The Fat Lady Is In The Building

Just when Congressional Democrats and the Gore campaign seemed to agree that Al Gore's sell-by date would arrive whenever his latest appeal is decided, the Vice President may have found a few more days of shelf life in a couple of election cases going to trial Wednesday in Florida.

At a Tuesday afternoon press conference, Gore discussed two cases brought by Democrats in Seminole County and Martin County that allege Republicans altered ballots improperly. The number of ballots in question in either case is enough — or "more than enough," as Gore put it — to throw the election the vice president's way.

Gore's apparent sudden interest in the cases, to which he's not a party, suggests he might be moving the endgame goal line.

What's less clear is whether he's on his own.

Speaking of their appeal of Monday's decision by a Florida trial judge on the recount issue, Gore's team signaled that the Supreme Court of Florida's ruling would be the end of the line.

Gore's lawyer David Boies said: "When the Florida Supreme Court makes its decision on this matter, we will accept that." On Tuesday morning TV, Gore adviser Ron Klain said, "It is likely to be the final step. I do think their judgment will resolve this matter clearly for both camps."

Even after Gore spoke Tuesday, his campaign maintained they're not pinning their hopes on the cases.

"No one here is saying, 'Well, there's always Seminole…'" according to Gore campaign spokeswoman Julia Payne, who also said the disposition of the Seminole and Martin counties cases will not affect Gore's decision one way or another about whether to claim victory or concede defeat when his appeal his decided.

Gore's campaign has not highlighted the suits before, because the Democratic plaintiffs' move to disallow the allegedly illegal votes doesn't jibe with the campaign's contest theme: that every vote should be counted.

Congress watchers think Senate and House Democrats will support Gore for as long as it takes the appellate court to rule on his appeal. Whether they will hang in there for the Seminole and Martin counties cases is less clear.

On Capitol Hill, where both Joe Lieberman and Dick Cheney addressed their troops on Tuesday, House Democrats said they're supporting Gore. But Minority Leader Dick Gephardt's remarks were specific: Gore and Lieberman "have strong support for their effort to go to the Supreme Court of Florida and to get a full review of the decision that was rendered yesterday in the circuit court."

A Gephardt aide said Lieberman did not mention the other two cases when he spoke about the Gore appeal in his meeting with House Democrats.

Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Indiana, who was considered a vice presidential prospect earlier in the year, came out of a Democratic meeting feeling that the endgame is here. "Based on what I heard in the caucus … if the fat lady's not ready to sing, she's clearing her throat," he said.

Hotline editor-in-chief Craig Crawford said the Democrats are "giving Gore a pass on waiting out the Florida Supreme Court". But if Gore does not bow out after a loss on appeal, Crawford added the Democrats might go to the more "approachable" Lieberman and ask him to speak to Gore.

"The end is in sight," said political analyst Charlie Cook, editor of the nonpartisan Cook Political Report, who also notes that Gore is not particularly close to the Democratic leadership in Congress.

"Given what this guy has done, committed himself for two years to this, and given the circumstances, I think it's understandable that everyone else would come to the conclusion that this was over before Gore himself would," Cook said. "I think Democratic congressional leaders were reconciled a week or two ago that this thing was probably gone. But Gore has to come to that conclusion himself."

However the election endgame plays out, in Washington, the partisanship may well continue.

Some Democrats wore orange ribbons on Tuesday to show support for disenfranchised Florida voters.

And Republicans are split over what tack to take in the outstanding budget negotiations, which will be the business of the lame duck session.

With important and divisive issues like Medicare, taxes and schools on the table, some Republicans — spines stiffened by the improved prospects for a final Bush win — want to take a hard line.