Skattershooting:

• I spent most of the election night running between the County Clerk's office and Ed Winfrey's computer in Carol Ann Carson's office so I could update the results on Wise County on the Web. I got rained on and almost hit by a car.
• Did you know that the early ballots are not counted until the polls are closed?
• Phil Ryan dropped by the clerk's office several times. Phil manages to continue to win re-election as a Democrat in a county that is clearly Republican. If you have ever seen him "work" a room, you would know why.
• There's a little friendly tension in the room as we awaited the results. Since I had access to presidential results because of all my running, I would occassionally bring everybody up to date. I proclaimed at around 7:45 p.m. that Gore had taken Florida.
• When I was told that Florida had been "taken" back at around 9:00 p.m., I couldn't believe it.
• Did you know the Wise County Messenger controls the posting of the results at the clerk's office? Sherry Parker (who does a great job) comes out an hands the results to a representative of the Messenger who then hand writes them on a big board.
• With the exception of the constable race of Denney-Dennis, the leader after the early voting results were released would eventually win the election.
• You would think that the Clerk's office would be bombarded with calls from people wanting election results. Not true. I estimate that only one call was received every ten minutes.
• I was writing down the results with a pen and pad. The Republican chief had a laptop that Bill Gates would die to have.
• At around midnight I finally got to sit in front of a television and watch all the returns. The presidential race was tied at 240 electoral votes a piece with five states remaining. It was truly amazing.
• Why don't the Liberatarians receive more votes? The more I visit with people, the more I  believe most people have Liberatarian beliefs but just don't know it. I guess Joe Blow looks at the name and thinks "must be a bunch of liberals".
• Have you ever seen a meaner race than that of Pete Sessions and Regina Montoya Coggins?
• Bush's press guru Karen Hughes comes across a bit grumpy. Seems like he would have chosen someone more media friendly.
• At 1:30 in the morning, I'm watching television with three friends. ABC is on the screen. Amazingly, the local Channel 8 affiliate breaks away and takes over the broadcast. Then more amazingly, Gloria Compos announces that CNN is calling Florida for Bush thus giving him the presidency. The race is over.
• After I while, myself and another individual begin talking in a different room. The conversation somehow manages to go on for so long that it has become 3:30 a.m.  I could hear the TV in the background and it sounded as if some commotion was breaking out. "I think something is going on," I proclaim.
• We go back to the TV just in time to watch ABC "pull back" Florida. I smile as I think  of the confusion tomorrow morning when everyone picks up the paper or turns on the television. The early edition of the Star Telegram has already been printed with a headline of "Bush Wins".
• ABC says it "pulled back" Florida because of the automatic recount. They did not say that the decision was actually made because it truly was too close to call.
• If you want to watch some funny TV, watch Peter Jennings at 4:00 a.m. in the morning. The man was loopy and punch drunk.

Barry Green is the District Attorney for the 271st Judicial District of Texas.