Winter's Picks

  A new Rasmussen Reports poll released today shows voters who've also served in the military favor John McCain by almost 20 percentage points (56-37) over Barack Obama.

  The same poll shows voters without military backgrounds favor Obama by a margin of 50 percent to 43 percent.

  Quote: Thirty-seven percent (37%) of veterans say that economic issues are most important in Election 2008 while 29% cite national security issues. For those without military service, 47% see the economy as most important and 21% say national security.

  It's obvious the younger age group is gravitating to Barack Obama. And even young conservatives say they are having a problem with John McCain.

  Again, it's that age thing. Obama is 46; McCain is 71. Obama is often seen with a Blackberry in his hands. McCain admits he doesn't even use e-mail. Obama has more than 427,000 friends on MySpace; McCain has less than 60,000.

  Quote: According to a Pew Research Center study conducted between October and March, McCain has a big numbers gap to close.

The study found that the current generation of young voters, those who came of age during the President Bush years, are giving the Democrats a wide edge.

Fifty-eight percent of voters under 30 identified or leaned toward the Democratic Party, compared with 33 percent who said they identified or leaned toward the Republican Party.

  A new Fox News poll shows Barack Obama's lead has actually dropped from last month, despite the massive media coverage he's getting with his European and Middle Eastern visits.

  As it stands, the poll shows Obama with a one percent lead (41-40) compared to a 45 percent to 41 percent lead last month.

  Quote: Among independents, Obama has a narrow 2 percentage point edge: 34 percent to McCain’s 32 percent, and 34 percent undecided.

McCain has more strength of support from his party faithful. Fully 86 percent of Republicans back McCain compared to 75 percent of Democrats that back Obama.

  Blame it on world travels and an extended campaign season, but Secret Service protection costs are soaring.

  This presidential season already has cost $30 million more than the 2004 campaign, and it's almost half a year longer.

  The agency, charged with protecting presidential candidates, is asking Congress for another $9.5 million. 

  Quote: The 2008 presidential campaign cycle is the longest in Secret Service history by about five months. The Secret Service budgeted $106.65 million for the 2008 campaign cycle, compared to $73.3 million in 2004.

  According to a poll released today by the Pew Hispanic Center, Barack Obama has 66 percent of the Latino vote, compared to only 23 percent for John McCain.

  Quote: “That number should be very, very sobering for the McCain campaign,” said Tony Fabrizio, the pollster for 1996 Republican nominee Bob Dole. “The bottom line: Despite all of this positioning he’s taken on immigration, it’s shielded him nothing with Hispanics and it’s another point of distrust with Republicans.”

  The story also points out that Hispanics voted 62 percent for the last Democratic nominee, John Kerry, and 32 percent for President Bush. In a nutshell, McCain is doing much worse among Hispanics than Bush did.