March 24, 2008

<><>DEMOCRATS<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

 

THE FIELD

 

Obama Has Financial Edge For Primary Endgame

Illinois Senator Reports $32 Million in Cash And Minimal Debts

 

By Mary Jacoby, T.W. Farnam and Amy Chozick

Wall Street Journal

March 22, 2008

 

Barack Obama had three times as much money in the bank at the end of February as Hillary Clinton, putting the Illinois senator on a stronger financial footing heading into the last round of primaries and caucuses for the Democratic presidential nomination…

 

Both Obama And Clinton Embellish Their Roles

 

By Shailagh Murray and Jonathan Weisman

Washington Post

March 24, 2008

 

After weeks of arduous negotiations, on April 6, 2006, a bipartisan group of senators burst out of the "President's Room," just off the Senate chamber, with a deal on new immigration policy. As the half-dozen senators -- including John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) -- headed to announce their plan, they met Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), who made a request common when Capitol Hill news conferences are in the offing: "Hey, guys, can I come along?" And when Obama went before the microphones, he was generous with his list of senators to congratulate -- a list that included himself…

 

CLINTON

 

Clinton Backer Points to Electoral College Votes as New Measure

 

By Katharine Q. Seelye

New York Times

March 24, 2008

 

Senator Evan Bayh of Indiana, who backs Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton for president, proposed another gauge Sunday by which superdelegates might judge whether to support Mrs. Clinton or Senator Barack Obama. He suggested that they consider the electoral votes of the states that each of them has won…

 

Clinton’s Schedules Offer Chance to Test Assertions

 

By Don Van Natta Jr. and John M. Broder

New York Times

March 23, 2008

 

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton’s claims about her role in foreign policy as first lady have come under intense scrutiny…

 

Clinton's White House schedules revealing, not definitive

The 11,000 pages released last week shed little light on her readiness to be president.

 

By Peter Grier

Christian Science Monitor

March 24, 2008

 

To a casual reader, Hillary Clinton's newly released White House schedules may raise a pointed question: Why does she want to go back? Sure, living at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. has obvious perks, according to the details of the 11,000-plus pages made public so far. Queen Noor of Jordan occasionally drops by. There are lots of references to "Air Force One" and "motorcade."

 

Clinton's road to nomination gets steeper

With revote plans nixed in Florida and Michigan, pressure is on for an acceptable solution.

 

By Ariel Sabar

Christian Science Monitor

March 24, 2008

 

Hillary Rodham Clinton's path to the Democratic nomination has steepened, with Florida and Michigan giving up last week on new primaries and the Democratic Party refusing to count delegates from those states without new contests. The party is now under intense pressure to forge a solution that backers of both Senator Clinton and Barack Obama see as fair. "The real danger is a 1968 convention for the Democrats, where people felt cheated," says Ronald Rapoport, a political scientist at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Va., alluding to one of recent history's most divisive and damaging conventions…

 

The L.A. 'village' that raised Hillary Clinton's mother

The girl who became Dorothy Rodham grew up -- too fast -- in Alhambra, too fast. Perhaps you've heard of her daughter.

 

By Joe Mathews

Los Angeles Times

March 23, 2008

 

She was only 8 years old. Her mother had lost custody of her in a divorce. And her father was putting her and her 3-year-old sister on a train from Chicago to Los Angeles -- by themselves, without adult supervision. It took three days to reach their grandparents' home in the San Gabriel Valley. Once there, they would not be made to feel welcome…

 

OBAMA

 

Obama Lands Endorsement of Bill Richardson

 

By Jackie Calmes

Wall Street Journal

March 22, 2008

 

After a perilous week of racial controversy, Barack Obama showed the continued strength of his efforts against Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination, gaining the coveted endorsement of former candidate and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson…

 

Obama’s Talk Fuels Easter Sermons

 

By Laurie Goodstein and Neela Banerjee

New York Times

March 23, 2008

 

Inspired by Senator Barack Obama’s speech, some religious leaders plan to interweave race and resurrection…

 

Talking about race: Um, you first

Obama's speech called for a conversation that not everyone wants.

