Barnes wins Democratic gubernatorial nod, avoids runoff
Atlanta, Georgia (CNN) - Former Georgia Gov. Roy Barnes has won his state's Democratic gubernatorial nomination, according to a projection by the Associated Press. But it appears Barnes will have to wait until next month to find out who his Republican opponent will be in November's general election.
With 74 percent of precincts reporting, an unofficial count of the primary contests by AP indicated that Barnes had captured 63.8 percent of the vote, with state Attorney General Thurbert Baker at 21.5 percent. Five other Democratic gubernatorial candidates were in the single digits.
Barnes appeared to be looking to the general election even before Tuesday's primary. Over the weekend he surprised some by saying he would sign an Arizona-style immigration bill if elected governor.
By grabbing more than 50 percent of the vote, Barnes avoids a runoff contest on August 10.
NAACP 'snookered' over video of former USDA employee
Atlanta, Georgia (CNN) - The NAACP has retracted its original statement condemning comments made by a former Agriculture Department official who resigned after a video clip surfaced of her discussing a white farmer.
The NAACP said in a statement Tuesday that it was "snookered by Fox News" and conservative website publisher Andrew Breitbart.
"Having reviewed the full tape by Shirley Sherrod, who is the woman who was fired by the Department of Agriculture, and most importantly heard the testimony of the white farmers mentioned in this story, we now believe that the organization that edited the documents did so with the intention of deceiving millions of Americans," the statement from NAACP President Benjamin Jealous said.
New poll spells trouble for Lincoln
(CNN) – A new poll released Tuesday indicates trouble ahead for incumbent Arkansas Democratic Sen. Blanche Lincoln.
Lincoln, who was able to survive a tight Democratic primary process against the more liberal Lieutenant Gov. Bill Halter, is now trailing Republican candidate Rep. John Boozman by 19 points in the general election matchup according to a new poll.
Conducted by Reuters/Ipsos, the poll indicates Boozman tops Lincoln, 54 percent to 35 percent.
Since the bitter primary ended, Lincoln has scored a major legislative victory, playing an important role in the passage of the Wall Street reform bill, authoring a provision that increases regulation of the derivatives market.
Rubio sidesteps Tea Party caucus commitment
Washington (CNN) - Florida Senate candidate Marco Rubio rejected a blanket characterization of the Tea Party movement as extremist on Tuesday, but at the same time remained noncommittal about the prospect of joining a Tea Party caucus if elected.
When asked about the NAACP's resolution that called some elements of the Tea Party "racist," Rubio said that did not mirror his experiences with the group.
"Well I think it's unfortunate that labels like that are used to brand an entire group of people, the vast majority of whom are folks that care and love their country, believe it's the greatest country on earth," Rubio told CNN's Wolf Blitzer.
Dems outpace Republicans in Senate campaign dollars
Washington (CNN) – In the Senate campaign money race, Democrats have the advantage as the second quarter numbers come in.
The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee reports it raised $7.1 million in the month of June, besting the National Republican Senatorial Committee who reports a $4.03 million haul over the same period.
The Democrats say they pulled in $15.25 million in the second quarter while their Republican counterparts did not report a quarterly figure. Both campaign committees have full coffers however as Republicans have $19.7 million cash on hand and the Democrats exceed them, reporting in excess of $21 million.
Obama briefed after Sherrod incident
(CNN) - President Obama was briefed after Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack decided to seek Shirley Sherrod's resignation and fully supports that decision, a White House official said Tuesday.
Breitbart: 'This was not about Shirley Sherrod'
Washington (CNN) – Andrew Breitbart, the conservative blogger who published video of a speech by former USDA employee Shirley Sherrod, said Tuesday that his decision to release the video was not motivated by wanting to target Sherrod, the African-American woman shown in the footage talking about racially-charged matters at an NAACP event.
Instead, Breitbart told CNN he released the Sherrod video because he believes it shows the NAACP itself tolerates racist behavior within its ranks – a stinging accusation just one week after the civil rights group made a similar charge against the conservative Tea Party movement.
Related: Sherrod resigns after video released
"This was not about Shirley Sherrod," Breitbart said Tuesday in an interview set to air on CNN's John King, USA.
"This was about the NAACP attacking the Tea Party and this [the video of Sherrod] is showing racism at an NAACP event. I did not ask for Shirley Sherrod to be fired. I did not ask for any repercussions for Shirley Sherrod. They were the ones that took the initiative to get rid of her. I - I do not - I think she should have the right to defend herself."
Breitbart also described his decision to publish the Sherrod video as an effort to expose what he sees as the NAACP's hypocrisy when it comes to allegations of racism.
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GOP says George W. Bush not 'on the ballot' in 2010
Washington (CNN) - House Republicans are pushing back on Democratic efforts to frame the 2010 midterm elections as a referendum on Republican policies adopted when George W. Bush was President, arguing the election is about the "Obama-Pelosi agenda."
"They can spin, they can sing, they can dance naked in the streets to say it's about Bush, but he's neither in the White House nor on the ballot," said Oregon Republican Greg Walden, deputy chairman of the House GOP campaign committee, talking about Democrats, Tuesday.
But while the GOP wants to focus their message on the Democratically controlled Congress, they aren't asking for any help from former President George W. Bush on the campaign trail this year.
The 'special relationship'
Washington (CNN) - Like a couple renewing their vows, President Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron once again reaffirmed the "special relationship" between the US and UK during a joint press conference at the White House on Tuesday.
Calling it an "opportunity to renew the relationship with my partner, Prime Minister Cameron," President Obama also claimed the US has "no closer ally, no stronger partner."
But there has been a rough patch recently; while the US and UK relationship goes back to the founding of America, the tension between the two allies has been palpable.
Tea Party Caucus: Who's in and who's out
Washington (CNN) - One day before the first official meeting of the Tea Party caucus in the House of Representatives, the big question on Capitol Hill which Republicans will join the new caucus?
Rep. Michele Bachmann proposed and pushed for the caucus. The conservative congresswoman from Minnesota, who's a favorite of many Tea Party activists, won approval for the new organization late last week from the Democratic leadership.
Bachmann tells CNN that she's invited "a number of members" to come to the group's first meeting, which will be held prior to a news conference to premiere the caucus.
But she says she already has a big name on board.
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