Election 2008 – News Stories About Election 2008 - Page 62

Aug 5, 2008 12:49 PM CDT

Group Hangs Up on Celebrity Robocalls

Prerecorded political messages from stars irk many voters

(Newser) - Not everyone is starstruck by phone calls from Jack Nicholson, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jay-Z, or Scarlett Johansson. The appeals to get out and vote are prerecorded messages known as "robocalls," which have become the cheapest and most popular form of political advertising, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Now a...

Clintons Still Seething Over Racist Portrayal

ANALYSIS

Aug 5, 2008 12:23 PM CDT

Clintons Still Seething Over Racist Portrayal

Aides didn't defend Obama on McCain's 'race card' accusation

(Newser) - The Democratic primary battle ended months ago, but many in both Hillary and Bill Clinton’s circles still harbor a grudge over the way her campaign was painted as racist, Ben Smith writes in Politico. This ill will is coming back to haunt presumptive nominee Barack Obama as he grapples...

Michelle's
First Job:
'Mom-in-Chief'

Aug 5, 2008 9:12 AM CDT

Michelle's First Job: 'Mom-in-Chief'

Obama talks kids, Barack, and politics

(Newser) - Michelle Obama says her foremost role as first lady would be as “mom-in-chief,” helping her daughters settle into life in the White House and “making sure they know they will continue to be the center of our universe.” In a wide-ranging interview with Ebony, she described...

Cheney Likely to Skip
GOP Convention

Aug 5, 2008 5:23 AM CDT

Cheney Likely to Skip GOP Convention

Unpopular veep could hurt McCain if he shows up

(Newser) - John McCain’s desire to keep his distance from the Bush Administration is expected to keep Dick Cheney away from the Republican Convention, say GOP officials. There is a “mutual understanding” between Cheney and McCain’s staffs that the unpopular VP is “unlikely” to attend, one official noted,...

McCain Slams Door on Media Straight Talk

Aug 4, 2008 2:51 PM CDT

McCain Slams Door on Media Straight Talk

Traveling press corps fumes as local reporters gain access

(Newser) - John McCain has taken to emphasizing short sit-downs with local reporters over interaction with the journalists assigned to his campaign, a move that's irking regulars accustomed to plenty of access, Howard Kurtz reports for the Washington Post. McCain strategists say too much media access was preventing their campaign from carving...

Va. Joins Ranks of Swing States

Aug 4, 2008 1:17 PM CDT

Va. Joins Ranks of Swing States

(Newser) - Buoyed by recent Democratic gains in Virginia and President Bush's unpopularity, Barack Obama is taking aim at the once reliably red stronghold, the Washington Post reports. John McCain’s campaign is optimistic that he will carry the state, which Bush won twice by wide margins, but a top adviser cautions...

Even in Tight Election, Media Struggle to Retain Audience

Aug 4, 2008 9:30 AM CDT

Even in Tight Election, Media Struggle to Retain Audience

Choosier consumers, Internet video hurt

(Newser) - Even as the 2008 election attracts more voter interest than it has in decades, media efforts to translate that into financial success have had mixed results, reports the New York Times. While cable news has enjoyed an uptick—and websites are setting record for online video—viewership for mainstream news...

NH Senate Rematch a Likely Bellwether Race

Aug 4, 2008 5:37 AM CDT

NH Senate Rematch a Likely Bellwether Race

Incumbent Sununu faces Shaheen in key test of Democratic wave

(Newser) - As Democrats look to pick up as many as 10 Senate seats in November, perhaps no race has so much riding the Democratic wave than New Hampshire, where Democrat Jeanne Shaheen again takes on John Sununu for a seat Republicans have held for 30 years. As the New York Times ...

Obama Seeks Full Votes for Discounted Delegates

Aug 3, 2008 7:42 PM CDT

Obama Seeks Full Votes for Discounted Delegates

Urges DNC to restore Fla., Mich. seats

(Newser) - Barack Obama is urging the Democratic National Committee to count Florida and Michigan primary votes at full strength, the Chicago Tribune's Swamp blog reports. In a letter to the DNC, Obama wrote that the delegates—demoted 3 months ago to half-votes in a committee compromise—"must know that they...

Perennial Swing State Ohio Looks Blue

Aug 1, 2008 11:14 AM CDT

Perennial Swing State Ohio Looks Blue

Rejuvenated local Dems bode well for Obama campaign

(Newser) - Ohio is the ultimate swing state: Since 1960 no president has been elected without winning its electoral votes, and in 2004, by the narrowest of margins, it delivered George W. Bush a second term. But this time around, Democrats are confident of their chances, the Economist reports. The state party...

