I want to call readers’ attention to the posts by Jason Stanford of the Bell campaign concerning my takes on the Wall Street Journal/Zogby Poll (“Polls Apart”) and the Rasmussen poll (“Bell Tolls”) earlier this week. The Zogby poll had Bell running second, at 20.8 percent, an eyelash ahead of Friedman. Rasmussen had Bell running fourth at 13%. Stanford takes me to task for saying that the Zogby poll was the first one to show Bell running second. He cites a Dallas Morning News poll from February. He is within his rights to count that poll, of course, but my criterion is that the only polls that count are those after Bell became the Democratic nominee in March. Stanford also said that the Rasmussen poll I wrote about had been out for a week. The Rasmussen Web site indicates that the date of the poll was July 13 and the poll was released on July 24. Far be it from me to pick a fight with Mr. Stanford. I’m just grateful that somebody is actually reading–and commenting on–this stuff.