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| AFL-CIO ad criticizes McCain on war, veterans Wed, 09 Jul 2008 14:58 EDT The AFL-CIO plans to begin airing an ad in six presidential battleground states on Thursday that features a Vietnam combat veteran criticizing John McCain's stance on the war in Iraq and on veterans issues. The ad is part of a new union political effort to reach the 2.1 million military veterans or active-duty personnel who are members of the AFL-CIO. "Every vet respects John McCain's war record," Navy veteran Jim Wasser says in the ad. "It's his record in the Senate that I have a problem with." Wasser, an electrician from Illinois, served with John Kerry aboard Navy Swift Boats in Vietnam and helped the Massachusetts senator rebut attacks on his war record during the 2004 presidential campaign. In the ad, Wasser says McCain "wants us to keep spending $10 billion a month in Iraq. Just like Bush." |
| Merkel uneasy over Obama Brandenburg Gate address Wed, 09 Jul 2008 14:58 EDT German Chancellor Angela Merkel has signaled unease over the prospect of a possible speech by Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama at Berlin's historic Brandenburg Gate, a spokesman said Wednesday. Merkel has "only limited understanding for using the Brandenburg Gate as an election campaign backdrop, as it were, and has expressed skepticism about pursuing such plans," Thomas Steg, a spokesman for the chancellor, told reporters. However, Steg stressed that the chancellor is "very happy" for Obama to visit Germany and meet her and Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier. Berlin city officials said this week that members of the Democratic candidate's campaign had contacted them about what permission and security issues would need to be resolved before Obama could speak in front of the monument. The Obama campaign has refused to provide specifics on his plans during an upcoming visit to Europe and the Middle East, including the candidate's interest in a possible event at the Brandenburg Gate. |
| Obama: Iranian missile tests call for more talks Wed, 09 Jul 2008 14:58 EDT Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama says that Iran's missile tests highlight the need for tougher threats of economic sanctions as well as strong incentives to persuade Tehran to change its behavior. Iran's state-run television reported Wednesday that the government had tested nine long- and medium-range missiles. Appearing on NBC's "Today" show, Obama said the U.S. needed to pursue the kind of aggressive diplomacy that he said has been absent under the Bush administration. Obama added that, in his words, "If we don't, then we're going to continue to see rising tensions that could lead into real problems." Obama said he continued to favor an incentive package that is aimed at getting Iran to drop its nuclear ambitions. |
| McCain dodges question on Viagra, contraceptives Wed, 09 Jul 2008 22:08 EDT Republican John McCain prides himself on being a straight talker. But he resisted being dragged into a discussion Wednesday about insurance companies that cover Viagra but not birth control products. "I certainly do not want to discuss that issue," the presidential candidate said when a reporter asked him about it on his campaign bus, the "Straight Talk Express." A few seats away was Carly Fiorina, a top McCain supporter who stirred talk about the topic at a recent Washington breakfast with reporters. The former Hewlett-Packard chief executive, discussing consumer-driven health insurance, mentioned something "I've been hearing a lot about from women: There are many health insurance plans that will cover Viagra but won't cover birth-control medication. Those women would like a choice." Fiorina is among McCain's most prominent female advisers, and seen by some as a possible choice to be his running mate. When asked Wednesday if he had voted in the Senate against a proposal to require insurance companies to cover contraceptive products, McCain replied, "I don't know enough about it to give you an informed answer because I don't recall the vote... I don't usually duck an issue, but I'll try to get back to you." |
| Beshear seeks input, goodwill from tour Wed, 09 Jul 2008 19:06 EDT FRANKFORT . In an effort to regroup from a rocky start to his term, Gov. Steve Beshear will embark later this month on a 12-city town hall tour that will take him from Pikeville to Paducah. The circuit will be key, Beshear's top aide said, as the administration retools its agenda in the wake of uncertain economic times and a rough first go-around with the General Assembly this spring. .The governor is going to talk about where we are, how we got to where we are and the challenges that exist before us,. said Adam Edelen, who took over as Beshear's chief of staff last week. .And we'll be talking about some of his ideas for going forward. But broadly this also is a listening tour.. Beshear will seek Kentuckians' input about steps the state should take to improve in areas of education, health care, economic development and infrastructure, Edelen said. |
| Obama targets women's issues with Clinton at hand Thu, 10 Jul 2008 10:48 EDT Going after the women's vote, Democrat Barack Obama chastised Republican John McCain on Thursday over his opposition to an equal-pay Senate bill, his support for conservative-leaning Supreme Court justices and his abortion-rights objections. "I will never back down in defending a woman's right to choose," the likely Democratic nominee said, drawing a sharp contrast with his GOP rival. "That's what's at stake," Obama added as he campaigned with his half-sister and Hillary Rodham Clinton, the pioneering former first lady he toppled during the Democratic presidential primary, at a "Women for Obama" breakfast fundraiser. Obama packed his day with female-focused events in New York and Virginia, a reminder of his need to win over women who include some still smarting from Clinton's loss. She had tried to become the first woman to win the White House, and women were her base voters. They took her defeat hard, so much so that even a few are promising to vote for McCain. Thus, to underscore his differences with McCain on women's issues, Obama cited Senate legislation from the spring that sought to counteract a Supreme Court decision limiting how long workers can wait before suing for pay discrimination. |
