May 22, 2008
Election 2008: Barack Obama in the news
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Candidate profiles• Where they stand• Follow the money • Primary tracker |
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Photos: On the
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Newsday reports |
Coverage: Eye on the White House
Punchlines
Amy Poehler, "Saturday Night Live," on John Edwards endorsing Barack Obama: "It's believed that Edwards' endorsement of Senator Obama will help Obama nail down the critical handsome millionaire vote."
May 22: Catholic abortion politics, SUNY merger, Suffolk health plan, Israel stays
Communion exclusions
Her costly mistakes
WASHINGTON - A year and a half ago, a senior Clinton ally, speaking privately to reporters, made the following prediction: "She's the favorite, but Obama's so good. Hillary only needs to make one or two mistakes and he'll be the nominee."
James Klurfeld: Foreign policy central to political fight
A presidential campaign might not be the best forum to have a serious discussion about the future of American foreign policy. But the likely nominees, Republican Sen. John McCain and Democratic Sen. Barack Obama, went at it this past week. The debate was over if, when and how the United States should negotiate with hostile nations such as Iran.
ON THE TRAIL
Hillary Rodham Clinton raised the possibility yesterday that she might carry her fight to the Democratic convention floor. Clinton was in Florida, pressing to narrow her gap in convention delegates with Barack Obama by having delegates counted from its renegade January primary. Democratic rule-makers are to meet May 31 to decide whether to count delegates from Florida and Michigan; the states were stripped of their delegates as punishment for holding early primaries in violation of party rules. Clinton won both states, but Obama had his name removed from Michigan's ballot and neither candidate campaigned in those states. In an interview yesterday with The Associated Press, Clinton said she is willing to take her fight to seat Florida's and Michigan's delegates to the convention if the two states want to go that far. Asked whether she would support the states if they appeal an unfavorable rules committee decision to the convention floor, the former first lady replied: "Yes I will. I will, because I feel very strongly about this ... I will consult with Floridians and the voters in Michigan because it's really their voices that are being ignored and their votes that are being discounted, and I'll support whatever the elected officials and the voters in those two states want to do."
In Iowa, Obama sets course to unify Dems
Barack Obama returned to Iowa last night, the state that launched his unlikely candidacy on a cold January night when his shocking win over presumed front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton set him on a course to the nomination.
Ted Kennedy has cancerous brain tumor
WASHINGTON - Sen. Edward M. Kennedy was diagnosed with a cancerous brain tumor yesterday in what could be the grim final chapter in a life marked by exhilarating triumph and shattering tragedy. Some experts gave the liberal lion less than a year to live.
replate version
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Barack Obama moved to the brink of the Democratic nomination last night - winning enough delegates to claim a virtually unassailable lead in the race despite a drubbing by Hillary Rodham Clinton in Kentucky.
McCain, Obama trade accusations over Iran policy
CHICAGO - Republican John McCain accused Democrat Barack Obama yesterday of inexperience and reckless judgment for saying Iran does not pose the same threat to the United States as the Soviet Union did.
ON THE TRAIL
Barack Obama has a message for Tennessee's Republican Party: "Lay off my wife." Obama and his wife, Michelle, were asked in an interview aired yesterday on ABC's "Good Morning America" about an online video last week by the state's GOP taking her to task for a comment some considered unpatriotic. "The GOP, should I be the nominee, can say whatever they want to say about me, my track record," Obama said. "If they think that they're going to try to make Michelle an issue in this campaign, they should be careful because that I find unacceptable ... ." The video, posted on YouTube, centered on remarks Michelle Obama made while campaigning in Wisconsin in February. "For the first time in my adult life, I am really proud of my country." Obama later clarified the remark, saying she meant she was proud of how Americans were engaging in the political process and that she had always been proud of her country.
CORRECTION
In Les Payne's column yesterday, a wrong name was given for the military man an associate thought could balance out a Barack Obama ticket. He meant Wesley Clark.
Kennedy waits in hospital, but eating, watching TV
BOSTON - Sen. Edward Kennedy remained in the hospital yesterday, awaiting test results that could explain why he had a seizure a day earlier.
Obama warns seniors of McCain's Social Security plan
GRESHAM, Ore. - Democrat Barack Obama told seniors yesterday that Republican John McCain would threaten the Social Security that they and millions like them depend on because he supports privatizing the program.
Les Payne: Obama, don't let Hillary drive
It seems now that Hillary Rodham Clinton might stoop to accept the vice presidency provided that it's the " Dick Cheney" model, which is to say that it's the presidency.
Ellis Henican: Some call John McCain the "geezer" candidate
It's one of the real novelties of Election 2008: There's someone for everyone to prejudge.
Clinton, Obama aides discuss joint fundraising
WASHINGTON - Top fundraisers for Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama have begun private talks aimed at merging the two candidates' teams, not waiting for the Democratic nominating process to end before they start preparations for a hard-fought fall campaign.
NOW ON SPINCYCLE
We'll do one more post on this Bush-McCain-Obama battle over Israel/Iraq/Iran/Hamas appeasement because it's one of the first extended exchanges of the campaign, and it sets down some markers.
Huckabee misses mark with Obama remark in NRA speech
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Republican Mike Huckabee responded to an offstage noise during his speech to the National Rifle Association Friday by suggesting it was Barack Obama diving to the floor because someone had aimed a gun at him.
Obama, McCain exchange heated words over foreign policy
WASHINGTON - Barack Obama and John McCain escalated their war of words over foreign policy Friday - with Obama using an attack on his rival's "irresponsible" views to send a second message to Republicans as well:
Tennessee Republicans' video slams Michelle Obama
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Tennessee Republican Party "welcomed" Michelle Obama's visit for a fundraiser Thursday night with an online video taking the Democratic presidential front-runner's wife to task for a comment some considered unpatriotic.
McCain: Iraq War can be won by 2013
WASHINGTON - Sen. John McCain looked into the future yesterday and predicted that American troops would return home in victory by the end of his first term as president in 2013.
Obama blasts Bush for 'false political attack'
WASHINGTON - Barack Obama accused President George W. Bush of "a false political attack" yesterday after Bush warned in Israel against appeasing terrorists - early salvos in a general election campaign that's already blazing.
Troubling, tired tactic
There they go again. Republicans peddling fear. The most recent offender was President George W. Bush. Addressing Israel's Knesset yesterday, he took a moment to play down-and-dirty domestic politics, linking anyone who would talk with the nation's enemies to those who succumbed to "the false comfort of appeasement" in 1939 "as Nazi tanks crossed into Poland."
ON THE TRAIL
Hillary Rodham Clinton yesterday backed away from her comments about support among "white Americans," saying she agreed with a top New York Democrat who criticized her remarks. Harlem Rep. Charles Rangel said Saturday that Clinton's comments were "the dumbest thing" she could have said. "Well, he's probably right," Clinton said on CNN last night. "Obviously I have worked very hard to get the votes of everyone ... And I know Senator [Barack] Obama has worked hard to reach out to every community and constituency." Clinton said she was referring to an Associated Press story about the primaries when she made the comments a week ago to USA Today, saying she was winning the support of "hardworking Americans, white Americans."
