While we don’t know the impact of the last debate, the polling indicates that McCain has been able to close the gap with Obama markedly in the past week. Realclearpolitics.com lists six polls with a field date ending on 10-13. Their average gave Obama a margin of 8.3%. There are seven subsequent surveys with a field date ending on 10-16 and their average is an Obama lead of 5.1. The seven polls whose field date ended on the 16th only include one night of post debate polling (usually of a three night sample). As the next few days of polling comes in, the situation should clarify itself.
But we can say that Obama has lost more than a third of his lead in the last week.
If the financial markets stop hogging the headlines and McCain exploits the tax and spending issue he developed (with the considerable aid of Joe the Plumber) it is very possible that he could close the race further, perhaps bringing it to a tie in the next ten days.
This race is far, far from over!
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[…] still engaging in wishful thinking. While we don’t know the impact of the last debate, the polling indicates that McCain has been […]
With his response to Joe the Plumber, Senator Obama made a classical gaffe — a true statement that he would like to retracct. He plainly does intend to spread the wealth around. He has almost $1 trillion in new spending, which represents a dramatic shift of wealth from small business to non-taxpayers.
Obama’s gaffe is having an impact because (1) it is Obama’s own words, and (2) it is consistent with his public taxing and spending plans.
At heart, Obama remains a far-left community organizer. Apart from his soothing words of moderation, nothing of substance has changed. He is the most radical-left member of a liberal U.S. Senate, and no rational person should expect him to govern any differently from the White House. Rather than be a moderating influence on national politics, he would pull both Harry Reed and Nancy Pelosi to the left.
It appears that this election is largely a fight between the public’s emotions and intellect. Emotionally, the public wants a radical break from President Bush (Obama). Intellectually, the public wants a serious bi-partisan reform (McCain). If the grown ups prevail, the intellect will win the battle, and McCain will retake the lead. We will see …
The attack on Joe the plummer have finally insulted me. I’m white, educated and male 58. When a common citizen is insulted,investigated and laughted at for voicing the concerns that many of us have I feel a great deal of anger and fear. Anger because my values,hard work and contributions to society are belitteled and anger because I can see the problems men like myself will have in the coming years.
The impact of the debate will have little or any significant effects on the Presidental campaign. A tremendous amount of lip-widsom was orated by McCain, but it is the same old political rheortic and negativity that has been historically pandered since the McCain’s campaign started.
We all know now that almost everything about Joe the Plumber is a lie. He doesn’t own a plumbing business and apparently is not even licensed as a plumber, but he does raise a legitimate concern about “spreading the wealth around.” The only problem is that in this country, when the government spreads the wealth around it usually means redistributing it upward. The big question is, which candidate is opposed to this sort of spreading around the wealth?