With the Democrats in Denver this week for their national convention, the media is developing several themes. One is that Sen. Barack Obama needs to be re-introduced to the nation in a way that makes him seem more of a common man. The Wall Street Journal reports the Democratic Party and Obama hope to "humanize a candidate perceived by some to be arrogant and aloof -- and perhaps out of step with the working class," and "at the same time, indulge the highly enthusiastic group of supporters who have vaulted the Illinois senator to the nomination." The New York Times adds in a front page story that "acknowledging persistent unease with Mr. Obama among a significant segment of voters," Obama's aides "said they would use speeches and presentations during the next four days, including having Al Gore introduce Mr. Obama for his acceptance speech Thursday night, to offer a fuller biography and a more detailed plan of what he would do as president." The AP reports Obama "said Sunday he hoped a week of political speechmaking would persuade reluctant middle-class voters to swing behind" his campaign.
Another theme the media is tracking is the continued rivalry between the Clintons and Obama. The Politico reports, "As Democrats arrived" in Denver on "Sunday for a convention intended to promote party unity, mistrust and resentments continued to boil among top associates of" Obama and Clinton, and that Bill Clinton is concerned that he is being asked to speak about Obama's readiness to be commander in chief on Wednesday, rather than the economy and broader Democratic ideas. However, the New York Daily News says that Clinton "insiders say she and her sulking husband are now determined to be team players. Both Clintons plan to press hard-core supporters all week to end their boycotts and brooding and embrace Obama's candidacy."
Top Clinton Aides Attending Convention For Fox News The AP reports Lanny Davis and Howard Wolfson, former top Clinton aides, "once anticipated being very busy at this week's Democratic National Convention. They never envisioned going to Denver as employees of Fox News Channel. Davis and Wolfson will be on television commenting on the convention Monday instead of working behind the scenes to shape it."
When Sen. Barack Obama announced at 3:00 a.m. Saturday that he had selected Sen. Joe Biden as his running mate, the early cable news coverage was quite positive, as reporters and pundits focused on canned biographical pieces. Today the media today is digging deeper and the majority of major papers are running negative pieces. A number of prominent reports focus on the ways in which Biden's stance and history might undermine Obama's message of change. Under the headline "Experience Is Double-Edged Sword For The Ticket," for example, the Washington Post reports on its front page that Biden's lengthy Senate career provides plenty of ammunition for Republicans, particularly in cases where he differs from Obama, such as his initial backing of the Iraq war, his support for NAFTA, and his opposition to the 2005 energy bill, which both McCain and Biden voted against, but Obama voted for. The Politico also picks up on past clashes between Biden and Obama, "a fact not overlooked by McCain's campaign," but says, "since January, when Biden dropped out of the presidential race, he and Obama have quietly worked to smooth over their disagreements -- and Biden has sought to erase divisions between the two of them on Iraq, sources say." The Wall Street Journal today focuses on Biden's "longstanding ties to trial lawyers and lobbyists and a taste for pork-barrel spending," which contrasts to Obama's change theme.
USA Today notes that Biden's son, Hunter, is a lobbyist, and "wouldn't be allowed to contribute money to his father's vice presidential effort" under an Obama policy barring donations from lobbyists. The New York Times similarly picks up on Hunter's lobbying as a potential problem, focusing on his efforts on behalf of MBNA Corporation while his father was working on legislation of interest to them.
Other reports see Biden's experience as an asset for Obama. USA Today, under the headline "In Biden, A Life Story To Complement Obama's," reports Obama "tapped as his running mate a man whose dramatic life story rivals his own, and holds political appeal far beyond the foreign-policy expertise that is Biden's most obvious asset." Biden "balances this ticket in many other ways." The Financial Times says that the key factor in Biden's selection "was his status as chairman of the Senate foreign relations committee, which should help counter Republican charges that Mr Obama lacks the experience to be commander-in-chief."
Parties Seek To Define Biden Pick With Obama's selection of Biden as his running mate on Saturday, proxies for both parties scrambled yesterday to define what his selection means for the Democratic ticket. Backers of Sen. John McCain argued yesterday that the selection was an admission of weakness on Obama's party. Former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, on ABC's This Week, said, "Sen. Obama has made a choice more out of weakness than strength. It's quite clear from all of the commentaries, all of the things I've heard from Democrats in particular. The strong choice would have been Hillary Clinton." Gov. Tim Pawlenty, a potential McCain running mate, on CNN's Late Edition, said, "I think the selection of Joe Biden really is an admission or acknowledgement that Barack Obama did not have that experience, did not have those credentials, as Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton, Evan Bayh and others said about Barack Obama." The Weekly Standard's Bill Kristol, on Fox News Sunday, also said, "It was a pick made from weakness. ... It is a pick that, in effect, acknowledges, I was being wounded on the commander in chief, lack of foreign policy experience issue, and I picked the most experienced Democratic senator in foreign policy."
Obama surrogates, on the other hand, defended the pick. Caroline Kennedy, who had a role in selection Biden, on NBC's Meet The Press said he "has the ability to reach across the aisle and work with the Republicans and he knows John McCain and obviously we need everybody." Gov. Ed Rendell, on CBS' Face The Nation, said Biden's "going to grow on the American people very fast because he's a tremendously engaging guy, a tremendously bright guy, and a guy who's, sort of, Harry Truman-like. He tells it like it is."
Meanwhile, a Zogby Interactive online poll taken after Biden's selection was announced shows that 43% believe he will help the ticket, while 22% believe he will hurt the ticket.
