WaPo: Republicans Want the Election To Be About Personality Since the Issues This Year Are Pretty Tough For Them

From TW: It has to be frustrating for Obama that he still- after almost 2 years of 24/7 coverage- must read even from pundits inclined to support him that "America still does not know who he really is?", while after one speech, a couple of gushing newscycles so many Americans seem to think Palin is the 'everymom'

From Politico:
"In the duo's new stump speech and their first post-convention ad, the impression campaign strategists hope to leave is unmistakable. McCain is the war hero. Palin is the Every­mom. And together, they will rattle Washington."

From Chris Cillizza at WaPo:
"The rise of the Republican ticket in recent weeks is due in large part to this personality frame that the GOP has imposed on the race. While McCain's story of personal heroism was known -- almost verbatim -- to political insiders, large numbers of average voters knew next to nothing about the torture and suffering the Arizona senator actually endured during his imprisonment. The telling of that compelling story coupled with the star turn by Palin, a mother of five whose oldest son is headed to Iraq and whose youngest is a special needs child, made for a powerful -- and personality-heavy -- convention.
Can Obama win a personality-focused election? Sure. He has his own powerful personal story -- the son of a mixed race parents, educated at Ivy League institutions, a community organizer etc. -- that, during the Democratic convention, was presented as the flesh-and-blood realization of the American Dream.
But, there's little question that Obama would be far better served by turning the race into a referendum on the policy differences between him and McCain rather than the personality differences. McCain's resume -- from a personal and a political perspective -- is as deep and emotionally resonant as any in American politics. The more this race becomes about that resume, the better Republicans have to feel about their chances."