Are you better off now than you were four years ago?

This is one big scary question for Republicans. It should be. We should be cringing about now because it is coming—like a 100 mph fastball on a 3-2 count. I have a sense of dread that the McCain team will be caught flat-footed when the Democrats start throwing this hardball.

In fact, my fear (combined with Florida spring training) has inspired a recurring baseball themed dream, a nightmare in fact. Johnny McCain is at bat in the bottom of the 9th with two out and a 3-2 count. He’s praying for a hanging curveball, but finds himself helplessly caught looking as the 100 mph fastball goes screaming by him for the strikeout. Adding to the horror of it all, this happens in slow motion with an Obama-worshiping crowd sending him back to the dugout with the Bronx cheer while chanting in unison, “Are you better off now? Are you better off now? Are you better off now?”

Wake up. This is no dream. The Democrats’ enablers and coaches, such as Paul Krugman at The New York Times, are signaling loudly for the Reagan fastball. As late as March 7, 2008, he writes, “Democrats won the 2006 election largely thanks to public disgust with the Iraq war. But polls—and Hillary Clinton’s big victory in Ohio—suggest that if the Democrats want to win this year, they have to focus on economic anxiety…. And, as the Democrats ponder their choices, they might want to consider which candidate can most convincingly ask: ‘Are you better off now than you were eight years ago?’”

What Klugman means is, “We’ve lost the war issue. Now move on to a winner: the economy.” In other words, manager Krugman says it might have been exciting to throw McCain a few sliders, off-speed pitches, the brushback or knuckleball, but now’s the time to throw the 100 mph fastball right down the pipe.

Gallup is doing its part by handing out thundersticks, daily advertising every type of economic bleakness. We are bombarded with headlines such as “85% Say Economy is Getting Worse”; “Consumers Remain Negative on Economy”; and “Consumer Gloom Holding Steady.” Add to this the insatiable appetite the mainstream media has for finding and promoting bad economic news and it’s clear the issue of the economy will remain front and center. So, is there a way out of this big bad dream? Or, is our destiny to be laughed out of the park like Jimmy Carter.

The Democrats are distracted now, but when they find their focus, McCain can’t close his eyes and swing away. If he does he will get hammered like the hapless Jimmy Carter. I don’t even think Reaganesque quips like “there you go again” will be much help this time around. This is a deeply serious millstone looking to be tied around someone’s neck, and once around the neck it will sink that campaign straight to the bottom. Continued...