Alan Lichtman tells it straight on MSNBC

[blogslut]

Paraphrase: "The incumbent party NEVER wins when the economy is bad."

[nuxvomica]

1. When was he on?

I e-mailed "Morning Joe" last week and told them they should have Lichtman as guest.

[blogslut]

3. A couple of minutes ago

On MSNBC

[nuxvomica]

5. Did he talk about the 13 Keys?

Lichtman has said elsewhere that McCain is at the same level with the 13 keys that Carter was in 1980, which could indicate a landslide for Obama. I was hoping to see him say that to Scarborough's face, who was going on last week about McCain has a chance because the country is basically conservative.

[terrya]

2. Correct. 1980 and 1992 come to mind right off the top of my head.

[blogslut]

4. He went all the way back to the early part of the 20th century

I'll go even farther. I think one of the main reasons that Bill Clinton survived his impeachment trial was because the economy was good. If there's one broad brush that can correctly paint the American electorate - they vote with their pocketbooks.

[terrya]

6. You're right.

Look, the economy isn't going to suddenly get better in the next 3 weeks. We're in a recession with some people saying we could be headed for a depression. There is NO way McCain can win under those circumstances. When you lose your job, or your 401K is worth much less today, no one is going to give a damn about whether Obama associated with William Ayers. They want to hear that things may get better. They want to hear a candidate who can understand how bad things are in this country today and want to hear how we can solve these problems. Barack Obama is doing exactly that.