BlogWonks

You can tell by the language that the Reuters writer uses to tell us that John McCain is now polling ahead of Barack Obama that he is not at all happy.  And, the same goes for John Zogby the pollster.

In a sharp turnaround, Republican John McCain has opened a 5-point lead on Democrat Barack Obama in the U.S. presidential race and is seen as a stronger manager of the economy, according to a Reuters/Zogby poll released on Wednesday.

McCain leads Obama among likely U.S. voters by 46 percent to 41 percent, wiping out Obama’s solid 7-point advantage in July and taking his first lead in the monthly Reuters/Zogby poll.

How does Reuters explain  this  turn of events?

The reversal follows a month of attacks by McCain, who has questioned Obama’s experience, criticized his opposition to most new offshore oil drilling and mocked his overseas trip.

Oh, I see.  Questioning Obama’s  lack of experience and competence constitutes an attack. How dare McCain point out the obvious fact that Obama isn’t experienced or capable enough  to be the leader of the free world. And, how could he not  mock Obama’s  foreign trip?  It was a completely ridiculous three ringed circus that just begged to be mocked.

The poll was taken Thursday through Saturday as Obama wrapped up a weeklong vacation in Hawaii that ceded the political spotlight to McCain, who seized on Russia’s invasion of Georgia to emphasize his foreign policy views.

Yes, it was only because the Obamessiah was off on vacation (do Messiahs need time off?)  that McCain was able to pull into the lead. Without Obama being away for a week none of this could possibly have happened.

“There is no doubt the campaign to discredit Obama is paying off for McCain right now,” pollster John Zogby said. “This is a significant ebb for Obama.”

No John, it’s not an “ebb”. An ebb implies that Obama will bounce back. I don’t think that’s really going to happen.

McCain now has a 9-point edge, 49 percent to 40 percent, over Obama on the critical question of who would be the best manager of the economy — an issue nearly half of voters said was their top concern in the November 4 presidential election.

That margin reversed Obama’s 4-point edge last month on the economy over McCain, an Arizona senator and former Vietnam prisoner of war who has admitted a lack of economic expertise and shows far greater interest in foreign and military policy.

McCain has been on the offensive against Obama during the last month over energy concerns, with polls showing strong majorities supporting his call for an expansion of offshore oil drilling as gasoline prices hover near $4 a gallon.

This is, I think, the death knell for Obama. The only way he could’ve won this election was to come off as looking far more competent on economic issues. Instead, he has proven that he has very little understanding of basic economics, and neither do his advisors who don’t even understand the basics of the tax code, and that massively raising taxes on small businesses is an all around terrible idea.

Obama had opposed new offshore drilling, but said recently he would support a limited expansion as part of a comprehensive energy program.

That was one of several recent policy shifts for Obama, as he positions himself for the general election battle. But Zogby said the changes could be taking a toll on Obama’s support, particularly among Democrats and self-described liberals.

“That hairline difference between nuance and what appears to be flip-flopping is hurting him with liberal voters,” Zogby said.

No John, nuance is nuance and flip flops are flip flops. When you change your position on every major issue as Obama has done, that’s not being nuanced. That’s flip flopping. Or rather, in Obama’s case, it’s being a two faced liar.

Obama’s support among Democrats fell 9 percentage points this month to 74 percent, while McCain has the backing of 81 percent of Republicans. Support for Obama, an Illinois senator, fell 12 percentage points among liberals, with 10 percent of liberals still undecided compared to 9 percent of conservatives.

Oh, wow. There’s still time for Obama to shore up his base. But, this is a very bad sign for Barry. If McCain succeeds in peeling away a chunk  of the Reagan Democrats Obama’s  pretty much doomed.  Pass the popcorn, this is getting  interesting.