Attacking the strength of an opponent is an established path to victory. Focus on his weaknesses and you win the easy battles and stand to lose the contest. Consider John McCain.

A war hero with many youthful flaws, he’ll be granted a free pass on that trade-off. His perceived strengths as a Senator: a warrior against dangerous enemies, quick with the humor, a reformer against special interests. The middle one’s easiest to dispel as his vicious temper is being reported more widely, but going there goes personal, which voters don’t like.

His reformer image is now coming under fire on campaign finance and with the disclosure of questionable ties with a lobbyist Wednesday. Lost amid the blizzard was his attack on Obama for suggesting he’d cross the Pakistan border to take out Al Qaida leaders, if necessary, without Musharraf’s approval. The same day, it was revealed that Bush just did that three weeks ago.

So who would flinch against our 9-11 attack masterminds?

None of this was developed through opposition research by Obama, Clinton or the DNC. McCain’s proving to be his own worst enemy and to some degree, some in the media are demonstrating the Fourth Estate occasionally can do its job again.

And up jumps Howard Dean again, resurrecting the Democrats’ most successful meme in at least 16 years: the Culture of Corruption. Remember that? Combined with Iraq, it swept the Dems back to Congressional majorities, however weak or slim. But coupled with Pelosi’s decision that impeachment was off the table, Bush’s special prosecutor scam has kept Republican scandals on the slow track, off the public’s radar. (Note: 60 Minutes will be covering the selective prosecution of Alabama’s Dem governor on Sunday, too).

Why abandon the truth when it’s packaged so well? I’m glad someone in the Democratic hierarchy remembered it. And put McCain in its crosshairs.

Meanwhile, post debate partisans were quick to jump on Clinton’s fine closing statement, claiming she stole it from John Edwards. In fact, as more thorough researchers noted, it goes back to her own husband’s words in 1992. But so what?

It was still a classy response and should be left at that.

Oh sure, Team Obama could make a fuss about that, but to do so, ironically, would actually support Hillary’s point: if she was wrong to do it, so was he. If she was scripted to say that, then so was he.

Further, it was a gimme. She had to know others would pick up on the repetition. By making herself look like a hypocrite, was that a dogwhistle to Obama that she was conceding the point, ready to fade gracefully if Texas and Ohio don’t go her way (as polls suggest is likely)?

Let the partisans bleat. Obama doesn’t have to say a word and can remain more classy by leaving it alone. After all, ultimately, they’ll return to being allies when the primary season concludes.

What truly progressive partisans should be doing is pointing out the things I just noted about McCain in letters to local editors, all across the nation. Just because the Times and WaPo and blogs cover these things doesn’t mean it’s getting to the eyes of near enough voters. That kind of local action repeated by a few thousand can profoundly impact the presidential race. Commenters touting Obama and Clinton to each other has proven a terribly inefficient and annoying way for progressives to spend their time with the ripe target of McCain looking like a sitting duck.

Inevitably he GOP will try to turn around McCain’s campaign finance squeeze. They’ll say the Democratic Senate is blocking the quorum needed so the FEC can grant him a reprieve. But it’s not an easy argument for them to make because it suggests Bush’s appointees would issue a partisan decision favoring McCain.

The general election campaign hasn’t officially started and McCain is financially hamstrung with a fresh round of revelations to face that diminish his strength as an ethical reformer. What more could a Democratic nominee ask for?

Though I’m not a man of faith, there sure seems to be an overabundance of seemingly divine intervention going on. I just hope all the Obama and Clinton partisans and even more liberal progressives quit aiming at each other and use these gifts effectively by going local with their efforts. So much is falling in our laps and instead of gloating, we should be thinking strategically. It’s what winners do.