In a recent interview with Barack Obama, Matt Laurer stated that some of the Democratic leaders, some of Obama’s campaign advisors, and some of Obama’s average supporters had advised the candidate to stay away from media interviews, stop walking the rope lines and for all intensive purposes keep a low profile for the next few weeks. While the large media polls indicate Obama has an increasing national lead; the hope of avoiding another “Joe the plumber” incident is imperative before the election. In other words, Obama has been advised to shut up! Now, since he gave the interview to Matt Laurer (and trust me, the questions were not difficult) it is obvious he has rejected those calls, but it is unsettling that a presidential candidate would even be presented an option of silence. If a McCain supporter had advised John to lay low, not say much, or don’t go here and walk the ropes…I am sure McCain would have made a suggestion as to where that supporter could go.

Here’s The Deal….Obama is weak. Some misconstrue his “steady” talk and “cool” demeanor as calm and collected, confident and secure. I see his lack of enthusiasm as passive and generally lackadaisical. I fear that Obama will be “pushed around” by other world leaders and seen as generally agreeable to all sides but uncommitted to a principled stand. Even his running mate, Joe Biden, is apparently worried of this same thing. This week Joe said, “And here’s the point I want to make. Mark my words. Mark my words. It will not be six months before the world tests Barack Obama…we’re gonna have an international crisis, a generated crisis, to test the mettle of this guy…And he’s gonna need help…it’s not gonna be apparent that we’re right…”

We need to stop making excuses for Obama, he is not ready to become President. Not because he is dumb, not because he is black, not because he is a man, not because he served on a board with a known terrorist but because: his economic policy reeks of socialism, he would nationalize heath care, he is unwilling to be truthful about his friendships with convicted criminals, his foreign policy “experience” is a week long trip through Iraq, he has never run any type of government (I.E. mayor, governor) or a small business, he has not even proved to his own running mate that he will stand firm as President; apparently we will have to prop him up and if he does make a critical decision it will be some time before we anyone has any idea that Obama had no idea from the beginning…

In the past few days Obama has begun his “closing argument” speech in which he hopes to convince the American people that he is in fact ready to become President. Tonight, in what has been described as the “Obama infomercial”, Barack gave an emotionally charged 30 minute ‘insight’ into an Obama presidency, but the speech still left more questions than answers.

Like the man who tries to sell you mighty putty at 2:00 in the morning; Obama tried to sell his ‘policies’ as the end-all fix-all for the current economic, social, and health care issues in America today. He cleverly distanced himself from the socialist rhetoric from two weeks ago, in which he stated that he wanted to “spread the wealth”, he did not mention how he was going to pay for his “health care reform” in which wants health care companies to cover pre-existing conditions – and yet thinks they will NOT raise premiums, his energy plan now looks like McCain’s (specifically the willingness to now drill domestically), and these policies: if you string together, can pick up a brick, pull a semi truck or even fill in wood scratches and then be sanded to look like new, BUT wait, if you vote on November the 4th, Obama will throw into his presidency some questionable relationships with known terrorists – and not talk candidly about their relationship!

Here’s The Deal…Obama can sell his own version of mighty putty with the best of them, but in the end there needs to be substance. He has projected a lot of eloquent speeches, and he is, I believe, a true American and has the best of intentions, but he is misleading on his policies and naive in his plans to curb spending when he is running on programs that cost money. He is sneaky in his relationships with questionable people and he supports socialists economic policies.

As McCain called for “Joe the Plumber” to take the stage and join the battle cry against Obama, Joe sat comfortably on his own sofa unaware that he was expected to appear at the rally. What was supposed to be McCain’s ‘distributional’ example turned into 10 seconds of awkward calling for someone who was not coming – followed by McCain’s “quick” thinking by calling all attendees “Joe the Plumbers”

Here’s The Deal…while today’s rally gaffe was embarrassing for McCain, the same calling is a glimpse into the Obama candidacy. As these last few weeks have unfolded many people have found themselves calling out for the real Obama to be exposed. What do his economic policies really resemble? What sort of relationships did he have with these questionable men? What really qualifies Obama to change any economic crisis? What foreign policy could a one time visitor of the Middle East really evoke? What does his idea of ‘change’ really consist of other than rail against President Bush? What legislative work has Obama done to prove that he can reach across party lines and simply get things done? What, if any, executive experience does he have?

