PENSACOLA -- With the cameras and reporters recording every smile and jab, Sarah Palin wrapped up a statewide blitz Tuesday designed to raise doubts about Democrat Barack Obama and calm jittery Republicans who fear their ticket is losing must-win Florida.

The Republicans are trailing the Democrats by two percentage points in Florida, according to a survey released Tuesday by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research. A Fox News/Rasmussen Reports poll showed Obama with a seven percentage point lead over John McCain the day before.

To help turn those numbers around, Palin attacked Obama as a double-talking tax-raiser with ''radical'' allies such as 1960s terrorist William Ayers -- a name that drew a thundering boo from the Pensacola Civic Center crowd.

''There's a pattern here; it's of a left-wing agenda that is packaged and prettied up to look like mainstream policies,'' Palin said, repeating a line from an earlier stop she made in Jacksonville.

''This election is about truthfulness and judgment needed in the next president,'' she said. ``And John McCain has it and Barack Obama does not have it.''

THE DEMOCRATS

Obama spokesman Kevin Cate said Palin and McCain's continuing attacks on Obama are a desperate and inaccurate effort to ''change the subject'' that matters most to Floridians, the economy.

That's the subject of a new Florida-only ad the Obama campaign released Tuesday as Palin spoke in Jacksonville, the same city where McCain stumbled weeks before in public-opinion polls after he said the ``fundamentals of our economy are strong.''

The new ad, juxtaposing grim statistics on Florida's record job loss and home foreclosures, shows McCain shaking hands with President Bush and says of McCain, ``Florida can't afford him.''

In the past two weeks in Florida, Obama has outspent McCain by a nearly 5-1 margin -- Obama's $5.3 million to McCain's $1.1 million -- according to the Campaign Media Analysis Group. Also, from June 3 through Sept. 7, Nielsen Monitor-Plus reported that Obama and allies have run 4,112 negative spots against McCain in Florida. McCain had run none against Obama in that time.

''You cannot let your opponent make charges on TV and let him go unanswered. That has caused a lot of discomfort on the Republican side,'' said David ''DJ'' Johnson, a Republican strategist and past head of the Republican Party of Florida.

''The ground game is good, Sarah Palin in Florida is good and drawing big crowds,'' Johnson said. ``But the candidate has barely been on TV. And in a state like this, you need aerial cover -- your TV and radio -- for your ground game.''

Johnson and other Republicans say that it's certainly not too late for McCain to wage a vigorous ad war.

CLOSE RACE

Jim Greer, RPOF's current chief, pointed out ''Obama spent all this money and it's still a margin-of-error race.'' Greer acknowledged Republicans were getting nervous, but said the pace of McCain's campaign in Florida will pick up -- starting with Palin.

Palin's draw is so strong that thousands braved the rains for more than an hour just to hear her speak for less than 30 minutes.

The day before, she spoke in Estero and Clearwater, and attended several fundraisers.

Pensacola Republican Pam Nichols, 50, said she was eager for Palin to get the word out about Obama's ties to Ayers, who lives in Obama's neighborhood, sat on at least one community board with him and helped host a 1995 political reception for Obama. Nichols said ``there's so much in his background that is just frightening.''

Indeed, before Palin spoke, Gulf Breeze Republican Clay Ford said Obama ``is scary.''

`CLEAR IDEA'

But Nichols said the ticket needs to do more than bash Obama.

''Give us a clear idea of what McCain is going to do for our economy,'' she said.

Palin attempted to do that by pledging to cut taxes and saying Obama will raise them. Obama, though, has promised repeatedly he would only raise taxes on those making more than $250,000.

She also touted the McCain health plan -- centered on tax credits -- and bashed Obama for trying to ''exploit'' the bad economy and worries among seniors over Social Security.

''No presidential cycle is complete without the Democratic candidate coming down to Florida to stir up fear and panic on this issue,'' Palin said, a reference to an Obama ad attacking McCain for supporting President Bush's efforts to ''privatize'' the system.

Palin was stumping on friendly ground, military heavy North Florida where McCain has his biggest lead over Obama, 21 points, according to Mason-Dixon's poll, which has an overall error margin of four percentage points.

Those who have served in the military back McCain by an even greater spread: 39 points. Those who haven't served back Obama by 15 points.

Miami Herald staff writer Beth Reinhard contributed to this report.

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