On Wednesday, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania became the  first state capital in US history to file for bankruptcy.  The political ramifications of this ignominious act may come to outweigh the practical considerations … significant as these may be.

That’s because a story like this is so universally understandable and so perfectly symbolic of this country’s economic devastation.  In that vein, it’s very similar to the US losing its AAA credit rating earlier this year.  Simple.  Irrefutable.  Unprecedented.  And potentially devastating.  Because in politics, a bumper sticker beats an essay.

And if you’re explaining, you’re losing.  So the last thing the President needed was more bad news emanating from the Keystone State.  A Quinnipiac University poll released late last month had Obama’s approval ratings 11 points under water: 54% to 43%.  Among Independents, it was even worse: 57% to 41%.  This in a state that had more GOP takeaways than any other in 2010, including the Governorship, Senate, and key House seats, in addition to growing majorities in both chambers of the state legislature.

Simply put, if Obama loses Pennsylvania, he’s toast.  Because redder states – to include Virginia, North Carolina, Florida, Ohio, Wisconsin, Nevada and Colorado – would certainly have fallen along with it.  The white, blue-collar workers that represent the swing vote in many of these states – known affectionately by our President as bitter clingers – have suffered disproportionately from this prolonged downturn.  Closed factories, credit downgrades and bankruptcies resonate with these folks.

James Carville once famously quipped that Pennsylvania is Philadelphia on one side, Pittsburgh on the other, and Alabama in between.  If present trends continue, for Obama, the Ragin’ Cajun may wish to add a reference to the state capital serving as his Waterloo.