(CNN) - Would Gov. Sarah Palin join the Republican ticket if asked? The Alaska governor is among the popular names being tossed out there as a possible vice presidential running mate.
In many ways Palin is considered a good match for Sen. John McCain: young, conservative, a reformer who took on and beat Alaska's old guard Republican machine, and hugely popular.
On the other hand, Alaska may be geographically large, but in the presidential race it’s the electoral map that counts, and Alaska only has three electoral votes.
CNN Correspondent Joe Johns put the question to the governor in a recent interview.
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(CNN) - Once again, the U.S. Supreme Court has reached a 5-4 decision with Justice Anthony Kennedy as the decisive swing vote.
The latest case involves the right to own a handgun in the District of Columbia. In this case, Kennedy went with the conservatives, including Chief Justice John Roberts, Antonin Scalia, Samuel Alito, and Clarence Thomas. The majority concluded that the D.C. law violated the Second Amendment to the Constitution – the right to bear arms.
But Kennedy sided with the liberals in two other major 5-4 decisions, including Wednesday’s ruling that the death penalty could not apply to child rape victims. Last week, he sided with his liberal colleagues, Ruth Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, David Souter, and John Paul Stevens in concluding that terror suspects at the Guantanamo Bay detention center have certain legal rights to stand trial.
All of which once again underscores the fragile balance of the court and the fact that the next president probably will have an impressive opportunity to change that balance for the next 20 or 30 years.
As I have pointed out before, John McCain says he likes justices like Roberts and Alito. Barack Obama says he likes justices like Ginsburg and Breyer.
This will be a major issue in the election for lots of Democrats and Republicans. The ramifications on a whole host of issues, not just abortion rights for women, are enormous.
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Turns out John McCain doesn't work weekends...sort of.
The Politico reports that McCain has held only one public campaign event on a weekend since wrapping up the Republican nomination in February, more than 4 months ago.
McCain aides say he uses time on the weekends to return to Arizona so he can rest, work on policy and meet with aides. McCain has also hosted reporters and donors over the weekends, appeared on Saturday Night Live and visited troops in Iraq and at Walter Reed. His advisers say McCain will campaign on weekends for a lot of the summer, including a speech in Washington and a fundraiser in Kentucky both on Saturday.
Nevertheless it's a topic that raises some eyebrows, particularly because of McCain's age.
To read more and contribute to the Cafferty File discussion click here
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2008/images/06/26/art.sc.ap.jpg caption="McCain and Obama have reacted to the Supreme Court ruling."] (CNN) - Sen. John McCain said Thursday he was “very pleased” with the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down Washington’s ban on handguns.
“Today's decision is a landmark victory for Second Amendment freedom in the United States. For this first time in the history of our Republic, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed that the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms was and is an individual right as intended by our Founding Fathers,” he said in a statement.
“I applaud this decision as well as the overturning of the District of Columbia's ban on handguns and limitations on the ability to use firearms for self-defense.”
In focus: America's relationship with guns
In his statement, McCain criticized Barack Obama for not joining him signing a “friend of the court” amicus brief against the law.
“Unlike the elitist view that believes Americans cling to guns out of bitterness, today's ruling recognizes that gun ownership is a fundamental right - sacred, just as the right to free speech and assembly,” the statement said.
Polls: Americans' opinions of gun laws
McCain was referring to remarks Obama made in April when he said that some small-town Pennsylvanians as "bitter" people who "cling to guns and religion." Obama said he worded the comments poorly and said he was referring to how some voters focus on social issues instead of economic ones because they don't believe any politician will help them financially.
In response to the Supreme Court ruling, Obama said, “I have always believed that the Second Amendment protects the right of individuals to bear arms, but I also identify with the need for crime-ravaged communities to save their children from the violence that plagues our streets through common-sense, effective safety measures.”
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