| Obama briefly forgets to urge help for Clinton Wed, 09 Jul 2008 23:43 EDT It was all part of a careful arrangement: Democrat Barack Obama would get fundraising help from his erstwhile rival, Hillary Rodham Clinton, in exchange for his help retiring about $10 million of her campaign debt. But Obama momentarily forgot his part of the deal at a major New York fundraiser Wednesday night, forcing him to retake the stage after he had concluded the event and said goodnight to the audience. The Illinois senator spoke to about 1,000 donors in a Manhattan ballroom, all of whom had paid at least $1,000 to attend. Many were Clinton supporters until she dropped out of the race last month. Obama praised the former first lady as tough and smart. "She wore me out," he said to laughs. The Democratic nominee-in-waiting then wrapped up his speech and thanked the audience, moving to shake hands along a rope line. |
| Analysis: Obama's turn to middle on surveillance Wed, 09 Jul 2008 23:43 EDT Sen. Barack Obama's vote in favor of anti-terrorist surveillance legislation on Wednesday marked an about-face on the issue that left him comfortably in the bipartisan middle, no matter the criticism from John McCain nor the discomfort among liberal Democrats. "Given the choice between voting for an improved yet imperfect bill, and losing important surveillance tools, Senator Obama chose to support" the legislation, his office said, even though it contained a provision the Democratic presidential nominee-in-waiting had flatly opposed. Translation: With the general election looming, preventing another terrorist attack trumped fears that privacy rights may be violated. Ironically, the Democratic presidential contender cast his vote one day after telling a campaign audience that accounts of a shift toward the center on the Iraq War, guns, the death penalty and other issues were unfounded. "The people who say this haven't apparently been listening to me," Obama said in response to a question at a town hall-style event. Legal immunity for companies such as AT&T is not an issue likely to affect many votes in November. |
| AFL-CIO mobilizing veterans to oppose McCain Thu, 10 Jul 2008 11:13 EDT The AFL-CIO is mobilizing union members who are military veterans to work against Republican presidential candidate John McCain and other office seekers it opposes, officials said Thursday. John Sweeney, the president of the labor federation, planned to announce the creation of a Union Veterans Council in a teleconference Thursday. The union, which endorsed Democrat Barack Obama for president last month, plans to form state councils of union veterans in key election battlegrounds, including Wisconsin, Minnesota, Colorado, Ohio and West Virginia. Later, it plans to organize in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Virginia. "We're forming this Union Veterans Council to bring together union members who are veterans to speak out on the issues that matter the most to them - in this year's election and beyond," Sweeney said in a statement. "With the formation of the Union Veterans Council, veterans will be front and center in the effort to put our country back on track." Sweeney said key issues will include money for the Veterans Affairs Department, health and education benefits for veterans, and job growth. The union also launched an ad that will air Thursday that features a Vietnam combat veteran criticizing McCain's stance on the war in Iraq and on veterans issues. The ad will air for three weeks on national cable and in Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Wisconsin, union officials said. |
| Analyst urges caution on electric car proposal Thu, 10 Jul 2008 06:01 EDT SHEPHERDSVILLE . As Kentucky politicians stumble over themselves to tout a three-wheeled electric car as a financial boon to the state and their gas price-weary constituents, an industry analyst suggests they use caution. Two Republican state senators urged Gov. Steve Beshear Wednesday to sign an executive order allowing the use of three-wheeled electric vehicles on Kentucky roads except interstates in hopes of landing a ZAP electric-car factory for Integrity Manufacturing in Bullitt County that might employ up to 1,000 people. But some skeptics say the Santa Rosa, Calif.,-based company known as ZAP, which currently makes the Zero Air Pollution cars in China, has a history of over-promising and under-delivering. ZAP strongly denies the criticism and claims it stems from its competitors. |
| McCain disagrees with adviser's 'whiners' remark Fri, 11 Jul 2008 02:19 EDT Republican John McCain distanced himself from an economic adviser who dubbed the United States "a nation of whiners" in a "mental recession" as Democrat Barack Obama turned the remarks against his rival. "I strongly disagree" with Phil Gramm's remarks, McCain told reporters in Belleville, Mich. "Phil Gramm does not speak for me. I speak for me." The Republican presidential hopeful said a person who just lost a job "isn't suffering from a mental recession." "America is in great difficulty. And we are experiencing enormous economic challenges as well as others," McCain said, seeking to stem the fallout of Gramm's comments. Gramm, a former Texas senator who is a vice chairman of the Swiss bank UBS, made the remarks in an interview with The Washington Times. Gramm has a doctorate in economics. |
| McCain: Mortgage giants can't be allowed to fail Thu, 10 Jul 2008 15:03 EDT Republican presidential candidate John McCain said Thursday the government cannot let mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac go under. The two government-sponsored companies have been operating under a cloud of uncertainty in recent weeks, and their shares have plunged to levels not seen since the early 1990s. McCain said while campaigning in Michigan that Fannie and Freddie "have been responsible for millions of Americans to be able to own their own homes, and they will not fail, we will not allow them to fail." Concerns surfaced this week that an accounting rule change would force Fannie and Freddie to raise as much as $75 billion in new capital. While those concerns subsided amid reassurances from the companies' chief government regulator, fears remain that housing troubles will continue to worsen. Analysts say that could possibly force the mortgage giants to raise capital by issuing additional stock, which would dilute their value for current shareholders. Former St. Louis Federal Reserve President William Poole told Bloomberg News that chances are increasing the government may need to bail out the two companies. |
