BILL KRISTOL GETS IT, SEAN HANNITY DOESN'T

The negative ads about Obama aren't working and given the amount of time the wingnuts have spent spewing this crap, they are unlikely to work in the future.

Obama Aides: Record Cash Raised In September, Polls Show McCain Ads Backfired
October 12, 2008
Sam Stein
Huffington Post

Moreover, the assault that John McCain has launched against Obama's character - including repeated criticisms of the Illinois Democrat's association to former Weather Underground member Bill Ayers - has largely backfired. Obama sources shared internal campaign polling figures that show a sharp fall in positive feelings for the Republican ticket. Following the most recent spat of negative ads, they say, McCain's unfavorable rating has gone over 50 percent, notably higher than anything detected in recent public polling.

Gov. Sarah Palin is faring just as poorly if not worse. In New Hampshire, an official with knowledge of internal polling says the Alaska Republican's favorable rating has nosedived to 36 percent, with 56 percent viewing her unfavorably.

Even within Republican circles it seems there is a growing sentiment that McCain's recent strategy has had a blow-back effect. On Sunday, the Weekly Standard's William Kristol called the negative tactics "stupid."

"The main thing to say about these negative ads -- which, I don't think, almost none of them has been across the line -- they haven't worked," he said on Fox News Sunday. "Obama's favorable rating is as high as it's been in three months. It's actually gone up in the last month. So it's a stupid campaign."