House Republicans vow change after losing 3rd seat
WASHINGTON - Stunned House Republicans vowed campaign changes yesterday and debated the wisdom of attacking Democratic presidential front-runner Barack Obama in congressional races after their third straight election defeat in once-friendly territory.
Punchlines
Comedy writer Janice Hough: "Despite her recent win in West Virginia, Hillary Clinton has almost no mathematical chance for the nomination, and almost no time left to catch up. Yet she still insists she will win. I guess she really did grow up a Cubs fan."
Edwards' long-sought endorsement goes to Obama
WASHINGTON - Former presidential hopeful John Edwards endorsed Barack Obama yesterday, giving him a boost with blue-collar voters - and delivering what Obama hopes will be a coup de grace to Hillary Rodham Clinton's campaign.
James Klurfeld: Will gas prices kill suburban driving?
Iappreciate the argument that experts are making about why the various proposals to suspend gasoline taxes for the summer don't make any sense economically or from the point of view of a rational energy policy.
Obama apologizes for calling TV reporter 'sweetie'
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama apologized yesterday to a television reporter for calling her "sweetie" during a campaign stop yesterday in Michigan.
Pastor problems
This eventful 2008 contest for the White House is constantly rewriting the campaign rule books, and by now there must be a chapter on associations with firebrand pastors whose preachings can't survive national scrutiny.
West Virginia win propels Clinton to stay in race
CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Hillary Rodham Clinton cited her lopsided 2-to-1 win in West Virginia last night as proof she should fight on for the next three weeks - but her celebration will be cut short when she's grilled today by supporters eager to know her rationale for remaining in the race.
Clinton win unlikely to derail Obama nomination
WASHINGTON - This isn't exactly the victory lap Barack Obama had in mind.
ON THE TRAIL
Sen. John McCain called for reductions in carbon emissions yesterday and criticized the Bush administration for failing to lead the fight against climate change. In a speech in Portland, Ore., the likely Republican presidential nominee proposed a "cap-and-trade" system to reduce greenhouse gases and allow the sale of rights to excess emissions by firms that reduce their own. He also said more international cooperation is needed. "I will not shirk the mantle of leadership that the United States bears," McCain said.
Clinton compares her campaign to JFK'sin 1960
CLEAR FORK, W.Va. - Hillary Rodham Clinton compared her underdog quest for the White House yesterday to John F. Kennedy's 1960 campaign - while her top strategist likened Barack Obama's sky-high confidence to George W. Bush's infamous "Mission Accomplished" declaration.
ON THE TRAIL
Representing the military regime in Myanmar has cost the man the John McCain campaign selected to run the 2008 Republican National Convention his post. Doug Goodyear resigned as convention coordinator yesterday - within a few hours of Newsweek posting a story online that his firm was paid $348,000 in 2002 and 2003 to represent the Burmese junta. In a two-sentence statement, the chief executive of lobbying firm DCI Group said he offered the convention his resignation "so as not to become a distraction in this campaign. I continue to strongly support John McCain for president, and wish him the best of luck in this campaign."
Rangel rips Hillary
One of Hillary Rodham Clinton's most important supporters, Charles Rangel, repudiated her claims she has broader support among "white Americans," calling the comments "the dumbest thing she could ever have said."
W.Va. still skeptical
MOOREFIELD, W.Va. - In Hardy County, Democrats outnumber Republicans more than 2 to 1. But there is little enthusiasm for Barack Obama in this mountainside enclave - a portent of trouble for the Illinois senator in this Tuesday's West Virginia presidential primary and the general election beyond.
Les Payne: And the rightful winner is...
With math, by-laws and the democratic process favoring her opponent, Hillary Rodham Clinton's campaign options appear to be either attempting an intra-party coup d'etat or playing what in Alabama used to be called the "cracker card."
John Edwards says Barack Obama is "likely" nominee
Former Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards said yesterday he thinks Barack Obama will be the party's presidential nominee and that Hillary Rodham Clinton must be careful not to damage party prospects in November as she campaigns on.
President calls Jenna's wedding 'spectacular'
WACO, Texas - President George W. Bush spent months joking about being a father of the bride, but yesterday he was downright wistful about giving his daughter Jenna away to her longtime beau.
ON THE TRAIL
Arizona Sen. John McCain touted his environmental record in a morning campaign stop in New Jersey yesterday. He announced support for a Senate measure to limit greenhouse gases. The America's Climate Security Act would reduce industrial greenhouse gas emissions to two-thirds of 2005 levels by midcentury. Some pundits yesterday expressed the view McCain would annoy pro-business conservatives by supporting the measure.
Clinton's grip on superdelegates is slipping
WASHINGTON - It's not a stampede yet - but the superdelegates are starting to gallop toward Barack Obama.
Clinton, Obama hesitate to build "Dream Ticket"
CHARLESTON, W.Va. - There's only one problem with the idea of a Hillary Clinton- Barack Obama "Dream Team" ticket - neither member of the team is ready to buy the dream.
With party OK, will voters pick Obama in November?
DURHAM, N.C. - Even though it looks increasingly certain Barack Obama will be his party's nominee, his campaign still struggles with one nagging question that Tuesday's big win here did not erase: Can he beat John McCain in the fall with the voters who are powering his primary wins?
James Klurfeld: Long Island, our Senator has tough choice to make
The Hillary Clinton we've seen over the past few weeks of the campaign is the Hillary Clinton many of us have come to know in New York over the past eight years: Bright, tenacious, charming to a degree unexpected, indefatigable in her determination to demonstrate that a Midwesterner by way of Arkansas and Washington could represent New York with all its different regions and diversity.
Clinton supporters: It may be time to call it quits
INDIANAPOLIS - It ain't over 'til it's over, but a growing number of Hillary Rodham Clinton's closest friends now think it's really over.
Clinton nearly toast, so why is she still in race?
In political races, toast is a relative term.
ON THE TRAIL
Indy Series driver Sarah Fisher is backing Hillary Rodham Clinton in the Democratic presidential race and she had planned to surprise the candidate yesterday morning by putting the campaign's "Hillary" logo on the team's powder-blue race car. Minutes before Clinton arrived at Fisher's garage on the grounds of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the panels bearing the logo were taken off. It turns out a free advertisement on an IndyCar car meets the definition of a corporate donation, and that isn't allowed under federal campaign finance laws.
State Senate pushes for gas tax holiday
ALBANY - With gasoline prices nearing $4 a gallon, the Senate planned to pass a bill today that would suspend the state's gasoline taxes for the summer months. But the Republican-backed measure faces opposition in the Assembly and reservations in the governor's office.
Obama celebrates double-digit North Carolina win
Reveling in his first major win in three months, Barack Obama returned to his major themes of change and unity yesterday, seeking to allay fears of a Democratic divide come November and position himself as the candidate who can win.
Obama's North Carolina win a blow to Clinton
Barack Obama scored a resounding win in North Carolina while Hillary Rodham Clinton clung to a narrow lead in Indiana last night - delivering a major blow to Clinton's White House hopes and intensifying a scramble for undecided superdelegates.
