Things to Keep in the Back of Your Mind…

… while reading the many stories out now, and the many more sure to come, that try to gauge the effect the health care vote will have on the 2010 midterms:

• “Under any plausible set of circumstances Democrats are likely to lose a substantial number of seats in November due to structural features that are already set.”

• “It is the president’s performance that matters when it comes to choosing between a Republican and Democratic candidate for Congress.”

• “The economy structures everything.”

Greg Marx is an associate editor at CJR. Follow him on Twitter @gregamarx.