MORNING READ

John McCain is picking up ground in the polls now that he has gone on offense, conservative bloggers write. The suggestion by one pundit that McCain is speaking “code” to Southerners about Barack Obama is dismissed by the Republican’s blogging backers. And while House Republicans plan to continue their sit-in protest for more offshore oil drilling, House Democrats are pushing back and Obama is considering a reasonable compromise, liberal bloggers write.

McCain will be accused of racism by the press if he keeps attacking Obama, but going after the Democrat is the only way he’s going to win, writes Townhall’s Carol Platt Liebau. The presidential race is now a “tie game,” as Obama leads by insignificant margins in Ohio, Michigan and other key swing states, writes RedState’s Adam C in an analysis of poll averages. McCain’s cry of “racism” worked, as a new poll shows that 53 percent of Americans believe Obama’s “dollar bill” remark was racist, TalkingPointsMemo’s RY notes.

While RY praises pundit David Gergen for suggesting Sunday that McCain is using “code” about affirmative action quotas to tell Southern voters that Obama is “uppity,” Hot Air’s Allahpundit dismisses the charge by noting that McCain could use the same attack on Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y) or other Democrats. Bill Clinton’s insistence in a recent interview that he isn’t the racist he was portrayed to be during the Democratic primaries is serving to bolster McCain’s defense against Democratic attacks, writes Hot Air’s Ed Morrissey.

House Republicans will continue their energy independence “revolution” this week by remaining in Washington during a congressional recess, writes Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (R-Mich.) on RedState. But opening more areas for drilling won’t lead to lower gas prices tomorrow, so House Democrats should hold firm and force big oil companies to drill where they are now allowed to, writes The Huffington Post’s Jared Bernstein. Obama is right to move toward a compromise on drilling when he frames the debate in terms of protecting the environment and how it can be part of a larger energy solution, writes Firedoglake’s scarecrow.

FROM THE BLOGS:
McCain’s Choice: Press Love or Winning – C.P. Liebau, Townhall
Pres-08: Tie Game – Adam C, RedState
Obama Up 30 Points Among Low-Wage Voters – J. Singer, MyDD
McCain Takes Page from Clinton’s Book – J. Harwood, The Caucus
McCain’s Crying ‘Racism’ Worked – RY, TalkingPointsMemo
Why Bill Clinton May Cheer John McCain – E. Morrissey, Hot Air
Gergen: McCain Calling Obama ‘Uppity’ – Allahpundit, Hot Air
House GOP Speak-In – Rep. Thaddeus McCotter, RedState
Not-So-Great Energy Debate – Jared Bernstein, Huffington Post
Obama and McCain Move To Drilling Deal – Scarecrow, Firedoglake
O-pulence on O-Force One – absentee, RedState
Obama and McCain Planes – Josh Marshall, TalkingPointsMemo
Bring in A Fighter – Todd Beeton, MyDD
Peter Rodman, RIP – Scott Johnson, Power Line
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn – Rick Brookheiser, The Corner

OTHER NEWS SOURCES:
Obama Leads, Pessimism Reigns Among Key Group – Washington Post
Rematch in N.H. Senate Race Finds New Climate – New York Times
Obama Ad Calls For Return of Windfall Profits Tax – Associated Press
Poll: McCain’s Attack Strategy Paying Dividends – Associated Press