News For Thursday Jul 17, 2008 News For Thursday Jul 17, 2008

Politics & Elections Politics & Elections

McCain says he's glad Obama going to Iraq, sort of - Added 6 weeks ago

John McCain's presidential campaign had a hard time Thursday with Barack Obama's upcoming overseas trip. The Democratic presidential candidate will visit the Middle East and Europe, with announced stops in Jordan,...

Obama calls criticism of wife 'infuriating' - Added 6 weeks ago

What gets under Barack Obama's skin? Criticism of his wife, Michelle Obama. In an interview with Glamour magazine, Obama said attacks on his wife are "infuriating." The likely Democratic presidential nominee blamed the...

Fact Check: Obama's position on Afghanistan - Added 6 weeks ago

Just what is the best way to explain Barack Obama's stand on Afghanistan _ has he shown great leadership or is he a Johnny come lately? Potential Obama running mate Sen. Joe Biden has used both descriptions. ...

Clinton says he's ready to campaign for Obama - Added 6 weeks ago

Former President Clinton said Thursday he is eager to campaign for Barack Obama whenever the Democrat needs him, but has not given any thought to whether he wants to speak at the party convention in Denver. "I told him...

McCain eyes longer gas tax reprieve to aid drivers - Added 6 weeks ago

John McCain said Thursday that his proposal to suspend the gas tax for three months this summer may need to be extended longer if high gas prices continue to take a toll on the economy. "I think we ought to seriously...

Obama's summer travel partly courtesy of taxpayers - Added 6 weeks ago

Burnishing his foreign policy credentials, Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is traveling this summer to Iraq and Afghanistan _ and the taxpayers will be footing the bill. His Republican opponent, John...

Today on the presidential campaign trail - Added 6 weeks ago

IN THE HEADLINES Obama's trip to Mideast, Europe: Campaign-season audition for pledge of new era in diplomacy ... Obama campaign raised $52 million last month, has $92.3 million in bank with DNC ... Evangelicals...

Texas Democrats look to Obama to help them rebound - Added 6 weeks ago

Democrats are climbing out of the political graveyard in Texas where George W. Bush buried them. But winning local and legislative races is a far cry from delivering the state for their presidential nominee. The...

Political Play of the Day: Obama becomes a gym rat - Added 6 weeks ago

Sometimes it's hard to tell if Barack Obama is running for president of the United States or Mr. Universe. The Democratic presidential contender exercises regularly, but over a 24-hour span this week, he took it to a...

McCain gets Social Security but criticizes system - Added 6 weeks ago

Although Republican presidential candidate John McCain has called Social Security "a disgrace," he still cashes his own retirement check every month. "I'm receiving the benefits, the system is broken and,...

Minn.'s senator of 62 days seeks 6 more years - Added 6 weeks ago

Dean Barkley _ lawyer, political kingmaker, and bus driver _ has spent 62 days in the U.S. Senate, which he calls "the most prestigious club on earth." Now he wants back in. As a perennial third-party candidate with...

McCain hasn't ignited the passions of evangelicals - Added 6 weeks ago

Stirring her morning coffee, lifelong Republican Grace Droog voiced her doubts _ and those of many evangelical voters _ about what she isn't hearing from John McCain in this year's presidential election. "I look for...

CORRECTION: McCain-Week in Review story - Added 6 weeks ago

In a July 12 story on Republican John McCain's bumpy week as he tried to retool his campaign, The Associated Press incorrectly reported the link to the McCain campaign Web site. The correct link is !a...

Obama warns against 'fighting the last war' - Added 6 weeks ago

Democrat Barack Obama warned Wednesday about the danger of "fighting the last war" as he pledged to focus on emerging nuclear, biological and cyber threats if elected president. Among those joining him for a panel...

McCain at NAACP pledges more education options - Added 6 weeks ago

John McCain told the NAACP and some skeptical black voters Wednesday that he will expand education opportunities, partly through vouchers for low-income children to attend private school. The likely Republican...

