Former President Barack Obama supplied the weekend’s architectural review, saying President Trump had the White House looking like “Saddam Hussein opened a Cheesecake Factory.” That gave the Conference Room something to discuss besides polling, campaign spending and who was buying lunch.

The Lone Star State provided the morning’s electoral counterpoint. Recent polling has frequently shown Democrat James Talarico with a slight lead over Republican Ken Paxton, though the contest remains close. Texas has long been considered a conservative bulwark, but Paxton, who defeated Senator John Cornyn in the Republican primary runoff, carries enough political baggage to make victory far from guaranteed.

VoteHub, a political media organization tracking early voting across the country, currently rates the race “Tilt Democratic.” Its modeling of the Texas electorate that has already voted suggests an advantage for Talarico, but the estimated ranges overlap substantially. These are estimates of voter preferences, not a count of the choices inside those ballots.
With the current furor over media bias, a word about the source seems appropriate. Our assessment is that VoteHub is useful, subject to the usual limits of polling and statistical judgment. It publishes its methods, weights polls by recency and performance, and adjusts for pollsters’ historical partisan lean.

That gives us something to examine besides a colorful headline. It does not give anyone advance possession of the election returns.

Oh, and the other thing? The Texas contest has become one of the most expensive nonpresidential races in American history. Apparently, uncertainty is available at almost any price.

If you haven’t voted yet, early voting is underway here in the Old Dominion and continues through October 31. Election Day is Tuesday, November 3.

If standing in line is part of the excitement you attach to exercising the public franchise, the traditional opportunity is approaching. We hope the lines move briskly and those paper sheets, with their carefully filled bubbles, feed properly into the tabulators.

Section Leader Miles assigned some volunteer interns from George Mason University to vote on The Day and report what the experience was like. Our Boomers mostly completed the exercise weeks ago. That was adventure enough, and we are grateful to have our part behind us.

We have settled in to watch the rest of the carnival, with festive drinks, bright autumn sunshine through the big glass windows, and the flashing flat screen on the South Wall competing for our attention.

It makes the Conference Room light up like a Cheesecake Factory, you know?

We have some direct experience with the comparison. There is one over at Tysons Corner Center, eight minute away in our
Fairfax Fifteen Minute County. It is in the same shopping complex as Nordstrom, where Holly occasionally takes some of her interns for motivation, shopping and lunch.

Close enough to encourage an expedition in the company SUV, particularly if somebody else is buying.

That brings us back to the morning’s graphic: Saddam, Obama, Trump and a restaurant chain, all drawn into an argument about presidential taste. The campaign has reached the point where even the décor is making a closing argument.

Eight days remain before Election Day. The money keeps flowing, the screens keep flashing, and everyone has an explanation for what the voters are about to do.

We have done our part. We may move happy hour up a little this afternoon, enjoy the cavalcade, and see whether anyone is buying lunch over at Tysons.

Copyright 2026 Vic Socotra
www.vicsocotra.com