National Journal confirms Democrats are considering pulling out of Ohio Governor's race

In an article in today's National Journal On Call, Josh Kraushaar highlights the difficulties facing Strickland, Fisher, and the targeted Democratic congressmen.

But most interesting was yet another confirmation that the DGA and DSCC are seriously considering throwing up the white flag of surrender in Ohio:

Yet they're both leading by eye-popping margins, and Democrats are already privately discussing the possibility of moving money out of Ohio into other, more winnable, states. In a sign that the populist attacks focused on Kasich's past haven't had much of an impact, Strickland abandoned his own Wall Street attacks on Kasich in favor of a more positive message touting his economic record in Ohio -- a tough sell in a state with a 10.1 percent unemployment rate, ninth-highest in the country.

I guess my prediction a couple weeks ago was on target, eh?

Kraushaar also hits on Obama's major popularity problem in Ohio:

There's plenty of time until 2012, but Obama's standing in the Buckeye State has to be troubling for the president's strategists looking ahead to his re-election. There's a reason Ohio is a perennial bellwether state -- it features most of the core demographic groups that a Democrat needs to win over in order to take the White House.

With Obama getting pounded from Akron to Zanesville to Columbus to Cincinnati, it's a clear warning sign for the future. Things can change dramatically in two years. But if the White House believe that it's just style -- that it's the administration's messaging, and not the underlying policies -- causing the Democrats' sinking numbers, it should take a look at the fate of Obama's allies in Ohio who stood by him and are now bearing the brunt of those ties.

Kraushaar misses a very important point here.

All the troubles Obama is facing in Ohio come despite visiting the state ten times - the most to any state, sans New York.

If the President himself truly was the best tool in the toolshed, then shouldn't increased appearances benefit him?

Instead, what do we see?


I don't know about you, but that trajectory seems to be going the wrong way for a President who could soon consider applying for Ohio residency.

Obama is in trouble in Ohio. And so is Strickland. So is Fisher. And on and on.

The tsunami cometh.