DAY’S END ROUNDUP

A shake-up at the top of John McCain’s campaign is a signal the campaign is shifting to the general election, bloggers write Thursday. Day Four of the retired Gen. Wesley Clark drama and a black actor claiming he paved the way for Barack Obama’s campaign also have bloggers talking.

Steve Schmidt moving up to takeover the day-to-day operations of the McCain campaign is an effort by the campaign to beef up its staff as it prepares to fully engage Barack Obama, Marc Ambinder writes. Patrick Ruffini at The Next Right supports the move, pointing out Schmidt ran California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s (R) campaign and steered the confirmation process for both Chief Justice John Roberts and Associate Justice Samuel Alito.

Now four days after Clark made a comment that touched off a media firestorm, MyDD’s Josh Orton thinks both the campaigns and the media went way overboard with reporting and commenting about what Clark said. TPM put together a video of over-the-top reactions to the story that is a must-watch for those who have followed the story.

And Dennis Haybert thinks his portrayal of “24” president David Palmer helped “open the eyes” of some Americans who now support Obama, Daily Intel reports. For those familiar with the show, News Busters points out that if the Palmer-as-a-precursor-to-Obama analogy is to be believed, then there’s also an unflatteringly comparison of Michelle Obama to Palmer’s unlikeable wife, Sherry.

FROM THE BLOGS:
The McCain Campaign Aftershock – Marc Ambinder
Five Years Since ‘Bring Em On’ – Think Progress
Steve Schmidt Takes Over Day-to-Day for McCain – The Next Right
McCain Reshuffles Top of Campaign – Mark Kilmer, RedState
The Obama House Story – TChris, TalkLeft
The Clark Game – Josh Orton, MyDD
McCain in Colombia – The Caucus
TV President Says He Paved Way for Obama – Daily Intel
Hitchens Gets Tortured – Wonkette
No Cherry Tree – John J. Miller, The Corner

OTHER NEWS SOURCES:
GOP Candidates Visit ANWR – The Hill
Colombia Rescues Hostage Held for Years – Washington Post
McCain Orders Shake-Up – New York Times