You all know how I love good news. Well, along the same lines as those in Jim and Alexander's posts below, Pat Hynes has some reaction from some Washington political consultants who are seeing the tide begin to turn.

Internal Republican polls from around the country are showing a modest, yet consistent and noticeable trend in favor of Republican candidates. Note: these trends appeared before Saddam Hussein was found guilty of war crimes and sentenced to death--a turn of events Karl Rove himself could not have timed better for Republicans.

"What you are hearing is a collective sigh of Republican relief after this latest round of data has come in," one high-level Republican consultant in Washington told me. "Word is already starting to spread that the prophesied 'tidal wave' might only be a ripple."

One high-profile Republican pundit could hardly contain his glee that the prognosticators would be proved wrong, again. "If the present Republican surge is real and continues through Tuesday, Charlie Cook, Stu Rothenberg, and John Zogby will be stripped bare of any credibility when it comes to predicting electoral outcomes," he stated. "Personally, I hope they go out of business."

Specifically, sources tell me that the Tennessee, Missouri, and Montana Senate races continue to trend toward the Republicans. Michael Steele, the Republican nominee for US Senate in Maryland is in a dead heat with Ben Cardin. Even Senate races Republicans have written off are showing positive trends: Mike DeWine in Ohio and Rick Santorum in Pennsylvania are said to be "surging."

In the House Republicans are now rapidly lowering estimates of how many seats they might lose. "Whereas a week ago we were looking at the possibility of losing 25 seats, we now think that number is closer to 10," a Congressional Republican insider told me. "But it could come down to seven if positive trends continue in Connecticut and in the Sunbelt."

The stars in the heavens and a virtual sex page scandal aligned perfectly this election season to give Democrats perhaps their best opportunity in years to fulfill their dream of taking back the House and (in their wilder dreams) the Senate, too. So how on earth are they going to spin it when they fail?

I don't know that Democrats will fail to take control of the House or Senate, but my gut, and the way the pendulum appears to be swinging this week, tell me that the GOP is likely to retain control.