| No missing parts or tampering found on Obama plane Thu, 10 Jul 2008 14:53 EDT An initial examination of the plane that had maintenance problems while carrying Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama found no evidence of missing parts or tampering, federal investigators said Thursday. The Midwest Airlines MD-81 made a precautionary landing in St. Louis on Monday after leaving Chicago for Charlotte, N.C. The National Transportation Safety Board released some preliminary findings from the on-scene investigation Thursday. The pilots of the Midwest Airlines MD-81 felt it took more than the usual amount of force to manipulate the aircraft controls, NTSB spokeswoman Bridget Serchak said. The federal agency stated that an emergency evacuation slide located in the tail cone of the plane partially inflated and that an inflation bottle, typically containing a mix of nitrogen and carbon dioxide, was empty. |
| Cindy McCain, Huckabee to travel to Rwanda Thu, 10 Jul 2008 17:43 EDT Cindy McCain and Mike Huckabee are among a bipartisan group headed to Rwanda next week to see how U.S. investments have helped some of the world's poorest people and what steps the next president can take to fight global poverty. Former Senate Majority Leaders Tom Daschle, D-S.D., and Bill Frist, R-Tenn., will lead the delegation for the ONE campaign, an organization that uses grass-roots efforts to pressure world leaders to address poverty and preventable diseases. Cindy McCain is the wife of Republican presidential candidate John McCain, and Huckabee is a former Arkansas governor who challenged McCain during the GOP presidential primaries. The two will join John Podesta and Leon Panetta, both of whom served former President Clinton as chief of staff. Former Rep. John Kasich, R-Ohio, will also make the trip, which is planned for July 17-23. The ONE campaign announced the trip Wednesday. The organization says it will not endorse a candidate for president. |
| McCain has best fundraising in June, $22M Fri, 11 Jul 2008 01:19 EDT Republican presidential candidate John McCain raised more than $22 million in June, his best fundraising performance of the year, and ended the month with nearly $27 million cash on hand. Campaign manager Rick Davis said Thursday that McCain and the national Republican Party together entered July with about $95 million in the bank. The Republican National Committee, which has been raising money jointly with McCain, collected nearly $26 million in June and had nearly $69 million on hand, officials said. The campaign's fundraising has given McCain the ability to spend more on television advertising than Democrat Barack Obama in key battleground states. Davis said about half of its income had been spent on television advertising. Obama has not revealed his June fundraising. In announcing McCain's fundraising, Davis portrayed the campaign's financial position as far brighter than ever before. He said the joint RNC-McCain fundraising through direct mail is now exceeding President Bush's direct mail fundraising in 2004. |
| For Obama, McCain, varied paths on women's issues Fri, 11 Jul 2008 00:09 EDT It's women's week on the presidential campaign trail, judging from the attention that Barack Obama and John McCain are lavishing on female voters and issues especially important to them. Obama, campaigning here Thursday with former Democratic rival Hillary Rodham Clinton, criticized McCain's opposition to an equal-pay Senate bill, his support for conservative-leaning Supreme Court justices and his abortion-rights objections. "I will never back down in defending a woman's right to choose," Obama said at a "Women for Obama" breakfast fundraiser. McCain, the Republican from Arizona, planned a similar day Friday when he will meet with female business owners in Minnesota and then hold a women-oriented town-hall meeting in Wisconsin. Asked about women in an interview this week, McCain said he wants to "make sure that any barriers to their advancement are eliminated." Obama makes similar remarks, but the two differ sharply on their approach to several key issues. Obama would require employers to expand family and medical leave, for example, while McCain said Thursday it should "be subject to negotiations between management and labor." |
| Swing voters keep race uncertain Fri, 11 Jul 2008 02:47 EDT WASHINGTON . The presidential race remains volatile and unpredictable, largely because of a huge bloc of undecided swing voters. .The middle of the electorate is reasserting itself in this election,. according to a Pew Research Center survey released Thursday. Among all voters, Democrat Barack Obama leads Republican John McCain by 48 to 40 percent. Pew polled 2,004 people by land line and cell phone from June 18 to 29. The margin of error is plus or minus 2.5 percentage points. The White House hopefuls face an unusual number of variables and, as a result .the outlook for the presidential election in midyear is substantially different than at comparable points in time in recent campaigns,. the survey found. |
| Obama seeks info on Dodd in vice president search Fri, 11 Jul 2008 02:19 EDT Barack Obama's presidential campaign has requested information from Democratic Sen. Chris Dodd as part of its search for a possible vice presidential candidate. The former White House hopeful and Connecticut lawmaker indicated Wednesday that he has been approached by the campaign. "There's been some inquiries, yeah," Dodd said. "They ask for a lot of stuff. I'll leave it there." Obama campaign spokesman Bill Burton and Dodd's Senate office declined comment Thursday. Recent moves by Obama have stoked speculation about the search for the No. 2 on the Democratic ticket. On Wednesday, Obama made an unscheduled stop at the building housing the law firm of one of his search committee members, Eric Holder. Obama also traveled to New York with another member of the search team, Caroline Kennedy. Dodd, 64, is a five-term senator with a lengthy foreign policy resume. A fluent speaker of Spanish, Dodd served in the Peace Corps and has had a strong interest in Latin American affairs throughout his career. A longtime member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, he's been able to wield a heavy influence on U.S. involvement in the region. |
