Bush’s mystery bulge at the first debate intrigued me about as much as Kerry’s "cheat sheets" — that is, not very much. But unlike Kerry’s "cheat sheets" — which turned out to be a pen — the Bush bulge story hasn’t ebbed. It has even inspired websites like www.isbushwired.com.

The theory that Bush was wired was enhanced by the fact that Bush would say "Let me finish" to Lehrer when (a) Bush had the "green light" indicating he had time to respond and (b) nobody was interrupting him (well, nobody that we would SEE).

And now Salon is on it.

Yes, it is silly. More importantly, if Bush was wired, it didn’t help him. In fact, it probably hurt. It’s tough trying to talk when someone is speaking in your ear.

But the question remains: What is that bulge in his back?

And you may scoff, but I bet every one of you will be looking at Bush’s back tonight.

UPDATE: Well, here’s one plausible explanation.