This columnist, Sean Trende, looks at history and the large factor that competence will play in this election. Here is an exerpt:

...consider Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. Romney turned around an Olympic games that seemed doomed to failure. Then as a Republican governor in a state that is famous for its liberalism, he worked with the legislature to get a market-based approach to health insurance passed, resolved a massive budget deficit, and calmed the public after a calamity in the “Big Dig” highway tunnels.

Romney oozes confidence and competence -- as a friend of mine (who now works for the governor) once commented to me: “You just hear him talk, and you think everything will be alright.”