Vanessa's blog :-)

Republican Sen. John McCain is coming to California today with some things to smile about.

Those would be the national polls that confirm that McCain is still - some say stubbornly - in the mix against Obama. And while the Illinois senator has a whopping 24-point lead against McCain in the nation's most populous state, Obama still hasn't made the convincing sale to millions of voters in heartland America.

New national polls last week gave supporters of McCain - preparing to hit Bakersfield and San Francisco today for campaign and fundraising events - a reason to believe that their man has hope, despite a political atmosphere that is admittedly toxic for the GOP, and an all-time-low approval rating for President Bush.

Running head-to-head

Perhaps at the top of the list for the GOP candidate are fresh battleground state polls from Quinnipiac University and the Wall Street Journal that suggest he is now running head-to-head with Obama in Minnesota, Michigan and Colorado.

"Either John McCain is an overachiever or Barack Obama is an underachiever," says Hoover Institution media fellow Bill Whalen. "Either McCain rises above Republican misery - or Obama's not fully caught the wave."

On his campaign plane last Friday, Obama addressed the question of why some voters may still be reluctant to embrace his candidacy.

"The point is, with change comes some risk, and I combine two things," the Washington Post quoted him as saying. Obama said one is his advocacy of new policies; the second is a biography that he said will take people time to accept. "They're going to keep their powder dry and get as much information as they can the next three months."

Whalen said McCain's drive to push hard on energy and oil drilling, standing firm on the Iraq surge success and talking up economic issues at town-hall sessions in recent weeks appear to be paying off: An NBC/Wall Street Journal national poll conducted July 18-21 put Obama just six points ahead of McCain - the same as a similarly timed Gallup Poll.

Drilling down another layer, the NBC poll showed that while Americans overwhelmingly see the Democrat as more likable, "offering hope and optimism," and better able to improve America's standing in the world, McCain leads Obama on having the "strong leadership qualities needed to be president," having more consistency and being stronger on honesty.

By a 2-1 ratio, Americans also see McCain as having the qualities of a commander in chief, and by a nearly 3-1 ratio, they view him as "being knowledgeable and experienced enough to handle the presidency."

And asked who they view as the riskier choice for president, Americans by a 55-35 ratio said Obama.

"I attribute it to the fact that the American people get it - that being president is a tough job and that experience counts when it comes to being commander in chief," said McCain backer and former state Sen. Jim Brulte.

 

A few things I like about McCain:

He supports us drilling here at home for our oil. I’m tired of making the Saudi’s rich.

He protects babies from late term or partial birth abortions.

He doesn’t want to give illegal immigrants drivers licenses or felons the right to vote.

He has experience, he’s prepared to lead.

He has always supported the war on terror, and shown our troops the proper respect they rightfully deserve.