By Chris Bowers, Senior MyDD Analyst

Certain demographic groups, once though to be bastions of support for one candidate or the other, are wavering in the post-9/11 world.

For President Bush, "NASCAR Dads," who in 2000 were a nearly solid Republican voting block, are not supporting him at nearly their former level. Primarily, this is a result of high oil prices and the current instability in the Middle East. This instability threatens to drive oil prices even higher, thus increasing the cost of tickets to NASCAR events.

"I'm Republican," said Tony Mottola, a 31-year-old self-confessed "NASCAR dad" from Rhode Island who works as an engineering technician. "A lot of race fans here will probably vote for him."

While these words must offer some solace for the endangered President, who is down by double digits in recent polls in Oregon and New Mexico and has been forced to pull his advertising from states such as Michigan and Washington, it is the "probably" that remains troublesome. Still, despite private concerns several Bush campaign advisors have expressed to me, most try to present a positive outlook. Confidently claiming that "NASCAR Dads" will come home on Election Day, David Page, some 58-year old dude from New Hampshire, said "NASCAR dads are brand loyal and I think they'll be loyal to President Bush when it's time to go to the polls."

Experiencing similar problems with his base, John Kerry is struggling to maintain Gore's level of support among "Flip-Flopping Elitists." The key characteristics of such voters is that the hate America and the military. According to political scientist Rush Limbaugh, these voters "represent more than half of John Kerry's base." Clearly, if Kerry's support among those who hate America and the military declines even slightly, his chances in this election are not too good.

"Fuck Bush," I heard some random person on the street say to a friend yesterday. While this person was clearly a "Flip-flopping Elitist," she also was not wearing any Kerry paraphernalia at the time. For a member of this demographic to still be undecided at this late date can only spell trouble for the Kerry campaign.

Other new demographic groups, such as "Leadership Moms" and "Windsurfing Frenchies" also might not vote in the large blocks they have in the past. For example, crucial swing voters such as Jane Johnson, a Republican State Senator from Texas and formerly a "Gore Is a Robot Mom," said she has become a "John Kerry Didn't Earn His Medals Mom," as a result of "recent memos." However, when asked if she would vote or President Bush, I cut her off, hung up the phone, and assumed that she was undecided.