McCain says he'll appoint conservative judges
WASHINGTON - John McCain made a play to the GOP's right wing yesterday, vowing to appoint conservative judges like Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. and Justice Samuel Alito and blasting Democratic rivals Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton for voting against them.
Clinton shifts from policy to populism
Hillary Rodham Clinton began the campaign in pearls, assembling a team of fundraisers that included luminaries from New York's financial services industry.
Actor Tom Hanks announces he's backing Obama
Tom Hanks is supporting presidential hopeful Barack Obama.
As race tightens, Obama tries to lighten up
As Barack Obama's campaign for president hit one of its toughest stretches in recent days, his two young daughters made their first appearance on the campaign trail since South Carolina.
ON THE TRAIL
Running out of high- dollar donors, Hillary Rodham Clinton's presidential campaign is stepping up its Internet appeals in hopes of attracting enough contributions to keep afloat financially in the last stretch of Democratic primaries, aides say. Clinton aides have sought increasingly to shadow rival Barack Obama's Internet juggernaut that has raised more than $112 million. A senior Clinton fundraising operative confided that big donors are nearly tapped out. "I think the tank is empty," said the fundraiser, who insisted on anonymity. "This is just unprecedented money raising. ... Where there is money left is on the Internet."
Obama can't shake Wright; Clinton defends gas plan
Hillary Rodham Clinton's name is on the ballot in Indiana and North Carolina tomorrow - but Barack Obama seemed to be running against the Rev. Jeremiah Wright yesterday.
Les Payne: Flagging Oval Office hope among African-Americans
'I think you can stick a fork in Barack Obama," said the patriarch of a respected middle class, Connecticut family Friday. "He is done."
May 4: Suffolk police, primary votes, boater safety, bag recycling woes
Highway needs patrolling
Hard to believe Hillary's still here
WASHINGTON - It's gone on for 16 months, longer than many jail sentences and most Hollywood marriages. Forty-seven states and territories with 30.7 million voters have cast ballots. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama have collectively raised and spent nearly a half-billion dollars on TV ads, millionaire consultants, flowers, rental jets and doughnuts.
Suddenly ordinary: Oprah, Obama
Marjorie Valbrun is a Washington, D.C.-based journalist. A slightly longer version of this article appeared in TheRoot.com, a magazine of commentary from a variety of black perspectives.
Scaling down the pitches
INDIANAPOLIS - Bringing the race for the Democratic nomination closer to home yesterday, both Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama opted to make closing arguments in small-scale, family-friendly settings where their climbs are steepest in Tuesday's primaries - North Carolina for Clinton and Indiana for Obama.
Clinton, Obama highlight differences over gas tax
MUNSTER, Ind. - Hillary Rodham Clinton called for a vote Friday in the Democratic-controlled Congress on a summertime suspension of the federal gasoline tax, a plan that Barack Obama dismissed as a political stunt that would cost thousands of construction jobs.
Expressway: Muslim stereotypes hurt us, one and all
In today's mixing world, with interracial couples becoming commonplace and Barack Obama having a shot at the presidency, it might seem silly to say that race is a problem in the United States. Still, people are exposed to racial stereotypes every day.
May 3: Rudy's Communion, the Rev. Wright, LIPA, syringe case
Communion a teaching moment
Poll reveals gas pump woes; politicians offer some relief
STATE ACTION? The State Senate is expected as early as next week to take up a Republican-backed bill to suspend the state's gasoline tax this summer, but Gov. David A. Paterson and the Assembly speaker have expressed reservations about it.
May 2: Age divide, adopted kids, driving age, Brookhaven politics
Thanks for helicopter quiet
James Klurfeld: Long, winding presidential campaign road no good
This campaign has gone on entirely too long.
Clinton superdelegate defects to Obama
WASHINGTON - Barack Obama gobbled up a major Hillary Clinton superdelegate yesterday - but he's suffering from a decline in the polls that coincides with the national tour conducted by his firebrand former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright.
Wright's comments likely to draw voters from Obama
With polls showing increasingly tight races in Indiana and North Carolina's Democratic presidential primaries, political experts in those states said yesterday that Sen. Barack Obama's renouncement of his firebrand former pastor may not be enough to stop his political bleeding.
ON THE TRAIL
Barack Obama's presidential campaign wants federal regulators to investigate fellow Democrats who are backing Hillary Clinton's candidacy, taking intraparty discord to a new level. Obama's campaign lawyer, Robert Bauer, filed a complaint yesterday with the Federal Election Commission, accusing the pro-Clinton American Leadership Project of violating campaign finance laws by running ads against Obama. The group is largely financed by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees and is run by Democratic operatives, many of them based in California and who have past connections to Clinton or her husband. Its organizers say they are abiding by the law and a 2007 Supreme Court ruling.
Blacks who excel disprove notion America's racist
The unvarnished truth about Rev. Jeremiah Wright finally hit Sen. Barack Obama between the eyes. Reverend Wright is Reverend Wrong - the wrong man to be pastor to the candidate who is seeking to transcend racial divisions and to smash into smithereens the color barrier that has stymied equal opportunity in America.
Clinton and O'Reilly target Jeremiah Wright
WASHINGTON - Hillary Rodham Clinton and conservative commentator Bill O'Reilly don't agree on much.
Not just a test for Obama
One concern about Barack Obama is that he's never had to run the gantlet of sharp knives that come out in high-stakes national political fights. Now the knives are out. Obama is being sorely tested by the Rev. Jeremiah Wright imbroglio. But Obama isn't the only one who will be tested now that Wright's views on race and America are out there for all to hear. The nation's voters will be, too.
Punchlines
Conan O'Brien, "Late Night with Conan O'Brien": "Hillary Clinton says she's willing to debate Barack Obama. This is
Black pastors speak out on Wright's statements
The Rev. Sedgwick Easley of the Union Baptist Church in Hempstead was sitting in the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., on Monday when the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr. spoke and generated worldwide headlines.
Wright drives a wedge between Obama and whites
For weeks the Rev. Jeremiah Wright was right to castigate those who used sound bites from his fiery sermons to paint him as "some sort of fanatic." But his latest wounds are self-inflicted. And, as Sen. Barack Obama's recently retired pastor, Wright is taking the Illinois Democrat's presidential campaign down, too.
Huckabee: Rev. Wright needs for Obama to lose
Former Republican presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee said yesterday Barack Obama's bid for the White House is being derailed because his former pastor does not want him to prove the country's race relations have progressed.
Review: 'The Soiling of Old Glory,' by Louis Masur
THE SOILING OF OLD GLORY: The Story of a Photograph That Shocked America, by Louis P. Masur. Bloomsbury, 224 pp., $24.95
Time on Murdoch’s side in Newsday buy
There is little the federal government can do to stop Rupert Murdoch from buying Newsday, despite some congressional opposition, objections from public-interest groups and a proposed deal that would violate even relaxed federal rules, media experts say.
Obama criticizes, rejects pastor in damage control
Seeking to stanch political wounds inflicted by his longtime pastor, Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama yesterday sharply criticized the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, calling his comments on race "ridiculous propositions," "outrageous remarks" and "a bunch of rants."
