McCain and Obama level-pegging
New poll numbers from Newsweek show Obama and McCain running dead level. Some Republicans are concerned that McCain hasn’t used the extended Democratic primary season to open up a lead against Obama—who will probably get a significant boost when he is confirmed as the Democratic nominee—but when you consider the political environment that McCain is running in it is remarkable that he is so competitive.
Jon Meacham of Newsweek neatly summed up just how bad things are for the Republicans on Meet the Press today:
The other thing that should give the McCain campaign hope is that he will find it easier once the Democratic race is over to get press coverage. At the moment, he is only ever an afterthought in most stories.Jon Meacham: I keep trying to call the new misery index--it's not catching on as it, as it should. So try for me.MS. IFILL: Here we go!
MR. MEACHAM: Here we go--which is, if you add up the wrong track number with--the people who think the country's on the wrong track--with the number of people who disapprove of the president's performance, it's 152 percent. That's a pretty tough thing for a Republican. It's hard to imagine a worse year for a Republican to run. And yet he's running even with both Clinton and Obama.
There’s no doubt that the rows about the lobbying ties of various McCain aides and the pastor flaps have prevented the campaign from getting out its message. But McCain’s 2013 speech showed that he does have an agenda. He now just needs to sell it.