Surprising?

At least it is to me, but according to the recent head-to-head polls pitting McCain vs. Clinton or McCain vs. Obama, McCain leads in both matchups (by 9 points over Obama and 5 over Clinton).

The negativity in the late-stage battles between the Dems may be to blame and it may not last...in fact we can expect the usual ups and downs in polls in upcoming months leading up to conventions and the November election. But considering the prevailing opinion in the media and generally, this is a pleasant surprise.

Undoubtedly this is in part due to McCain's strength among independents, but it does not tell us what the conservative base will do and how motivated they are. This will be a critical factor for him in the fall.

And I still have the same areas of concern I had about McCain all along. That said, compared to the Democrats and on the most critical issues of the war on terror, the economy and national debt and expenditures, and the Supreme Court, I trust McCain far more than Clinton or Obama.