Why is Vice President Gore lagging in the polls against Governor George W. Bush? Well, if you're The New York Times editorial page, the answer can't be because the voters favor Mr. Bush's larger tax cut. The answer can't be because voters are scared of, and disagree with, Mr. Gore's attacks on Big Oil and Big Pharmaceutical Companies and the internal combustion engine. The answer can't be because voters agree with Mr. Bush on the need for tort reform. The answer can't be because voters think Mr. Gore's fund-raising practices involving Buddhist monks have been a little too Clintonesque.
No, as the lead editorial of this morning's New York Times explains, what this election is about is not issues, but personality: "This election is destined to be remembered as a contest between an aspiring student-body president and an amiable slacker, to paraphrase an incisive description by The Times's Maureen Dowd." The editorial concludes: "The outcome may depend on whether the fervent Mr. Gore or the more laid-back Mr. Bush is better at making voters comfortable with personal images that are firmly and probably unalterably fixed in the public consciousness."
We somewhat doubt that if the polls shift and Mr. Gore wins this election, the Times editorial on the morning after the election will follow this same line. No, if that happens, the Gore victory will no doubt be interpreted as a mandate for smaller tax cuts, stricter environmental regulations and new price controls on innovative medicines. If Mr. Bush wins, however, watch for the Times to stick with its current analysis of the election as a personality contest.
Mm, Mm: The Times metro section this morning carries an article about the New York Post. The Times article quotes a headline over a Post column as asking "Just What Is It About a Phony Like Hillary That Makes Mm Skin Crawl?" We guess that headline in the Post probably said "My Skin," not "Mm Skin."