John McCain's "Gift" From Democrats - Political Capital with John Harwood

Runway Angels
The superbowl of fashion shows, models walk down the runway at the 2009 Victoria's Secret Show.
Smartphone Guide
Here's a need-to-know guide to nine devices, based on features, price, network and platform.
Wines for the Holidays
Not quite sure what wine to pair with Turkey or Creme Brulee? Our experts do.

CNBC ON DIGG

Text Size

Mar.24

1:14 PM ET

Monday, 24 Mar 2008

John McCain's "Gift" From Democrats

Posted By:John Harwood

CNBC.com
The bitter fight between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama is a gift to the presumptive Republican nominee, John McCain. It's the gift of time to strengthen his campaign this spring. But McCain needs to use that time well, because even though he has moved ahead in some national polls, the Iraq war, the slumping economy and the unpopularity of President Bush make this still a very threatening environment for Republicans.

McCain’s team is planning three steps now to get a jump start on the fall campaign.

The visible part involves fleshing out McCain’s public image. On March 31 he begins a “Service for America” tour, which aims to link the Arizona senator’s biography to his values and policy stances. It won’t be easy to attract attention while Obama and Clinton keep fighting, but campaign manager Rick Davis is counting on McCain's knack for drawing media coverage, which he calls the best of any candidate in history.

Second, McCain is planning a furious fund-raising drive to narrow the Democrats’ wide lead on that front. He’ll have a dozen fund-raisers in the next week alone, with a similar pace planned throughout this spring.