| McCain adds to war chest Fri, 11 Jul 2008 02:47 EDT WASHINGTON . Republican presidential candidate John McCain raised more than $22 million in June, his best fund-raising performance of the year, and ended the month with nearly $27 million cash on hand. Campaign manager Rick Davis said Thursday that McCain and the national Republican Party together entered July with about $95 million in the bank. The Republican National Committee, which has been raising money jointly with McCain, collected nearly $26 million in June and had nearly $69 million on hand, officials said. The campaign's fund-raising has given McCain the ability to spend more on television advertising than Democrat Barack Obama in key battleground states. Davis said about half of its income had been spent on television advertising. Obama has not revealed his June fund-raising. |
| Obama dismisses conservative criticism Fri, 11 Jul 2008 23:04 EDT Democrat Barack Obama batted away conservative criticism Friday over a comment he made about Americans' lack of foreign language skills. "The Republicans jumped on this. I said, absolutely immigrants need to learn English, but we also need to learn foreign languages," the likely Democratic nominee said as the 1,000-plus crowd in a school gymnasium cheered. It's a position he long has held. "This is an example of some of the problems we get into when somebody attacks you for saying the truth, which is: We should want our children with more knowledge. We should want our children to have more skills. There's nothing wrong with that. That's a good thing. I know, because I don't speak a foreign language. It's embarrassing," Obama said chuckling as his audience did the same. At issue was a remark the Illinois senator made Tuesday in Powder Springs, Ga., that drew laughter from the crowd - but disdain from conservatives and groups advocating English as the official U.S. language. His remark has caused buzz on the Internet and talk radio. The Americans for Legal Immigration PAC said in a statement, "Barack Obama has stepped on a political land mine by stating Americans should be forced to learn to speak Spanish." But that's not what Obama said. |
| McCain plans to reveal more about his fundraising Fri, 11 Jul 2008 17:19 EDT Republican John McCain's presidential campaign plans to enhance its Web site with more data about its fundraising, including more details about the individuals who collect money from donors and about donors living overseas. Eager to appear more forthcoming than Democrat Barack Obama, McCain campaign manager Rick Davis notified leaders of several campaign finance watchdog groups Friday that McCain will begin identifying top fundraisers not only by name and location but by employer and occupation. McCain spokesman Brian Rogers said the additional data and an updated list of McCain fundraisers will be available on the campaign Web site next week and will be updated monthly The campaign did not agree to every request sought by watchdog organizations. In a June 25 letter to the campaigns, eight groups that track money in politics asked the candidates to identify the specific amount of money raised by individual fundraisers. The campaigns only report dollar thresholds that the fundraisers have met or exceeded. "Listing a 'single dollar figure' of the amount raised by each fundraiser as you request cannot be done in the midst of the campaign because it is changing on an individual basis almost daily that is why we use broader categories," Davis wrote. "However, we will continue to use our best efforts to update the fundraising categories on a monthly basis." |
| Adwatch: New McCain ad praises Hispanic servicemen Fri, 11 Jul 2008 16:09 EDT TITLE: "God's Children" LENGTH: 60 seconds AIRING: Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico SCRIPT: McCain, addressing immigration at a Republican primary debate on June 5, 2007, in New Hampshire: "My friends, I want you the next time you're down in Washington, D.C., to go to the Vietnam War Memorial and look at the names engraved in black granite. You'll find a whole lot of Hispanic names. "When you go to Iraq or Afghanistan today, you're going to see a whole lot of people who are of Hispanic background. You're even going to meet some of the few thousand that are still green card holders who are not even citizens of this country, who love this country so much that they're willing to risk their lives in its service in order to accelerate their path to citizenship and enjoy the bountiful, blessed nation. |
| Analysis: Help candidates can do without Fri, 11 Jul 2008 16:09 EDT Former Republican Sen. Phil Gramm isn't the first friend to give a presidential candidate heartburn. And based on recent history, another one will be along before John McCain or Barack Obama know it. "You've heard of mental depression; this is a mental recession," Gramm, a leading supporter of McCain, said recently, a less-than- sympathetic description of an election-year economy that features rising joblessness, a spike in mortgage foreclosures and a declining stock market. "We have sort of become a nation of whiners," he added - not all that helpfully in the opinion of the man he is trying to help win the White House. "I strongly disagree," McCain told reporters in Michigan, a state with an unemployment rate of 8.5 percent in May. "Phil Gramm does not speak for me. I speak for me." McCain's the one discomforted this time. |
| Fellow ex-POW eager to back McCain against Obama Fri, 11 Jul 2008 18:09 EDT In the decades since they shared a prison cell in North Vietnam, George "Bud" Day has remained a close friend of Republican John McCain and emerged as a staunch opponent of Democrats seeking the presidency. As he did in 2004, when he took the lead in questioning Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry's Vietnam War record, Day is eager this fall to do whatever he can to retain the White House for the Republicans - especially this Republican. "I just want everyone to understand the difference between a board-certified physician and a student in medical school, because that is the difference," Day said, comparing McCain with Democratic rival Barack Obama. "Who would want a student in medical school operating on them?" Day, 83, a former Air Force colonel who earned the Medal of Honor and dozens of other honors for his service during World War II, Korea and Vietnam, was held in a Hanoi prison for six years, off and on in the same cell as McCain. "I know him extremely well, better than his wife," Day joked in a telephone interview. |
