I would have to disagree just a bit. I think the reason why Barack Obama is struggling in the polls is because he *only* appeals to the left-wing of the Democratic party. He isn’t even making an attempt to reconcile differences with the centrist element that backed Hillary, and in fact, the campaign has taken steps to alienate them. To compound the problem, he has taken steps such as the FISA vote in the last month that have further angered not only centrist Dems, but also his left-wing base. There was a major poll out in mid-July that showed 15-20 point declines in the number of Dems and 18-29 year olds who were certain to vote as compared to March.
While he hasn’t angered independents and moderates, his platform really doesn’t appeal to them, either. The only reason they’re entertaining the thought of voting for Obama is because they’re not happy with Bush and the Republican party. But with all of the camera hogging his campaign has done, he has essentially made Bush irrelevant in this campaign and made himself the issue. That’s a bad thing for his campaign with every single group but the far left.
The Left is still running against Rush and Bush while the Right is running against Obama.
The Left has tried to call McCain Bush’s third (or as Obama put it FOURTH) term. Doesn’t float. McCain is to the Left of the already ‘left of GOP’s conservative base’ GW Bush.
And the big issues that conservatives take issue with McCain over (illegal immigration, global warming,...) the Obama alternative is NO acceptable alternative, it is everything McCain’s position is and more.
That's one of the reasons I have come around to thinking that perhaps it was good for McCain to keep a low profile while Obama had the full spotlight to make a jackass of himself. Let Obama become the issue.