From Tom Dispatch
By Ira Chernus

Election statistics are like pies. You can slice them up any way you want. And the way you slice them depends on the tool you use. My favorite tool is a nugget of wisdom from Democratic political guru Stanley Greenberg: “A narrative is the key to everything.” The party that tells the best story wins. And the recipe for a winning story is simple: Take a few handfuls of fact, throw in a large dollop of fiction, and stir.

But the story of the 2006 election isn’t over yet. It’s like one of those movies on DVD with several alternative endings. You get to choose the one you want.

Greenberg said “a narrative is the key” right after the election of 2004. Back then, he credited the Republicans with “a much more coherent attack and narrative that motivated their voters.” Though the media gave us a story about a new breed of “values voters,” Karl Rove knew that was mostly fiction. It was the “war on terror” story that put George W. Bush back in the White House.

This year, Rove told Republicans to count on the same story to keep control of Congress. It went this way: Republicans, who are real Americans, have the backbone to fight against evil and do whatever it takes to win. Cowardly Democrats just want to cut and run.

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