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Young Hanging On in Close Alaska Primary, Stevens Wins more similar news »
Rep. Don Young (R-AK) -- "whose three and a half decade hold on Alaska's sole House seat was imperiled by political ethics controversies -- trailed Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell in a protracted vote count in Tuesday's primary that appeared headed for a cliffhanger finale," CQ Politics reports.
The Anchorage Daily News has the latest vote tally.
Meanwhile, Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) "easily fended off challengers in his Tuesday contest even though he faces more immediate legal problems than Young."
Wed Aug 27, 2008 more from this source»»
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Obama Losing Conservative Democrats more similar news »
The latest Gallup tracking poll finds Sen. John McCain inching into the lead for the first time this year. The key reason is that Sen. Barack Obama "has been struggling to maintain his Democratic base thus far in August" and "the problem seems to be with conservative Democrats."
"The 63% of conservative Democrats supporting Obama over McCain in Aug. 18-24 polling is the lowest Obama has earned since he clinched the Democratic nomination in June. At the same time, there have been no similar drops in support for Obama in the preferences of liberal or moderate Democrats."
In addition, Obama "has mainly seen his support eroding among moderate and liberal Republicans, from 19% to 13% during August."
Wed Aug 27, 2008 more from this source»»
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McCain Plans Veep Rollout This Weekend more similar news »
Sen. John McCain "is planning to rollout his vice-presidential nominee in three battleground states this weekend, with large-scale rallies planned for Ohio, Pennsylvania and Missouri," according to Politico.
"The GOP nominee-in-waiting will move to immediately change the campaign conversation from Barack Obama's football stadium acceptance speech Thursday to the new Republican ticket, to be revealed at a noontime Friday rally in a Dayton, Ohio, basketball arena."
Wed Aug 27, 2008 more from this source»»
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Reactions to Clinton's Speech more similar news »
Sen. Hillary Clinton's speech at the Democratic National Convention put to rest the idea that her party is not unified in support of Sen. Barack Obama for president. While disunity has been a constant theme of the cable news channels, it's barely noticeable among delegates. Clinton nailed her speech and put Democrats in the mood to enthusiastically nominate Obama on Thursday night.
Other reactions:
Ben Smith: "Hillary's speech -- a success in the hall -- was a study in the virtue of low expectations."
Nick Gillespie: "I'd say that Sen. Clinton has had the best performance so far, by a wide
margin, both in terms of attacking John McCain and the Republicans
head-on and defining a nauseatingly comprehensive set of plans for
raising taxes, getting mad at companies for 'shipping job overseas,'
and pushing universal health care (or more accurately, even more
expensive and less effective health care)."
Andrew Sullivan: "She started out a little dull and a little self-obsessed. But then she
rallied -- a little. 'No Way. No How. No McCain' was a good line. And
the Twin Cities analogy was a great little riff on Bush and McCain. But
I have to say her speaking style, although much improved over even a
year ago, is still a little flat. When she's passionate, she has little
inflection. When she's quieter, she's a little drony. The 'keep going'
theme, moreover, was a little unnerving. A thinly veiled threat?"
Craig Crawford: "Stunning. Hillary Rodham Clinton's convention speech on Tuesday was so NOT what Barack Obama needed."
Mark Halperin: "She gracefully marked her place as one of America's premiere
politicians with a firm, commanding, gracious argument on behalf of
Barack Obama."
Wed Aug 27, 2008 more from this source»»
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Warner's Keynote Bombed more similar news »
There have been some great keynote addresses at previous Democratic conventions -- Mario Cuomo in 1984, Ann Richards in 1988 and Barack Obama in 2004 -- but tonight's address by former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner was not one of them. Delegates gave polite applause during the speech but by the end you could hear the buzz of many talking to each other rather than listening to the man at the podium.
As Mark Halperin noted, "His efforts at bi-partisanship were confusing, his specifics irritatingly vague, his style bland, and his speech meandering."
The speech that should have been billed as the keynote was that of Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer. He was funny, whipped up delegates into a frenzy and was very well received.
Wed Aug 27, 2008 more from this source»»
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McCain's Hillary-Themed Ads Not Run more similar news »
According to a group that monitors political advertising across the country, only one of the three Hillary Clinton-themed ads attacking Sen. Barack Obama has been broadcast so far --- and that ad, featuring a Clinton delegate who now endorses McCain is only airing in Toledo, Ohio, the Wall Street Journal reports.
The monitoring firm says they are "basically video press releases."
Wed Aug 27, 2008 more from this source»»
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McCain Considers Thursday Announcement more similar news »
"Perhaps hoping to turn a fresh page from the Democratic convention,
advisers to Sen. John McCain are considering a Thursday night vice
presidential announcement," according to Marc Ambinder, "although the
unofficial word from campaign headquarters is that Friday is still more
likely."
Thursday, of course, is the night Sen. Barack Obama formally accepts the Democratic presidential nomination.
If McCain is seriously considering this unprecedented interruption into Obama's night, he's clearly taking advice from the same person Yankee third baseman Alex Rodriguez used when he announced his free agency during last year's World Series.
Wed Aug 27, 2008 more from this source»»
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C-2 more similar news »
The New York Times has a great behind-the-scenes look at how Sen. Joe Biden was selected as Sen. Barack Obama's running mate. To keep the secret, Biden was never referred to by name; instead the few aides who knew called him by his codename, C-2.
However, even the two aides that made all the preparations for the unveiling of Biden didn't know Obama's pick until just before the rest of us.
