Here's the latest analysis from Rasmussen :

A man whose Presidential campaign was left for dead last summer has picked up a round of significant endorsements from the Manchester Union Leader, the Des Moines Register, the Boston Globe, and Senator Joe Lieberman.

He has the highest favorable rating (52%) and the smallest number committed to voting against him (33%) of any Presidential candidate in either party (see key stats for all Republican and Democratic candidates). In the wake of his recent endorsements, McCain has moved into third place in Iowa and within a few points of the lead in New Hampshire .

As a bonus, the latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey shows McCain with a two-point advantage over Illinois Senator Barack Obama in a general election match-up (see crosstabs ). The two candidates were tied at 44% in late November. McCain also has a two-point edge over Hillary Clinton.

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Add Henry Kissinger to the list of those in McCain's corner. Here's how I see the coming weeks:

Giuliani is in a St. Louis hospital, but what's really ailing is his campaign. I don't see him gaining ground because there are other viable candidates who are more conservative then he is.

The Huckaboom will be a Huckabust, and the voters favorable to Huckabee will shift to McCain, Romney or Thompson. McCain has a fair shot at getting those votes, especially if foreign policy and Iraq are priorities.

McCain is in a surprising third place in Iowa. Given his opposition to ethanol subsidies and small campaign footprint, his numbers should be much lower, but it looks like he'll have a strong showing.

McCain is within four percentage points of Romney in New Hampshire, and the trending is favorable, but he is well behind the former Massachusetts governor in South Carolina. McCain has work to do in broadening his appeal to the conservative base. Kenneth Blackwell :

But the biggest challenge Mr. McCain faced — and continues to face — is that frankly, some Republicans just don't trust him. It goes deeper than policy disagreements on issues like campaign-finance and immigration. Many Republicans believe that Mr. McCain does not share their values or priorities. Some conservative leaders believe Mr. McCain's team has been dismissive, or even contemptuous.

Early in this cycle Senator McCain and his strategy team clearly underestimated just how deep the distrust and disconnect ran in many circles. Even if he wins the nomination in a divided field without these people, he cannot win the general election without getting their support. Those on his team who thought all these people would simply "come around" don't understand large segments of the base who would rather stay home than vote for someone they consider hostile to what they hold most dear.

John McCain needs to solidify that base.

Politics is about relationships. The senator has done some work to build or repair these relationships. While the late Reverend Jerry Falwell was only one influential leader among the Christian Right, the fact that Mr. McCain reached out to him was seen as an olive branch by some. And the senator's appearance before an NRA gathering was a positive move toward another major bloc that he often antagonized.

But many of these relations are so bad that it'll take a lot more than isolated gestures. He needs to reach out and open meaningful dialogues. Senator McCain should spend time with the leaders of these organizations and movements, and specifically address their concerns, even if it's only to respectfully disagree on some points. Additionally and perhaps even more importantly, he needs to try bringing more people representing these conservative elements of the Reagan coalition onto his team so that he can represent the broad spectrum of the Republican "big tent."

Specifically, the one issue where Mr. McCain could benefit immensely by taking a clear stand is judges. Many people misunderstand the senator's membership in the Gang of 14 to be compromising on judicial appointments, when actually his moves secured the confirmation of some of our finest appellate judges, some of whom could be Supreme Court nominees. Mr. McCain should do what Rudy Giuliani has done, making judges a stump speech issue and putting conservatives at ease on what the number one issue is for many of them.

I agree with Blackwell's assessment, but not his "solution" of picking Huckabee as a running mate. Fred Thompson would be way better. McCain pledged to take an "enforcement first" approach to immigration, and I see no reason why he wouldn't honor that pledge.

Note: Full disclosure. It's no secret that I support McCain .