 

By Stephanie Simon and Richard Fausset

Los Angeles Times

March 23, 2008

 

LITHONIA, GA. — How do we start a national dialogue on race? Charlotte Griffin was at a restaurant one evening when a white woman complimented her on her children's behavior. The stranger may have meant to be kind. But Griffin wondered if she heard a note of condescension -- an assumption, perhaps, that black kids aren't usually so polite…

 

<><>REPUBLICANS<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

 

McCAIN

 

2 Divergent McCain Moments, Rarely Mentioned

 

By Elisabeth Bumiller

New York Times

March 24, 2008

 

WASHINGTON — Senator John McCain never fails to call himself a conservative Republican as he campaigns as his party’s presumptive presidential nominee. He often adds that he was a “foot soldier” in the Reagan revolution and that he believes in the bedrock conservative principles of small government, low taxes and the rights of the unborn…

 

McCain Offers Soothing Tones in Trip Abroad

 

By Michael Cooper

New York Times

March 24, 2008

 

Senator John McCain faces the challenge of improving America’s image abroad despite the unpopularity of the Iraq war — which he strongly supports…

 

John McCain is betting big on Iraq

His long-sought 'surge' is working now, but he's been wrong too.

 

By Bob Drogin

Los Angeles Times

March 23, 2008

 

WASHINGTON — As America's war in Iraq enters its sixth year, Sen. John McCain is hoping that his long effort to send thousands more U.S. troops -- a "surge" that has helped lower casualties -- will propel him into the White House. But McCain's record on Iraq is decidedly mixed. If the Arizona Republican proved prescient in his calls for a military buildup, many of his other predictions and prescriptions turned out wrong…

 

Who'd be McCain's vice president?

Everyone's watching as the Republican decides -- a conservative, or someone with broader appeal?

 

By Maeve Reston

Los Angeles Times

March 22, 2008

 

On the eve of Bob Dole's announcement of his vice presidential running mate in 1996, John McCain knew he was under serious consideration. But he was on an ill-timed trip to Hawaii -- without a cellphone. As he tells it, he spent most of the time worried about missing a call to his hotel room, which never came. He learned Dole had passed him over for Jack Kemp when he flipped on the television news…

 

Telecom lobbyists tied to McCain

 

By Matt KelleY

USA Today

MARCH 24, 2008

 

WASHINGTON — Republican presidential candidate John McCain has condemned the influence of "special interest lobbyists," yet dozens of lobbyists have political and financial ties to his presidential campaign — particularly from telecommunications companies, an industry he helps oversee in the Senate. Of the 66 current or former lobbyists working for the Arizona senator or raising money for his presidential campaign, 23 have lobbied for telecommunications companies in the past decade, Senate lobbying disclosures show…

 

<><> PRIMARY CONTESTS<><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

 

PENNSYLVANIA

 

Obama invites Pennsylvanians to join the party

In an effort to dent Clinton's lead, his campaign is asking Republican and independent voters to register as Democrats.

 

By Peter Nicholas

Los Angeles Times

March 22, 2008

 

DOYLESTOWN, PA. — After knocking on doors at a half-dozen houses, Mardi Harrison, a campaign volunteer for Barack Obama, finally found someone to listen to her pitch. Anyone who wants to vote for Obama in Pennsylvania's primary must be registered as a Democrat, she explained to the woman who answered the doorbell. Did the independent voter at this address want to sign up? The woman laughed and made it obvious that no one there had any use for Obama. "Yeah, you have the wrong house!" she said. And she shut the door…

 

<><>RACE TO THE WHITE HOUSE<><><><><><><><><><><>

 

Call for Probe Over Passports Gains Support

 

By Jay Solomon

Wall Street Journal

March 24, 2008

 

Bipartisan support is mounting for the Justice Department to investigate the unauthorized searches of all three presidential candidate's passport files by a State Department employee and three contracted workers in recent months…

 

<><>WAR/TERROR<><><><><>><><><><><><><><><><><><>

 

A.P.’s Death Toll for Iraq War Reaches 4,000

 

Associated Press

March 24, 2008

 

The U.S. military says a roadside bomb has killed four U.S. soldiers in Baghdad, bringing The Associated Press death toll to at least 4,000…

 

<><>OTHER NEWS<><><><><>><><><><><><><><><><><><>

 

Political Pendulum Swings Toward Stricter Regulation

Safety Scares, Crisis In Housing Aid Shift

 

By Elizabeth Williamson

Wall Street Journal

March 24, 2008

 

The idea that less regulation is better for the economy has held sway in Washington since the Reagan administration. Now that consensus is crumbling, posing a potentially costly challenge to business no matter who wins the White House in November…

 

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