Mountaineer sense

Slate’s Will Saletan thinks that President Bush will again carry West Virginia. True, the Democrats have a 2-1 advantage in registration. And, according to Saletan, West Virginians are unhappy about both the economy and our difficulties in Iraq. But Saletan thinks Bush has the edge because West Virginia voters are culturally conservative and, decisively, because they have a pro-incumbent mentally. As one West Virginian told Saletan, the safest course is to let the guy who started the job finish it. My hunch is that this reasoning may well play an important role outside of the mountaineer state too.