the election.

There were many movers and shakers among the large crowd and the mood shift was evident.

Democrats frankly were grim. “It comes down to Ohio?” said a former prominent politician. “It did for Kerry in 2004 and he lost it right there and we could lose it too.”

“We have to hold Ohio,” said another stalwart and major fundraiser. “We have no hope other than doing that -- It looks like the ground game is the only way we can hold it.”

The main hope of the Democratic side seemed to be in that massive turn out the vote effort. “It’s not the economy stupid,” said one political leader, “it’s the turnout stupid.”

ADemocraticfoot soldier from Pennsylvania talked about the massive effort underway there. “We will add two points to the polls,” he predicted.

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Several referred to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s race in Nevada a few years back when polls showed him five behind, yet, because of his massive organization, he won the day.
Democrats frankly are reeling at how hard and how fast Obama appears to have fallen. The ABC /Washington Post poll on Thursday shows him three behind, a similar margin to several other polls.

At the end of September he seemed to be cruising to victory with polls showing him well ahead, now he enters the final week and a half gasping for his political life.

Republicans in Washington have a pep in their step. “We’re ahead in the national polls, no doubt about it and the state polls will adjust,” said one big campaign donor many years on the scene.

Obama wrote off Romney far too soon said another. This is a fifty-fifty election he said, it was always going to come down to that.

Obama’s attitude in the first debate clearly cost him dear they say. He was just not prepped enough thinking he would easily deal with Romney.

One person discussed a recent lunch withBill Clintonsaying there was no great wisdom there either, only a sense of deep frustration that Romney’s reposition had seemingly won over a large slice of the undecided.

Right now in Washington the GOP are confident, even cocky. The next ten days will tell whether that is justified or a celebration too soon.

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