The fact that he is coming out with his opinions (he has always had them, believe me, I know) at all during a re-election campaign shows both conviction and a LOT of guts. I think someone on his staff responsible for testing the local waters has told him the tide might be turning, and the time has come to ride the surf all the way toward re-election. His views haven't changed one bit in the past year. Look back at the film of some of his Senate hearings and the grilling he has giving Republicans who came before him.The fact that he is feeling confident enough to come out swinging in public is the major change. The Republicans will still pour tens or hundreds of millions into the race to try to defeat him--especially now that his speeches are getting some serious internet exposure (you won't see them much on CNN, Fox Noise or CBS). Atlanta certainly is no redneck backwater. Maybe the rest of Georgia is getting tired of being thought of in that way. If so, Jon is the perfect figure to lead them out of it. He is young, sincere, eloquent and convincing. If Republicans felt secure in their right wing majority, they'd just laugh at him and move on to what they consider are tougher fights. I don't think a hundred million dollars is indicative of Republicans thinking that defeating Jon will be a breeze. It's more like they are scared shitless that he will win re-election. I think he is moving ever closer to justifying their fears.
I doubt that the Republicans are even remotely considering that they might face Jon in a race for the White House in two years. Jon isn't thinking about it either, at least not now. He and his wife have small children, and the tough Senate re-election race on their hands. But two years in American politics is like two centuries out in the normal world. A lot can (and probably will) happen between now and then.
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