Where's Willie Horton?

The further we get into this election, the more I feel like we're seeing 1988 all over again and I'm glad everyone else can see it too because there's still time to do something about it. (like nominate Dean.) This Massachusetts "liberal" thing is exactly the line we all figured the Bush people would take with Kerry... and it will probably work. Kerry's people say things like,

Another Kerry adviser was more blunt. "This is not the Dukakis campaign," the adviser said. "We're not going to take it. And if they're going to come at us with stuff, whatever that stuff may be, if it goes to a place where the '88 campaign did, then everything is on the table. Everything."

But then, at the same time, the candidate says stupid equivocating things like,

In a statement on Wednesday night, Mr. Kerry clearly sought a middle ground. He said he believed in protecting the "fundamental rights of gay and lesbian couples, from inheritance to health benefits," but added that he believed the answer was civil unions.

"I oppose gay marriage and disagree with the Massachusetts court's decision," he said.

This is starting to look really really bad.