We are being told the race is narrowing, but Obama still clings to the lead. It is a shame to think that, in my estimation, 1/3 to 1/2 of the people who vote for Obama will do so because they assume he will win; they are blinded by his eloquent speeches and his charismatic tone. There are still five days left to look at the candidates. I challenge you to look at each candidate carefully, and if you haven’t made up your mind yet; call out for the truth.

Bill Clinton says at a rally that Barack Obama called a round of advisers during the height of the economic crisis and said, “tell me what … to do.”

Clinton was supposed to rally voters behind Obama, but instead he seemed to suggest Obama didn't have a handle on the economic crisis -- and needed Bill's help.

Barack Obama cultivated the image of a cool and collected leader during the height of the economic crisis last month, when lawmakers on Capitol Hill scrambled to draft a workable bailout package after a meltdown on Wall Street.

And when John McCain suspended his campaign to dive head first into the fray, Obama’s campaign accused the Republican of being “unsteady.”

But to hear Bill Clinton tell it, the Democratic nominee didn’t quite have a handle on the situation himself.

Barack Obama speaks with Bill Clinton at a rally in Kissimmee, Fla., Wednesday. (AP Photo)

“I haven’t cleared this with him and he may even be mad at me for saying this so close to the election, but I know what else he said to his economic advisers (during the crisis),” Clinton told the crowd at a Wednesday night rally with Obama in Florida. “He said, ‘Tell me what the right thing to do is. What’s the right thing for America? Don’t tell me what’s popular. You tell me what’s right — I’ll figure out how to sell it.’”

Clinton said when the crisis broke, Obama called his own advisers as well as those of the former two-term president, Hillary Clinton, Warren Buffet and others.

“He called those people. You know why? Because he knew it was complicated and before he said anything he wanted to understand,” Clinton said. “That’s what a president does in a crisis.”

The seeming praise may come off as a backhanded compliment, especially since Obama repeatedly accuses McCain of admitting he doesn’t know much about the economy. McCain’s campaign said Clinton’s remark shows Obama was uncertain when Wall Street seemed to be on the verge of crumbling.

“Barack Obama had no idea what the right thing to do is or at least that’s Bill Clinton’s impression,” McCain spokesman Michael Goldfarb said.

“It’s disturbing that … Barack Obama’s response to this is ‘Tell me what to do and I will sell it,’” Goldfarb added. “That’s been Barack Obama’s entire campaign — is one big sales job.”

During the height of negotiations in late September, McCain briefly suspended his campaign to work on the economic bailout package and even threatened to sit out the first presidential debate.

Obama teased him for it, and after a mid-week summit with President Bush, congressional leaders and the presidential candidates ended in disarray, his Democratic supporters criticized McCain for “injecting” presidential politics into the debate.

Before the inter-campaign sniping began, the two presidential nominees released a joint statement urging the nation to “rise above politics for the good of the country.”

Goldfarb said he can’t speculate on the content of the advice Obama solicited in late September but that, “The result was to sit back and do nothing.”

Former Hillary Clinton adviser Maria Cardona said Clinton was genuinely trying to pay Obama a compliment Wednesday night, especially after so much was made in the press of the divisions between Obama and Clinton supporters.

“President Clinton was trying to make the point that their campaigns are actually talking to one another quite a bit,” she told FOX News. “The point that President Clinton was trying to make is that Senator Obama understands this is a big issue, and he is surrounding himself with people who have that experience.”

Bill Clinton has come out forcefully in favor of Obama ever since the Democratic National Convention in late August in Denver.

He declared Wednesday night that, “This man should be our president.”

However, he sometimes has had a strange way of showing his support. Clinton has repeatedly praised McCain in interviews, and even described Sarah Palin at one point as an “effective candidate with a compelling story” who cannot be underestimated.

Clinton also said in Florida Wednesday night that Obama has proved himself by running a campaign that “involves so many people,” adding: “He has executed this campaign in a way that is different from modern and forward thinking — something no one else ever could have done. He can be the chief executor of good intentions as president.”

It’s not clear what he meant, since he pronounced the word ‘executer.’

Asked about Clinton’s intentions Wednesday, Goldfarb said: “I think … he clearly chooses his language carefully.”

The race for the White House has tightened significantly — with Barack Obama now ahead of John McCain by three percentage points — according to a FOX News poll released Thursday.

