It seems to me that W and Co knew before and have since been proven right that the Dems would keep shooting themselves in the foot.
As far as the Pubbies being strong, I know some will disagree but I think that this is a year to show maturity while not being timid. The Dem bellyaches will do the rest. If we win big in this election, I believe there will some tougher stands made in the 2005 to 2007 session. We need to win this one decisively so that we can have four more years to clean up the Clinton mess, particuarly the War On Terrorism and judicial nominations.
The War On Terror, thankfully, won't be fought entirely in the Senate, by the Senate.
The Democrats will shoot themselves in the foot, regardless. The Clinton mess will be with us for longer than 4 more years, but, having Bush in the White House for 4 more years will help. But, we have a lot of catching up to do. Frankly, the first act of terrorism came under Carter's watch. It just took 9/11 to wake this country up to the realities of terrorism.
It's easier for the Republicans to keep the Democrats on defense, rather than giving them the ball every damn time and watching the Republicans continually play defense, because that's what the Republicans are doing, playing defense. The Republican's in the Senate may have a small majority, but they don't act like a party that wants a bigger majority.