US:JOHN McCAIN has taken a five-point lead over Barack Obama in a new poll as voters say for the first time that the Republican would be a better manager of the economy.
The Reuters/Zogby poll comes as other surveys show Mr Obama's negative ratings are climbing after weeks of Republican attacks.
Campaigning in Virginia yesterday, Mr Obama said Republicans were following a traditional pattern by trying to scare voters about his background.
"They'll say, 'He's young, he's got a funny name, he's not patriotic'," he said. "We've seen this movie before," he added.
The latest poll shows Mr McCain ahead of Mr Obama among likely voters by 46 per cent to 41 per cent, overturning a seven-point advantage for the Democrat in July. Forty-nine per cent said Mr McCain would be a better manager of the economy, compared to 40 per cent who favoured Mr Obama on the issue.
Mr Obama's support has fallen among Catholics, born-again Christians, women, independents and younger voters, with his backing among liberals dropping by 12 per cent.
The poll was conducted late last week when Mr Obama was on holiday in Hawaii, while the conflict between Russia and Georgia gave Mr McCain a chance to highlight his foreign policy experience.
Most other polls still show Mr Obama in the lead, although his advantage in an average of national polls has shrivelled to just above 1 per cent, well within the margin of error.
An LA Times/Bloomberg poll this week found that voters believe by a margin of two to one that Mr McCain would better protect the US from terrorism and is viewed as more patriotic than Mr Obama. More than eight out of 10 voters say Mr McCain's patriotism is strong, compared with just 55 per cent for Mr Obama.
Mr McCain yesterday responded to Mr Obama's complaint that the Republican was unfairly questioning his patriotism.
"Yesterday, Senator Obama got a little testy on this issue," Mr McCain told supporters in New Mexico.
"He said that I am questioning his patriotism. Let me be clear: I am not questioning his patriotism; I am questioning his judgment."
The Republican returned to his attack on Mr Obama's opposition to the military surge in Iraq, a position the Republican claimed would put victory at risk.
"Over and over again, he has advocated unconditional withdrawal - regardless of the facts on the ground. And he voted against funding for troops in combat, after saying it would be wrong to do so," Mr McCain said.
"He has made these decisions not because he doesn't love America, but because he doesn't seem to understand the consequences of an American defeat in Iraq, how it would risk a wider war and threaten the security of American families."
Mr Obama hopes to receive a boost from the announcement this week of his vice-presidential running mate and from next week's Democratic convention in Denver.
Mr Obama's campaign has remained tight-lipped about the vice-presidential pick but most speculation is centred on Delaware senator Joe Biden, Indiana senator Evan Bayh and Virginia governor Tim Kaine, with Hillary Clinton seen as a possible surprise choice.
Mr Obama plans to appear with his running mate at an event in Springfield, Illinois on Saturday, although the announcement could come as early as today.
The Republicans yesterday announced the speakers for their convention, starting on September 1st, which features former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani as the keynote speaker.
Other speakers will include president George Bush, vice-president Dick Cheney, California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Independent Democratic senator Joe Lieberman.