As the conventions approach and Obama's lead in the polls remains stubbornly narrow campaign managers might be reflecting on why their man can't seem to open up the lead you'd expect the Democrats to have at this stage. Two factors routinely trotted out as impacting Obama's ratings are race and elitism and for the Democrats those two things could combine in a dangerous way.

From 'The American Commonwealth' (1888) by James Bryce:

"Europeans often ask, and Americans do not always explain, how it happens that this great office, the greatest in the world, unless we except the Papcy, which anyone can rise by his own merits, is not more frequently filled by great and striking men. In America, which is byond all other countries the country of a 'career open to talents', a country, moreover, in which political life is unusually keen and political ambtion widely diffused, it might be expected that the highest place would always be won by a man of brilliant gifts. But from the time when the heroes of the revolution died out with Jefferson and Adams and Madison, no person except General Grant reached the chair whose name would've been remembered had he not been President, and no President except Abraham Lincoln had displayed rare or striking qualities in the chair"

It's an old passage but remarkably prophetic - when it comes to politics US voters have a deep distrust of brilliance since politics is rarely a noble art. Being 'good' at it often involves the deployment of vice - telling audiences what they want to here, glossing over disagreement but advancing an agenda in spite of opposition etc. American have a deep-seated desire to feel like they have 'one of their own' at the top rather than someone who lives and breathes politics.

When the Republicans exploit the valid 'he's different from us' theme (i.e. west coast coffee-shop Liberal) many people hearing it will ally it with the completely objectionable version related to the colour of his skin. Whether or not you believe the Republicans are happy with that outcome probably depends on your politics but electorally it's potentially very damaging for Obama.

Quite how Team Obama handles this I don't know but they'd do well to remember that they're pitching, in some states, for the votes of people who last time felt comfortable voting for George W Bush. The gulf that exists between their man and the one the got the votes last time is so huge that they'd be foolish to think their man's eloquence and rock star quality is enough to pull him through...