Bellwether

n. A male sheep, usually castrated, with a bell hung from its neck, that is followed by a flock of sheep.

El Presidente is coming to Norfolk, Va., this Friday, 11 days prior to the Virginia gubernatorial election, and the Republican candidate for governor, Jerry Kilgore, is not following. Kilgore is not planning to appear anywhere in the president's general vicinity.

"I think it's highly likely that the Kilgore campaign folks just don't see Bush as an asset," said Mark J. Rozell, a public policy professor at George Mason University. That's even considering that Bush polls better in Virginia currently than nationwide. But still.

It's not as though Kilgore can't use the boost. He's been running some of the nastiest TV ads against his Democrat opponent, without moving up in the polls. If the Democrats win in Virginia, reddest of the red, it truly will be a sign.