US Election: Mccain Casts Himself As Underdog While Courting Military Vote

John McCain, trailing even in the once solid Republican south, tried to rekindle his appeal as a military hero and man of honor today, casting himself as the struggling underdog against Barack Obama.

Down in the polls and derided by conservative commentators, McCain chosethis heavily military area to try to spur his followers to keep their faith in his candidacy - mostly by affecting bravado at the very real prospect of defeat.

"We have 22 days to go. We're 6 points down. The national media has written us off. Senator Obama is measuring the drapes," he told a large crowd packed into a convention center. "My friends, we've got them just where we want them."

McCain's latest reinvention comes after a disastrous three-week slide that has seen the Republican flailing around for a message that will connect in this age of economic crisis.

He scrapped the idea of coming out with a new economic plan yesterday - allowing Obama to introduce his own economic proposals unchallenged.

McCain also lurched away from the increasingly negative tone of last week'srallies, after commentators accused him of coming dangerously close tostoking racist feelings against Obama.

But the problem now for McCain is how to keep the hardcore supporterson-side without firing up their emotions.

A Washington Post/ABC national poll today put Obama on 53% to McCain's 43%. In a survey of scores of Republican strategists conducted by the National Journal over the weekend, 80% said they expected Obama to win, compared with only 17% three weeks ago.

Despite the recent criticism of McCain, there was plenty of fight in today's crowd. Many people in the crowd said they wanted McCain to go even harder after Obama, saying the Republican should continue to bring up the Democrats' links to the 1960s-era radical William Ayers.

Some said McCain should also keep hitting Obama over his pastor, the RevJeremiah Wright, and his links to community organizers the Republicans accuse of committing voter fraud. "How about just going after him," said Joe Kohm.

It was hard to miss the current of anger, with the chants of "Nobama" andthe home-made signs saying things like "True Patriots". One military man carried a sign saying: "I will not re-enlist if Obama is elected."

A heckler yelled: "Obama is no good for the country."

Sarah Palin tapped right into that feeling. "We know that all across America right now there is a lot of anger," she said. "There is anger about the insider dealing of lobbyists and anger about the greed on Wall Street and anger about the arrogance of the Washington elite and anger about voter fraud."

Today was only McCain's second appearance in Virginia, a reflection of his confidence that the state was secure.

But, as McCain himself acknowledged today, even Virginia - which has voted for Republican presidents for the last 10 elections - was in danger of slipping away.

The Republican tried to assure the crowd that he would never give up - recalling his years as a prisoner in the Vietnam war. "I know what fear feels like. It's a thief in the night who robs your strength. I know what hopelessness feels like. It's an enemy who defeats your will," he said. "I felt those things once before. I will never let them in again."

But the Democrats are advancing not only in Virginia, but in North Carolina. McCain has now been overtaken in the state, which he was to visit later today.

The turnabout in Democratic fortunes in the once reliably Republican terrain comes after a marathon organizing effort, and a huge investment in advertising Obama and his vice-president, Joe Biden, have visited eight times between them, with Bill Clinton making two appearances yesterday.

On local television, Obama campaign ads pop up in every programming break, outlining his economic plan, offering tax cuts and outnumbering McCain advertisements by about five to one.

The McCain campaign's single television ad focuses on Obama's association with Ayers. The Republican National Committee today released yet another video on the Ayers connection intended not for broadcast but viral emails.

That appears to be having some traction.

"I'm scared of Obama - from what I have read, and his associations which are questionable, his so-called terrorist associations, and even his church," said Lori Raynor, an environmental biochemist. "I just don't think he can run this country."

She added: "Some of my friends have even told me they think he is the anti-Christ."

Others in the crowd remained convinced that Obama was a Muslim - even while criticizing his choice of church for the last 20 years. "I believe he has had a Muslim upbringing, but his wife is a Christian," said Scott Wallace, a physician's assistant.