| Like Obama, McCain devotes a day to women voters Fri, 11 Jul 2008 18:39 EDT Republican John McCain told a mostly female audience Friday that his plans to cut income, business and estate taxes would help women while Democrat Barack Obama's proposals would only erect new economic obstacles for them. A day after Obama devoted a day of campaigning to women's issues, McCain did the same. He told several hundred women in western Wisconsin that his tax cut plans would be particularly helpful to women because so many of them own or work for small businesses. "Yesterday in New York, Senator Obama went on at great length about how much he cares about women's issues," McCain said at a town-hall forum in Hudson, where women vastly outnumbered men. "I believe him. But when you cut through all the smooth rhetoric, Senator Obama's policies would make it harder for women to start new businesses, harder for women to create or find new jobs, harder for women to manage the family budget, and harder for women and their families to meet their tax burden." Obama's campaign disputed the claims and noted that McCain opposed a Senate measure to lengthen the time that workers have to file pay discrimination lawsuits, a priority for some women's groups. |
| Obama passes on potential NASCAR sponsorship Sat, 12 Jul 2008 00:14 EDT NASCAR's BAM Racing team has presented Barack Obama's presidential campaign with a potential sponsorship deal in the Sprint Cup series later this year, but it doesn't look like an Obama car will be burning rubber on the track anytime soon. BAM team spokesman Rhett Vandiver told The Associated Press on Friday that the team made a sponsorship proposal to the Democratic presidential hopeful's campaign, and has made similar proposals to the campaign of Republican John McCain and at least one third-party candidate. Late Friday, the Obama campaign said there would be no sponsorship. "The Obama campaign will not be sponsoring a car in the Sprint Cup series, though we will continue to look for ways to reach out to voters and convey Senator Obama's message of change." said Bill Burton, an Obama campaign spokesman Sports Illustrated first reported the proposal on its Web site, saying Obama's campaign is in talks with BAM, a part-time operation that hasn't raced in recent weeks, to sponsor its No. 49 car in the Aug. 3 race at Pocono. |
| Budget cuts reversed for rural medical program Fri, 11 Jul 2008 18:22 EDT The Kentucky Homeplace program, which helps rural residents get prescription drugs and other medical supplies, won't be ending its services in some counties after all. The Dept. of Public Health, which provides the program's $1.9 million budget, is no longer cutting 4 percent or $80,000 from the program, as had been announced. However, the restoration doesn't mean the program will be able to offer the same services as last year, said Fran Feltner, director of the lay health worker division at the University of Kentucky, which runs the program. In Fulton, Hickman and Jackson counties, the offices will be open 75 percent of the time. In Warren County, the program will operate one to two days a week. Feltner hopes to .piece together ways. of covering offices in the northeast region. |
| Analysis: Obama revels in contrasts with McCain Sat, 12 Jul 2008 23:54 EDT Barack Obama has found something that eluded him during the primary season - contrast. And, he's basking in it. "He will not bring change," Obama always asserts, rightly or wrongly, of rival Republican John McCain. "I will." In McCain, the likely Democratic nominee faces an opponent who is the opposite of him in every way - an Iraq war backer who supports free-market economics, opposes abortion rights and is a Republican. Obama delights in pointing out the differences, and does so often. To be sure, McCain returns the favor at his campaign events. But vast disagreements with McCain - on everything from economic philosophies to security proposals - seem to have given Obama license to more aggressively and enthusiastically go after his foe. It's a turnabout from his more cautious approach in the Democratic primaries when he faced Hillary Rodham Clinton, a fellow Democrat with whom he differed little. |
| Poll: Obama, McCain running close nationally Sat, 12 Jul 2008 16:29 EDT THE RACE: The presidential race nationally --- THE NUMBERS Barack Obama, 44 percent John McCain, 41 percent |
| television | News shows Sun, 13 Jul 2008 03:32 EDT Fox News Sunday Tribute to Tony Snow with guests including Vice President Dick Cheney and commentator Rush Limbaugh. 9 a.m., Fox-56 Meet the Press |
| Candidates reveal more about supporters Sat, 12 Jul 2008 04:12 EDT The presidential campaigns of Sens. Barack Obama and John McCain moved Friday to disclose more information to the public about their top fund-raisers, after it was disclosed that they had been lax in identifying many of them. Though not legally required, identifying elite fund-raisers who .bundle. millions of dollars in campaign contributions from acquaintances is a concern of watchdog groups devoted to promoting transparency and curbing the influence of money in politics. In a bit of one-upmanship, the McCain organization issued a letter on Friday to a group of campaign finance watchdogs announcing that it would begin publishing on its Web site the names of all its fund-raisers who bring in $50,000 or more, instead of the $100,000 and $250,000 thresholds it had used before. The letter, signed by Rick Davis, the campaign's manager, also said this list of bundlers would identify their occupations and employers, in addition to their home cities and states. Watchdogs say employment information is crucial to acquiring a sense of what a fund-raiser's interests may be. |
