So much for President Obama's unassailable lead: A handful of new polls are calling a close presidential race on the eve of Obama's first debate with Mitt Romney, CNN reports. CNN's latest poll found that 50% favor Obama and 47% favor Romney, a difference within the survey's margin of error. An ABC News/Washington Post poll found 49% for Obama and 47% for Romney, and the American Research Group counted 49% for Obama and 46% for Romney.
These numbers are all national, of course—not swing state. But at least nationally, there is "a strong suggestion that whatever bounce President Obama received from his convention has, as expected, faded away," says a CNN pollster. "That's why they call them 'bounces.'" Among the interesting CNN poll factoids: Romney and Obama are liked equally on the economy, Obama has a 52%-45% edge on foreign policy, women prefer Obama by 53%-44%, and Romney has a 50%-47% lead among men—but that's less than he had before the conventions. (More poll stories.)