Perhaps you thought America’s politicians might take off much of August, given the heat, vacations and the fact that so many of us aren’t paying much attention anymore, so bad is the odor of bitter partisan turmoil.

Uh, no. Campaign days are a precious commodity, not unlike vacant rooms in the hotel business. Once the day (or night) is over, there’s no making it up.

In the last week, an energetic 72-year-old President Donald Trump, who isn’t on any ballot Nov. 6, has been out campaigning three times with many more to come, mainly in contested races that will decide control of the House. He’s had a pretty good record of endorsement success in recent primaries.

But Democrats, energized by the same polarizing figure, need pick up only 23 seats to hand the House Speaker’s gavel back to 78-year-old Nancy Pelosi or a younger challenger come January.

Even Barack Obama, who as president disdained involvement in lowly House contests, is back in. He issued a list of fairly predictable endorsements, carefully dodging some key contests that would plop him in the middle of Democrats’ simmering civil war over sane politics or socialism.