Election 2008

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Black Media Outlets Focus on Obama Ads

Budget for African-American outreach unclear

(Newser) - The Barack Obama campaign hasn't spent much on advertising in African-American media, a trend many hope the candidate will reverse as he gears up for the general election, Advertising Age reports. "The audience has to be motivated to get out and vote," says a BET exec who cautions...

Why Liberals Like Joe Scarborough

Conservative pundit takes relaxed, questioning attitude on new morning show

(Newser) - Joe Scarborough was a conservative Republican congressman who gained office in the 1994 House sweep that launched Newt Gingrich. His MSNBC show Scarborough Country was initially devised as a like-minded answer to Bill O’Reilly. But, as Mark Binelli puts it in New York magazine, "Scarborough never quite mastered...

Social Security Reform Dicey for McCain
Social Security Reform Dicey
for McCain
ANALYSIS
Jul 14, 2008 11:26 AM CDT

Social Security Reform Dicey for McCain

GOP candidate talks up privatization; Dems promise stiff opposition

(Newser) - John McCain has opened a political can of worms by embracing the polarizing issue of privatizing social security, the Los Angeles Times reports. McCain says making young workers pay into a plan unlikely to benefit them is a "disgrace." Counters a rep for one group planning to fight...

Cellphone Users Are Missing From Polls

Overlooked bloc could give Obama a hidden 2% boost

(Newser) - Pollsters are setting themselves up for an embarrassment, Salon predicts, by using only landlines in surveys, ignoring the 15% of American adults who use only cellphones. That 15% is predominantly young, full of students, and disproportionately black and Hispanic. They are not, in other words, likely McCain voters. Add this...

Gramm's Got It: We Are Whining
 Gramm's Got It: 
 We Are Whining 
OPINION
Jul 12, 2008 12:31 PM CDT

Gramm's Got It: We Are Whining

He's talking real economics–not 'campaign econ'

(Newser) - When John McCain aide Phil Gramm said America is in a “mental recession,” not a real one, he was speaking with much-needed honesty and accuracy, Amity Shlaes writes in the Washington Post. Gramm has faced an avalanche of bad press for speaking candidly rather than from the perspective...

Holdout Hillraisers Are Acting Like Spoiled Rich

Do Hillary-backers support a progressive agenda, or do they want a GOP victory?

(Newser) - To Hillary supporters continuing to nurse their wounds and vowing to vote for John McCain, Michael Kinsley has this to say in Time: "Now is the time to just get over it." Their complaints of sexism in the campaign are misdirected—"there is no easy way these...

Old World Thinks He's the Messiah
Old World
Thinks He's
the Messiah 
OPINION
Jul 11, 2008 7:39 AM CDT

Old World Thinks He's the Messiah

Looking for deliverance from Bush, Europeans could face rude shock

(Newser) - Barack Obama's trip to Europe this month might not do much for his electoral chances at home. But the Old World doesn't care, writes Financial Times columnist Philip Stephens; when the candidate arrives he "can expect to be greeted as a messiah." Europeans have been starstruck by Obama,...

No Flip-Flop: Swooning Fans Missed Message

For those disillusioned with center shift, what did you think 'consensus' means, asks Collins

(Newser) - As early as his convention speech 4 years ago, Barack Obama has made reconciliation and a "new consensus" his hallmarks. So why, asks Gail Collins, are his most ardent supporters so dismayed that he's shifted to the center? Almost all of the issues for which Obama has taken heat...

McCain, Obama Pitch Economic Plans to Hispanics

Candidates make their cases before key constituency

(Newser) - John McCain and Barack Obama each reached out to the critical constituency of Hispanic voters today. The rivals pressed anew their support for comprehensive immigration reform in separate speeches to the League of United Latin American Citizens. But each candidate was primarily focused on making the case that he—not...

Social Security Divides Candidates

Experts question wisdom of Obama's broaching topic

(Newser) - John McCain and Barack Obama are pitching profoundly different approaches to saving Social Security, the Washington Post reports. While McCain favors a mix of strategies including raising the retirement age, reducing increases in benefits, and introducing private savings accounts, Obama intends to bolster the program with higher taxes on upper-income...

