Election 2008

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New Voters Back Obama —if They Turn Out

Poll finds newly registered not motivated

(Newser) - Newly registered voters could be a potent force in the presidential election, and heavily favor Barack Obama over John McCain, 61% to 30%, a new NBC/Wall Street Journal/MySpace poll finds. But getting them to vote may be a challenge, reports the Wall Street Journal. Most are young adults, and just...

Palin Out of Loop on State Defense: Air Force

Despite pose, Palin not informed when Russian bombers approach Alaska

(Newser) - Sarah Palin doesn't get a phone call when US jets are scrambled to intercept Russian bombers off Alaska—despite her hints to the contrary, a NORAD spokesman told the New York Daily News yesterday. "She doesn't have any role," said the major. "The commander does not call...

Palin Elusive on Abortion in Couric Interview

'Feminist' dodges policy issues, sticks to conservative personal beliefs

(Newser) - Katie Couric pressed Sarah Palin on controversial issues in an interview last night and got more personal than policy answers, Baltimore Sun TV critic David Zurawik writes. When asked if it should be illegal for a teenage victim of rape or incest to get an abortion, the candidate said several...

Anti-Palin Screed Makes Wasilla Woman Many Friends

Letter sent to curious friends became Web fave, generated more than 13K responses

(Newser) - A Wasilla, Alaska, woman just wanted to share her Sarah Palin experiences with 40 friends, but the none-too-flattering email she wrote ended up on computer screens nationwide, the Los Angeles Times reports. Now Anne Kilkenny, who became involved in local politics while Palin was mayor because of a fight to...

Dems Cringe as Gaffe Express Rolls Onward

VP candidate Biden largely drowned out by Palin, economy

(Newser) - Joe Biden’s freewheeling style makes him a big hit on campaign stops, and he usually draws front-page headlines in the towns he visits. But often, those stories carry word of the VP hopeful’s latest slip-up. Biden has lived up to his reputation as a gaffe machine, contradicting his...

Chicago Bar Hangs Nude Palin Portrait

Painting of armed Alaska gov. baring all a Windy City hit

(Newser) - Perhaps the most revealing depiction of Sarah Palin is the one hanging at a Chicago tavern: A naked, smiling, high-heeled Palin holds a shotgun in front of an Alaskan landscape in a portrait displayed at the North Side bar, the Tribune reports. The owner's husband, who is crushing on Alaska's...

McCain Accuses Couric of 'Gotcha!' Journalism
McCain Accuses Couric
of 'Gotcha!' Journalism
OPINION
Sep 30, 2008 1:25 PM CDT

McCain Accuses Couric of 'Gotcha!' Journalism

Maybe shielding Palin from the media was a bad idea

(Newser) - John McCain and Sarah Palin sat down for a joint interview with Katie Couric last night, and it was hard to avoid the impression that McCain was chaperoning his running mate “to keep her out of trouble” writes Time TV critic James Poniewozik. McCain accused Couric of “gotcha...

Don't Pity This Woman
 Don't Pity 
 This Woman 
OPINION
Sep 30, 2008 1:03 PM CDT

Don't Pity This Woman

Palin deserves our scorn, and that's it

(Newser) - The media seems to be lining up to feel sorry for poor Sarah Palin, forced to endure these deer-in-headlights interviews. “I guess I’m one cold dame,” Rebecca Traister writes in Salon, because “when you stage a train wreck of this magnitude…I don’t feel bad...

In His Encore, Brokaw Again a Heavy-Hitter for NBC

Russert's fill-in has played diplomat between NBC, McCain

(Newser) - NBC is preparing for a post-Brokaw Meet the Press, but replacing the elder statesman won’t be easy, the New York Times reports. Brokaw has exceeded expectations as a fill-in for Tim Russert, keeping NBC’s Sunday show atop the ratings. Less publicly, he’s been a crucial diplomat between...

Obama Wants to Hike Deposit Insurance

Calls for revived bailout to include increase to $250K from $100K

(Newser) - Barack Obama today proposed to revive the $700 billion bailout lying bloodied on the House floor with a provision increasing federal insurance to $250,000 from the current $100,000, Politico reports. The presidential hopeful called it “a step that would boost small businesses, make our banking system more...