| Road still bumpy for McCain's retooled bandwagon Sun, 13 Jul 2008 00:14 EDT Every presidential campaign has its hitches. For John McCain, they felt more like full-blown lurches this week, with nearly every step forward quickly offset by a misstatement or wisecrack that seemed to blow his message off course. It was the week McCain hoped to show off his newly focused, smoother-running operation after he rearranged his campaign hierarchy and acknowledged errors in the staging of events and other matters. But a joke about U.S. cigarettes killing Iranians, criticism of the Social Security program and word that one of his top economic advisers had called the country "a nation of whiners" suffering a "mental recession" undermined the Arizona senator's effort. Democrat Barack Obama has had his own stumbles recently, but McCain's journey through the key election states of Colorado, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin was bumpy. McCain said he is not worried. |
| McCain campaign endures week of missteps, setbacks Sun, 13 Jul 2008 03:32 EDT HUDSON, Wis. . Every presidential campaign has its hitches. For John McCain, they felt more like full-blown lurches last week, with nearly every step forward quickly offset by a misstatement or wisecrack that seemed to blow his message off course. It was the week McCain hoped to show off his newly focused, smoother-running operation after he rearranged his campaign hierarchy and acknowledged errors in the staging of events and other matters. But a joke about U.S. cigarettes killing Iranians, criticism of the Social Security program and word that one of his top economic advisers had called the country .a nation of whiners. suffering a .mental recession. undermined the Arizona senator's effort. Democrat Barack Obama has had his own stumbles recently, but McCain's journey through the key election states of Colorado, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin was also bumpy. |
| Counties may sue state over jails Sat, 12 Jul 2008 04:12 EDT Facing potentially crippling jail costs, Kentucky's county judge-executives are looking to sue the state to recover the price of housing state criminals who are awaiting sentencing. If they prevail, counties could save $60 million to $70 million a year, said LaRue County Judge-Executive Tommy Turner. Members of the Kentucky County Judge-Executive Association, who are meeting in Lexington, voted unanimously Thursday to pursue a lawsuit, Turner said. Specifically, they take issue with the state giving criminals credit for time served in county jails without reimbursing the counties for putting them up. County jails generally hold people charged with crimes until they are convicted and sentenced. |
| Magazine cover featuring Obamas draws criticism Mon, 14 Jul 2008 12:51 EDT Barack Obama's campaign says a satirical New Yorker magazine cover showing the Democratic presidential candidate dressed as a Muslim and his wife as a terrorist is "tasteless and offensive." The illustration on the issue that hits newsstands Monday, titled "The Politics of Fear" and drawn by Barry Blitt, depicts Barack Obama wearing traditional Muslim garb - sandals, robe and turban - and his wife, Michelle - dressed in camouflage, combat boots and an assault rifle strapped over her shoulder - standing in the Oval Office. The couple is doing a fist tap in front of a fireplace in which an American flag is burning. Over the mantel hangs a portrait of Osama bin Laden. "The New Yorker may think, as one of their staff explained to us, that their cover is a satirical lampoon of the caricature Senator Obama's right-wing critics have tried to create," said Obama campaign spokesman Bill Burton. "But most readers will see it as tasteless and offensive. And we agree." In a statement Monday, the magazine said the cover "combines a number of fantastical images about the Obamas and shows them for the obvious distortions they are." |
| Palestinians: Obama to visit West Bank Mon, 14 Jul 2008 12:46 EDT Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama will visit the West Bank next week as part of a swing through the Middle East, a Palestinian official said Monday, giving an important diplomatic boost to the Palestinians at a sensitive time in peace talks. The Palestinians expressed satisfaction over the planned meeting with the presumed Democratic nominee, which comes months after Obama's likely Republican opponent, John McCain, passed on meeting with the Palestinians during a brief visit to Israel. Obama is scheduled to meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas during his July 23 stop in Ramallah, said Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat, who was in Paris for a Mediterranean summit. "We welcome this meeting," Erekat said. If Obama is elected, he added, "we hope he will stay the course between Israel and the Palestinians in reaching peace and a two-state solution." During the same visit, Obama is expected to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and other Israeli officials. The Obama campaign declined to comment. |
| Young Native Americans mull Obama, McCain at event Mon, 14 Jul 2008 12:46 EDT Hundreds of young Native Americans gathering for a five-day conference here are being urged to become politically active because the American Indian vote could make a difference in this year's presidential election. Jackson Slim Brossy, legislative associate of the nonpartisan National Congress of American Indians, said the Indian vote - which traditionally has been Democratic - is up for grabs this year as Sens. Barack Obama and John McCain both try to woo it. He said the Indian vote was a factor in Obama's defeat of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton in June's Montana primary, as well as in past victories of U.S. Sens. Tim Johnson, D-S.D., and Jon Tester, D-Mont., and Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M. "The Native American vote has been overlooked in the past, but there's a trend of it making a difference and I think 2008 will continue the trend," Brossy told The Associated Press. "The vote will go to the candidate who reaches out more to Indian country and has the best policies for Indian country," he added. |
