Tide Turning toward Obama?

After being on the road for most of the day, I came back and found this election analysis from McClatchy in my RSS reader. It made for a good end to the weekend, and I thought I'd share it.

Five weeks before election day, the tide may be turning toward Barack Obama.

Several things still could swing the contest back toward John McCain, most notably the remaining debates. But as of now, forces are coming together to help Obama just as the long campaign enters the final stretch.

Among the key developments in recent days:

* His performance in Friday night's debate helped assure some nervous voters that he is experienced enough to be commander-in-chief, a critical threshold for the young, first term senator to meet;

* The continuing focus on the economy plays to his political advantage. The Wall Street crisis and proposed bailout guarantees intense attention by voters, and the remaining debates will overwhelmingly focus on it and domestic issues;

* The initial burst of Republican enthusiasm over Sarah Palin may be dampened by shaky performances in TV interviews and skepticism, if not outright hostility, from some conservative columnists.

[...]

But some fundamentals may be changing late in the campaign that could help him hold and perhaps even build his lead.

For one, the debate may have started to settle the question of whether Obama could be commander-in-chief, a critical test.

One survey of poll watchers for CBS News, for example, found a jump in the ranks of people who believed Obama was prepared to be president. More people still thought McCain prepared, by a margin of 18 percentage points — but a majority for the first time in that poll said the same of Obama.

These past two weeks have obviously allowed Obama to flex some political muscle and grab the control of the campaign back from McCain.

Of course, there is still much work to be done. There are doors to be knocked on, phone calls to be made, and votes to get out. But in this one moment in time, I think we have reason to be confident in our efforts so far. Keep working hard!