[big campaign] '08 Daily News Clips - 8/15

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Election Daily News Clips August 15th, 2008 Candidate Tracking: ***All times in Eastern Standard Time 8:15am BUSH: Remarks on Russia, Georgia in Washington, DC TBA McCain: Private Meeting in Aspen, CO News Clips: MCCAIN NEWS *McCain's Focus on Georgia Raises Question of Propriety (Washington Post 8/15/08)* By Dan Eggen and Robert Barnes; A16 By Robert Barnes ...With his Democratic opponent on vacation in Hawaii, the senator from Arizona has been doing all he can in recent days to look like President McCain, particularly when it comes to the ongoing international crisis in Georgia. Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili says he talks to McCain, a personal friend, several times a day. McCain's top foreign policy adviser, Randy Scheunemann, was until recently a paid lobbyist for Georgia's government. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/14/AR2008081403332_pf.html *See WaPo blog's "McCain Rules Out Military Action Against Russia":* http://voices.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/08/14/mccain_rules_out_military_acti.html *McCain Displays Credentials as Obama Relaxes (NYT 8/15/08)* By MICHAEL FALCONE For the last several days, Senator Barack Obama has seemed to fade from the scene while on his secluded vacation here, as his opponent, Senator John McCain, has seized nearly every opportunity to display his foreign policy credentials on the dominant issue of the week: the conflict between Russia and Georgia. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/15/us/politics/15obama.html?_r=1&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&adxnnlx=1218798805-CNZCCmSvwBeP6vIZUQsIUg *McCain's Son Sat on Troubled Bank's Board (WSJ 8/15/08)* By DAMIAN PALETTA, DAVID ENRICH and ELIZABETH HOLMES; Page A3 Silver State Bancorp Is Facing Big Losses, Regulatory Scrutiny http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121876461747243159.html *Explaining McCain's Complicated History with Lobbyists (CQ Politics blog 8/14/08)* By David Nather One of the biggest mysteries about John McCain, the man who claims to be the enemy of powerful lobbyists and special interests, is why he has surrounded himself with lobbyists and former lobbyists on his campaign team. The latest adviser who's causing headaches for McCain is foreign policy adviser Randy Scheunemann, whose lobbying firm has represented the Georgian government, raising questions about how neutral a broker McCain can be in the crisis caused by Russia's invasion. http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/beyond/2008/08/explaining-mccains-complicated.html *McCain running tighter, less rambling campaign (AP 8/15/08)* By Charles Babington For months, John McCain's presidential campaign was a near-constant swirl of free-ranging chats with voters, garrulous sessions with reporters and quips from the candidate that often had little to do with the day's planned message. No more. With a dozen weeks to go, McCain's campaign has notably limited his exposure to national reporters and even voters, devoting more time to private fundraisers, interviews with local journalists and events designed for TV cameras. http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20080814/NEWS/934508259/1005&parentprofile=1058 *John McCain and the POW church riot (Chicago Tribune 8/15/08)* By Jill Zuckman They called it the church riot. Sen. John McCain, who is known for his reticence and even discomfort invoking faith on the campaign trail, was once dubbed a "Hell's Angel" for rioting against his captors in Vietnam in order to hold Sunday church services. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-mccain-faithaug15,0,575244.story *McCain's hints at Ridge inspire theories (Washington Times 8/15/08)* By Ralph Z. Hallow Explanations were abounding Thursday on why Sen. John McCain mentioned Tom Ridge as a possible running mate - including a serious pick, a trial balloon for the right and an ecumenical gesture for the left. http://washingtontimes.com/news/2008/aug/15/mccains-hints-at-ridge-inspire-theories/ *John McCain, Barack Obama spar over 'celebrity' (LA Times 8/14/08)* By Tina Daunt Politicians from both parties seek new and even more daring ways of connecting with mass audiences via entertainment. http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-et-cause15-2008aug15,0,4423106.story *Leave It To Weaver (Texas Monthly 8/14/08*)* *Print Date: 9/1/08 by Paul Burka What John McCain's former chief strategist thinks of his campaign. ...Only a few minutes into our conversation about the current presidential race, he said, "The Greek tragedy aspect of this election could turn out to be, George Bush defeats John McCain