Move Democratic convention to end of June
Democratic Party Chair Howard Dean was right on Monday when he said that either Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama should drop out of the race for President - for the good of the party - after the last votes are counted on June 3. When the time comes, he predicted, the untenable candidate will simply know that it's all over. "They don't need any pushing from me," he said.
Clinton to appear on O'Reilly show
He's a right-wing television commentator known for anti-liberal harangues.
Obama: Candidates' gas holiday proposal a 'gimmick'
Democrat Barack Obama dismissed his rivals' calls for national gas tax holiday as a political ploy that won't help struggling consumers. Hillary Rodham Clinton said his stance shows he's out of touch with the economic realities faced by ordinary citizens.
No such thing as a free tank
Soaring gas prices are hurting consumers and, for politicians, "consumer" is another word for "voter," and "hurting" is another word for "opportunity." So it's no surprise that presidential hopefuls Sens. John McCain and Hillary Clinton and some members of the New York State Legislature have proposed a summer gas-tax holiday. Bad idea.
ON THE TRAIL
Republican John McCain wants to change how Americans get their health insurance, shifting away from job-based coverage to an open market where people can choose from competing policies. McCain said yesterday that he would offer families a $5,000 tax credit to help buy insurance. Everyone would get the credit, even if they have a policy through an employer. "You simply choose the insurance provider that suits you best," McCain said in a speech in Tampa, Fla. "The health plan you chose would be as good as any that an employer could choose for you." To pay for the tax credit, McCain would eliminate the tax exemption for people whose employers pay a portion of their coverage, raising an estimated $3.6 trillion in revenues, aides said. Democratic rival Hillary Clinton said under McCain's plan, millions of Americans would lose their health care coverage through their jobs. "The McCain plan eliminates the policies that hold the employer-based health insurance system together, so while people might have a 'choice' of getting such coverage, employers would have no incentive to provide it," she said. A spokesman for Democrat Barack Obama said McCain was "recycling the same failed policies that didn't work when George Bush first proposed them and won't work now." --The Associated Press
Dean: Clinton or Obama must concede after June 3
WASHINGTON - Democratic Party Chairman Howard Dean said yesterday that either Hillary Rodham Clinton or Barack Obama must drop out of the Democratic presidential race after the June primaries in order to unify the party by the convention.
High court approves state photo voter-ID mandates
WASHINGTON - States can require voters to produce photo identification, the Supreme Court ruled yesterday, upholding a Republican-inspired law that Democrats say will keep some poor, older and minority voters from casting ballots.
ON THE TRAIL
Hillary Rodham Clinton does better than Barack Obama when matched against Republican John McCain, according to the latest Associated Press-Ipsos poll. Clinton leads McCain 50 percent to 41 percent while Obama is ahead 46-44, within the margin of error, according to the poll taken after Clinton's Pennsylvania primary victory last week. But the matchups were closer in a Gallup poll released yesterday. Clinton leads McCain 47-44 while Obama runs even with him at 45 percent, the poll found.
Rev. Wright pops back up, much to Obama's chagrin
WASHINGTON - Barack Obama's backers say the Rev. Jeremiah Wright has resurfaced at precisely the wrong time - trumpeting his controversial racial and political views to reporters just as Obama is struggling to win over skeptical white voters.
Wright jabs back at critics
DETROIT - The outspoken former pastor of Barack Obama told an audience of 10,000 yesterday that despite what his critics say, he is descriptive, not divisive, when he speaks about racial injustice.
April 28: LIRR gap fix costs, school board spending bias, campaign issues
LIRR gap fix getting too costly
Trash talking ain't nothing this campaign season
After Hillary Clinton's surprisingly comfortable win in Pennsylvania last week, the Democratic primary moves on to North Carolina and Indiana. And so continues the dirtiest and most vitriolic political campaign in history - or so the mainstream media would have you believe.
National Democratic primary has an NYC flavor
Call them parochial, but some of the region's big-name Democratic pros are struck by the similarity between their party's ongoing presidential drama and your classic su- percharged New York primary.
McCain, Clinton for gas-tax holiday; Obama's not
For Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, who have scant policy differences between them, tackling record gas prices is shaping up to be one of those disagreements - and a potential pitfall for Obama.
Sports figures take sides with campaign donations
The world of sports is a multibillion- dollar enterprise that allows owners, team executives, head coaches and players to walk around with money clips filled with hundreds and investment accounts stuffed with millions. People with substantial money are likely to back up their political affiliations with donations. A quick search through the Federal Election Committee's public records shows contributions by several dozen sports figures.
Obama's new battleground: white working class
WASHINGTON - The morning after Barack Obama lost the white vote in the Pennsylvania primary by 26 points, his top strategist was on TV suggesting his candidate didn't necessarily need blue-collar whites to win the White House.
ON THE TRAIL
Taking the debate dispute to a new level, Hillary Rodham Clinton challenged Barack Obama to face off with her in a debate without a moderator, Lincoln-Douglas style. The Democratic presidential candidate said while campaigning in South Bend, Ind., yesterday the 90-minute debate would allow two candidates to ask each other questions. Clinton has been putting increasing pressure on Obama to debate her again before the Indiana and North Carolina primaries May 6. Responding later in the day, the Obama camp seemed to rule it out. "We have participated in 21 nationally televised debates, the most in primary history, including four exclusively with Senator Clinton," Obama campaign spokesman Robert Gibbs said in a statement, adding Obama wanted to spend time communicating with voters in the two states.
ON THE TRAIL
Democrat Barack Obama blamed high gasoline prices Friday on Washington and a political establishment, including his rivals for the presidency, that he says hasn't stood up to oil companies. Rival Hillary Rodham Clinton highlighted his vote for an energy bill she opposed and his campaign contributions from oil executives. "The candidates with the Washington experience ... mean well, but they've been in Washington for a long time and even with all that experience they talk about, nothing has happened," Obama said at an Indianapolis gas station. "This country didn't raise fuel efficiency standards for over 30 years." Clinton derided his promise to take on special interests. "When it came time to stand up against the oil companies, to stand against Dick Cheney's energy bill, my opponent voted for it and I voted against it," Clinton said at a rally at Indiana University in Bloomington.
Controversial Wright to speak at NAACP dinner
DETROIT - In many ways, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright could be viewed as a representation of quintessential Detroit: brutally honest, gritty and provocative, battered but resilient, and unapologetically black and proud.
ON THE TRAIL
Democratic Party officials may urge undecided superdelegates to choose a presidential candidate soon after the primaries end in June, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said yesterday. Reid said he is talking with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean about contacting superdelegates - party officials allowed to vote at the nominating convention - to ask them to decide between Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama. "The three of us may write a joint letter," Reid said, reflecting concern by some officials that the lengthy Democratic contest is giving the party's nominee a late start in the general election campaign against presumptive Republican nominee John McCain. Any letter to superdelegates would go out after the last Democratic primary contest on June 3, said Rodell Mollineau, a Reid spokesman.
