We’ve all become familiar with the GOP strategy of governing towards the extreme while conventioning back towards moderation. And we knew they would parade out a series of keynote speakers whose politics may not be exactly in line with the Party godfathers. But, I have to admit I’m surprised at just how far they’re willing to stretch their so-called big tent with this latest list of scheduled speakers.

At this point, it’s probably too late to question the networks’ decision to only broadcast three hours of each convention. And I’m not even sure, with 24 hour cable news, that it makes all that much of a difference.

But who among the network heads picked tonight as the night to skip altogether? Maybe I am just a political geek, but Rudy and McCain sounds like quality programming to me.

The latest poll numbers from the Wash Post show that while the race is still a dead heat, President Bush has already erased most of Kerry’s post-convention bounce and increased his leads in the areas of security, leadership and the war on terror. He is weaker on topics such as the economy and Iraq.

Also, the Swift Boat ads (along with the prior strings of attacks) seem to have taken an indirect toll. Bush is viewed as more trustworthy and honest than Kerry by a 47-41% margin (that’s a 12 point swing since the Dem convention ended). A similar swing has emerged on the question of which candidate would make a better commander in chief.

How bad are these trends for Kerry, especially considering the GOP hasn’t even brought out the primetime speakers yet? Pretty bad. Not because of the overall splits which still depict an incredibly tight race. But because a significant number of Americans who are dissatisfied with the direction the country is headed still haven’t come over to Kerry and the Dems.

It will be interesting to see how the Republicans play to their strengths throughout much of this week as they portray their man as being tough on terror. Meanwhile, they will largely ignore their own cultural positions which turn the stomachs of so many voters.

By the end of the week, Team Kerry will be left with a pivotal question. Should they stay moderate and continue to highlight Kerry’s military record, or should Kerry hit the Republicans on the very topics they obviously want to avoid?

Several months ago, I sat among a group of Democratic insiders and funders in California and listened to Bob Shrum answer a series of questions. He talked a lot about the pace of the Kerry campaign and explained that Kerry would let Bush’s own record and struggles hurt him for awhile. Then, around the time of the convention, he would kick things up a few notches and make this a campaign about himself, not just his opponent.

The strategy made some sense to me at the time. But I really thought that Kerry would’ve picked up the pace a whole lot more in the last month or so.

There are those who have suggested that the GOPers successfully baited John Kerry into spending so much of his own convention time on Vietnam. I wouldn’t have been all that surprised to see Terry McAuliffe and the gang re-enacting swift boat battles on the Fleet Center stage.

But as far as baiting goes, I’d say it’s already time for the Dems to take a victory lap around Manhattan.

The convention has barely even started and we’ve already gotten them to take Ron Silver, Zell Miller and Ed Koch.

James Carville was reportedly complaining about the way the Democratic message has been muddled in recent weeks. He also wondered what gives when it comes to the running of John Edwards: “He’s a racehorse, and you’ve got to get him on the track.”

There are times when all one wants from a Veep candidate is to avoid major mistakes or massive spelling errors. But that was never the case when it comes to John Edwards. He was selected specifically because of his stumping skills.

So where is he? Has he made a dent in any issue or any moment since being picked? I don’t know whether this is a Kerry problem or an Edwards problem, but it sure seems like a problem.

Bob Dole on and off the air and on and off message when it comes to the tactics employed by the Bush campaign team.

Listen, this isn’t just a problem for the Republicans. In these times of tight margins, representatives from both Parties are increasingly hesitant to criticize their own. And what this leaves us with are increasingly extreme and wrong-minded messages. Everyone loses.

It makes sense that folks want to be team players. The drive to be part of a team or a member of a club is an undeniable part of human nature. But when none of the team members have the guts to stand up and say “My team is wrong on this one,” or at least “Those who pretend to represent my team are wrong on this one,” then the team itself strays from a positive course.

It’s absurd that more Republicans are not blasting the Swiftboat ads. It’s pathetic that more of them don’t demand decency on the issues of gay rights and medical research.

But like I said, it goes both ways. It is unacceptable that so few Democrats spoke out against the distortions being pedaled by Michael Moore. And which Dems ripped a MoveOn ad that featured the Statue of Liberty with an Abu Ghraib hood over her head? I’ve sat an listened to speakers at Democratic fundraisers who compared Bush’s America to Germany in the 1930s. And you can guess how many people stood up said, “Hey, you’re talking like a friggin’ idiot!”

It is a problem seemingly inherent in politics that we don’t feel like we can trust politicians. It’s a hell of lot more sad when we are all reduced to partisan goons who can’t even trust ourselves anymore.