Election night II – upstairs at the Benson

John Kroger’s party is at the top of the Benson Hotel. They get the good news early in the night. They also have soft drinks for the asking and, ceremonially resplendent in a cardboard box, the symbol of a political campaign: two slices of cold pizza. One of Mr. Kroger’s law school classmates gives him a high-five in the hallway. Mr. Kroger grins, and for a moment looks like a gangly 16-year-old who’s just been given a Ferrari for his birthday. The Knower of All Things tells a friend that Rep. Macpherson’s campaign made a big mistake by going negative. No one disagrees.