The Money Advantage

This is where Obama's fund-raising advantage pays off: when he can come close to monopolizing the air waves just prior to the election and all but shut John McCain out.

In many ways, it's the old-fashioned approach. It's exactly how LBJ got his landslide in 1964, Nixon in 1972, and Reagan in 1984. It's how Hillary wanted to do it this year, and it's how Obama is doing it today:

On Wednesday night, no matter what you were watching, you almost couldn't avoid seeing Barack Obama's face on your TV screen. First there was the coverage of his latest campaign stops in North Carolina and Florida on the local news, then an interview with Charles Gibson on ABC's "World News," then Obama's carefully produced 30-minute ad, which ran on CBS, NBC, MSNBC, Fox, BET, TV One and Univision at 8 p.m., followed by a taped appearance on "The Daily Show With Jon Stewart," and finally, a rally with former President Bill Clinton, timed to coincide with the 11 p.m. news on the East Coast. On top of it all, Obama launched a brand-new ad questioning the wisdom of John McCain's choice of Sarah Palin as his running mate.

Obama has already hit all of his talking points in every debate, and his face has appeared on our TV screens with clocklike regularity each night for weeks -- even in California, a blue state that's solidly in Obama's column. You would have to be hiding out in a cave somewhere not to be familiar with Obama's position on most issues. Even my 2-year-old has taken to shouting "Obama!" when she sees his face on our TV screen. (Last night, after we watched the news together, she added, "I want more Obama.")

...After half-expecting to see Obama on a couch with Jessica Simpson and a bevy of skin-care products, the ad turned out to be a thoughtful, polished bit of television magic, a well-timed appeal to Americans desperate for some new direction during tough times.

...Once again, it doesn't pay to underestimate this man. Instead of boring us to tears, Obama has managed to bring us to tears with a combination of heartstring-plucking stories, presidential poise and a good old-fashioned pep rally. And he doesn't even have to mention McCain or Palin, or even Bush, let alone attack them. The tone here is inspirational, after all: Americans are hurting, yes, but they're coming together to decide that the time for change has come.

...Meanwhile, McCain has already taken to mocking the "gauzy, feel-good" ad to crowds in Palm Beach, Fla., saying that it was "paid for by broken promises."

...But will this enormous media blitzkrieg leave a bad taste in some Americans' mouths? After watching Democrats sitting on their hands for years now, carefully selecting their words, resisting the temptation to speak out, straining to sound polite, even in the closing moments of lost elections, Obama's huge last-minute push felt impressive and formidable. Not remotely content to rest on his laurels and watch the White House slip away again, the man is going into the homestretch with a huge, smart, polished political engine behind him. He's reaching out in every way he possibly can, and leaving no stone unturned.