Webb Officially Pulls Out of Veepstakes

Senator says he told Obama last week he wouldn't run

(Newser) - Jim Webb withdrew his name from Barack Obama's VP shortlist today, squelching rumors he might bring military and foreign policy experience to the ticket, Chicago Tribune reports. The freshman Virginia senator has long denied interest, but says he bowed out officially last week. "I believe I am best equipped...

Obama's Iraq Stance Sparks Sunday Battle

McCain backers say he's retreating from pullout plan

(Newser) - Senatorial supporters of Barack Obama and John McCain dueled on talk shows today over Obama's latest remarks on Iraq, Politico reports. Sen. Joe Lieberman called Obama a flip-flopper on This Week for his plan to "refine" Iraq pullout plans. On Face the Nation, Sen. John Kerry accused McCain backers...

McCain Spiffing Up His Act
 McCain Spiffing Up His Act 
Jul 6, 2008 6:25 AM CDT

McCain Spiffing Up His Act

He's working to improve stilted speeches, onstage awkwardness

(Newser) - With his small stature and tendency to stumble over words, John McCain struggles behind a podium, the New York Times notes. “The only time I would put him behind a podium at all” during the campaign “is when he’s announcing a policy position,” said his former...

How to Get His Groove Back
 How to Get His Groove Back 
Jul 5, 2008 8:51 PM CDT

How to Get His Groove Back

Public relations experts weigh in on how the former president can unsully his image

(Newser) - After a nasty campaign, Bill Clinton has a serious image problem. But if he moves quickly, he can escape any long-term damage, reports Politico, which surveys experts in the field for advice on his behalf. “He needs to put this story behind him by Labor Day,” said one,...

50-State Strategy Could Heal Red/Blue Divide
50-State Strategy Could
Heal Red/Blue Divide
OPINION
Jul 5, 2008 10:20 AM CDT

50-State Strategy Could Heal Red/Blue Divide

Why the candidates are doing the right thing

(Newser) - Barack Obama and John McCain each hope to widen the playing field this November, and that could be a good thing for the country, writes Ronald Brownstein for the National Journal. Part of the reason America is so partisan is because it’s politically balkanized. In 2000 and 2004, both...

Black, Red, White &amp; Blue
Black, Red, White & Blue 
OPINION
Jul 4, 2008 5:55 PM CDT

Black, Red, White & Blue

Obama's patriotism questioned at historic moment

(Newser) - For black Americans, patriotism is a complex sentiment, but "complicated relationships tend to be the deepest and strongest," writes Eugene Robinson in the Washington Post. Barack Obama’s candidacy shows how far we've come, but "it is not common, in my experience, for sitting US senators to...

What Early July Says About Early November

Independence Day poll numbers send mixed signals for 2008 race

(Newser) - Barack Obama currently leads John McCain 47% to 43%, but does that mean anything this early? Yes and no. Early July Gallup polls have correctly predicted the eventual popular vote winner in 10 of the last 15 elections, but they missed the mark in four of the last five. Politico...

Look Who's Running for a Third Term— for Karl Rove

Krugman: Clark affair shows master's hand

(Newser) - This week's firefight over what Wesley Clark did or didn't say about John McCain's war record doesn't just remind us that most campaign brouhahas these days are about things that didn't even happen, writes Paul Krugman in the New York Times. It also reveals the long arm of Karl Rove....

Obama Might 'Refine' 16-Month Iraq Timeline

He'll reevaluate policy after meeting with commanders in Iraq

(Newser) - Barack Obama today appeared to soften his oft-stated pledge that he would pull troops out of Iraq in 16 months, the New York Times reports. Obama, while inisting that his policies had not changed, said he would consider the opinions of military commanders as he continues to “refine his...

Flip-Flops Don't Always Give Us Blisters
Flip-Flops Don't Always Give
Us Blisters
OPINION
Jul 2, 2008 10:34 AM CDT

Flip-Flops Don't Always Give Us Blisters

Take a closer look at policies candidates are changing minds about

(Newser) - Flip-flops are an easy summer target for media covering the presidential campaign, Ruth Marcus writes in the Washington Post. But, she notes, it's important to remember that the issues are more important than the candidates' changing views on them. "We in the media risk becoming the enablers of inanity...

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