Obama's former pastor calls attacks 'devious'
NEW YORK - The Rev. Jeremiah Wright, former pastor to Barack Obama, said publicizing sound bites of sermons in which he condemned U.S. policies was "unfair" and "devious," and done by people who know nothing about his church, according to excerpts of a PBS interview released yesterday.
James Klurfeld: Will lack of national experience hurt Obama?
The political question of the day is why Sen. Barack Obama can't close out the Democratic nomination. He missed the opportunity in New Hampshire, and then again in Texas and Ohio, and now in Pennsylvania.
ON THE TRAIL
If numbers don't lie, the Democratic presidential race is proving they can confuse: Both campaigns claim they're ahead in the popular vote. The day after her big win in Pennsylvania, Hillary Rodham Clinton said she now has more votes than anybody who has ever run for president in a Democratic primary. Not so fast, Barack Obama's campaign manager, David Plouffe, told reporters. Obama has a comfortable lead in the popular vote and doesn't expect to lose it by the time voting ends June 3, Plouffe said. So who is right? It depends on how votes are counted. Including Michigan and Florida, Clinton has 15.1 million to Obama's 15 million - a lead of about one-half of a percentage point for Clinton. Without Michigan and Florida, Obama has 14.4 million to Clinton's 13.9 million - a lead of about 1.7 percent for Obama. Clinton includes Michigan and Florida, where she won after all candidates had agreed to boycott the states for holding votes too early for party rules. But Michigan and Florida's votes don't count toward the delegate total that will determine who will win the nomination at the Democratic National Convention in August. Obama said delegates are the most important factor in determining the winner.
McCain asks North Carolina GOP to pull Obama ad
INEZ, Ky. - Republican John McCain yesterday asked the North Carolina GOP not to run a television ad that brings up the controversial former pastor of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.
Flashy presidential debates may become extinct
There may not be any more presidential debates between Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, partly because of the bad aroma that ABC's interrogation last week left behind.
The vote goes on
The case for Hillary Rodham Clinton to fight on for the Democratic presidential nomination grew stronger Tuesday after her double-digit win in Pennsylvania. But there was never much reason for her to abandon the race before every primary vote is cast. This is a democracy. Voting is what we do. It's often a messy way to choose a leader. But it's the best way.
Superdelegates seek to end Democratic contest
WASHINGTON - Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's win in Pennsylvania has bought her time - but not much - to make her case to the party's superdelegates, who expressed a strong desire yesterday to end the Democratic nominating fight well before the party's August convention.
For Democrats, still no resolution on nominee
WASHINGTON - Barack Obama may have the numbers on his side, but Hillary Rodham Clinton seems to own the map.
For Hillary, a race to raise cash - fast
PHILADELPHIA - Hillary Rodham Clinton celebrated a solid win in Pennsylvania yesterday, even as her tapped-out campaign raced to raise enough cash to compete in the do-or-die Indiana primary two weeks from now.
Obama still hopeful, confident after narrow loss
Barack Obama was in his element here last night. Working-class rocker John Cougar Mellencamp was in the house and thousands cheered as the Democratic front-runner took the stage to give his take on his narrow loss and the road ahead. He sounded hopeful and confident.
ON THE TRAIL
Former President Bill Clinton accused the Obama campaign yesterday of playing "the race card on me" after the South Carolina primary. Clinton told a Philadelphia radio station his comments were "twisted" after he likened Obama's primary victory to the Rev. Jesse Jackson's in 1988. Clinton was asked if he regretted that comparison. "No, I think that they played the race card on me," he said. "We now know from memos from the campaign and everything that they planned to do it all along." Obama scoffed at Clinton's remarks. "Hold on a second, so former President Clinton dismissed my victory in South Carolina as being similar to Jesse Jackson and he's suggesting that somehow I had something to do with it?" he said to reporters at a Pittsburgh diner. "OK, well you better ask him what he meant by that." He denied there was any plan to use the comments for political purposes.
Stayin’ alive: Clinton wins Pa.
WASHINGTON - For the third time in this primary season, Hillary Rodham Clinton needed a big win just to survive.
Clinton's presidential bid faces math challenges
SCRANTON, Pa. - Hillary Rodham Clinton vowed to take her cash-starved campaign far beyond today's Pennsylvania primary - win or lose - saying she'll fight until voters in Florida and Michigan are seated at the Democratic convention.
Clinton, Obama ante up on eve of Pennsylvania primary
MCKEESPORT, Pa. - Hillary Rodham Clinton yesterday unveiled a last-minute ad featuring images of 1970s gas lines, Hurricane Katrina and 9/11 mastermind Osama bin Laden, prompting the Barack Obama camp to accuse her of playing the fear card in the last days of this tight and crucial primary here.
ON THE TRAIL
Barack Obama took a break from the real world of campaigning yesterday to sit down with the fake news anchor, Jon Stewart, on his fake news program "The Daily Show" to talk about real issues. Stewart told Obama what is really on voters' minds this election season, and pointedly asked him to level with the American people about his intentions: "The Rev. Wright controversy, the flag pin controversy ... Will you pull a bait-and-switch, sir, and enslave the white race. Is that your plan? And if it is your plan, be honest, tell us now!" "That is not our plan, Jon," Obama said, laughing along. "But I think your paranoia might make you suitable as a debate moderator."
Obama compliments McCain
Sen. Barack Obama paid the presumptive Republican nominee a backhanded compliment yesterday.
Clinton campaign accuses Obama of being copycat
Hillary Clinton was clearly having a blast during her drop-in television appearance with Stephen Colbert here Thursday, but her campaign's mood soured when aides learned Barack Obama would be appearing on the same show via satellite.
Letters, April 21: Israel and Carter, parental profanity, state troopers
Flags of our candidates
Wanda Sykes is still a stand-up gal
Wanda Sykes doesn't have to do stand-up comedy tours anymore.
Shaun Powell: Jackson's right man, but Knicks is wrong job
His candidacy as head coach of the Knicks would borrow from the theme currently being used successfully by Barack Obama. Yes, merely by blowing his whistle at practice for the very first time, Mark Jackson would create change, be it real or imaginary.
Mr. Robinson's legacy is not dead
The really significant number on Tuesday, when Richard Lapchick released his annual report card on race and gender in baseball to coincide with Jackie Robinson Day, wasn't 8.2 but 42.
Les Payne: Ask not what we want to hear
Let 'em eat flags! This slap at voters otherwise concerned about their next mortgage payment comes, not from Marie Antoinette, but appears to be the message from the elitist managers at ABC News.
Letters, April 20: Catholics and abortion, Israel's militarism, cat advocacy
Cat advocacy vs. real concerns
Ellis Henican: The political play's the thing
It's not the political season. It's the political-theater season.
Clinton, Obama pander to the working man
PHILADELPHIA - He is running as the son of a struggling single mother forced to take food stamps.
Rick Brand: One LI woman works for Clinton, another for Obama
Dolores Sedacca was back on the road yesterday.
Local candidate campaigns on social Web sites
WASHINGTON - Lee Zeldin of Shirley is using any resource he can to win a seat in Congress this fall - even if some might still be unconventional in the political world.
