More mechanical problems for Obama campaign
ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) – The Obama traveling press corps may have thought their mechanical issues were over for the day when they arrived safely Monday night in Atlanta following a day when the campaign plane made an unplanned stop in St. Louis because of problems in the tail cone.
Not so.
A small group of pool reporters were trapped inside a bus after the first of two Monday evening Atlanta fundraisers when the bus’s electronics shut down, locking the doors.
The lucky few reporters not yet on the bus continued on to the next fundraiser in a staff van as Obama’s motorcade zoomed off.
The stranded reporters eventually exited on the bus driver’s side and made their way back to the hotel in the hotel’s shuttle.
McCain: Spending is out of control
Watch McCain's comments on CNN's American Morning.
(CNN) - Sen. John McCain on Tuesday brushed off skepticism from economists over his plan to balance the budget by 2013 by keeping taxes low and restraining spending.
"We're going to reach restrained spending, we're going to have the economy grow again and increase revenues. The problem is that spending got completely out of control," McCain said on CNN's American Morning.
McCain is in favor of extending President Bush’s tax cuts, which are set to expire in 2010. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities has projected that by extending those tax cuts, which McCain originally opposed, and adding in the additional cuts the presumptive Republican nominee has proposed, the deficit for 2013 would be somewhere around $439 billion to $445 billion.
Watch: McCain talks the economy
McCain ad plugs his service over 'beautiful words'
(CNN) - John McCain's campaign released an ad Tuesday that contrasts his record of military and public service with the “beautiful words” of other politicians.
"John McCain doesn't always tell us what we hope to hear. Beautiful words cannot make our lives better," says the announcer in ‘Love.’
"But a man who has always put his country and her people before self, before politics, can. Don't hope for a better life. Vote for one."
The one-minute spot opens with historical footage of young people smiling and laughing in the summer of 1969, followed by a photo of young Navy pilot John McCain in his flight suit. “It was a time of uncertainty, hope and change. The ‘Summer Of Love.’ Half a world away, another kind of love - of country,” says the announcer.
“John McCain: Shot down. Bayoneted. Tortured. Offered early release, he said, "No." He'd sworn an oath. Home, he turned to public service. His philosophy: before party, polls and self ... America.”
The spot will air on national cable and in battleground states.
Webb says no to being VP
(CNN) - You can officially scratch off Sen. Jim Webb's name from the list of Barack Obama's potential running mates.
The freshmen senator from Virginia and onetime Republican said unequivocally Monday he does not want to be the Illinois senator's No. 2.
Watch: How to get on the VP shortlist
"Last week I communicated to Senator Obama and his presidential campaign my firm intention to remain in the United States Senate, where I believe I am best equipped to serve the people of Virginia and this country," Webb said in an issued statement. “Under no circumstances will I be a candidate for Vice President."
Webb, a moderate Democrat and Vietnam veteran who successfully unseated former Virginia Sen. George Allen in 2006, has often been mentioned as a potential VP choice given his likely appeal in more conservative states, his early opposition to the Iraq war, and his credibility with military issues.
Election Center: Who's on the VP shortlists?
The Virginia senator also co-sponsored the Senate G.I. benefits bill passed this spring that seeks to increase tuition reimbursements for veterans. Despite an initial veto threat, President Bush signed the bill into law last week.
"I entered elective politics because of my commitment to strengthen America's national security posture, to promote economic fairness, and to increase government accountability," Webb also said. "I have worked hard to deliver upon that commitment, and I am convinced that my efforts and talents toward those ends are best served in the Senate."
Webb did not endorse a Democratic candidate during the primary season. Fellow Virginians Tim Kaine, the state’s governor, and Mark Warner, a former governor who is currently running for Senate, were also considered to be on in contention for the VP slot. Warner also took himself out of the running last month.
Obama, McCain battle for Latino voters
WASHINGTON DC (CNN) - The fight for Hispanic voters takes center stage Tuesday as Senators John McCain and Barack Obama both speak separately in Washington to the League of United Latin American Citizens. It’s the second of three major Hispanic and Latino organizations the two presidential candidates are addressing this summer, and another sign of how important this key voting bloc is in the race for the White House.
President Bush won 44 percent of Hispanic and Latino voters four years ago, helping him win re-election. But only 30 percent of that demographic cast ballots for Republicans in the 2006 congressional elections. Put part of the blame for that drop on the divisive debate over immigration reform. McCain himself said earlier this year that “I think the tenor of the debate has harmed our image among Hispanics.”
The presumptive Republican nominee was one of the leaders in the Senate for immigration reform. His stance on that divisive issue hurt him with conservative voters. Nowadays he emphasizes border security first — but has continued to make a play for Hispanic voters, privately pledging to work for comprehensive immigration reform and releasing a string of Spanish-language radio ads in recent weeks.
Your chance to quiz Mitt Romney
(CNN)–Now you can be in "The Situation Room!” Former Governor and Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney will be our guest Tuesday. He’s now a top supporter of Sen. John McCain and is often mentioned as a vice presidential candidate. During the campaign, he said he was the best candidate to fix the economy because of his business experience. CNN’s new poll out today says 75% of Americans think we’re in a recession. What do you think? Submit your video questions for Mitt Romney and we’ll have him answer some of them.
Send us your questions on video, and be sure to keep them clear and concise. Your videos could be used on air.
POLITICAL HOT TOPICS: Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Compiled by Mary Grace Lucas
CNN Washington Bureau
NY Times: Skepticism on McCain Plan to Balance Budget by 2013
The package of spending and tax cuts proposed by Senator John McCain is unlikely to achieve his goal of balancing the federal budget by 2013, economists and fiscal experts said Monday.
LA Times: Adding up the cost of Obama's agenda
In more than a year of campaigning, Barack Obama has made a long list of promises for new federal programs costing tens of billions of dollars, many of them aimed at protecting people from the pain of a souring economy.
AP: Kennedy doing well midway through treatments, wife says
Sen. Edward Kennedy, midway through six weeks of radiation and chemotherapy treatments for brain cancer, is doing well aside from some fatigue, his wife says.
NY Times: A Clintonian at Fox
Howard Wolfson, who was a top strategist for the presidential campaign of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, is going where some Democrats were unwilling to go during the early days of the election season: the Fox News Channel.
WSJ: Clinton's Convention Role Being Negotiated
Hillary Clinton won a hefty 1,600 convention delegates in six months of primaries. A big question now is whether to let them vote at the Democratic convention. High on the list of matters that Sen. Clinton and likely Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama are negotiating as her campaign closes down is whether and how her name is put into nomination at the August convention in Denver, said party activists in both camps.
NY Times: Internal Politics Heat Up at McCain Campaign
Senator John McCain’s campaigns have long been defined by internal squabbling and power plays, zigzagging lines of command and a penchant by the candidate for consulting with former advisers without alerting current ones, always a recipe for disquiet.
ON THE TRAIL: Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Compiled by Mary Grace Lucas, CNN Washington Bureau
* Sen. John McCain appears on CNN’s American Morning in the 8am hour and then speaks at the League of United Latin American Citizens’ (LULAC) national convention in Washington, DC.
* Sen. Barack Obama holds a morning town hall meeting in Georgia and then heads to Washington where he will also speak at the LULAC convention.
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