| For some, Republican John McCain is 'too old' Mon, 14 Jul 2008 12:46 EDT So how old is John McCain? Six-packs, automatic transmissions and the American Express card were all introduced after he was born, not to mention computers which McCain admits he doesn't use. McCain, himself, jokes that he's older than dirt. And while his age is being raised as a campaign issue, medical experts say voters shouldn't be concerned that, if elected, McCain would be the oldest man to assume the presidency, at 72. In politics and other fields, they explain, it's not unusual for talented people to do signature work late in life, when they can apply the cumulative wisdom of experience, and leverage personal connections cultivated over time. Nonetheless, a significant slice of the electorate has qualms about McCain's age. The presumed Republican nominee will celebrate his 72nd birthday shortly before his party's convention. Polls show the age question isn't going away, despite the Arizona senator's efforts to deflect it with self-deprecating humor, or disprove it by keeping a grueling schedule. "Sure, people live to be 90, but you are not as sharp," said Virginia Bailey, 73, a retired administrative assistant who lives near Schenectady, N.Y., and is a Republican. "I'm not as sharp as I was ten years ago, and I'm sure (McCain) isn't either - even though he wouldn't admit it." |
| Obama mourns US troop deaths, swipes at McCain Mon, 14 Jul 2008 12:46 EDT Barack Obama mourned the death of nine U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan on Sunday, even as he said John McCain's numerous visits to the region don't leave the Republican better equipped to deal with its volatility as president. Preparing to embark on only his second visit to Iraq, as well as his first to Afghanistan, the Democrat told reporters: "I will recall the visit he made last year in which he was surrounded by helicopters and SWAT teams and he came back and reported how safe everything was in Baghdad. And I don't think that that was indicative of what was actually happening on the ground at that time." McCain, a Vietnam War veteran, has chided Obama for the dearth of time he has spent in the region, failing to meet with Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, and not holding a congressional oversight hearing on U.S. security matters. Asked about such criticism, Obama said: "John McCain has been in Congress 25 years, no doubt about that. If this is a longevity measure, then John McCain wins. On the other hand, before we went into Iraq, I knew the difference between Shia and Sunni." That was a dig at the Arizona senator, who once confused the majority and minority ethnic groups in Iraq. |
| NAACP head: Obama win won't solve racial injustice Mon, 14 Jul 2008 12:41 EDT Racial disparity will remain an issue in America, regardless of whether Barack Obama is elected as the nation's first black president, the chairman of the NAACP told the organization's national convention Sunday night. Julian Bond, a veteran civil rights leader, said Obama's candidacy doesn't "herald a post-civil rights America, any more than his victory in November will mean that race as an issue has been vanquished in America." But he drew loud applause when he said the country, and "all of us here," are taking pride in the success in this year's campaign by a candidate who couldn't have stayed in some cities' hotels a few decades ago. "We know that Obama's electoral success - even if he should win the ultimate prize - won't signal an end to racial discrimination, but it does mark the high point of an interracial movement that dates back to the Underground Railroad," Bond said, referring to Cincinnati's historical role in helping fleeing slaves reach freedom. Obama plans to address the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People's convention Monday night, and Republican presidential candidate John McCain plans to speak Wednesday. |
| Williams and Beshear at odds again? Mon, 14 Jul 2008 09:32 EDT It's hardly news that Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear and Republican State Senate President David Williams don't get along . or as Williams puts it: .I don't have any relationship with him.. But two of Kentucky's most powerful officials might be stuck with each other for at least three years, meaning that this fall's election season becomes a crucial juncture for the two men. Williams will be working to keep his job as his chamber's president by helping Republican Senate candidates. Beshear, the highest-ranking Democrat in Kentucky, also is expected to get involved on behalf of his party's Senate contenders in a bid to topple Williams. He has enthusiastically called for Democrats to .take back the Senate. in party rallies dating back to November. |
| Obama suggests business tax credit Mon, 14 Jul 2008 07:47 EDT SAN DIEGO . Barack Obama on Sunday proposed up to a 50 percent tax credit for small businesses providing health insurance to their employees, a program he hopes has special appeal to Hispanics and other minority groups struggling for a toehold in the U.S. economy. The idea had been championed by Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York, whom Obama vanquished in the battle for the Democratic presidential nomination. .We know that small businesses are the engines of economic prosperity in our communities, especially in Latino communities,. Obama said in an address to several thousand Hispanics attending the annual convention of the National Council of La Raza. .My plan won't impose any new burdens on small businesses. Instead, we'll help them not just create new jobs, but good jobs . jobs with health care, jobs that stay right here in America, the kinds of jobs we need in our communities,. the Illinois senator said. |
| Governors gather, joke about campaign Mon, 14 Jul 2008 07:47 EDT PHILADELPHIA . For more than three decades, the National Governors' Association has assembled on presidential election years as one of its members made a bid for the White House . a Carter or a Reagan, a Dukakis, a Clinton or a Bush. Not this time. With two senators as the presumed nominees of their respective parties, the governors have been consigned to the running-mate heap. So no wonder that the governors and former governors who gathered this weekend for the NGA's centennial congregation eyed one another for telltale hints. Would this be a showcase for Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, the outgoing NGA chairman who is often mentioned as a possible pick for Republican John Mc.Cain? How about Pennsylvania Democrat Ed Rendell, the host of the confab and its incoming chairman? |
| How Kentucky lawmakers voted Sun, 13 Jul 2008 03:32 EDT House Rep. Ed Whitfield, R-Hopkinsville: (202) 225-3115; (270) 885-8079 Rep. Ron Lewis, R-Cecilia: (202) 225-3501; (270) 765-4360 Rep. John Yarmuth, D-Louisville: (202) 225-5401; (502) 582-5129 |