On campaign rails, Obama swipes at Clinton
WYNNEWOOD, Pa. - Barack Obama used an old-style whistle-stop train tour yesterday to unleash some of his harshest attacks yet on Hillary Clinton, accusing her of "slash-and-burn," say-anything-to-win tactics ripped straight from the Republican playbook.
Around the Democratic campaign trail
Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama pushed into each other's strongholds Friday as the long Pennsylvania primary race entered its final weekend, with both trying to pick off every vote they can get. Obama shook hands at a bolt factory and beer bottling company in Erie, the type of white, working-class, economically depressed area that has supported the former first lady. Clinton campaigned for Hispanics in Philadelphia, a largely black city expected to go for Obama, before heading out to the more competitive suburbs. "I'm very happy Pennsylvania gets the right to vote," Clinton said. Few had predicted the Pennsylvania primary, coming so late, would count for as much as it does in the surprisingly extended campaign.
Saul Friedman: Saul Friedman: Why financial regulation is needed
Here is one difference between the generations:
The heart of German New York
The beer gardens, dance halls and German restaurants that lined Manhattan's East 84th Street may be long gone. But this slice of the Upper East Side known as Yorkville remains the sentimental downtown for area Germans.
Gotchas and gaffes
A flag pin that Barack Obama sometimes doesn't wear? Obama's neighbor, an English professor who was a member of the radical Weather Underground - 40 years ago? And again with Hillary Clinton's bogus Bosnia recollections and Obama's relationship with the Rev. Jeremiah Wright?
Letters, April 18: US and torture, wasteful schools, Southside hospital
U.S. must stop torture
Critics: ABC debate "trivial," focused on past
Democrat Barack Obama yesterday dismissed some of the questions from the ABC News presidential debate as "playing gotcha games."
When it comes to campaigning, gall is what counts
All three U.S. Senators running for president have begun sticking faster than glue to an unwritten rule of the campaign trail: Gall is a virtue, and the biggest shame is being ashamed.
Clinton, Obama, Edwards visit "Colbert Report"
PHILADELPHIA - Hillary Rodham Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards converged on Colbert Nation yesterday.
Their Philly faceoff
PHILADELPHIA - Hillary Rodham Clinton hammered away at Barack Obama during the first Democratic debate in over a month, while an annoyed Obama accused her of turning off voters by pouncing on gaffes instead of discussing grave problems like the economy and Iraq.
Obamas made $4.2M last year
PHILADELPHIA - Barack and Michelle Obama made $4.2 million last year, with the bulk of the income coming from sales of the senator's two best-selling books, according to tax returns released yesterday.
ON THE TRAIL
Rep. John Murtha, 75, said yesterday that Republican Sen. John McCain is too old to be president. Murtha, who is four years older than McCain, says the rigors and stress of the presidency are too much for men their age. "This one guy running is about as old as me," the Pennsylvania Democrat told a union audience in Washington, D.C. "Let me tell you something, it's no old man's job." McCain's campaign yesterday called Murtha's comments "nonsense attacks." If elected, McCain would be the oldest man to become president at age 72.
Springsteen backs Obama for president
The Boss backed Barack Obama yesterday, possibly giving the current Democratic front-runner some street cred - at least among Bruce fans.
Polls unresponsive to flak over Obama comment
PITTSBURGH - The "bitter" bounce Hillary Rodham Clinton was counting on to jump-start her flagging presidential campaign hasn't yet materialized, at least according to polls released yesterday - possibly dashing her hopes for blowout wins in key states.
Frustration in lack of control over one's job
The idea that working-class Americans might be angry, bitter or frustrated is not news to Michael Zweig, an economist at Stony Brook University who since 1999 has run the Center for Study of Working Class Life, one of a handful of institutes around the country conducting research and conferences in the relatively young field of working-class studies. Zweig was interviewed by Newsday's Sunday Opinion editor, Leslie Seifert.
Bitter, angry citizens product of uncertainty?
In 1982 I rode a freight train into Fresno, Calif. I found Fred Johnson, a brand new hobo, sitting trackside. The unemployed middle-aged fork lift operator from Chicago was contemplating selling his blood so he could eat. When I asked about his future, he buried his head in his arms and sobbed.
Obama's responses to controversy may be hurting him
PHILADELPHIA - When controversial comments made by Barack Obama's fiery former pastor surfaced recently, the Democratic front-runner stood in front of cameras and gave what many consider a landmark speech on race.
ON THE TRAIL
Democratic Sen. Barack Obama yesterday questioned rival Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's opposition to free trade agreements that some voters contend have eliminated thousands of U.S. jobs, and mocked her weekend visit to an Indiana bar as pandering to the working class. "Around election time, the candidates can't do enough for you. They'll ... give you a long list of proposals and even come around, with TV crews in tow, to throw back a shot and a beer," Obama told a meeting of the Alliance for American Manufacturing in Pittsburgh. Clinton did just that at a stop Saturday at Bronko's restaurant in Crown Point, Ind. Obama also chided Clinton over NAFTA and the Colombian trade deal. Clinton has criticized NAFTA, which was passed under her husband's watch, and she opposes the Colombian trade deal. Addressing the gathering later yesterday, Clinton said her husband made mistakes related to NAFTA but that she planned to fix them. Clinton said she would either address the NAFTA problems leading to job losses, or would tell Canada and Mexico that the United States is pulling out of the agreement. - The Associated Press
At Olympics let's go for more Jesse Owens moments
'The Olympic Games belong to the athletes and not to the politicians," the late Avery Brundage, a past president of the International Olympic Committee, once said.
TODAY'S PICKS
Democratic Presidential Debate (8 p.m., ABC/7) - Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama square off from Philadelphia. George Stephanopoulos and Charles Gibson moderate.
Obama campaign struggles to win over Catholics
COLUMBUS, Ind. - Barack Obama was waiting in the wings when the priest began to bless his rally last week in this conservative, middle-class Indiana town.
Obama accuses Clinton of smearing him
GRANTHAM, Pa.- Barack Obama lashed out at Hillary Rodham Clinton last night for criticizing his comments over "bitter" workers clinging to God and guns, accusing her of talking up hunting "like she's Annie Oakley ... packing a six-shooter" and stealing Republican talking points to smear him.
Obama camp in damage-control mode after remarks
MUNCIE, Ind. - Hillary Rodham Clinton's flagging campaign has been given new life in Pennsylvania and beyond after Barack Obama was forced into a second day of damage control yesterday for calling small-town Americans "bitter."
Obama draws fine line between lobbyist, lawyer donors
WASHINGTON - Last fall, Barack Obama quietly slipped into the Miami headquarters of a major law firm scarred by the scandals of Jack Abramoff, its once-powerful Washington lobbyist who now sits in jail.
Miss USA wants to help others reach their goals
LAS VEGAS - The newly crowned Miss USA said she is eager to travel and spread her message of self-improvement to young women.
Clinton, McCain accuse Obama of elitism
WASHINGTON - Barack Obama's battle to win the soul of blue-collar America may have suffered a major blow after he claimed small-town Pennsylvanians "cling to" God, guns or hostility toward immigrants to cope with their bitterness over the economy.
