Awwwkward!

As Pres. Obama heads to St. Louis today, Robin Carnahan (D) flees for DC. Meanwhile, one SEN Dem with whom the WH would probably rather not be too closely tied (IL's Alexi Giannoulias) is more than eager to be attached to Obama's hip.

-- Despite all the attention Carnahan's getting for ditching Obama, let's not forget, longtime Rep. Roy Blunt (R) won't have an easy time convincing MO voters he's some kind of "outsider." Obama's approval ratings in MO aren't great, but we can bet they're much higher than those of Congress. Deflecting attempts by the GOP to stick her w/the "Obama label" will be a lot easier for Carnahan to do than it will be for Blunt to shed his "DC insider" image.

-- Meanwhile, about the only thing more unpopular than Congress are "fat cat bankers." Does Obama really want to put his arms around a guy who's tied to a failed bank? Giannoulias aides argue that Rep. Mark Kirk's (R) ties to DC/the Bush agenda will be more problematic to voters than the bank failure. We find that hard to believe.

-- Moreover, if Dems have to lose a seat in a blue state, isn't Kirk the kind of GOPer they'd like to have win it? Kirk, plus Scott Brown and DE SEN frontrunner Mike Castle are the kinds of GOPers that Obama will need if he's going to prove he can truly "break the gridlock" in DC next year.