As the candidates make their closing arguments before the election, the race has tightened with Barack Obama now leading John McCain by 47 percent to 44 percent among likely voters, according to a FOX News poll released Thursday. Last week Obama led by 49-40 percent among likely voters.

Obama has a bit more strength of support going into the final week. Among his backers, 88 percent say they support him “strongly” and 12 percent “only somewhat.” For McCain, 78 percent of his voters support him “strongly” and 22 percent “only somewhat.”

In addition, 66 percent of Obama’s supporters say it is “extremely important” to them that their candidate wins compared to 59 percent of McCain supporters.

The race has tightened in part because of changes in a couple of important swing voting groups. Independents back Obama by 5 percentage points today, down from a 9-point edge last week. Similarly, among white Catholics, Obama held an 11-point edge over McCain last week and today they split 46-46.

“Independent voters have long been regarded as one of the keys to this race and these results may foreshadow a tightening in the battleground states where independents carry disproportionate weight,” says Ernie Paicopolos, a principal of Opinion Dynamics Corporation.

Another reason the numbers have tightened is that McCain has also improved his position among his party faithful, and the number of voters identifying themselves as Republicans has seen an up-tick as well. Fully 88 percent of Republicans back McCain, up from 83 percent last week. For Obama, 89 percent of Democrats support him, up slightly from 88 percent.

New voters, those 11 percent who have registered in the last two years, support Obama by 54-38 percent.

Obama also has a 52-43 percent edge over McCain among the more than one of five voters who say they have taken advantage of early voting in their state and already voted.

Opinion Dynamics Corp. conducted the national telephone poll of 900 likely voters for FOX News from October 28 to October 29. The poll has a 3-point error margin. “Likely voters” are registered voters who are considered more likely to vote in the November presidential election.

Top Issues

The economy continues to far outdistance all other issues as the top priority for voters this year, and while Obama maintains an advantage on the economy, McCain has chipped away at those numbers. By an 8-point margin Obama is seen as the candidate who voters trust to handle the economy, down from a 15-point edge.

The Democrat also has the lead on handling health care (+ 11 points) and energy independence (+9 points).

McCain is preferred on handling the war on terrorism (+14 points) and Iraq (+7 points).

More voters trust Obama to handle the issue of taxes (+6 points) even though nearly three times as many think their taxes will go up under an Obama administration (20 percent) as think the same about a McCain administration (7 percent). A 55 percent majority thinks their taxes will go up no matter which candidate wins.

Recently Democratic vice presidential candidate Joe Biden said the next president would be “tested” by an international crisis in the first six months of his presidency. Who do voters think would better respond to that test? McCain has a 52-39 percent advantage over Obama on this measure. Among those important independent voters, McCain holds a similar edge: 53-37 percent.

Candidate Qualities

The candidate quality cited by voters as most important in their vote is “can bring needed change” (32 percent), followed closely by “shares my values” (26 percent). Some 19 percent say having the right experience is the most important quality — about half the number citing change.

Change voters are more likely to back Obama by 79-13 percent, while values voters back McCain by 63-28 percent. Among those citing experience as most important, they support McCain by 85-9 percent.

By 73-19 percent Obama bests McCain among the 10 percent who say “cares about people like me” is their top quality.

Almost all voters — 78 percent — think McCain has the right experience to be president. That includes a 64 percent majority of Democrats. Significantly fewer voters — 49 percent — think Obama has the right experience for the Oval Office (48 percent say he doesn’t).

A 53 percent majority thinks Obama can bring the “right kind of change to Washington” while a 52 percent majority says McCain can’t.

While 43 percent of voters think Obama’s positions on the issues are “too liberal,” half say his positions are “about right.” The numbers are similar for McCain — 38 percent say he’s “too conservative” and 46 percent “about right.”

Vice Presidential Candidates

Voters are fairly split on whether they would be comfortable with Joe Biden as vice president — 45 percent would be “extremely” or “very” comfortable and 52 percent would not be comfortable.

For Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, 34 percent would be either “extremely” or “very” comfortable with her as vice president and 64 percent would not.

One of five (20 percent) Democrats would be uncomfortable with Biden as vice president and one of three (33 percent) Republicans would be uncomfortable with Palin.

By an 18-point margin more voters have a positive view of Biden than a negative view (55 percent favorable and 37 percent unfavorable).

Views of Palin are much more mixed: 49 percent favorable and 46 percent unfavorable.

Click here to view the raw data.