Saul Friedman: Applying Roosevelt and Lincoln to today
Today is another date that has been fixed in my memory, the day word reached me in my place of part-time work - a Brooklyn photofinishing shop - that the president of my youth, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, had died.
ON THE TRAIL
Sen. Hillary Clinton's call for President George W. Bush to boycott opening ceremonies at the 2008 Olympics in China has garnered rare bipartisan support: both Republican presidential candidate John McCain and Democratic rival Barack Obama are now behind the idea. McCain added his voice to the growing chorus of officials urging Bush to consider boycotting, telling ABC's "The View" yesterday, "Unless they change some things pretty quickly, I would not go to the opening ceremonies." Clinton called on Bush on Monday not to attend in protest at China's human rights record and Wednesday Obama issued a statement urging Bush to consider a boycott of the opening gala. UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who visits the White House next week, has said while he will attend the Games, he won't be at the opening fanfare. His office stresses this isn't a boycott, but his visit and the joint Bush-Brown Rose Garden news conference on Thursday could prove a convenient setting for Bush to announce his attendance at the event China hopes will showcase its economic and political power.
McCain offers plan to help homeowners with mortgages
Sen. John McCain shifted his stance on the mortgage crisis yesterday, acknowledging that the country can't rebound from the foreclosure epidemic without some government assistance to homeowners.
WORLD & NATION: AT HOME
A Marine wanted in the brutal slaying of a pregnant colleague who had accused him of rape was arrested in Mexico, the FBI said late yesterday. The FBI's office in Charlotte, N.C., said special agents and Mexican authorities arrested Cpl. Cesar Laurean, who is charged with murder in the death of Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach. The FBI did not say when or where Laurean was arrested, but said he is awaiting extradition. Onslow County District Attorney Dewey Hudson said after Laurean's arrest was announced that "it could be a year or two" before authorities can bring the personnel clerk back to North Carolina if he decides to fight the extradition process.
James Klurfeld: Election year politics and the cost of war
To appreciate the ongoing debate over U.S. policy toward Iraq this week, first you have to understand the different agendas of the players. And then try to move beyond those agendas.
Bloomberg opens for McCain; poll favors Rice as VP
With the nation's presidential candidates all seeking his endorsement, Mayor Michael Bloomberg planned to appear today at an event with Republican nominee John McCain.
In Pa., Obama, Clinton hit McCain on economy, Iraq
LEVITTOWN, Pa. - Even though they were in the same state yesterday, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton were mostly looking past each other to attack Republican John McCain, linking him to the faltering economy and the slow progress in Iraq.
Obama transcends race by addressing it
So, how's that national conversation on race going?
The Iraq countdown
The only timetable that much matters in Iraq is the countdown to the election - the U.S. presidential election. After two days of congressional testimony by President George W. Bush's top general and top diplomat in Iraq, it's clear that, unfortunately, there will be no significant change in the approach to the war on Bush's watch.
Elton John: Sexism to blame for Clinton's lag in polls
A bitter Sir Elton John thinks America's sexism may be sinking his friend Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Punchlines
Comedy writer Patrick Gorse: "Hillary Clinton says she's been warning of the current U.S. economic downturn for a year, characterizing herself as a female Paul Revere shouting, 'The recession is coming, the recession is coming!' John McCain criticized Hillary saying, 'Senator, I served with Paul Revere. I knew Paul Revere; Paul Revere was a friend of mine. Senator Clinton, you're no Paul Revere.'"
King's dream still not achieved in United States
During Martin Luther King Jr.'s life, there was one black senator. Now 40 years after his death, Barack Obama, an African-American, could become the Democratic nominee for president and his primary opponent is a woman.
Clinton, McCain, Obama question Gen. Petraeus
WASHINGTON - Gen. David Petraeus stepped into the crossfire of presidential politics on Capitol Hill yesterday as Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama attacked his plan to indefinitely suspend troop reductions this summer.
Bill, Hillary Clinton differ on Colombian free trade
WASHINGTON - Add former President Bill Clinton to the list of backers of Colombian free trade who also back Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton - who is running hard against the deal on the campaign trail.
Clinton: Bush should boycott China Olympics ceremony
WASHINGTON - Hillary Rodham Clinton is calling on President George W. Bush to boycott the opening ceremonies of this summer's Beijing Olympics over China's clampdown in Tibet and its support of Sudan's leadership.
Clinton wants to boost breast cancer funding by $300M
WASHINGTON - Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton announced yesterday that she wants to increase breast cancer research by $300 million if elected president.
McCain takes shot at Democrats over Iraq War
WASHINGTON - Bashing his Democratic rivals for pushing "a hasty, reckless, and irresponsible withdrawal," John McCain yesterday took the first shot in the political fight over Gen. David Petraeus' Senate testimony today on the progress of the war in Iraq.
Clinton's top campaign strategist forced out
Hillary and Bill Clinton forced out Mark Penn yesterday after the campaign's chief strategist admitted meeting with Colombian officials to push for a trade agreement she opposes.
Les Payne: Martin Luther King deserves credit of his legacy
When Martin Luther King was gunned down that terrible Thursday in Memphis 40 years ago, FBI agents celebrated the death of the civil rights leader President Lyndon B. Johnson had taken to calling that "goddamn nigger preacher."
Rick Brand: Brand: Grassroots organizer's death mourned
It was a perfect Martha moment.
McCain calls for respectful presidential campaign
PRESCOTT, Ariz. - Republican Sen. John McCain called yesterday for a presidential campaign that is more like a respectful argument among friends than a bitter clash of enemies, and said he is better able than either of his Democratic rivals to govern across party lines.
Presidential candidates will question Petraeus on Iraq
WASHINGTON - When Army Gen. David Petraeus delivers his assessment of the Iraq war next week, the next commander in chief will weigh in as well.
Timing of tax information may backfire on Clinton
On the 40th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination, Hillary Rodham Clinton flew to Memphis, Tenn., where she called for the appointment of a cabinet-level "poverty czar" to cope with the economic downturn.
Colombians fire PR firm tied to Clinton strategist
EUGENE, Ore. - The Colombian government fired the public relations firm run by Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's chief strategist yesterday after he tried to distance himself from a meeting he held with the country's ambassador to the United States.
Clinton aide: Colombia trade meeting 'an error'
WASHINGTON - Hillary Rodham Clinton's chief strategist apologized Friday for meeting Colombian officials pushing a free-trade agreement the presidential candidate opposes.
Clinton tax returns show financial turnaround
WASHINGTON - The Clintons have gone from the White House to the poorhouse to the penthouse, earning $109 million since 2000, according to tax returns released by the campaign late Friday.
Uniondale ceremony marks King's death 40 years ago
At a Uniondale park named in honor of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., students, residents and county officials gathered Friday like many across the nation to celebrate King's legacy and remember his final days on the 40th anniversary of his assassination.
Q&A: Avoiding a financial meltdown
What would have been the result if Bear Stearns & Co. had gone bankrupt? Was the Federal Reserve right to help it out?
Obama continues to surpass Clinton in fundraising
WASHINGTON - When it comes to Democratic fundraising, anything she can do, he can do better.
