GRAND JUNCTION, CO - The genesis of Barack Obama’s slide in recent polls is debatable, but the numbers are not. Is it the Palin effect? A post-convention GOP bounce? The barrage of misleading ads like “Education,” that claimed Obama’s one accomplishment in education was that he voted for sex ed for kids? Or perhaps it’s because of the focus over distractions like “lipstick on a pig.” Whatever the attribution, 50 days from the election, Obama is inserting some urgency in his plea to voters.

“We must change the Karl Rove brand of politics that we’ve been seeing over the last few weeks - the politics that would divide this country just to win and election where phony debates, and false advertisements, lies and spin consume a campaign that should be about, must be about the great challenges of our time,” he said at a rally in Colorado today. “We must end the policies of the last eight years. This has been our message from the day we began this campaign; it was our message when we were up, it was our message when we were down. And until now this has not been our opponents message,” he said resolutely.

Obama has accused McCain of swiping his message of change since the Republican convention. Today he accused him of stealing his slogan. “He had an ad today that he started running that said he and Governor Palin would bring, guess what? The ‘change that we need,’” he said, standing behind a podium with a placard reading “Change We Need.” The crowd laughed. Obama continued, “Sound familiar? Let me tell you something - instead of borrowing my lines, he needs to borrow some of our ideas. Change isn’t about slogans, it’s about substance.”

Obama said he welcomes a debate about who can best bring about change - presumably the debates about lipstick, pigs, and Paris Hilton are not debates he’s eager have. But those petty debates, the Democrat contends, are ones that the Republicans have been pushing - as they have in elections past.

“We’ve seen them turn an entire campaign into a debate about swift boats and windsurfing and what do you get when it’s over? Iraq and Katrina and a meltdown on Wall Street and millions without jobs or homes or healthcare. Pain at the pump. Enough. Enough of this. Not this time. Not this year. We can’t afford to let them make another big election about small things,” he said.

With Election Day just around the corner, Obama is stressing the enormity of the decision at hand. “In 50 days, you’ll walk into that voting booth, pull back that curtain and choose the future you want for America. This is a defining moment in our history,” he said.

But then Obama the realist warned his supporters that the election won’t be easy. “We are up against a very powerful entrenched status quo in Washington. They will say anything and they will do anything and they will fight with everything they’ve got to keep things just the way they are, but I feel good about our chances Colorado. I feel good because in this election, I’ve got something more powerful than they do. I’ve got you,” he said.

And at the end of his nearly 40 minute speech, Obama asked for their help. Read it, in full, below the jump.

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MANCHESTER, NH - When Hurricane Gustav came ashore on Labor Day, Barack Obama put aside politics in solidarity with those who were facing harm’s way. During each of his three events that day - two in Michigan and one in Wisconsin - Obama did not attack John McCain.

Today as Hurricane Ike came ashore in Texas, Obama once again urged people at his Manchester, NH, rally to come together with thought and prayer - and time and money if need be.

But even though his running mate, Joe Biden, decided to stay home in Delaware as Ike hit the mainland, and despite the fact that Obama cancelled an appearance on Saturday Night Live tonight because he decided “it is no longer appropriate” to appear due to the crisis in Texas, Obama the politician showed up this morning ready for a fight.

Obama’s objective — to paint the McCain/Palin ticket as more of the same, and to question the sincerity of the Republicans’ call for change. “Change isn’t just a word,” he cautioned.

Obama then aggressively went on the offensive against McCain on a host of issues.

On the economy: “John McCain doesn’t get it. He doesn’t know what’s going on in your lives. He is out of touch with the American people.”

On foreign policy: “I warned that going into iraq would distract us from Afghanistan. John McCain cheerleaded for it – John McCain was wrong and I was right. I’ve said we need to make sure that we are increasing our strength in Afghanistan and that we should be going after bin Laden - Don’t talk about chasing him to the gates of hell. We know where he is – in the hills between Afghanistan and Pakistan – we should have stayed focused there in the first place. John McCain was wrong and I was right. We don’t need more tough talk, we need smart strategy and we need to recognize that the world is looking for leadership from America.”

On education: “John McCain doesn’t have any ideas for education. His own people admit it. The only thing he does is he trots out the old thing about we’re going to give vouchers to everybody. He has no commitment to public schools in America!”

