Voters could still swing Dole's way

Pundits now view a Clinton-Gore blowout on Nov. 5 as a given. Many are wondering out loud whether Republicans can keep control of Congress. These are the same pundits who, in 1994, said Democratic control of Congress would not be lost.

Many are already talking about Clinton's second term. Will he stay right or move to the left, as he did after the last election with initiatives for gays in the military, a $16 billion "economic stimulus package," a huge new tax on energy, and a government takeover of the health-care industry -- all of which failed and which together helped produce the Republican victory in 1994.

I am not here to say the pundits are wrong. Neither the performance of the Dole-Kemp campaign nor the Republican National Committee gives anyone reason to think anything can change the outcome everyone is now forecasting.

Both Bob Dole and Jack Kemp seem unable to connect with the American people on economic, crime or any other issues that people care about. They have soft-peddled high-traction social and cultural issues, and they have shrunk from raising directly the scandals of the president and his people.

GOP chairman Haley Barbour and the Republican National Committee, which (like its Democratic counterpart) exists for the sole purpose of raising money to nominate and elect candidates, have permitted the GOP and its leaders to be battered and pummeled by more than $80 million in unanswered negative ads since last spring, when the AFL-CIO and the Democrats started a coordinated campaign to demonize Newt Gingrich, Bob Dole and major GOP initiatives -- such as Medicare reforms and a balanced budget.

But, there are some countervailing forces. First because Republicans sat out most of the spring and summer, they do have a pot of money left for an eleventh hour ad blitz.

Second, reports say severa1 high-profile Republicans. disgusted with Dole and Kemp s reluctance to engage Clinton's record, intend to go after him, no holds barred.

Third, the same polls that show a double-digit lead for Bill Clinton also show a disengaged electorate, paying little attention to this campaign. In fact, interest in the