Clinton not trailing Obama enough to leave race
Calls for Sen. Hillary Clinton to drop out of the race for the Democratic nomination for president are mostly based on the fact that Sen. Barack Obama is leading in the delegate count.
Choose candidate by record, not race or gender
"I am sure that every one of my colleagues - Democrat, Republican and independent - agrees with that statement. That in every voting booth, everyone is equal."
McCain says he's ready to look at running mates
A month after wrapping up the Republican presidential nomination, John McCain said yesterday he had finally begun a process to pick a running mate - a crucial piece in his emerging national political campaign.
Black America can see the promised land
Words do matter. Forty years ago the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. ended a rally speech in Memphis on a note that was eerily prophetic, since it would turn out to be his final speech.
Punchlines
Bill Maher, "Real Time with Bill Maher": "Hillary was caught in a bit of a lie. When she was first lady, she went to Bosnia when it was war-torn. She said that she faced sniper fire. Never happened. And had to run to the car for cover. Never happened. If only she had channeled that active fantasy world into her marriage."
Clinton's old ad used in new attack - on McCain
Trailing in money, popular votes and delegates, Hillary Rodham Clinton is reaching back to one of her oldest arguments to win over Democrats - I'm the one who can beat Republican John McCain.
Clinton says she's like Rocky, won't quit race
WASHINGTON - Maybe she forgot how the movie ends.
Margaret Cho brings 'Beautiful' to Westbury
Not long ago, Margaret Cho was interviewed by a radio DJ. He asked her: "What would you do if you woke up tomorrow and you were blonde and had blue eyes and weighed 100 pounds and were ... beautiful?"
ON THE TRAIL
John McCain returned to his high school in Alexandria, Va., yesterday to reminisce about a teacher who inspired him and stress his support for weeding out the good from the bad in today's classroom instructors. The stop was part of the presumptive GOP nominee's weeklong campaign trip to locations that played an important role in his life.
Gap between Clinton and truth growing vast
"It was just my imagination, once again, running away with me." - The Temptations, 1971
Obama gets backing of second female senator
Barack Obama secured the backing of a second female senator yesterday as a top supporter of rival Hillary Rodham Clinton raised expectations for Obama in the upcoming Pennsylvania primary.
Health care tab part of Clinton camp's $8M debt
WASHINGTON - Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton promotes health care as a top focus of her presidential bid, but her campaign's accountants aren't staying on message.
'Superhero Movie'
If the mere mention of any of these strikes you as funny - YouTube, Craigslist, Facebook, MySpace, "2 Girls, 1 Cup," Perez Hilton, Wikipedia - you are 75-percent of the way to enjoying most of the humor in "Superhero Movie," the latest in a series of genre spoofs to open in theaters.
Les Payne: Party faithful watch as Hillary Clinton fights on
Why won't Hillary leave the race? Does she know something we don't? The twin question was put directly to the candidate during a Wednesday conference call with a group of African-American newspaper columnists.
Clinton, Obama talk jobs in Pa., Ind., Ky.
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. - Barack Obama offered a bit of tough love to Pennsylvania voters yesterday, saying some industrial and manufacturing jobs may not return to this steel region, but others could take their place.
Obama picks up endorsement; Clinton urged to quit
PITTSBURGH - Barack Obama got a boost in the last big state of the long Democratic campaign Friday with an endorsement from Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey Jr., while another Obama supporter sought to nudge Hillary Rodham Clinton out of the race.
When is it OK for the clergy to be political?
Frank Oliva, president, Muttontown Unitarian Universalist Fellowship:
Ellis Henican: Henican: Obama, Bloomberg shine but no endorsement
Which color are you?
In city, Obama talks economy, praises Bloomberg
Democrat Barack Obama swept into Manhattan yesterday with a stern message about stricter government regulation on Wall Street - and some sweet talk for Mayor Michael Bloomberg, whose presidential endorsement is still up for grabs.
James Klurfeld: Time for a '30s-style government mortgage role
Enough already with the brouhaha over Sen. Barack Obama's pastor and whether Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton was greeted by sniper fire in Bosnia. In this crazy kaleidoscope of shifting charges and countercharges that passes as a campaign, there was a moment of real importance this week that shouldn't get short shrift.
Obama offers hope for us, not mud or gall
As Hillary Rodham Clinton's kitchen sink slowly erodes Obamania, I've taken quite a bit of flak for sticking by my candidate. Surely, I hear, I should "come around" and realize that Clinton, a one-and-change-term senator and former first lady, is the logical and responsible choice for the Democratic presidential nomination in the fall. I've had my fun, but now it's time to settle down and return to reality.
Clinton pilot refutes Bosnia "sniper fire" tale
WASHINGTON - A retired Air Force officer who claims to have piloted Hillary Rodham Clinton on her 1996 flight to Bosnia raised doubts about her recollection that passengers sat on flak jackets to protect themselves - joking that Clinton borrowed the detail from the Vietnam epic "Apocalypse Now."
Punchlines
Jay Leno, "The Tonight Show": "Big controversy after State Department officials looked at passport files for the three major candidates. Turns out they got ahold of John McCain's Social Security number. Know what it is? Three."
Passport file snooping expands at State Department
WASHINGTON - State Department workers viewed passport applications containing personal data on high-profile Americans, including the late Playboy playmate Anna Nicole Smith, at least 20 times since January 2007, The Associated Press has learned.
'21'
"The best thing about Vegas," says a character in the new suspense lark "21," "is you can become anything you want."
Obama reveals taxes
WASHINGTON - Barack Obama released seven years of tax returns yesterday, providing a financial profile of a public official whose family income soared eight-fold after he signed lucrative book contracts in 2004 following his election to the Senate.
Clinton: Wright 'would not have been my pastor'
WASHINGTON - Hillary Rodham Clinton was full of Wright-eous indignation yesterday, seeking to change the subject as she fended off criticism of inconsistencies in her Bosnian war story.
Ellis Henican: Henican: At least Paterson keeps it real
All that's left is the rock and roll.
Clinton, Obama campaigns snipe at each other
Hillary Rodham Clinton "misspoke" when she asserted last week that as first lady she had landed in war-torn Bosnia under sniper fire, her campaign spokesman said yesterday.
McCain walks fine line on Iraq, diplomacy overseas
PARIS - Standing along the edge of the Gaza Strip and flanked by a hero of the Israeli military last week, Sen. John McCain invoked the tough rhetoric of President George W. Bush, warning of Iranian influence in the Middle East and cautioning against negotiations with terrorists.
Obama, family take time off in the Virgin Islands
Barack Obama is spending some down time in the U.S. Virgin Islands. The Obama family was greeted at the airport Sunday by Gov. John deJongh and his family before beginning a few days of vacation in the U.S. territory, government spokesman Jean Greaux said yesterday. "The general feeling is we're quite fortunate that Senator Obama views the territory as a place where he can take in some rest and relaxation," Greaux said. Obama was keeping such a low profile that his presidential campaign would not say where he is staying. Local officials also were mum.
Outsourcing reconsidered after passport breaches
WASHINGTON - Struggling with a deluge in passport applications, the State Department did what much of the government does to deal with a manpower crunch: It hired more private contractors.