We all remember the key line from the famous sign in the Clinton campaign's '92 war room: The economy, stupid. But do you remember the first line? It was

Change vs. More of the Same

I find the handwringing of the undecideds maddening, but I sometimes wonder if Kerry could have closed the sale with a number of them by making a simple point: If you want to change what's going on, you have to vote for Kerry. If Bush wins, what you're getting is what you're going to get.

I know the conventional wisdom is that that's precisely Bush's pitch -- Whatever you think of me, at least you know where I stand -- but is that enough when the majority of voters think things are going in the wrong direction?

Here's the pitch: Are you happy with the way the war in Iraq is going? Are you happy with the cost of health care? Are you happy about the availability of jobs? Are you happy about bigger and bigger budget deficits? George W. Bush can't name a single thing he's done in four years that he'll admit was a mistake. That means that if he wins, the next four years are going to look just like the last four. And that means that the only way we'll get change is if we vote for change.

John Kerry. A fresh start.