Her Star Falling, Palin Crams for Debate

GOP running mate seeks relaunch after disastrous interview

(Newser) - Things don't look good for Sarah Palin: her popularity is slipping, conservative columnists are turning on her, and in two days she faces Joe Biden in a debate she is widely expected to lose. After her roundly derided interview with Katie Couric, Palin has been awake into the wee hours...

Mac Blames Bailout on Obama, Who Returns Fire

(Newser) - John McCain blamed Barack Obama and the Democrats for injecting partisan rancor into a House vote that killed the $700 bailout plan today, Reuters reports. They "infused unnecessary partisanship into the process," McCain said in Iowa. A McCain advisor went further, saying Obama had "failed to lead,...

Wrong, Lefties: Palin Didn't Cut Special Olympics Dollars

Declining huge budget increase, Alaska Gov. authorized 10% boost instead

(Newser) - Sarah Palin did not cut funding to the Special Olympics in Alaska, as many have said, professors Warren Throckmorton and Paul Kengor write in the National Review. In fact, this year she approved an increase in funding, from $250,000 to $275,000. Lawmakers had asked for $550,000, perhaps...

What Makes Him Different Makes Him Scary
What Makes Him Different Makes Him Scary
OPINION
Sep 29, 2008 3:40 PM CDT

What Makes Him Different Makes Him Scary

Obama must overcome the stereotypes that come with his heritage, and success

(Newser) - Barack Obama’s revolutionary candidacy is in trouble, and the very things that make him a breath of fresh air are to blame, James Carroll writes in the Boston Globe. “Race, gender, and class define American identity, but Obama, just by being who he is, directly challenges the core...

Limbaugh May Hold Key to McCain's Fate
Limbaugh May Hold Key to McCain's Fate
OPINION
Sep 29, 2008 2:50 PM CDT

Limbaugh May Hold Key to McCain's Fate

Blowhard's influence extends well beyond conservative base

(Newser) - Rush Limbaugh may be John McCain’s best friend in the fight against Barack Obama, writes Zev Chafets in the LA Times. Vociferously anti-McCain during primary season, Limbaugh is now on board and can't be underestimated. "A lot of Limbaugh's critics dismiss him as a buffoon or a fanatic,...

DC Trip Nets Mac Little More Than Muddled Campaign

Getting back on track may be hard after confusing few days

(Newser) - John McCain's insistence on rushing to Washington to involve himself in the bailout process left his campaign reeling, gave critics new ammunition, and widened Barack Obama's poll margins, Bob Drogin reports in the Los Angeles Times. The Arizona senator, who didn't help draft the plan and also skipped voting on...

Mac's Big Guns Turn to Polishing Palin

Honchos, candidate huddle at Ariz. ranch to prepare for Thurs. debate with Biden

(Newser) - Sarah Palin will be coached by the best people John McCain’s campaign has to offer in preparation for her debate Thursday with Joe Biden, the Wall Street Journal reports. Campaign manager Rick Davis and strategist Steve Schmidt are headed with Palin today to McCain’s Arizona ranch as the...

Racism No Longer Throws Off Polls: Study

Voters aren't overstating support for minority candidates

(Newser) - The so-called Bradley effect, in which support for minority candidates in opinion polls isn’t matched by votes in actual elections, has disappeared, Sam Wang writes for the Princeton Election Consortium. A study of polling and outcome data from 133 gubernatorial and senate races in 1989-2006 found that before 1996,...

Soldier's Mom Loved Obama's Bracelet Nod

Wisc. woman asked him to keep mum, but calls criticism 'garbage'

(Newser) - Tracy Jopek says she was “ecstatic” when Barack Obama mentioned her late son in Friday’s debate, even though she’d once asked him not to. But she’s enraged at online critics who accused Obama of exploiting the bracelet she gave him. “I don’t understand how...

Palin Speaks 'Gibberish,' Isn't Ready to be VP: Zakaria

Columnist joins chorus of concerned pundits

(Newser) - Fareed Zakaria joins a chorus of pundits from both right and left who have declared the Alaska governor unqualified to be vice president. "Will someone please put Sarah Palin out of her agony?" the Newsweek columnist writes. When she goes off script, as she had to in the Katie...

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