twice." http://www.texasmonthly.com/2008-09-01/letterfromwashingtondc.php *See FirstRead's "McCain: Weaver continues to talk": * http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/08/14/1265371.aspx *Phil Gramm's Return Engagement, For Two Days Only (CBS blog 8/14/08)* By Ryan Corsaro: Former McCain adviser Phil Gramm is in attendance at John McCain's event at the Aspen Institute this afternoon, which is about to get underway. Gramm stepped down from the campaign last month after he was criticized for saying the U.S. economy is in a "mental recession" and that the U.S. is a "nation of whiners." Gramm, who's seated in the front row for today's event, told CBS News that he's in Colorado to help McCain raise money and that he's there as a supporter, not as a campaign adviser. http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2008/08/14/politics/fromtheroad/entry4351472.shtml *See WSJ blog's "Phil Gramm Attends McCain Campaign Briefing": * http://feeds.wsjonline.com/%7Er/wsj/washwire/feed/%7E3/365117155/ *New DNC Web video tries to link McCain to Abramoff scandal (CNN blog 8/15/08)* By Martina Stewart The Democratic National Committee's is taking on John McCain in a new Web video calling into question his reputation as a campaign finance reformer and a maverick who stands outside the inner circles of political dealings in the nation's capital. http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/08/15/new-dnc-web-video-tries-to-link-mccain-to-abramoff-scandal/ *Link to video of ad ("Tainted"): * http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvXcY-u7MJM *DNC Releases New Web Ad Highlighting the Threat John McCain Poses to Social Security (MarketWatch 8/14/08)* On Social Security's 73rd Birthday, FDR's Grandson Tells John McCain to "Keep Your Hands Off Our Social Security" http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/dnc-releases-new-web-ad/story.aspx?guid=%7B074562D2-AEFA-4B16-9CF2-049D7DCA283B%7D&dist=hppr *Link to video of ad*: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L24eLUdT6bc *See FirstRead's "AFL-CIO HITS MCCAIN ON SOCIAL SECURITY ":* http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/08/14/1266333.aspx *Democrats: Happy anniversary Social Security, Don't privatize it John McCain (Miami Herald blog 8/14/08)* By Lesley Clark Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz is join James Roosevelt, FDR's grandson, on a press conference call today to mark the 73rd anniversary of Social Security -- and bash John McCain for endorsing the concept of private indiviual accounts, which Democrats call a "risky investment scheme." http://miamiherald.typepad.com/nakedpolitics/2008/08/democrats-happy.html *New Obama Olympic Ad Touts Middle-Class Economic Plan [includes video] (The Page 8/14/08)* The nationwide spot– "Three Bedroom Ranch"– begins Monday on broadcast and cable TV, and will run during the Olympics. http://thepage.time.com/2008/08/14/new-obama-olympic-ad-promotes-his-economic-plan/ *Link to script: * http://thepage.time.com/script-of-obama-ad-three-bedroom-ranch/ *NEW Obama ad Scorching McCain on DHL in Ohio (DailyKos 8/14/08)* Obama slams McCain Campaign and its lobbyist connections for causing job losses of 8,000 in Ohio. http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/8/14/165427/984 *Link to video of ad*: http://thepage.time.com/new-obama-dhl-ad/ *Link to script*: http://thepage.time.com/script-of-obama-ad-on-dhl/ *McCain catches break on loan (Politico 8/14/08)* By: Kenneth P. Vogel John McCain on Thursday got some welcome ammunition in his defense against Democratic charges that he violated campaign finance law. But he's not out of the woods yet. The Federal Election Commission released a draft opinion asserting that McCain... did not violate the provisions of the primary election public funding system. http://dyn.politico.com/printstory.cfm?uuid=C286BE62-18FE-70B2-A8A82C67E8DBE69F *See CQ Politics's "McCain Gets a Bye from FEC Lawyers":* http://www.cqpolitics.com/wmspage.cfm?docID=news-000002938164 * Pastor: Not going to play 'gotcha' with McCain, Obama (CNN 8/14/08)* The Rev. Rick Warren said Thursday that his upcoming forum with Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama will be aimed at asking them tough "heartland questions." ..."I'm not going to play 'gotcha' with one candidate and not with the other. This way, it will be totally fair. You compare apples to apples," he added. http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/08/14/warren.forum/index.html *See Brody Files's "Rick Warren Plans to Bring up Obama, McCain's Personal Life": *http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/428453.aspx *McCain alarms base with abortion comment (Politico 8/14/08)* By: Jonathan Martin Top social