President Bush swung into Richmond last night to push his guy Jerry Kilgore past the finish line in Virginia. But tonight Kilgore came up short. Tim Kaine is the next governor of the state. And as Ed Kilgore (no relation) explains here, the scope of Kaine's win is actually more impressive than the top-line number would indicate.

The accepted verdict on what a given election 'means' most often boils away too much of the complexity and causes behind what happened. But this was a bad night for President Bush. The Kilgore goof is an emblematic example. But you can see it in other races too. President Bush wasn't that popular in November 2002. But he delivered for his party. He was a fairly unpopular incumbent running for reelection in 2004. But he won.

Few will admit it publicly. But I think a lot of Republicans will look at what happened tonight and see that something has changed. President Bush was a liability, even for a Republican in a tomato red state like Virginia. They won't say it. But watch what they do. Actions speak louder than words.