Joe Klein nails Obama’s weakness as a general-election candidate:

But there was still something missing. I noticed it during Obama’s response to a young man who remembered how the country had come together after Sept. 11 and lamented “the dangerously low levels of patriotism and pride in our country, the loss of faith in our elected officials.” Obama used this, understandably, to go after George W. Bush. “Cynicism has become the hot stock,” he said, “the growth industry during the Bush Administration.” He talked about the Administration’s mendacity, its incompetence during Hurricane Katrina, its lack of transparency. But he never returned to the question of patriotism. He never said, “But hey, look, we’re Americans. This is the greatest country on earth. We’ll rise to the occasion.”

This is a chronic disease among Democrats, who tend to talk more about what’s wrong with America than what’s right.

Sorry, Joe. In fact, between the two Democratic candidates it is only Barack Obama who is infected with this disease. And he’s got it bad, as he made plain on The View [e.a.]:

“Had the reverend not retired and had he not acknowledged that what he had said had deeply offended people and were inappropriate and mischaracterized what I believe is the greatness of this country, for all its flaws, then I wouldn’t have felt comfortable staying there at the church,” Obama said.

See, he’s got to be even-handed about America. He’s got to indicate that he knows it’s deeply flawed.

He wouldn’t want anyone to think that he thinks this a great country or anything. And yet he wants to be its president.

How does this guy stack up in the general election against someone who reveres his country?  That’s hard to say. But let’s not put the cart before the horse.

A New York Times/CBS poll finds that:

Obama’s Support Softens

This is his support among Democrats. He is bleeding:

Mr. Obama’s big lead among men over Mrs. Clinton has disappeared during that period; in February 67 percent of men wanted the party to nominate him compared with 28 percent for Mrs. Clinton, while now 47 percent of men back him compared with 42 percent for Mrs. Clinton, a difference that is within the poll’s margin of error. Similarly, his lead among whites, voters making more than $50,000 annually and voters under age 45 has shrunk.

And still the NYT spins like a top:

The poll, taken March 28 through April 2, includes some encouraging news for Mr. Obama as he and Mrs. Clinton slog through what has become an extended fight for the nomination. Over half of those sampled continue to view him as having a better chance of defeating Mr. McCain. Most expect him to win the nomination. And Mr. Obama’s supporters are more enthusiastic about his candidacy than are Democrats backing Mrs. Clinton.

In other words, his devoted fans really love him. Everybody else has questions.