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- A front-page Washington Post story on Dems nervous about Obama's ability to hit back against John McCain doesn't deter David Broder from phoning in another of his patented "both sides are slinging mud, but mostly Democrats" columns. It seems to me that Obama is executing a long-term strategy for getting elected, and that if he goes negative against McCain, it won't be until the timing is better; i.e. the closing weeks of the contest, when the remaining undecideds make up their minds.
- A new McCain web ad uses clips from leading Democrats to praise McCain's bipartisan credentials, including Hillary Clinton's unfortunate, "I know Senator McCain has a lifetime of experience he will bring to the White House. And Senator Obama has a speech he gave in 2002." The DNC has posted a YouTube response here.
- Ezra remarks on news that the McCain campaign is providing incentives for supporters to spam web sites, message boards, blogs, etc. with McCain campaign talking points. I have to wonder, though, given the, uh, colorfulness of anonymous comments on the internet, whether this tactic will really reach all that many undecided voters, rather than already thoroughly settled partisans.
- Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has been hanging out with his Republican proteges during their political stunt over oil drilling, and now we learn that he's working with them on another government shutdown -- much like the one they pulled a decade ago. I have to agree that paralyzing government action is definitely what Republicans do best. Meanwhile, Jim Manzi has a novel reason for drilling in ANWAR: "We should do it for the money." Bold!
- CQ Politics has a comprehensive magazine cover story on the some of the perils of modern polling. See also Nate Silver's thorough discussion of the problem(s) with Gallup's likely voter model.
- Speaking of polling, the above-mentioned Gallup daily tracker has "stabilized," as they put it, into a three-point Obama lead. A CBS News/NY Times poll, however, has Obama up six points -- virtually unchanged since the same poll was taken last month, suggesting a more stable, less dynamic race. In Oregon, Survey USA has Obama up over McCain by only three points, 48-45, and Democratic challenger Jeff Merkley behind incumbent Republican Senator Gordon Smith by 12 points, 49-37. I can personally attest to the saturation of Smith ads on the local airwaves here, and while both sides' ads are pretty weak tea, Merkley's hardly make him a distinctive alternative to the status quo.
- Karl Rove posits in his Wall Street Journal column that "Mr. McCain offers little biography, while Mr. Obama is nothing but." So I guess we all just imagined that "Biography Tour" McCain put on a few months ago, right Karl? And if that wasn't enough jujitsu for you, try Gary Bauer's "think piece" in the Politico where he argues that "the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee resembles none of these past presidents as much as he does the one man who stands between him and the presidency: John McCain." Aspirin, anyone?
- And Finally, a heckler at an Obama rally demands at the top of his lungs that the Pledge of Allegiance be recited, which Obama defuses by simply reciting the Pledge. The video contains a rant by the guy at the end, who apparently is an Bloomberg photographer. I'd like to take the unusual step of associating myself with the libertarian comments of Matt Welch on this matter.
--Mori Dinauer
