I woke up to beautiful, clear, smog-free skies this morning, went for a good hard run, and then saw this:

The latest Rasmussen Reports survey of Election 2008 shows Republican frontrunner Senator John McCain with single-digit leads over Democratic Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. McCain now leads Clinton 48% to 40%. He leads Barack Obama 47% to 41%.

How could this have happened?

In 2006, a Republican party tied to a sinking president and a dismal war was handed a well-earned electoral beating. The party's presidential candidates were dancing around and running away from Bush and Iraq, and the Democrats had strong candidates and an endless supply of fat, facty cudgels to beat their opponents.

In 2008, it looks like we may end up with a Republican president who is an unabashed warmonger, and who shamelessly changed positions towards large parts of the Bush legacy. What the heck?