WASHINGTON - One month before Election Day, Barack Obama sits atop battleground polls in a shrinking playing field, the economic crisis is breaking his way and he has made make progress near about winning the White House.

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The onus is without ceasing Republican John McCain to turn the tribe around under exceptionally challenging circumstances — and his options are limited.

McCain’s advisers say the Arizona senator will ramp up his attacks in the coming days with a tougher, in addition focused message describing “who Obama is,” including questioning his character, “liberal” record and “too risky” proposals in advertising and appearances.

Obama’s advisers, in gyration, say he will argue that McCain is impotent to articulate an economic vision that’s diverse from President Bush’s. In a new extremity, the Illinois senator is pursuit McCain’s health care plan “radical.”

Now that the vice presidential debate between Joe Biden and Sarah Palin is immersing, the contest returns to being entirely about Obama and McCain and probable will stay that way until Nov. 4. The rivals meet Tuesday in their second of three debates.

Interviews with party insiders athwart the country Friday showed this: Democrats are optimistic of victory if nervous extremely whether Obama can hold his advantage time Republicans are worried that the race may be impressive out of reach though hopeful that McCain will beat the odds as he did in the GOP primary.

Both sides note that plenty have power to change in one month — and they’re right.

“Very sure, yet not overly so,” said Ohio Democratic Party cardinal Chris Redfern, who said the financial turmoil is dreadful with respect to the country but “politically it’s advantageous” with respect to Obama.

South Carolina GOP Chairman Katon Dawson said that given McCain’s standing, “I’d be concerned at this hour of travail, but I would never count this guy out. He’session got the public secrete of an alligator.”

The Electoral College battle playing aloud over roughly a dozen states puts McCain’s challenge to compass the necessary 270 votes in stark terms.

McCain can’t prevail destitute of holding onto most of the states that Bush won, and he’s a little while ago virtually tied or trailing in public polls in at least 10 of them — Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, New Mexico, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio and Virginia — because he tries to fend off Obama’s well-funded advertising onslaught and grass-roots efforts.

The GOP nominee also is only playing in five states that Democrat John Kerry won in 2004 — Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Minnesota, New Hampshire and, now, Maine — and he’s running behind. McCain corrupted efforts Thursday in one other, costly 17-vote Michigan, as Obama approaches a double-digit go before as guide in the high-unemployment state and it became clear McCain couldn’confidentially shake Bush’sitting drag.

Some Republicans close to McCain’sitting campaign fret in private that Obama may be pulling from home for good; others aren’t so pessimistic. But there’s unanimity in this: McCain has dwindling chances to regain momentum, and the upcoming debates are critical.

“He needs to be able to celebrate to his strengths and remind people of why they like him,” said Tom Rath, a New Hampshire delegate to the Republican National Convention. And Ted Welch, a veteran Republican fundraiser in Tennessee, said: “He has to give voters enough reasons to voice for him. He hasn’face to face hitherto.”

That doesn’t appear to be the campaign’s priority. GOP operatives say the goal is to undercut Obama, likely by criticizing his associations with convict Antoin “Tony” Rezko and William Ayers.

Indeed, Palin wasted no time Saturday in Colorado, saying: “Our opponent … is someone who sees America, it seems, as being so not entire, imperfect enough, that he’s palling round with terrorists who would mark their own country.” It was a reference to Ayers, a founder of a 1960s base group.

Obama’s campaign called Palin’s comments “desperate and unfounded attacks” intended to change the subject from the thriftiness.

It’session clear McCain’session campaign believes that making Obama supremely unacceptable in voters’ eyes may be the Republican’s best — if not only — shot at winning the presidency.

The risk: Voters could be turned off if McCain goes too far.

Over the past two weeks, McCain’s staff has been discouraged by the difficult environment, though no not so much determined to win.

Advisers fight McCain is rebounding after a strong dispute exhibition Thursday by Palin quieted GOP critics who questioned her qualifications after several TV interview missteps. Congress approved the bailout invent one day later, and advisers hope the outlet at this moment will fade.

But economic woes continue; the nation lost 159,000 jobs in September and disappointing 401(k) statements are headed in favor of voters’ mailboxes.

Obama, meanwhile, was lifted in polls by dint of. voters who think he’s better suited to escort the nation through the financial critical juncture. Surveys also showed that skeptical voters having trouble envisioning him like president started to come around. He’s a 47-year-old freshman senator from Chicago who would be the rough’s first black president.

The Democrat, to be sure, still has much work to do to fasten down his entice. His advantage easily could pass out of sight if he stumbles — or if an conflicting outside event occurs. And he hasn’privately made the sale to various voters.

“He of necessity to give a little bit further of a window into Barack Obama as a human core … reveal himself in a way that people who like Barack Obama assert, ‘I really want to embrace this guy,’” said Steve Grossman, a Massachusetts Democrat and framer national party chairman.

Added Joe Erwin, the former Democratic Party chief in South Carolina: “We’ve just got to swim our own race at this point, and not react to what the Republicans do as we know that what we’re doing is working.” McCain campaign:

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