McCain Makes Gain; Causes Obama Pain

The "topline" result of a national Presidential poll doesn't really tell us much. The presidential race is won state-by-state through the electoral college. But national media organizations don't have the money to poll each state individually. So they do a national poll and report the top line--who is leading whom.

However, you CAN learn some things by studying the "crosstabs"--the internal numbers broken down by demographic group. And they aren't good for Obama--his enormous lead among crucial independent voters has dropped from 22 points to THREE. Obama only has a 44 to 40 edge in who is better to handle the economy--and is tied on that issue among independents.

McCain continues to score on the issues while Obama has abandoned his major narratives of "hope" (due to the angry rants of supporters and friends) and "change" (due to his changing positions on critical issues). In a year marked by hostile attitudes toward Republicans, McCain is proving that he is the right nominee for the party.

As for Obama, maybe a new slogan is in order: "I am not THAT bad, am I?"