Low on gaffes, high on charm, Palin wins friends – but needs many more

WITH a suggestive wink to the cameras and a Colgate smile, Sarah Palin came roaring back from her campaign trail gaffes on Thursday night, staking out her place as America's supreme "Everywoman" candidate.

Love her or loathe her, Mrs Palin confirmed with a feisty performance at the vice-presidential debate that she is the living embodiment of that great "what if" of American politics: what if a regular Joe, or Jolene, got a shot at the White House?

"How long have I been at this?" she cooed as she took to a lectern at Washington University in St Louis, Missouri. "Like, five weeks? So there hasn't been a whole lot I have promised, except to do what is right for the American people."

Historically, the nature of modern politics ensured chirpy outsiders never got a chance. Now all that has changed with Mrs Palin, plucked from near-obscurity as the Republicans' vice-president pick last month. "Oh man, it's so obvious I'm a Washington outsider," she said. "I'm someone who's just not used to the way you guys operate."

During the debate, Mrs Palin sparred with Democratic vice-presidential candidate Joe Biden over taxes, energy policy and the Iraq war. Peppering her answers with folksy vocabulary such as "darn right", "gettin' business done" and "doggone it", she invited viewers to see her as someone who, while lacking knowledge, has the moral spine to roll up her sleeves and yank America out of its current mess.

It is a powerful message for these times, with trust in politics-as-usual in America, and the Bush administration in particular, at an all-time low.

"Go to a kids' soccer game on Saturday and ask, 'How are you feeling about the economy?'" said Mrs Palin. "You betcha you're gonna get some fear."

It was a big change from last week, when she stumbled in a rare TV interview. CNN had set up a "gaffe-o-meter" in expectation of a chain of howlers from Mrs Palin, but there was only one, when she referred to General David McKiernan, commander of US forces in Afghanistan, as McClellan. That was the name of the Union general who made a series of Civil War blunders before being sacked by Lincoln.

There was little substance beneath Mrs Palin's charm. Mr Biden, playing the part of older statesman, sensed this and pounced, asking her where John McCain differed from George Bush. Mrs Palin twice evaded the question, but apparently not the audience: snap polls after the debate showed that, while voters felt Mrs Palin had done better than expected, they gave victory by a hefty margin to Mr Biden – who avoided potential pitfalls. Also gaffe-prone, he made it through the 90-minute debate without stumbling.

Two quick polls have already indicated that he fared better in viewers' minds. A CNN poll found respondents judging Mr Biden the winner by a margin of 51 per cent to 36 per cent but, crucially, calling Mrs Palin "more likeable" by 54 per cent to Mr Biden's 36 per cent.

A CBS News/Knowledge Networks poll found that 46 per cent of uncommitted voters thought Mr Biden won, with 21 per cent siding with Mrs Palin.

Eight years ago, Republicans acknowledged that Mr Bush lacked the knowledge and experience to be president, but insisted his squadrons of advisers would make up for it. They are making the same argument now for Mrs Palin, but are wary.

James Pape, a New York property developer, said: "Everything she said was so scripted. We need someone who's sharp and thinks on their feet, who understands what's going on."

And that is Mrs Palin's problem. For all her effervescence, it was clear from her constant referral to notes that she had no strong grasp of issues. That grasp will have to come quickly if Mr McCain is to cut Barack Obama's lead in the polls.

One month to go – and Obama ahead in key states

THE race to the White House is likely to be decided in a dozen or so swing states.

Opinion polls yesterday showed Barack Obama, having trailed John McCain throughout the summer, now between three and seven points ahead of his Republican rival, with exactly a month left before voting.

He and Mr McCain are now neck and neck in the key state of Ohio, while Mr Obama is ahead of his rival in Florida and Virginia and has opened up healthy leads in Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada and North Carolina, states that were all previously Republican-leaning.

Mr McCain is putting his resources into key states in an attempt to wrest back the initiative, and yesterday his team confirmed they will stop campaigning and shut down their offices in the northern state of Michigan.

Republicans take heart from the fact that Mr Obama's leads, while constant, are in the low single figures. They also hope that, with Congress agreeing the Wall Street bail-out package, the issue of the economy, Mr Obama's strong suit, will fade from voters' minds.

Mr McCain's efforts, and his Michigan pull-out, reflect a growing disparity in funds: Mr Obama has raised more than $40 million a month, mostly through internet donations, while Mr McCain is limited to $84 million in federal assistance.