Yes, it's football season. Sure, the baseball playoffs are all the talk (sadly, no longer in D.C. however). True, store shelves are already lined with Christmas decorations.

Continue reading

But don't for one moment overlook the consistent reason you're feeling a tad tense these days. It's the event that dwarfs all others. In tailgating (of a different nature), rally cries & spending (yes, even more than those stockings and Santa statues: The 2012 Campaign - and things are boiling over in Battleground Virginia.

Obama campaign sources have confirmed that the President will be back in Northern Virginia this coming Friday for another rally.

If you're keeping count, that should be the 17th time he'll be in Virginia since June.

Not to mention 10 by his wife and six by Vice President Joe Biden.

Mitt Romney's also worthy of an honorary residency here. By the Washington Post's count, he's hit the Old Dominion 18 times. Officials tell ABC7 News that Romney's running mate, Paul Ryan, will campaign in Lynchburg and Fredericksburg on Tuesday.

Ryan has been here 11 times, and Ann Romney has made five appearances.

As I said earlier this week, if states gave out passport stamps, these guys would need entire books just for Virginia.

It's tough to trust the other big numbers in this race. The polls seem to change daily and we are seeing more erratic swings than predicted by even the most wide-eyed pundits. One day, Virginians favor the President by a handful...the next, Romney's up by two (as he was in a Rasmussen Poll Friday).

They'll certain to change again before Nov. 6.

One thing is a worthy of safe betting though. The President and Mitt Romney will continue to make Virginia a central focus these final 20+ days.

We love to talk Ohio or Florida or Iowa or Nevada, but both parties' surrogates will publicly say Virginia is a top prize. Win the Commonwealth, they believe, and they'll win the White House.

Welcome back, Mr. President. Mr. Romney, see you soon. Try not to bump into each other.