If the Republicans keep control of the Senate (and it looks more and more like they won't), they'll do it thanks to Bob Corker's win over Harold Ford in Tennessee, which is to say they'll do it because of race.

The disapproval for the Bush-era GOP was so great that all the fast food they'd been tube-feeding the electorate finally got coughed back up — the South Dakota abortion ban went down, as did the Arizona gay-marriage ban. In states like Wisconsin and Colorado, where gay-marriage bans did pass, they didn't help Republicans in any substantial way and even suggested, sadly, that the issue is somewhat cross-partisan.

Race-baiting, one of the oldest gambits in the furled-up political playbook, came through. Still, it didn't come through big. Ford came within a slight margin (51 percent to 48 percent) of being the first black elected to the Senate from the South since Reconstruction. Had he won, it would have the most significant win of the night, even bigger than a female Speaker of the House. The irony is irresistible. The Democrats have their first big win in over a decade, but their greatest achievement this Election Day might still be a loss.

Challenger Maintains Lead Over Sen. Burns [WP]
Watch the Harold Ford ad.
South Dakota Scraps Abortion Ban [LAT]
Anti-Gay Marriage Measure Losing in Arizona [AP]