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CAMPAIGN SCORECARD [This article contains a table. Please see hardcopy of magazine.]

ROUNDS 1 2 3 4 ISSUE Energy and the Environment Iraq Image Resources ACTION Gas prices are a national concern, but for the presidential candidates, it's not easy being green and addressing high costs as well. John McCain is vulnerable to charges of flip-flopping and parroting President George W. Bush on offshore drilling, while Barack Obama risks appearing insensitive to his proposals' potential economic costs. Obama's early, outspoken opposition to the Iraq war helped him capture his party's nomination--and at one point seemed likely to ensure him the White House as well. But favorable reporting by prominent news organizations, including the New York Times, on the Bush Administration's troop surge may bolster McCain--who supports the effort--and neutralize the Iraq issue. In order to win, McCain must succeed where Hillary Clinton failed: by making Obama seem more like an ordinary politician than an inspiring leader. Obama's reversal on campaign financing and new tone on NAFTA, along with news that two Muslim women in headscarves were moved out of camera range at a rally, left the Democrat with one of the most off-message weeks of his campaign. By rejecting public funds, Obama is expected to raise hundreds of millions of dollars and spend more on his presidential campaign than any candidate has before. He's already airing television ads in red states like Alaska and is considering pricey spots during the Olympics. Money isn't everything in politics, but this is one of Obama's biggest advantages.

RESULTS [This article contains a table. Please see hardcopy of magazine.]

REPUBLICANS   x x   DEMOCRATS       x TIE x      

WINNER OF THE WEEK: REPUBLICANS

McCain isn't a quitter. He may be fighting an uphill battle, but he knows Obama is beatable despite a national anti-GOP mood. McCain's week wasn't particularly good, but Obama's was dreadful by comparison.

NOT ALL ROUNDS ARE CREATED EQUAL

The week's winner is based on the relative importance of each fight and by how much the winner takes each round.

WEEK BY WEEK [This article contains a table. Please see hardcopy of magazine.]

  JUNE       JULY         AUG.       SEPT.       OCT.         TOTAL WEEKS WON REPUBLICANS   TIE     X                                   1 DEMOCRATS X   X X                                     3

Seal of Disapproval. The Obama camp's telling logo gaffe

At an event in Chicago for Democratic governors on June 20, the Obama campaign placed an official-looking seal on the candidate's lectern, clearly intended to resemble the Seal of the President of the U.S. In place of E PLURIBUS UNUM, it read VERO POSSUMUS, a rough Latin translation of Obama's slogan "Yes we can." Republicans, the media and even some Democrats slammed the move as uncomfortably presumptuous; a McCain spokesman called the gesture "laughable, ridiculous [and] preposterous."

Obama's campaign initially defended the placard but later declared the seal "a one-time thing for a one-time event." Whatever the original intent, it was a serious gaffe for an operation that has made miraculously few mistakes during a long, tough campaign. Political pros say the mistake is a reminder of how dumb even a smart campaign can be--reflecting a blindness to the danger that Obama can at times come off as too sure of himself.

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