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In the subsequent weeks, what was left of Bush's lead was ground away by, as always, Iraq--a steady drip drip drip of discouraging news punctuated by the occasional sensation amplified by an eager and often partisan press. The finale was the 380 tons of explosives that had disappeared, only possibly on Bush's watch, out of a total of more than 650,000 tons left behind by Saddam Hussein. Banner-headlined, it dominated the news--and Kerry's attacks--in the final week of the campaign.
With the election hanging in the balance, the campaign awaited some improbable development to tip the scale. Re-enter Osama bin Laden. The irony could not be richer, the circle more complete. By reminding us of 9/11 and the war on terrorism, bin Laden invoked the only thing that could trump Iraq--and save the President. His chilling reappearance reminded us of our peril, put Iraq in perspective and played precisely to the President's success and strength--success and strength that he so squandered in Baghdad. Bin Laden was never one to remotely understand the American mind--he spectacularly misjudged 9/11--and he pulled his nemesis over the finish line.