Wal-Mart Tells Managers
to Fear Democratic Win

Aug 1, 2008 9:50 AM CDT

Wal-Mart Tells Managers to Fear Democratic Win

The retailer warns employees of disastrous labor legislation if left wins

(Newser) - Wal-Mart is warning store managers and department supervisors nationwide that a Democratic victory in November would likely lead to passage of a federal law making unionization easier, the Wall Street Journal reports. In a series of mandatory meetings, the company says it's not telling hourly employees how to vote, which...

Polls Show No Bump From Obama Trip

Jul 31, 2008 9:51 AM CDT

Polls Show No Bump From Obama Trip

He still holds 5% edge; McCain attacks don't stick either

(Newser) - Neither Barack Obama’s foreign tour nor John McCain’s harsh attacks of it have made a dent in the polls, CNN reports. In the first poll conducted entirely after the trip, Obama holds a 51-44% lead, a mincing step up from last month’s 50-45% edge. His numbers on...

He's the King of Teflon,
But Will It Last?

OPINION

Jul 30, 2008 7:55 PM CDT

He's the King of Teflon, But Will It Last?

General-election voters want answers, not just a clean suit

(Newser) - Barack Obama has admitted that all politicians have a “reptilian side,” but the candidate’s slipperiness is so well-cloaked by his affable persona that he must be the “koala of iguanas,” Jack Shafer writes for Slate. Nothing sticks to Obama in part because he has anticipated...

GOP Parodies Obama's Facebook Page

Jul 30, 2008 1:00 AM CDT

GOP Parodies Obama's Facebook Page

'Barackbook' highlights candidate's controversial 'friends'

(Newser) - The GOP is lampooning Barack Obama's popular Facebook page with something it calls Barackbook. The fake Facebook clone features a frowning Obama whose status reads "hoping to settle on an Iraq policy before November," Wired reports. In addition, the imaginary FriendFeed highlights controversial figures associated with the candidate,...

Obama Will Plunge US Into Recession

OPINION

Jul 29, 2008 10:15 AM CDT

Obama Will Plunge US Into Recession

Dem's plans would spell disaster, says wonk for first Bush

(Newser) - Barack Obama’s campaign promises on the economy—particularly on taxes and trade—would be a disaster for Americans at all income levels, an adviser to the first President Bush writes in the Wall Street Journal. On “tax, spending, energy, regulatory, and trade policy, if the proposals espoused by...

'Wooden'
McCain
Could Win
By Default

OPINION

Jul 28, 2008 10:15 AM CDT

'Wooden' McCain Could Win By Default

Campaign wunderkind Obama should be doing better

(Newser) - John McCain is a “wooden” candidate running a poor campaign, while Barack Obama is “the most spectacular campaigner of his generation”—so why can’t Obama climb over the 50% mark in polls? It’s a matter of the white working men Obama hasn’t convinced, writes...

Ben Stein:
Time for
Mac to
Call Rove

OPINION

Jul 28, 2008 7:13 AM CDT

Ben Stein: Time for Mac to Call Rove

Candidate running 'absolute most pathetic campaign I have ever seen'

(Newser) - Conservative stalwart Ben Stein thought Bob Dole's quest for the White House set the bar low, but says John McCain is “running the absolute most pathetic campaign I have ever seen in my whole life.” But there’s an answer ("Anyone? Anyone?")—talk to Karl Rove,...

Obama Slips Into Role of Acting President

OPINION

Jul 27, 2008 5:31 PM CDT

Obama Slips Into Role of Acting President

Steps into void left by lame-duck prez as McCain flounders

(Newser) - With a lame duck in the White House and his party's nominee beginning to sound like a quack, Barack Obama is coming off the success of last week's world tour looking like America's acting president, writes Frank Rich in the New York Times. The Illinois senator offers more than "...

Obama Wraps Up Tour
in London, Defends Trip

Jul 26, 2008 11:05 AM CDT

Obama Wraps Up Tour in London, Defends Trip

Candidate meets with Brown to close international tour

(Newser) - Barack Obama wrapped up his international tour today in London, chatting for two hours with PM Gordon Brown on Iraq, the economy, and the "special relationship" between the US and Britain. Obama, preparing to head home to Chicago, defended his trip to Europe and the Mideast as polls in...

Economy May Be McCain's Achilles Heel

analysis

Jul 25, 2008 11:43 AM CDT

Economy May Be McCain's Achilles Heel

He's seen as weak on pocketbook woes, now top priority with voters

(Newser) - Americans are so worried about the economy they’re returning to a pre-9/11 mindset in which pocketbook issues trump national security—and that doesn’t bode well for John McCain, Politico reports. His predicament is beginning to look oddly like the reelection campaigns of George HW Bush and Jimmy Carter:...