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McCain's top adviser steps down ... Tuesday, both US presidential candidates have returned to the campaign trail.
Senator McCain is planning joint campaign appearances with running mate Sarah Palin in the key northern swing states of Ohio and Pennsylvania.
His campaign has released an ad attacking Senator Obama's character and suggesting he is just not presidential.
Mr Obama got a boost when a new poll showed him ahead on all main issues.
He will be campaigning in Indiana, a state once regarded as safely Republican but which now seems within his reach as polls swing in the Democrats' favour.
The Democratic candidate plans to concentrate on the issue of health care, where polls suggest he has a bigger lead than on any other issue.
The Obama camp's new ad attacks Mr McCain's health care proposal for taxing employer-based insurance plans, the type held by the majority of American workers.
Issues swing
A new monthly poll from Rasmussen suggested that the Democrats were now more trusted than the Republicans on all 10 issues that they have been tracking for the past year.See full list of issues being tracked
The Democrats have the biggest lead on domestic issues, such as health care, education and social security, but they are also now more trusted on foreign policy issues such as the War on Terror, immigration and Iraq.
In earlier polls, Republicans had led on these issues.
And on the key issue of the economy, the Democrats now have a 13% lead over the Republicans.
With dramatic new developments overnight, including a coordinated worldwide cut in interest rates by 0.5% to stimulate world growth, the state of the economy is likely to remain the dominant issue in the election.
And a new Gallup poll also suggests that more voters are likely to vote for Mr Obama because of his economic tax plans, while on balance more voters have an unfavourable view of Mr McCain's economic policies.
Most Americans believe that Senator McCain did not land a knock-out on Senator Obama during their second of three debates in Nashville, Tennessee.
CNN's poll of debate-watchers found 54% said Mr Obama had done the best job, compared with 30% for Mr McCain.
CBS's poll of undecided voters suggested 29% thought Mr Obama the winner, with 27% for Mr McCain and 35% calling it a draw.
Dirty fighting
Meanwhile, Joe Biden, Senator Obama's running mate, has attacked the negative tone of the McCain campaign.
He said that attempts by his vice-presidential rival, Sarah Palin, to link Mr Obama to a former domestic terrorist was an effort to inject fear and loathing into the campaign.
Mr Biden called Republican effort to tie Senator Obama to 1960s radical William Ayers, now a Chicago professor, "mildly dangerous."
Mr Biden who took a few days off after the death of his mother-in-law, will be campaigning in Florida, another key swing state that has been hard-hit by the economic crisis.
The two campaigns are also arguing about spending plans, with the McCain camp accusing Mr Obama of planning $700bn more in spending programmes.
Meanwhile, the website RealClearPolitics, which tracks state-wide opinion polls, delivered more bad news to the McCain campaign when it suggested that the southern state of Georgia was no longer solid for the Republicans, while it moved both Minnesota and New Hampshire into the "solid Democratic" camp.
WHO IS MORE TRUSTED ON THE ISSUES?
October 2008
| Issue | Democrats (%) | Republicans (%) | Dem lead | Importance of issue* |
| Health care | 54 | 34 | 20 | 59 |
| Education | 53 | 34 | 19 | 63 |
| Economy | 51 | 38 | 13 | 80 |
| Social Security | 49 | 37 | 12 | 54 |
| Govt ethics/ corruption | 40 | 30 | 10 | 69 |
| Abortion | 47 | 38 | 9 | 42 |
| Taxes | 47 | 42 | 5 | 57 |
| Iraq | 47 | 42 | 5 | 55 |
| Nat Security/ War on Terror | 47 | 44 | 3 | 64 |
| Immigration | 40 | 38 | 2 | 41 |
| Source: Rasmussen | ||||
* % ranking issue as very important
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(BBC)
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