As economy dominates, Obama, McCain seek answers - Added 6 weeks ago

The economy is deteriorating so quickly and dramatically that it threatens to overtake many proposals the presidential candidates have been offering for months. Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain are...

Obama predicts black voter increase, Southern wins - Added 6 weeks ago

If Barack Obama's historic campaign to become the first black president boosts black turnout as drastically as he predicts, he could crack decades of Republican dominance across the South. That's a big "if." Still, an...

Today on the presidential campaign trail - Added 6 weeks ago

IN THE HEADLINES McCain tells NAACP he backs vouchers for private schools ... Obama warns against 'fighting the last war' instead of adapting ... Obama predicts huge increase in black voters, opening up usually...

Ex-Clinton aide checked before joining Obama team - Added 6 weeks ago

Hillary Rodham Clinton's former campaign manager, now on Barack Obama's team, says she could easily work for her old boss again if Clinton were on the Democratic ticket. Clinton replaced Patti Solis Doyle after poor...

Penn. mayor fights to keep immigration issue alive - Added 6 weeks ago

Mayor Lou Barletta, whose bid to unseat a 12-term congressman is based largely on his reputation as an anti-illegal immigration crusader, is trying to keep his signature issue alive even as voters turn their attention...

Analysis: GOP, Dems using wars to define Obama - Added 6 weeks ago

Democrat Barack Obama wants to prove he's ready to be a wartime commander in chief. Republican John McCain hopes to sell the idea that his rival is not. The return of Iraq and Afghanistan to the forefront of the...

Obama says New Yorker insulted Muslim Americans - Added 6 weeks ago

Democrat Barack Obama said Tuesday that the New Yorker magazine's satirical cover depicting him and his wife as flag-burning, fist-bumping radicals doesn't bother him but that it was an insult to Muslim Americans. "You...

5 incumbents beat back challengers in Ga. primary - Added 6 weeks ago

Five congressional incumbents easily routed challengers Tuesday after light turnout in Georgia's party primaries, but two Democratic contenders for U.S. Senate were headed for a runoff. In Alabama, Huntsville insurance...

Poll finds racial divisions on Obama's candidacy - Added 6 weeks ago

Barack Obama's status as the first black presidential candidate of a major political party has not influenced the perception of race relations in this country, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News Poll. ...

McCain assailed for opposing adoptions by gays - Added 6 weeks ago

Advocates for gay and lesbian parents are denouncing Sen. John McCain, an adoptive father himself, for opposing adoptions by gays, which prompted his presidential campaign to clarify Tuesday that he does not seek a...

House Democrats launch first TV ad of fall race - Added 6 weeks ago

House Democrats launched the first television commercial by either party Tuesday in the 2008 battle for control of Congress, criticizing a Republican challenger in Pennsylvania as a friend and supporter of an unpopular...

Obama leads McCain nationally in 3 polls - Added 6 weeks ago

THE RACE: The presidential race nationally ___ THE NUMBERS (Quinnipiac University poll) Barack Obama, 50 percent John McCain, 41 percent ___ OF INTEREST: Independents are evenly divided between the two...

Today on the presidential campaign trail - Added 6 weeks ago

IN THE HEADLINES Obama says he's running for president to lead the country out of Iraq ... McCain says Iraq-style troop increase would work in Afghanistan ... McCain assailed for opposing adoptions by gays; his...

Obama Web site removes `surge' from Iraq problem - Added 6 weeks ago

Barack Obama's aides have removed criticism of President Bush's increase of troops to Iraq from the campaign Web site, part of an effort to update the Democrat's written war plan to reflect changing conditions. Debate...

McCain calls for Iraq strategies in Afghanistan - Added 6 weeks ago

Republican John McCain said Tuesday he knows "how to win wars" and that the strategy of increasing troop levels in Iraq should also be applied to Afghanistan. Moments earlier, his Democratic rival, Barack Obama, said...

