Fianna Fáil TDs left unsure of their future but hoping they have one, writes Mark Hennessy, Political Correspondent
In the past, the public was easier to read. When people were angry with politicians they were angry; when they were pleased, they were pleased. Following two months of constituency probing, Fianna Fáil TDs are bemused, unsure of voters' intentions.
Most of the people whom they met on doorsteps are doing better than before; others are under pressure. Most, however, have been polite.
Voters were equally non-confrontational before the local elections in June 2004: they accepted Fianna Fáil literature, offered a smile and a hello - and then proceeded to crucify the party at the ballot box, particularly by denying it crucial transfers.
Today a series of polls puts Fianna Fáil at or about 35 per cent. Few in the parliamentary party offer any sustained argument that the polls are significantly off the mark, which, if they are not, threatens the heaviest losses for Fianna Fáil since 1992, if not far worse.
However, unlike in previous years, the Government emerges from the summer lull without having suffered too many Eddie Hobbs-style injuries, self-inflicted or otherwise, while the Opposition must work anew to put pace back into the political scene.
On Monday Taoiseach Bertie Ahern had a line of argument that will be offered repeatedly between now and election day: the Opposition threatens economic prosperity, and only he or Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny can be taoiseach.
For now, Fianna Fáil believes that, a decade into his "reign", as he termed it himself on Monday, Ahern is still an advantage, and that Kenny's relative inexperience of senior levels of government will weigh against him the closer one gets to polling, and, especially, during it.
"They don't like us, that much is clear. But do they trust us to keep things going more than the other lot? Or do they want change just for the sake of it?" one Midlands Fianna Fáil deputy wondered.
The recent series of interest rate rises, and the prospect of more to come, may, many Fianna Fáil TDs believe, produce political benefits rather than the reverse.
In the by-elections held before 2002, the electorate took economic gains as a given, but they became more cautious following the international crisis provoked by September 11th. Now that the electorate once again believes high growth is a given regardless of who is in power, the same, Fianna Fáil hopes, may happen again.
Although Ahern's room for manoeuvre is inevitably restricted by his desire for a full term, he is clearly trying to eke out the maximum possible number of options, as could be seen by his decision to speak of the election not happening "for another nine months".
Theoretically, this would see polling day fall sometime next June, but by doing this he at least manages to leave a window open from late April onwards, thus keeping the Opposition partially uncertain.
Throughout the Westport event, Fianna Fáil deliberately offered a two-pronged strategy: focusing on policies to come that will fill the gaps in the State's infrastructure and public services while reminding all who would listen of past achievements.
Both strategies bring their own problems. Many voters may simply not allow Fianna Fáil to get beyond the second sentence of a spiel trumpeting changes to come, believing that it has had 10 years in power, and may instead hit the remote control to change over to The Simpsons.
Meanwhile, the list of projects delivered will be compared unfavourably with the ones that have not been: one school's problems in Laytown will be more significant than the 1,300 refurbishments that will take place this year.
While much of what happens at the now regular September gatherings of political parties is a waste of time, the demeanour of leading Fianna Fáil Ministers, particularly Brian Cowen, is interesting. Gone was the bluster, the querulousness so often seen in the past from the Offaly man, who is beloved within the party, but less so outside of it.
Instead, Cowen was at his most reasonable, accepting points of view without savagely smashing them, dealing with questions in the most reasonable manner. The change, assuming it was deliberate, served him well.
The invitation to internationally regarded energy expert Dr Deiter Helm to speak, and Fianna Fáil TDs' newfound acquaintance with (and seeming command of) energy security needs, must be contrasted with the party's encouragement of appalling planning, and its tolerance - particularly over the last 10 years - of abysmal building standards.
We also have one of the most car-dependent economies in the western world, bringing unsustainable lifestyles for large numbers of people who face miserable daily commutes.
Just three months from the budget, Fianna Fáil TDs have a lot of faith that Cowen will produce the "goodies" to make a significant impact on public opinion, and relieve local pressures. However, Cowen and Bertie Ahern - though they will not be averse to headline-grabbing announcements - insisted repeatedly that a reputation for economic competence is more important, and that higher tax revenues this year must be used to cut State borrowing rather than to increase spending.
However, Fianna Fáil, which accepts it has failed up to now to "articulate its message properly", in the words of Cowen, must try in the months ahead to get that same message across to an electorate that is more fractured than ever before.
Homeowners who are asset-rich thanks to house price rises have little in common with first-time buyers who are struggling to get into the property market while simultaneously coping with rising interest rates, finding affordable childcare, and, yet, continuing to sample the lifestyles they see being enjoyed by so many others.
While Fianna Fáil TDs suffered little at the electorate's hands over the summer, most reported at Westport on the extraordinary antipathy being voiced against their Coalition partners, the Progressive Democrats. The development poses difficulties for Ahern, who wants to put forward the image of a united Government and yet also ensure that he is penalised only for voters' irritation with Fianna Fáil, and not also for the ire felt towards the PDs.
Though many Fianna Fáil TDs arrived in Westport in a quiet mood, most appeared to leave persuaded for now that they are still in the game, and that fortunes can be turned around before the election. The injection of confidence, such as it was, must survive long after the political season resumes.