conservative leaders in key battleground states are urging John McCain not to pick a running mate who supports abortion rights, warning of dire consequences from a Republican base already unenthused about their nominee. http://dyn.politico.com/printstory.cfm?uuid=C3548602-18FE-70B2-A877A811E28B5D0E *Troops Deployed Abroad Give 6:1 to Obama (OpenSecrets.org 8/14/08)* By Luke Rosiak ...According to an analysis of campaign contributions by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics, Democrat Barack Obama has received nearly six times as much money from troops deployed overseas at the time of their contributions than has Republican John McCain, and the fiercely anti-war Ron Paul, though he suspended his campaign for the Republican nomination months ago, has received more than four times McCain's haul. http://www.opensecrets.org/news/2008/08/troops-deployed-abroad-give-61.html *See WaPo blog's "Obama Tops in Donations from Troops":* http://voices.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/08/14/obama_tops_in_donations_from_t.html *See Jon Soltz/HuffPo's "Deployed Troops Donate to Obama 6-1 Over McCain":* http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jon-soltz/deployed-troops-donate-to_b_118987.html *GOP Loyalty Not a Given For Young Evangelicals (Washington Post 8/15/08)* By Krissah Williams Thompson; A01 ...The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life found that while a majority of young white evangelicals describe themselves as conservative on social issues, slightly more identified this year as either independents or Democrats than as Republicans. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/14/AR2008081403446_pf.html *Social Security and the Candidates (ThinkProgress 8/14/08)* By Matt Yglesias One of John McCain's key demographic bases of support is old people, particular older working class Americans. These are much the same people who are likely to be strong supporters of Social Security. McCain, meanwhile, not only thinks that the very idea of a pay-as-you-go public pension system is a "disgrace" but was a firm defender of George W. Bush's unpopular plan to dismantle the program and replace it with a riskier, less progressive system of mandatory private investment accounts. Under the circumstances, a lot of people have been waiting around impatiently to see Social Security play a larger role in discussion of McCain and his agenda. http://feeds.feedburner.com/%7Er/matthewyglesias/%7E3/364941072/social_security_and_the_candidates.php *Enter Edmund Burke (TIME blog 8/14/08)* by Joe Klein Andrew Sullivan makes the case for why the neoconservative efforts to inflate the tragedy in Georgia into a new cold war stand outside the realm of traditional conservative thought. Again, Russia should be condemned for its aggression. But this Russia--oligarchic, oil-glutted, trying to recover some international face after the historic stupidity of having bought into communism--is not the Soviet Union. We have serious business to transact with the Russians. The most important is the reduction of nuclear arms forces, an effort left to lapse by the Bush Administration over the past eight years, as the Nunn-Lugar process was short-funded. http://www.time-blog.com/swampland/2008/08/enter_burke.html *Link to Andrew Sullivan's "After The Cold War": * http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2008/08/after-the-cold.html#more *McCain: Gitmo is 'one of the nicest places in the world to live in.' (ThinkProgress 8/14/08)* During a question-and-answer session with Walter Isaacson today, Sen. John McCain said Guantanamo Bay is "one of the nicest places in the world to live in." Later in the interview, McCain was asked about the Supreme Court's recent decision in Boumediene v. Bush declaring that Gitmo detainees have a right to challenge their detention in civilian court. McCain had previously derided that decision as "one of the worst decisions in the history of this country," but today stepped back from that comment: http://thinkprogress.org/2008/08/14/mccain-gitmo-is-one-of-the-nicest-places-in-the-world-to-live-in/ *Link to video:* http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQZP7hrCS4I *Attack Ad Veteran Teams With Attack Book Author NPR blog 8/14/08)* Jerome Corsi may be getting all the attention right now for his anti-Obama attack book, but there's another veteran political operative who has been toiling away to take down the Democratic candidate with a Swift-Boat-style campaign. And now, the two are working together. Floyd Brown, whose most famous effort was the "Willie Horton ad" that damaged Democrat Michael Dukakis' presidential campaign in 1988, has been working on a viral campaign to send anti-Obama videos to millions of voters . His main