Adwatch: Obama cites weapons nonproliferation work - Added 6 weeks ago

TITLE: "America's Leadership." LENGTH: 30 seconds AIRING: Alaska, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio,...

Obama: Iraq distracting from every other threat - Added 6 weeks ago

Sen. Barack Obama said Tuesday that overall U.S. interests have been hurt rather than helped by the Bush administration's decision to increase troop strength in Iraq 18 months ago, and vowed to stick to his plan to...

Poll: Obama leads McCain nationally - Added 6 weeks ago

THE RACE: The presidential race nationally ___ THE NUMBERS Barack Obama, 50 percent John McCain, 41 percent ___ OF INTEREST: Independents are evenly divided between the two candidates. Whites prefer McCain by 7...

Dem Party chief to head South this week for votes - Added 6 weeks ago

Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean is embarking on a voter registration bus tour he hopes will help push Dixie to the Democrats. Dean's trip begins Thursday in President Bush's hometown of Crawford,...

Jesse Ventura says he's not running for Senate - Added 6 weeks ago

Former Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura halted his political comeback before it began, using a national TV platform to announce that he won't launch a third-party bid for the U.S. Senate "at this moment." Even so, Ventura...

Obama tells NAACP blacks must take responsibility - Added 6 weeks ago

Democrat Barack Obama received a prideful welcome from the annual NAACP convention Monday night, but in a stirring speech to the nation's oldest civil rights organization, he nonetheless insisted blacks must show...

Born before computers, McCain is `too old' to some - Added 6 weeks ago

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...

Magazine's 'satirical' Obama cover stirs outrage - Added 6 weeks ago

A satirical New Yorker magazine cover cartoon depicting Barack Obama and his wife as flag-burning, fist-bumping radicals drew outrage from the Democratic presidential candidate's campaign as it appeared on newsstands...

McCain touts free trade agenda to Hispanic group - Added 6 weeks ago

Republican presidential candidate John McCain, in one of his strongest endorsements of free trade, called himself "an unapologetic supporter of NAFTA," an agreement that many Americans feel has cost them jobs. "I...

Today on the presidential campaign trail - Added 6 weeks ago

IN THE HEADLINES Obama says he'd send at least 7,000 more troops to Afghanistan while ending the war in Iraq ... McCain tells Hispanic group that free trade helps all; pledges aid for those who lose jobs ... Obama...

Organizers raise $39M for GOP convention - Added 6 weeks ago

Organizers of the Republican National Convention say they have raised $39 million for the September event. The Minneapolis Saint Paul 2008 Host Committee said Monday it has met a July 15 deadline for raising the money...

Obama would send 2 more brigades to Afghanistan - Added 6 weeks ago

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. ...

RI Sen. Reed denies interest in vice presidency - Added 6 weeks ago

Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island said Monday he was not interested in being Democrat Barack Obama's running mate. Reed, a West Point graduate and member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, is scheduled to accompany...

Young Native Americans mull Obama, McCain at event - Added 6 weeks ago

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. ...

McCain: I've earned Hispanics' trust - Added 6 weeks ago

John McCain says he has earned the trust of Hispanic voters by championing an immigration reform bill that nearly killed his presidential bid. The Republican presidential candidate also says, in remarks prepared for...

Obama suggests tax credit for business health care - Added 6 weeks ago

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...

Obama mourns US troop deaths in Afghanistan - Added 6 weeks ago

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...

McCain quips about presidential bids by Arizonans - Added 6 weeks ago

John McCain says he intends to reverse a trend that other politicians from Arizona have faced in running for president. The four Arizonans who have made presidential bids _ Sen. Barry Goldwater in 1964, Rep. Morris K....

California's governor a fan of flip-flopping - Added 6 weeks ago

Political flip-floppers have a fan: California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. In that vein, Schwarzenegger advised Republican presidential candidate John McCain to move from the right to the center for the general...

In a switch, governors now await running-mate call - Added 6 weeks ago

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. ...