Poll Watch

Obama, McCain set to duel over economy

07.07.08 -- 5:47 AM

By Jeff Mason - Reuters

The presidential candidates will duel over the economy this week, with Republican Sen. John McCain touting proposals he says will stimulate job growth and Democratic Sen. Barack Obama discussing economic security for families.

McCain, an Arizona senator who has wrapped up his party's nomination, will embark on a tour of Colorado, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan and Wisconsin -- all toss-up states in the November election to win the White House.

The Arizona senator spent last week on a swing through Latin America highlighting his support for free trade, prompting some observers to question why he went abroad at a time when employers cut U.S. workers from their payrolls for a sixth straight month and gasoline prices continued to sting.

Bipartisanship marks McCain's Senate tenure

07.03.08 -- 7:11 AM

By DAVID ESPO - AP

WASHINGTON (AP) - Republicans deemed it beyond the pale when Sen. John McCain crossed the Capitol, set up shop in an office belonging to House Democrats and lobbied wavering lawmakers on legislation to reduce the role of money in politics.

"A legend in his own mind," then-Majority Leader Dick Armey, a Texan, acidly called his fellow Republican at the time.

Yet the events of that long day and night in 2002 fit a pattern for a man whose congressional career long has included a singular brand of combative bipartisanship. For more than a decade, on tobacco, health care, immigration, judicial nominees, creation of a commission to investigate the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks and more, McCain has championed high-profile legislation opposed by President Bush or others in his own party.

Public Cool To Michelle Obama, Doesn't Know Cindy McCain

07.03.08 -- 6:43 AM

By ALAN FRAM - AP

The public hasn't taken to Michelle Obama yet, especially whites. And it's got a question about Cindy McCain: Who is she?

People are divided over whether they like the wife of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, with 30 percent seeing her favorably and 35 percent unfavorably, according to an Associated Press-Yahoo News poll released Wednesday.

They tilt positively toward the spouse of Republican hopeful John McCain, by 27 percent to 17 percent.

In other words: While the two women are about equally liked, Michelle Obama is twice as disliked as Cindy McCain.

McCain disavows aide's comment about terrorism

06.24.08 -- 5:59 AM

By GLEN JOHNSON - AP

A top adviser to John McCain said another terrorist attack on U.S. soil would be a "big advantage" for the Republican presidential candidate, drawing a sharp rebuke Monday from both the presumed GOP nominee and Democrat Barack Obama.

Charlie Black, already in the spotlight for his past lobbying work, is quoted in the upcoming July 7 edition of Fortune magazine as saying such an attack "certainly would be a big advantage to him." Black said Monday he regretted the comment.

Black is also quoted as saying the "unfortunate event" of the assassination of former Pakistani leader Benazir Bhutto in December 2007 "helped us."

Questioned about Black's comments during a news conference, McCain said, "I cannot imagine why he would say it. It's not true. I've worked tirelessly since 9/11 to prevent another attack on the United States of America. My record is very clear."

Citing his work to establish a commission to investigate the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and his membership on the Senate Armed Services Committee, McCain added: "I cannot imagine it, and so, if he said that - and I don't know the context - I strenuously disagree."

Obama spokesman Bill Burton said in a statement: "The fact that John McCain's top adviser says that a terrorist attack on American soil would be a 'big advantage' for their political campaign is a complete disgrace, and is exactly the kind of politics that needs to change. Barack Obama will turn the page on these failed policies and this cynical and divisive brand of politics so that we can unite this nation around a common purpose to finish the fight against al-Qaida."

The remarks caught McCain flat-footed on a day when he focused on energy issues - first in a speech, then at a town-hall meeting and then during a news conference as he stood beside two $100,000 electric cars. McCain offered $300 million to anyone who develops a revolutionary automobile battery, and he predicted such incentives would lower alternative energy costs.

Moments later, he was befuddled when reporters asked about Black's comments. Black was similarly surprised when reporters happened upon him outside a later McCain fundraiser.

Speaking quietly, Black read from handwritten notes. "I deeply regret the comments. They were inappropriate. I recognize that John McCain has devoted his entire adult life to protecting his country and placing its security before every other consideration," Black said.

Black repeatedly has argued that McCain - a former Navy pilot and Vietnam prisoner of war who has traveled the globe while serving in Congress - benefits any time national security matters are the news of the day. By contrast, Obama has less than four years experience in the Senate and has paid only one visit to Iraq. He plans a second trip before the November election.

During the 2004 presidential race, President Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney and other Republicans argued that Democratic nominee John Kerry was soft on terrorism; the argument resonated with voters. The GOP also questioned the Democrats' record on national security in 2002, with White House political adviser Karl Rove saying Republicans should not shy away from citing terrorism concerns as a reason to vote for their party.

The approach also paid dividends at the polls during that year's congressional elections.

The GOP line - that Democrats had a pre-Sept. 11 mind-set - failed in the 2006 midterm elections as Democrats wrested control of Congress from the Republicans.

