Senate Republicans are following this course for three key reasons — first is payback against a major industrial union; second is payback against states like Michigan and Ohio who have been moving away from the GOP; third is the desire to advantage Japanese auto manufacturers who disproportionately do business in their southern states.

I think the first and second points are key — that the GOP is taking a firm stand against the United Auto Workers, a core Democratic constituency, and in turn, against big-time GM states like Michigan and Ohio.

In recent history, Michigan and Ohio have been reliable swing states. But the actions of prominent Republicans may call into question whether they will retain their status as battleground states in future competitive elections.

As President Lyndon Johnson famously and presciently mused about the impact his signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 would have on his own Democratic Party, “There goes the South for a generation.”

I suspect some forward-thinking Republicans might harbor similar concerns about Michigan and Ohio.

For the first time since 1964, Virginia is in play in a presidential election. Many residents are surprised to see Virginia shaded blue on some electoral maps. The state will indeed make history if it favors Sen. Barack Obama. But in my mind, Virginia is already making history.

Polls show Obama leading, on average, by about 4.4 percent. This is monumental because the first African-American presidential candidate might take the state and because, more important, he’s so close to actually pulling it off.

Slavery, segregation and racial hatred clouds Virginia’s past. In some parts of the state, racial hatred is still alive — a reality we’ve been forced to face this election season. But another reality has also surfaced: Virginians have looked beyond skin color to learn about the candidates and what they stand for. In doing so, they’ve become so energized about the issues that they are turning out in record numbers to vote.

White that’s exciting, it’s also worrisome. High turnout and wet weather have caused problems at polling places throughout the state.

Twenty-five percent of Virginia’s polling places use optical scanning machines. There are reports that some are acting up because paper ballots were wet and the machines couldn’t read them. There have been voting-machine malfunctions in Louisa, Petersburg and Chesterfield counties, as well as elsewhere. In Richmond and Virginia Beach, precincts opened late. Long lines in Richmond and its suburbs have reportedly created some voting problems.

Hopefully, most of these problems will get sorted out, and all registered Virginians who haven’t already voted will make it to the polls by 7 p.m. Any voters encountering problems can report them to the CNN Voter Hotline at 1-877-462-6608.

No matter the outcome, this election is groundbreaking for Virginia. My state may still have a long way to go — but it’s on the right track.

Since 2006, Democrats have beat Republicans in new registrants by about 13,000 Nevadans. That’s a big shift for a swing state typically decided by narrow margins — for example, Nevada re-elected Bush by a slim 21,000 votes.

The gains are not confined to Democratic strongholds, either, like the urban Clark County. The Reno Gazette-Journal reports that Democratic registration is even spiking in Washoe County, a light red slice of western Nevada:

Washoe County Democrats are closing in on registered Republicans as the parties focus on the Nevada’s battleground county in the presidential election. On Thursday, county Voter Registrar Dan Burk said Republicans had 87,971 registered and Democrats 84,705, with a backlog of more than 5,000 registration applications awaiting processing…. Chris Wicker, chairman of the Washoe County Democratic Party, said the presidential race could be decided in several swing counties like Washoe in several battleground states. Washoe is considered the swing county in Nevada because Clark is heavily Democratic and the rural counties are predominantly Republican…

Burk said his staff is working overtime to process the 5,000 applications before early voting begins Oct. 18. He also has hired 15 temporary employees and plans to add five more by the end of the week.

“Unlike any time I have seen in 30 years of doing this, there is a really aggressive move from one party,” Burk said. “It’s really unusual to see this intense growth in such a short period of time.” Demand for voter registration forms is growing said Burk, who ordered 11,000 two weeks ago and has 3,000 left. He has ordered and additional 15,000…. (emphasis added)

The traditional way to flip a state is persuasion, of course. Which is why there are so many bland ads targeting undecided voters. It is hard to turn a state by registering new voters, rather than converting old ones. But it looks like Obama’s ground game is already having a big effect in Nevada.