[mimi from mi]

The crowd went wild when Michelle Obama swept into a high-school gymnasium in Las Vegas yesterday morning, with little Harry Reid trailing in her wake and a local Mariachi band, in full dress uniform, entertaining the crowd. But behind the flag waving and anthem-singing, and the sunny optimism of a typical American election rally, there was a palpable sense of unease.

Two years ago, at the height of Obamania, the First Lady was a sort of rock-star; with a following wind, she could fill an outdoor stadium. Today, her stock has fallen. A few hundred people did turn out to hear her speech, but there were swathes of seats left empty at the back, and plenty of standing room around the stage. Ticker tape was conspicuous by its absence.

[kabar]

The Senator currently sits between two and four points in the Nevada polls behind Sharron Angle, a former schoolteacher with no national political experience who comes from the extreme right wing of the Republican movement. In a pattern being repeated across America, his centrist brand is being threatened by an unconventional candidate whose quirky – and some say bonkers – right-wingery has been roundly endorsed by Sarah Palin and the Tea Party movement.

British left wing slant on the election. Pro poor Harry who they seem to think will win by a few thousand votes.