In the midst of New Year’s celebrations, Americans looked ahead to 2008 with a sense of unease, even foreboding. Considering the progress in Iraq and a new Gallup Poll showing nearly all of us feel satisfied with our personal lives, this gloomy public mood makes little sense.

In part, the negativity reflects the unique circumstances of this election year: for the first time in 56 years, there’s no sitting president and no sitting vice president running for the White House. That means there’s no one to champion the status quo, or remind voters we’ve been doing well.

All presidential contenders, Republican as well as Democrat, bid for support by demanding “change” and denouncing things as they are. In prior campaigns, there’s been an administration candidate to argue for staying the course, but not this time. It’s not that the status quo is indefensible, but just that there’s no presidential contender who’d gain by defending it.