High-profile supporters enter the fray

The straits for McCain could be seen in campaign travel too: Both candidates were dashing across states won by Bush in 2004. Indeed, Obama intends to spend the rest of the campaign in Bush states -- including Indiana, Nevada, Colorado, Missouri, Ohio, Florida, North Carolina and Virginia. McCain must win virtually all of them to reach the 270 electoral votes needed to capture the presidency. McCain too plans to campaign largely in Bush states, with the notable exceptions of Pennsylvania and New Hampshire.

Schwarzenegger, who on Thursday told reporters that McCain faced "a very tough uphill battle," on Friday cast his fellow Republican as prepared to confound such dire predictions.

Yet the site of the Ohio rally only underscored the difficulties: Their appearance at Nationwide Arena drew what was a large crowd for McCain, but about half the arena was empty. Four years ago when Schwarzenegger campaigned in the same venue for Bush, the arena was packed to capacity with about 20,000 people.

Schwarzenegger long has sponsored an annual bodybuilding competition in Columbus, and he joked that he hoped to invite Obama next time because "he needs to do something with those skinny legs."

"We're going to make him do some squats, and then we're going to give him some biceps curls to beef up those scrawny little arms. But if you only could do something about putting some meat on his ideas," Schwarzenegger said.

"Sen. McCain, on the other hand, is built like a rock."

Much of McCain's pitch Friday centered on the economy, and particularly the job losses that have hit Ohio and other states hard.

In Hanoverton, McCain promised to "take care of the working people devastated by the excesses and greed of Wall Street and Washington" and said he would root out corruption in the capital. At one point, he alluded to Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens, a Republican who was convicted this week on corruption charges.

"We just had a senior member of the United States Senate convicted; we have former members of Congress presiding in federal prison. I will clean up this mess and make you proud again of people who serve you," McCain said, without mentioning Stevens' name.

At each event, he portrayed Obama as too liberal for American voters and said the Democrat's tax plans would weaken an already struggling economy. Obama has proposed cutting taxes for those making less than $200,000 a year, while eliminating the Bush tax cuts for families making more than $250,000 annually. McCain, who years ago opposed the Bush tax cuts, now favors making them permanent.