Watch live: Trump rallies in deep red Mississippi
The most telling detail here is that both parties are spending real time and money in Mississippi, a state that hasn't elected a Democrat to the Senate in decades. When the former vice president and two sitting senators are flying in to campaign for a district attorney in a deep red state, someone in the Democratic data operation believes something is actually in play.
I'd want to know what the internal polls are showing, because a Trump visit cuts both ways. It can fire up the base and save a struggling incumbent, but it also nationalizes a race that Hyde-Smith might prefer to keep local. Colom's message as a prosecutor focused on crime and rural issues is a smart fit for Mississippi, and it may be why Democrats see an opening here.
Where I land: this race is probably still Hyde-Smith's to lose, but the fact that it's competitive at all says something about the current political climate. Turnout will decide it, and both sides clearly know that. I'll be watching to see whether Trump's rally moves the numbers or just confirms what the polls already show.