"For President Kerry, Election Night Is Just a Formality"

John Fund has an interesting piece on Opinion Journal's Political Diary:

"John Kerry has told friends that Al Gore's biggest mistake in the 2000 election was his decision to not publicly position himself as the winner of the disputed Florida vote. Mr. Kerry believes that move allowed the public and media to paint Mr. Gore as a sore loser during much of the recount rather than the prospective president. The Kerry campaign isn't going to make that mistake again. They have assembled recount teams in every swing state, complete with dozens of lawyers on call. And while recounts and court challenges to disputed vote totals are played out, the Kerry camp plans to quickly name a national security team and other transition officials if the election is at all in doubt. . . . "While possession of the presidency is important, we plan to take lots of steps to show we are ready to take office on Day One if the election goes into overtime and a final winner is delayed," a Kerry foreign policy adviser told me."