Essential

The Obama Offensive

Moves campaign into red states.

With 19 days until Election Day, Obama is putting John McCain on the defensive by moving into traditionally Republican states. The AP reports that Obama is now buying ads in West Virginia, where he struggled with white voters in the primary and which George Bush won in 2004. He’s also considering pouring money into red states like Kentucky, North Dakota, and Georgia, the latter two of which he originally campaigned in but withdrew from after John McCain’s short-lived September surge. Even if Obama fails to win these states, the strategy hopes to draw McCain away from swing states where Obama has a better chance as McCain tries to shore up his base.