BLUMEY, WE HARDLY KNEW YE – AT 7:33 P.M. ET:  The Senate race in Connecticut moved closer to being competitive, in the light of revelations that the probable Dem candidate told lies about his military record.  From the New York Post:

Following bombshell revelations that he claimed he served in Vietnam when he hadn't, Connecticut Senate candidate Richard Blumenthal's once-robust lead in the polls has hit record lows.

The Senate hopeful now leads Republican challenger Linda McMahon by a mere three points -- a 10-point drop from two weeks ago, according to according to a Rasmussen poll conducted on Tuesday. The latest poll had Blumenthal at 48 percent compared to McMahon, the co-founder of World Wrestling Entertainment, who had 45 percent of the vote.

It's the closest McMahon or any other candidate has ever come to Blumenthal in the polls.

You'd think that Blumenthal would have already collapsed completely in the polls, but it's possible some voters aren't yet familiar with his newly discovered fiction writing.  Also, in the western part of the state, they may not care all that much.  These are the wealthy suburbs around New York, who practice a kind of Dracula liberalism – they knife each other in business during the day, then come out as great progressives at night.  A little lying may not bother them, especially if it's about something as illiberal as military service.

Blumenthal -- the current Connecticut Attorney General who was widely perceived to be the favorite to replace retiring US Sen. Chris Dodd -- also lost ground in his lead over Republican Rob Simmons. He now leads Simmons by 11 points -- 50 percent to 39 percent -- down from a 23 point lead over the former congressman.

Any honorable man who's been caught lying about a military record would get out of the race.  But men who lie about their military records aren't honorable.

In the 1950s, a Utah Republican congressman named Douglas Stringfellow was caught lying about his World War II record.  He was forced to resign from Congress, and had to take jobs under an assumed name.  Times have changed, haven't they?

May 19,  2010