Wed Aug 27, 2008 more from this source»»
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The Best Coverage of the Convention more similar news »
With thousands of journalists covering the Democratic National Convention, it's not an easy task to break news. It's made all that much harder by an event so tightly-scripted that it's been called a four day infomercial.
Nonetheless, kudos must go to two organizations for the best television and print/online coverage so far.
Tue Aug 26, 2008 more from this source»»
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Hagan Grabs Lead Over Dole in North Carolina more similar news »
A new Public Policy Polling survey in North Carolina shows Kay Hagan (D) leading Sen. Elizabeth Dole (R-NC), 42% to 39%, after trailing by as much as 14 points two months ago.
The poll is the third in the last week to show the race a dead heat.
Key findings: "There's not much doubt where the momentum is coming from. 69% of voters
in the state have seen the television ads about Elizabeth Dole's #93
ranking for effectiveness in the US Senate, and among those folks Hagan
has an even wider 45-39 lead. Dole's saving grace is voters who don't
watch much tv- she leads 45-34 with those who have not seen the ad."
Tue Aug 26, 2008 more from this source»»
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PPP Poll: Obama Stays Competitive in North Carolina more similar news »
The latest Public Policy Polling survey in North Carolina finds Sen. John McCain just edging out Sen. Barack Obama, 45% to 42%.
Analysis: "One of two things is going to have to happen for Obama to win the
state: he's going to have to up his share of the white vote, probably
by bringing out voters under 30 in extreme record numbers, or he's
going to need black voters to turn out at a rate disproportionate to
their representation in the overall population, something that would be
virtually unprecedented."
Tue Aug 26, 2008 more from this source»»
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Clintons Next more similar news »
If last night was about the Kennedy legacy, Politico notes the next two days of Sen. Barack Obama's convention "will be dominated by the same two people who dominated the Democratic Party for the last generation and who have come to Denver in much different roles than they wanted. She speaks Tuesday. It's his turn Wednesday."
"For the Clintons, the politics of the week are simple: Accept the cheers of the many Democrats who still support them, be lavish in their praise for Obama, make sure that if he loses no one can say it was because they were covertly rooting for that result."
David Corn: Too much Clinton at the convention?
Tue Aug 26, 2008 more from this source»»
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Quinnipiac: Swing States Get Tighter more similar news »
The latest Quinnipiac polls from three critical swing states are out and they show the presidential race getting tighter over the last two months.
Florida: McCain 47%, Obama 43%
Ohio: Obama 44%, McCain 43%
Pennsylvania: Obama 49%, McCain 42%
Said pollster Peter Brown: "Eight weeks ago, Sen. Barack Obama was on top in all three of these key swing states
and that would make his election almost a sure thing. Times have changed and the election is now
very much a tossup in these states. Sen. Obama needs this convention to give his campaign a jump
start."
Tue Aug 26, 2008 more from this source»»
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Arrests Made in Plot to Harm Obama more similar news »
Authorities said "that at least three people were under arrest on firearms and drug charges in connection with a possible plot to kill Sen. Barack Obama during his speech accepting the Democratic presidential nomination on Thursday night," according to the New York Times.
"It was not clear how well along the possible plot was, or whether the people under arrest had found a way to overcome the heavy security surrounding the Democratic convention."
Tue Aug 26, 2008 more from this source»»
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Biden's Book Flies Off The Shelf more similar news »
If you want to get your book on the bestseller list, try getting named the vice presidential nominee of your party.
The New York Times notes Sen. Joe Biden's memoir from last year "has become a best-selling title in the very brief time since Barack Obama, the Democrats' presumptive presidential nominee, announced that Mr. Biden would be his running mate... The book was released by Random House last summer, shortly after Mr. Biden announced he was running for president, but initial sales were unimpressive. That was then. As of Sunday afternoon, the book was at No. 31 on the amazon.com bestseller list, and No. 11 on Barnes & Noble's list."
Tue Aug 26, 2008 more from this source»»
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A Four Day Infomercial more similar news »
Walter Shapiro perfectly describes what it's like to be at the Democratic National Convention this week.
"A political convention has become an anachronism; the glory days of
smoke-filled rooms, delegates in funny hats, and suspenseful roll-call
votes are gone. Conventions are now excuses for both parties to
bludgeon the television networks into running four nights of political
infomercials. The elaborate and seemingly endless negotiations over
whether Hillary Clinton will get a full roll-call vote on Wednesday
night or whether the balloting will quickly be broken off for an
Obama-by-acclamation confetti drop illustrate how ridiculously
ritualized the whole quadrennial spectacle has become. So, in a sense,
every reporter in Denver is on the television beat. And the
journalistic danger lies in confusing the attitudes of the studio
audience (the delegates) with the sentiments of Nielsen families (the
voters)."
Tue Aug 26, 2008 more from this source»»
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All About Kennedy more similar news »
Despite an excellent speech by Michelle Obama, the first night of the
Democratic National Convention reminded all the delegates that the
Democratic Party is still best represented by the Kennedy family.
The tribute video
to Sen. Ted Kennedy was especially good. But the surprise speech by Kennedy --
especially his references to fighting for national health care --
literally brought down the house. In many ways he embodies what the delegates hope an Obama presidency will be about.
Interestingly, the only unscripted moment of the convention was when
the Obama girls took the microphone to speak to their father over a
satellite hook up after their mother's speech. It was also a reminder of President Kennedy raising a young family in the White House.
Tue Aug 26, 2008 more from this source»»
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