Here's an idea for how Obama can both hit back at McCain's distortions (e.g., his lies about Obama's tax plan) and continue to draw attention to his bizarre "misstatements" on matters of fact.

Obama can't just say "he's lying". Even if true, this statement is always perceived as harsh and negative. (Remember Bob Dole's "tell [Bush] to stop lying about my record"? He instantly fell behind and never recovered.) I don't say that others---like us---shouldn't call McCain a liar whenever appropriate. But Obama himself can't use that word.

What he can say instead is this:  "The Senator's memory is at fault."

Here's an invitation to do a little soul-searching.

Everyone here will be ecstatic if we win the Senate. What if we don't?

Suppose we get 50 seats. I myself will be pretty happy: We'll be in a much better position to block truly awful judges and laws, and we'll be well-positioned to take over in 2008 (when there are nearly twice as many R seats to defend as D).

Even if we get only 49, we'll be in hugely better shape, and we should consider it a victory.

If we get 48 seats we're halfway to takeover, and in distinctly better position, but I myself will be disappointed that we didn't do better.  

Now here's the thing: I've concluded that I'll be a little more unhappy at 48 than I'll be happy at 49.  This makes my personal expectation break-even point (PEBEP) about 48 3/4.

It's no less nerdly if you click to read the rest.

I just returned from a MoveOn phonebanking event. Lots of people were there, with lots of energy. But too much of that energy was wasted, I thought.

Below the jump is the letter I sent back to MoveOn. I'd appreciate knowing how far off-base I am, or any other thoughts. Actually, I'm not sure exactly why I'm posting it here, except that it's the sort of thing I put in my own real diary, and this is supposed to be a diary!