(CNN)— Cindy McCain said Monday she will make a humanitarian trip to Rwanda next week.
The wife of presumptive Republican nominee John McCain plans to spend four days on the ground in the war-torn African nation on a trip organized by the non-partisan ONE campaign, as part of a group visiting USAID health clinics, schools, and an orphanage. Former Senator Tom Daschle will be joining the trip on behalf of Democrat Barack Obama’s campaign.
Daschle and former Senator Bill Frist are co-chairmen of the group’s ONE Vote ‘08 initiative.
Last month, Cindy McCain – who has long been involved with international relief organizations - made a similar journey to Vietnam with Operation SMILE.
(CNN) – In one of his first moves to centralize control of McCain's political organization, Steve Schmidt has tapped Rudy Giuliani's former campaign manager, Mike DuHaime, to be McCain's new political director, a top campaign adviser tells CNN.
Until last week, McCain had no political director at headquarters - highly unusual for a general election campaign. Mccain's campaign instead relied on 11 regional campaign managers - a structure many Republicans in and outside of the McCain campaign, including Schmidt, considered unworkable.
After formally taking control of the political operation last week, Schmidt decided to put a political director in place to oversee the state and regional operations.
Duhaime went to work as an adviser to McCain at headquarters not long after Giuliani dropped his primary bid.
HOKKAIDO, Japan (CNN) - It was a birthday celebration in the skies, as President Bush turned 62 aboard Air Force One while en route to Japan where Bush is attending the summit of the Group of Eight industrialized nations.
First Lady Laura Bush and White House staff members gathered in the conference room on Air Force One late Saturday night eastern time, where a steward dimmed the lights as the crowd waited for the birthday celebrant to arrive, White House Press Secretary Dana Perino said.
On the table was a "large" coconut cake with a single burning candle and the words "Happy Birthday President Bush" on it.
The crowd called out "surprise" as President Bush walked into the room and then sang Happy Birthday, Perino said.
Bush "dutifully pretended to be surprised" and blew out the candle, Perino said. It was not known whether he made a birthday wish.
After cutting and serving the cake, the health-conscious president ate a "small" piece of birthday cake, she said.
Compiled by Mary Grace Lucas
CNN Washington Bureau
CNN: McCain campaign gets new political director
In one of his first moves to centralize control of McCain's political
organization, Steve Schmidt has tapped Rudy Giuliani's former campaign manager, Mike DuHaime, to be McCain's new political director, a top campaign adviser tells CNN.
NY Times: Economy’s Move to the Fore Poses Problems for Both Candidates
Not since at least 1980, when the United States was reeling from the oil shocks, inflation and slow growth of the previous decade, has the economy been in worse shape heading into the heart of a presidential campaign.
CNN: McCain campaign calls Obama's words into question
Sen. John McCain's campaign said Sunday that Barack Obama's remarks on Iraq "have left a significant question as to exactly what he intends."
Washington Post: Conservatives Ready To Battle McCain on Convention Platform
Conservative activists are preparing to do battle with allies of Sen. John McCain in advance of September's Republican National Convention, hoping to prevent his views on global warming, immigration, stem cell research and campaign finance from becoming enshrined in the party's official declaration of principles.
NY Times: The Facebooker Who Friended Obama
Last November, Mark Penn, then the chief strategist for Hillary Rodham Clinton, derisively said Barack Obama’s supporters “look like Facebook.” Chris Hughes takes that as a compliment. Mr. Hughes, 24, was one of four founders of Facebook. In early 2007, he left the company to work in Chicago on Senator Obama’s new-media campaign.
NY Times: Doctors Press Senate to Undo Medicare Cuts
Congress returns to work this week with Medicare high on the agenda and Senate Republicans under pressure after a barrage of radio and television advertisements blamed them for a 10.6 percent cut in payments to doctors who care for millions of older Americans.
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