| Fancy Farm could be presidential campaign affair Mon, 14 Jul 2008 09:32 EDT Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is considering a cameo appearance at this August's Fancy Farm picnic in Western Kentucky, which would add national flair to the storied political event. Talks between the campaign and picnic organizers heated up Friday, with Obama aides calling twice that morning to check on logistical details, said Mark Wilson, co-chairman of the annual event that's famous for its smoky barbecue as well as its spicy political speaking and theatrics. .They think the chances are better than 50-50 that he'll come,. Wilson said. .They're definitely mulling it around in a serious way.. The Obama campaign wouldn't confirm interest in the event, saying only that the Illinois senator's schedule isn't set more than five days in advance. |
| Obama would send 2 more brigades to Afghanistan Mon, 14 Jul 2008 12:51 EDT Democrat Barack Obama said Monday that as president he would send at least two more combat brigades to Afghanistan, where U.S. soldiers face rising violence and endured their deadliest attack in three years on Sunday. The proposed force increase is part of Obama's plan to pull combat troops out of Iraq and focus on the growing threat from a resurgent al-Qaida in Afghanistan. "As president, I would pursue a new strategy, and begin by providing at least two additional combat brigades to support our effort in Afghanistan," Obama said in an op-ed published Monday in The New York Times, a day before he plans a speech here on his vision for Iraq and Afghanistan. "We need more troops, more helicopters, better intelligence-gathering and more nonmilitary assistance to accomplish the mission there," Obama said. "I would not hold our military, our resources and our foreign policy hostage to a misguided desire to maintain permanent bases in Iraq." Republican John McCain's presidential campaign said the Arizona senator will be speaking about his plan for Afghanistan on Thursday. His advisers declined to say whether he agreed with Obama's Afghanistan proposal before the speech. |
| McCain, Conan agree: Age jokes getting old Sat, 19 Jul 2008 03:58 EDT How old is John McCain? So old, the jokes about it are getting old. So at a taping Friday night of NBC's "Late Night with Conan O'Brien," the host asked the Republican presidential candidate for some new material. "We all agree on a take on you, which is your seniority," O'Brien said, as McCain, 71, pretended to fall asleep in his chair. Speaking for all late night comedians, O'Brien said, "we're tired of this take on you," and asked the Arizona senator to give them some fresh material. "Do you have a kooky uncle, do you have bad breath, webbed toes, anything?" O'Brien asked. "All of the above," McCain answered before offering up alternative fodder. |
| Foes no more, McCain, Romney warm to each other Sat, 19 Jul 2008 16:49 EDT Just as Republican John McCain was unloading on his Democratic presidential rival Friday, he was offering warm, effusive words for once bitter foe Mitt Romney. And Romney, the mega-millionaire former Republican governor of Massachusetts, was pledging to help McCain's presidential campaign financially - and in any other way. To underscore the point, Romney has decided not to spend time raising money to pay back the $44.6 million he lent his failed presidential campaign. "Mitt Romney's priority right now is raising money for other Republicans, including John McCain, and not trying to recoup the money he put into his own race," Romney spokesman Eric Fehrnstrom said Friday. At a Detroit fundraiser Friday that included a number of former Romney donors, McCain heaped praise on Romney, a man he once ridiculed by suggesting that his answer to immigration was "to get out his small varmint gun and drive those Guatemalans off his lawn." Times have changed. McCain is the GOP's presidential nominee-in-waiting and Romney is getting mentioned as a possible running mate. |
| Obama to meet with leaders in Mideast, Europe Sat, 19 Jul 2008 00:04 EDT Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama intends to sit down with European leaders as well as King Abdullah of Jordan, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas as part of a campaign-season trip that aides described Friday as substantive rather than political. The Illinois senator also is slated to meet with opposition leaders in Israel and Britain. Officials have yet to provide precise dates for the trip, and have confirmed few details about the itinerary, citing security details. On a conference call with reporters, they said they were not yet ready to disclose where in Berlin Obama will speak when he delivers an address on U.S.-European relations. "The trip is not at all a campaign trip, a rally of any sort," said spokesman Robert Gibbs. He said Obama would hold "a series of substantive meetings with our friends and our allies to talk about the common challenges that we face and the national security dangers for the 21st century." Denis McDonough, a senior foreign policy adviser, said Obama would meet with Chancellor Angela Merkel and Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier in Germany, President Nicolas Sarkozy in France and Prime Minister Gordon Brown as well as Conservative Party Leader David Cameron in Britain. |
| McCain TV ad accuses Obama of shifting Iraq views Fri, 18 Jul 2008 19:34 EDT Republican John McCain launched a new television ad Friday that accuses presidential rival Barack Obama of switching positions on Iraq "to help himself become president" just as the Democratic candidate prepared to make a high profile trip to Baghdad. McCain's sharply worded criticism was not limited to the ad. He said Friday that Obama would be facing a far less secure Iraq "if we had done what he wanted to do." The 30-second ad, running on national cable and in 11 battleground states, is the hardest hit aimed at Obama so far by McCain. "Barack Obama never held a single Senate hearing on Afghanistan," the ad's announcer says. "He hasn't been to Iraq in years. He voted against funding our troops. Positions that helped him win his nomination. Now Obama is changing to help himself become president." The ad suggests that Obama was placing politics ahead of the country's interests. "John McCain has always supported our troops and the surge that's working. McCain. Country first," the ad states. |
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