I don’t think conservatives and Republicans should get too excited about the prospect that the Kerry gaffe is going to change things. If anything, it gives Democratic candidates a chance to do a little Sistah Souljah thing and say, “I’m not a Northeastern liberal like that John Kerry guy, you independents can trust me.” That’s clearly why Harold Ford in Tennessee and Jon Tester in Montana leapt so quickly to denounce Kerry, and why their denunciations may help them in the coming days. If I were Clare McCaskill’s campaign manager, I’d be issuing a statement right about now too.