A new Time Magazine poll shows that though Obama remains five points ahead, his advantages are increasingly on "atmospheric" questions like "likability" and "force for change." His ratings on a host of issues, however, are beginning to slump. McCain is within four points of him on the economy and leads on both Iraq and terrorism. This is an odd position for a Democrat. Democrats tend to lose on atmospherics, lead on issues, and trail in the polls. Here, the opposite is happening. And it's no surprise. The McCain campaign has been utterly dominant in driving the issues debate over the past few weeks. First they attacked on Iraq and the surge. Then they began attacking on drilling and energy. In both cases, Obama eventually came to his own defense, but he didn't press the Maliki-advantage in the case of Iraq, and it's unclear whether his campaign will sustain the "energy and ignorance" narrative beyond yesterday's riff from the stump. Moreover, there's not been a single big issue dispute that they drove: Nothing on heath care or taxes or Iran or trade. It's hard to really question the Obama campaign's strategy as they're still ahead in the polls, but given their money and media savvy, it's odd to watch them run such a reactive, almost languid, effort. They seem to feel that they're still in the "biography and introduction" phase of the fight, but since McCain disagrees, it's hard to imagine they can hold back for much longer.