More recently, former White House press secretary Scott McClellan wrote in a memoir that during the run-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Bush and his team tried to make the weapons of mass destruction "threat and the Iraqi connection to terrorism appear just a little more certain, a little less questionable than they were."

For his part, McCain has tried to portray Obama as naive on national security and foreign policy.

On Monday, McCain told reporters he was stunned that Obama has never been briefed by Gen. David Petraeus, who is leading U.S. forces in Iraq, yet Obama is calling for a U.S. troop withdrawal.

"Remarkable how someone can make an assessment of the situation without asking for a briefing from the commanding general," McCain said.

Hagel says he'd consider VP offer from Obama

06.22.08 -- 7:33 AM

By ANNA JO BRATTON - AP

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel said Friday he would consider serving as Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama's running mate if asked, but he doesn't expect to be on any ticket.

Hagel's vocal criticism of the Bush administration since the 2003 invasion of Iraq has touched off speculation that if Obama were to pick a Republican running mate, it might be Hagel. Hagel said in an interview with The Associated Press that after devoting much of his life to his country - in the Senate and the U.S. Army - he would have to consider any offer.

"If it would occur, I would have to think about it," Hagel said. "I think anybody, anybody would have to consider it. Doesn't mean you'd do it, doesn't mean you'd accept it, could be too many gaps there, but you'd have to consider it, I mean, it's the only thing you could do. Why wouldn't you?"

Analysis: McCain hampered by campaign missteps

06.22.08 -- 7:21 AM

By David Espo - AP

Call it campaign growing pains. Or bad luck. Or a combination of the two.

By any name, Sen. John McCain is hampered by missteps and self-generated controversy in the early days of the general election campaign for the White House.

Take his most recent trip through several states and the Canadian capital, a five-day span during which he courted conservatives and independents alike, raised more than $10 million and began detailing his considerable differences with Sen. Barack Obama on energy policy.

Still, on Tuesday, he criticized his rival for proposing a windfall profits tax on the oil industry. The attack was complicated by McCain's earlier statement that he would consider the same thing.

The following day, he met with a group of Hispanics in Chicago. Aides who had kept word of the event secret were placed on the defensive within hours after one participant criticized some of McCain's comments.

Women voters lining up behind Obama

06.16.08 -- 6:22 AM

By Michael Finnegan - Los Angeles Times

Marilyn Authenreith, a mother of two in North Carolina, felt strongly about supporting Hillary Rodham Clinton in the Democratic presidential primary.

But once the former first lady quit the race, Authenreith switched allegiance to Barack Obama, mainly because she thinks that he -- unlike Republican John McCain -- will push for universal healthcare.

"I can't understand the thinking of how someone would jump from Hillary to McCain," she said. "It doesn't make any sense."

Now that the Democratic marathon is over, Clinton supporters like Authenreith are siding heavily with Obama over McCain, polls show. And Obama has taken a wide lead among female voters, belying months of political chatter and polls of primary voters suggesting that disappointment over Clinton's defeat might block the Illinois senator from enjoying his party's historic edge among women.

3 likely candidates express little interest in VP

06.16.08 -- 5:57 AM

By Associated Press

Two former senators and one sitting governor thought to be possible candidates for vice president on Sunday expressed minimal interest in the job but didn't remove themselves from consideration.

Been there, done that, said one.

Another is focused on being Louisiana's governor.

The third said it was presumptuous to reject something not yet offered.

That was in contrast to former Virginia Gov. Mark R. Warner's statement Saturday removing himself from consideration as a possible running mate for Democrat Barack Obama.

"I have not sought and I will not accept any other opportunity," Warner said as he accepted the Democratic nomination for a Senate race this fall. He was one of three Virginia Democrats often mentioned as potential choices for Obama.

Obama launches Web site to fight rumors

06.13.08 -- 6:18 AM

By Andy Sullivan - Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama has launched a Web site to dispel rumors about his faith and patriotism and his wife's views on race that have dogged his candidacy for more than a year.

The Web site, at www.fightthesmears.com, offers detailed responses to several rumors that have continued to circulate online and in conservative news outlets despite efforts to knock them down, and encourages supporters to e-mail those responses to others.

The Web site says the Illinois senator's wife, Michelle, who like her husband is black, has never used the racially divisive term "whitey," as some blogs and conservative commentators have said.

Analysis: Court's course in next president's hands

06.13.08 -- 6:06 AM

By David Espo - AP

WASHINGTON (AP) - In a campaign dominated by the economy and the Iraq War, the Supreme Court's 5-4 ruling Thursday on detainees at Guantanamo marks a forceful reminder that John McCain promises one course and Barack Obama pledges another in picking future justices.

In the current controversy, McCain quickly expressed his disapproval of the opinion, while Obama issued a statement of support. It fell to outsiders to point out the broader implications in the race for the White House.

"With the replacement of a single justice from the majority ... today's four dissenters could become tomorrow's majority," said Nan Aron of the Alliance For Justice. The group supported the court's decision, which said detainees in the war on terror held at Guantanamo have the constitutional right to challenge their incarceration in the federal courts.

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