organization, the National Campaign Fund, runs the Web site ExposeObama.com, which features videos linking Obama to gang violence and questioning Obama's assertion that he's never been a Muslim (below). http://www.npr.org/blogs/secretmoney/2008/08/jerome_corsi_may_be_getting.html *Alan Colmes Goes Off During Edwards Panel, Assails McCain's Infidelities (Huffington Post 8/14/08)* Andrew Sullivan has a post up on a clip from the August 12th iteration of Hannity and Colmes that seems likely to bring mad creatine to the progressive scene. In it, Sean Hannity merrily leads a panel through a prolonged excoriation of John Edwards, with Amanda Carpenter and some other flaky white dude chitty-chitty banging away. Then, about three minutes in, Alan Colmes suddenly starts breathing fire all over the place, loudly asking how fellow cheater John McCain can be trusted to run the country if infidelities are enough to exclude Edwards from consideration. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/08/14/alan-colmes-goes-off-duri_n_119004.html *See Andrew Sullivan's "Edwards, McCain, Adultery": http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2008/08/edwards-mccain.html * *Link to video*: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=saDewF41rJI *McCain back in Aspen, this time standing tall (LA Times 8/15/08)* By Seema Mehta and Maeve Reston The GOP candidate discusses Russia and ABBA at the event. Top advisors attend, fueling veep talk. http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-na-mccain15-2008aug15,0,1186560.story *McCain says Georgia does not require military response (Denver Post 8/14/08)* Russian aggression toward the former Soviet Republic of Georgia is a "serious international crisis," but not one that demands a military response from the United States, Sen. John McCain told a gathering in Aspen Thursday afternoon. Rather, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee said he favors quick admission of Georgia, Ukraine and other former soviet countries to NATO. http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_10206048 *McCain: Tough talk and quips (The Aspen Times 8/15/08)* By Scott Condon Presidential candidate bashes Obama, keeps Aspen laughing http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20080815/NEWS/315426828/1058/SPORTS&parentprofile=-1 *See 9News's "McCain visits Aspen, talks gas prices": http://www.9news.com/news/local/article.aspx?storyid=97666&catid=346* *McCain talks politics with Bloomfield breakfast crowd (Detroit News 8/14/08)* Gordon Trowbridge ...Wrapping up a busy, Metro Detroit campaign visit that included several fundraisers, McCain --accompanied by his wife, Cindy, and Sen. Lindsay Graham, R-S.C., one of his closest supporters -- arrived at the Kerby's... McCain held a series of fundraisers Wednesday, and toured a local defense contractor. ...Among the diners who spoke to McCain was Jon Busch of West Bloomfield, who said he delivered a simple message to the candidate: "Give us something to get excited about." Busch said he's been underwhelmed so far by McCain and his Democratic opponent, Barack Obama. http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080814/METRO/808140472/1361 *Sports owners fund McCain, shun Obama (Politico 8/15/08)* By: Kenneth P. Vogel and Matthew Lindsey and Owners of professional sports teams overwhelmingly support McCain, who raised six times more from the owners of teams in Chicago. http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0808/12548.html *OPINIONS AND EDITORIALS* *Reformer McCain is long gone (Atlanta Journal-Constitution 8/15/08)* By David Donnelly As Sen. John McCain makes daily statements about the conflict in the former Soviet republic of Georgia, his campaign is answering questions regarding how his top foreign policy adviser, lobbyist Randy Scheunemann, made a killing in lobbying fees from the Georgian government. But that's not McCain's only Georgia problem. Ralph Reed is fund-raising for the Arizona senator's Aug. 18 fund-raiser at the Marriott Marquis in downtown Atlanta, and that has made even the most ardent McCain backers scratch their heads. http://www.ajc.com/printedition/content/printedition/2008/08/15/reeded.html * * *What counts as 'success' in Iraq? (Boston Globe 8/15/08) **By John Tirman A VOLUBLE attempt to describe the Iraq war as a success is widely apparent, and will increase as the Republican National Convention nears. John McCain is staking his campaign on this assertion. There is little doubt that the level of violence in Iraq has subsided noticeably in the last 12 months. But is this "victory"? http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2008/08/15/what_counts_as_success_in_iraq?mode=PF Iraq May Be Stable, But the War Was a Mistake (WSJ 8/15/08) By FRANCIS FUKUYAMA; Page A13 Sometime in May 2003, shortly after U.S. forces had taken Baghdad and President Bush landed on an aircraft carrier under the banner "Mission Accomplished," an old friend remarked that he thought the war was going pretty well so far. I shook my head and said I thought we were in for trouble. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121876047023242841.html?mod=rss_opinion_main Too Eloquent and Idealistic (WSJ 8/14/08) By JAMES TARANTO With just 82 days until the presidential election, one of the major-party candidates is being accused by his opponents of offering eloquent rhetoric that is just too high-flown and idealistic. That man, of course, is John McCain. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121872697736340877.html?mod=rss_opinion_main * * * *Presidential predictions (Washington Times 8/15/08) *By Bradley P. Jacob *Sen. Barack Obama's liberal base views the 2008 presidential election as historic and exciting. They are passionate and energized. Moderate-to-conservative voters, on the other hand, just don't seem to have much interest. Why should they care? Sen. John McCain, after all, is something of a political maverick, often a relatively liberal Republican. As president, he is unlikely to be a passionate leader for limited government, lower taxes, or border control, to name just a few issues that get conservatives excited. http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/aug/15/presidential-predictions/ Betting on Bahrain (Washington Times 8/15/08) By S. Rob Sobhani When either John McCain or Barack Obama takes the oath of office to serve as America's 44th president, the small but strategic country of Bahrain in the oil-rich Persian Gulf should be a top foreign-policy priority. This island nation of 800,000 is home to the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet as well as being one of the leaders in the promotion of human rights, religious tolerance and democratic pluralism in the Middle East. http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/aug/15/betting-on-bahrain/ * * * *Will 'Country First' Boost McCain to Victory? (Newsweek blog 8/14/08) *By Howard Fineman The city is a faded monument to a certain kind of American life: 18th century English and German settlements, Pennsylvania long rifles, a wariness of outsiders, social change, and Big City. This made York the perfect place for John McCain and his team to lay out their core strategy in the race against Barack Obama. Their messages: I'm an American and he's not; I'm a patriot and he's not; I'm a tough son-of-a-gun willing to confront our foes, he's not. This cold-blooded, chest-beating theme will either give McCain a real chance to overcome long odds and win the White House — or it will consign him to the dust bin of history. http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/stumper/archive/2008/08/14/fineman-will-country-first-boost-mccain-to-victory.aspx *Par for Mr. Corsi (Washington Post 8/15/08)* An expert at misrepresentation takes on Barack Obama.... THERE'S A cottage industry in books about Barack Obama;... But few debut in the No. 1 spot on the New York Times bestseller list, as Jerome R. Corsi's "The Obama Nation" will do among nonfiction hardcover titles this week. Unfortunately but unsurprisingly, given his earlier hit job on the last Democratic nominee, Mr. Corsi's latest is rife with inaccuracies and innuendo. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/14/AR2008081403051_pf.html *BUSH NEWS* *Bush Defiant (The Page 8/15/08)* Speaking from the White House before leaving for Crawford, the President issues a stern warning to Russia. "Bullying and intimidation are not acceptable ways to conduct foreign policy in the 21st century." Also calls Georgia "a courageous democracy," and says: "The people of Georgia have cast their lot with the free world, and we will not cast them aside." http://thepage.time.com/2008/08/15/bush-to-speak-on-georgian-conflict-at-815-am/ *Bush Aides Say Russia Actions in Georgia Jeopardize Ties (NYT 8/15/08)* By STEVEN LEE MYERS and THOM SHANKER Russia's military offensive into Georgia has jolted the Bush administration's relationship with Moscow, senior officials said Thursday, forcing a wholesale reassessment of American dealings with Russia and jeopardizing talks on everything from halting Iran's nuclear ambitions to reducing strategic arsenals to cooperation on missiles defenses. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/15/world/europe/15policy.html?pagewanted=print *See NYT's "Russia Vows to Support Two Enclaves, in Retort to Bush": * http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/15/world/europe/15georgia.html?bl&ex=1218945600&en=3141da97ae5b8c75&ei=5087%0A *Bush signs consumer bill to cut lead in toys (Reuters 8/15/08)* By Georgina Coolidge Legislation aimed at improving US consumer product safety after millions of Chinese-made toys were recalled last summer was signed into law by President Bush yesterday. The measure dramatically cuts the amount of lead that is allowed in toys and other children's products. http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2008/08/15/bush_signs_consumer_bill_to_cut_lead_in_toys?mode=PF *Bush still raking in cash for Republicans (AP 8/15/08)* By DEB RIECHMANN President Bush's popularity has tanked, but boy can he still bring in the cash. He's raked in close to a billion dollars, the political fundraiser in chief, during his White House tenure. http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hLojPiuJjjenSaKjtHM7BmFLUd-gD92IJJI80 *OTHER TOP NEWS* *Russian blockade continues in Gori (AP 8/15/08)* By CHRISTOPHER TORCHIA Russian troops on Friday allowed some humanitarian supplies into the city of Gori but continued their blockade, raising doubts about Russia's intentions in the war-battered country. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was headed to Georgia for talks with its president. http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gDNLWfQWKrQc48pITBUg9KT_6oVwD92IKAS80 * Gorbachev: Georgia started conflict in S. Ossetia (CNN 8/14/08)* Georgian leaders may be blaming Russia for the conflict raging in South Ossetia, but former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev said Thursday "there is no doubt" that Georgia provoked the clash. http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/08/14/gorbachev/index.html *Iraqi elections official fears fair vote in jeopardy (USA TODAY 8/15/08)* By Charles Levinson and Ali A. Nabhan Iraqi security forces loyal to the Shiite-led government are raiding voter registration centers and taking other steps to discourage participation in upcoming elections, says the head of Iraq's voting regulatory agency. http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2008-08-14-Iraq-voters_N.htm *Senators say report on oil prices is flawed (AP 8/15/08)* Democratic senators say a government report issued last month on oil prices was based on flawed information. They're asking for an investigation into the matter. http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hItGAAHmoZcxui_0erzQN7cuNeRQD92I8U4G4 *Obama pushes back hard on Corsi book (Politico 8/15/08)* By: Jonathan Martin Campaign releases 41-page doc to rebut author's accusations. http://www.politico.com/blogs/jonathanmartin/0808/Obama_pushes_back_hard_on_Corsi_book.html * Book on Obama blasted for 'vicious innuendo' (CNN 8/14/08)* There's a new book out about Barack Obama that some say is riddled with pretty much every unsubstantiated rumor you've ever heard about the Illinois senator. It is called "Obama Nation: Leftist Politics and the Cult of Personality." The author, Jerome Corsi, also co-wrote the book "Unfit for Command," which started the swift boating of Sen. John Kerry in the 2004 presidential election. Corsi admits he's on a mission to take down Obama. He's been criticized for books that he's written before that have been discredited in many circles. http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/08/14/corsi.book/index.html * Clinton's name to be put in nomination at convention (CNN 8/14/08)* Sen. Barack Obama's campaign has agreed to put former rival Sen. Hillary Clinton's name in nomination at the Democratic National Convention this month. http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/08/14/clinton/index.html *Musharraf ally says talks could lead to exit (AP 8/15/08)* By NAHAL TOOSI Talks are under way that could lead to the resignation of Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf or else reduce his role to that of a figurehead, an ally of the embattled leader said Friday. http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5iWe152N60O8rfHfthVTBaXBeBs3wD92IIMK00 *Stevens Challenges Indictment (WSJ 8/15/08)* By BRENT KENDALL; Page A2 Lawyers for Sen. Ted Stevens filed a flurry of pretrial motions that challenged the government's public-corruption case against the Alaska Republican. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121876777843843391.html -- Sara DuBois Tracking / Communications Manager ProgressiveAccountability.org [email protected] 202-609-7681 (office) 410-967-7306 (cell) --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the "big campaign" group. To post to this group, send to [email protected] To unsubscribe, send email to [email protected] E-mail [email protected] with questions or concerns This is a list of individuals. It is not affiliated with any group or organization. -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---