Numbers

Small downticks in Barack's bump. In the Gallup poll, the Obama-Biden lead drops 25% from 8 points yesterday to 6 today. And in Rasmussen, Obama's lead has been diminished by 1 point.

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Wednesday shows Barack Obama attracting 48% of the vote while John McCain earns 43%. When "leaners" are included, it’s Obama 50%, McCain 45%.

What do folks think about Sarah Palin? They'll get their first solid impression of her tonight, but right now

Fifty-two percent (52%) of Americans have a favorable opinion of Palin. (A separate survey found that Obama is number one and Palin number two on the list of candidates people would like to meet.) ...Obama is now viewed favorably by 59% of the nation’s voters, McCain by 56%.