Overall, Obama concluded, “John McCain, his basic message to you, is this ‘Watch out George Bush,’ with the exception of economic policy, tax policy, health care policy, education policy, foreign policy and Karl Rove style politics, we’re really going to shake things up in Washington.”

The McCain camp responded noting “Barack Obama showed zero restraint in the ferocity of his attacks despite the wreckage in the gulf,” and that the attacks “mark a new low.”

Soon after, the Obama campaign issued a scathing statement of their own. “We will take no lectures from John McCain who is cynically running the sleaziest and least honorable campaign in modern Presidential campaign history” which is “not worthy of the office he is seeking.”

And to think there are only 52 days until the election….

Yesterday Barack Obama spoke unity at his rally in Battle Creek, Michigan, as an ominous sounding Hurricane Gustav made it’s march towards the Gulf Coast. “We don’t have time for small politics when we are faced with a threat like that,” Obama said to the crowd, urging for cooperation instead of “trying to rip each other down.”

As he continued with his rally, however, Obama unleashed the same lines he’s been using to link McCain to Bush economic and foreign policies. The RNC, which had just announced it was scaling back on its convention, quickly responded with a scathing statement out to reporters. “If a natural disaster is not enough to convince Obama to ease off the political attacks, then what is? We don’t need more of the hair trigger politics that Obama launched against Governor Palin on her historic nomination,” the statement read.

Today Candidate Obama cut short his Labor Day rally in Detroit declaring, “Today is not a day for political speeches.” The once rowdy crowd became silent as Obama continued, “We don’t know yet what the impact of Hurricane Gustav will be. We hope and pray that the damage will not be as great as it was three years ago, but we know that there will be damage and help will be needed so my main goal today is to ask you to help.”

As Obama urged attendees to donate to the Red Cross, his campaign utilized its giant email and text messaging database to urge supporters to chip in. “At times like this, it is our compassion and resilience that define who we are as a nation. Please give whatever you can afford,” the email read.

The Democratic nominee did invoke his rival’s name during his 10-minute speech, but there was no political attack this day. Obama assured the crowd that everyone - George Bush and John McCain included - are hoping for the best as Gustav makes landfall. “I want everybody to remember there’s a time for us to argue politics and there’s a time for us to come together as Americans,” he said before calling for a moment of silence.

Obama is expected to make similar remarks at his next event - a Labor Day BBQ in nearby Monroe - before returning early to Chicago so that the campaign can “closely monitor” the situation and adjust his schedule this week if need be.

Barack Obama flew back to Washington, DC, this morning to vote on the GI Bill authored by Virginia Senator Jim Webb - a bill which Mr. Obama references often on the campaign trail.

On the Senate floor this morning, Senator Obama praised his potential fall rival as a war hero before attacking Senator McCain’s position on the bill. “I can’t understand why he would line up behind the President in opposition to this GI Bill. I can’t believe why he believes it is too generous to our veterans. I could not disagree with him more on this issue. There are many issues that lend themselves to partisan posturing, but giving our veterans the chance to go to college should not be one of them,” Obama said.

The White House is against the bill, as is John McCain because of its $52 billion price tag and because the Department of Defense believes it will negatively affect retention rates.

Senator McCain, who was not on hand for the morning vote, responded to Obama with a brutal statement. “It is typical, but no less offensive that Senator Obama uses the Senate floor to take cheap shots at an opponent and easy advantage of an issue he has less than zero understanding of…Unlike Senator Obama, my admiration, respect and deep gratitude for America’s veterans is something more than a convenient campaign pledge. I think I have earned the right to make that claim,” the statement read.

McCain along with Senators Graham and Burr have introduced alternative legislation “that would provide veterans with a substantial increase in educational benefits,” which is less money than proposed in the Webb bill, which overwhelmingly passed in the Senate 75-22.

The Arizona senator acknowledged Webb’s own service to the country and his affection for the troops and then didn’t mince words as he chided Obama. “I will not accept from Senator Obama, who did not feel it was his responsibility to serve our country in uniform, any lectures on my regard for those who did.”

The scolding continued as McCain accused Obama of playing politics with the issue. “Perhaps, if Senator Obama would take the time and trouble to understand this issue he would learn to debate an honest disagreement respectfully. But, as he always does, he prefers impugning the motives of his opponent, and exploiting a thoughtful difference of opinion to advance his own ambitions. If that is how he would behave as President, the country would regret his election.”

The Obama campaign is expected to respond with a statement of their own. Read the full McCain statement below the jump.

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