6 To 1 voters view McCain as the negative candidate

You felt the same way about Dubya in 2000 didn't you?

 

I don't think any of that matters. The poll was uncovering the public perception of negative campaigning by McCain and Obama. Perceptions of negativity might affect how people vote in the election, and so may impact what the campaigns do going forward. Whether the campaigns are actually negative is beside the point.

To that end, I think Obama is actually more negative than he gets credit for, but he has a presence and charisma that make him seem pretty respectable when he does it, so it is not perceived as negative, imo. McCain's negativity is not as smoothly executed and draws more criticism.