Sign up here to get the US News Political Bulletin emailed to you each morning at 8 a.m.
With the Democrats convening in Denver this week, the media is examining the state of play in the race for the region's electoral votes and how it figures into Obama's strategy. The Wall Street Journal reports in a front-page story the Democratic campaign strategy "hinges on winning a handful of reliably Republican states. Atop the list: Colorado." In what "increasingly looks to be a tight race for the White House, employing such an unconventional electoral map is more than desirable for the Democrats. It may be a necessity." NBC Nightly News reported that Democrats are "betting that this time, Colorado and the West may just go their way. In recent years, Democratic governors have replaced Republicans in what used to be solidly red Montana, Wyoming, New Mexico, Arizona and Colorado." NBC added, "With its nine electoral votes and a surging population, Colorado may be the bellwether state."
The Washington Post reports "nowhere in the country is the race so close as in" the Mountain West. And "nowhere is the electorate as much in flux as it is across the Mountain West, by far the fastest growing region in the nation, with millions of new residents coming for fresh starts, better jobs and stunning vistas -- and bringing loose political affiliations." The Obama campaign "sees signs that many of the new arrivals are inclined its way." The Chicago Tribune adds that Obama's biggest challenge in Mountain states is to win over the region's suburbanites and "cowboys," noting that though Democrats have made strides in the region, "polls suggest voters are torn between Obama and" McCain.
NBC Nightly News reported, "Republicans wasted no time firing up a tough attack" on Barack Obama's "choice of Joe Biden," releasing a new ad attacking him. "The strategy, according to NBC, is to "widen the rift between Obama and Hillary Clinton by highlighting who wasn't chosen." McClatchy reports McCain's ad claims "that Obama punished Clinton for criticizing him during their long and often heated primary battle for the Democratic presidential nomination." The ad "then says that Obama deliberately slighted Clinton by passing over her to pick Delaware Sen. Joe Biden as his vice presidential running mate." The New York Times adds that the spot "also pointed out that Mr. Biden, before abandoning his own presidential candidacy, had questioned whether Mr. Obama was 'ready' for the presidency."
Five new polls out today paint a picture of a very tight presidential contest:
A CNN /Opinion Dynamics poll of 1,023 adults taken August 23-24 shows McCain and Obama tied at 47% apiece among registered voters. A similar poll a month ago shows Obama up 51%-44%.
The Gallup daily presidential tracking poll of 2,625 registered voters taken August 21-23 shows McCain and Obama tied at 45% apiece.
The Rasmussen Reports automated daily presidential tracking poll for August 24 shows Obama leading McCain 46%-43%, and 48%-45% including leaners.
A USA Today /Gallup poll of 1,023 adults shows Obama leading McCain 47%-43% among registered voters and 48%-45% among likely voters.
An ABC News/Washington Post poll of 916 registered voters taken August 19-22 shows Obama leading McCain 49%-43% among registered voters, and 49%-45% among a small sample of likely voters. Including 3rd party candidates, Obama leading McCain 48%-42%, with Bob Barr (L) and Ralph Nader each pulling 3%.
Colorado Polls Show Tight Race A Mason Dixon poll of 400 likely Colorado voters taken August 13-15 shows Obama leading McCain 46%-43%.
A Quinnipiac University poll of 1,036 likely Colorado voters taken August 15-22 shows McCain leading Obama 47%-46%. The Rocky Mountain News (8/25, Chandler) reports the results "indicate a slight shift from the last Quinnipiac poll, released July 24, in which McCain took the lead over Obama 46 percent to 44 percent."
McCain Up 7 In Nevada A Mason-Dixon poll of 400 likely Nevada voters taken August 13-15 for the Las Vegas Review Journal shows McCain leading Obama 46%-39%.
McCain Up 4 In New Mexico A Mason Dixon poll of 400 likely New Mexico voters taken August 13-15 shows McCain leading Obama 45%-41%.
Obama Up 2 In Virginia A Public Policy Polling automated survey of 1,036 likely Virginia voters taken August 20-22 shows Obama leading McCain 47%-45%. Obama led by a similar margin for each of the previous two monthly polls.
McCain Up 6 In Arizona A Mason Dixon poll of 400 likely Arizona voters taken August 13-15 shows McCain leading Obama 47%-41%.
McCain Up Big In Wyoming, Utah A Mason Dixon poll of 400 likely Wyoming voters taken August 13-15 shows McCain leading Obama 62%-25%. A Mason Dixon poll of 400 likely Utah voters taken August 13-15 shows McCain leading Obama 62%-23%.
The Politico reports Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell (D) "was supposed to give 'closing remarks' during this afternoon's Shorenstein Center-sponsored panel discussion with all three Sunday show moderators -- NBC's Tom Brokaw, ABC's George Stephanopoulous and CBS's Bob Schieffer -- but instead, he opened up a can of worms about bias in 2008 election coverage" Rendell, who backed Hillary Clinton in the primary, said, "Ladies and gentleman, the coverage of Barack Obama was embarrassing. It was embarrassing." The Politico adds Rendell and Brokaw "began debating campaign coverage, including the on-air comments by Lee Cowan, and when MSNBC came up, Rendell went after the cable network." Rendell said, "MSNBC was the official network of the Obama campaign."
Sign up here to get the US News Political Bulletin emailed to you each morning at 8 a.m.
Top
In spite of the ongoing success of the US and Iraqi security forces at reducing the number of terror attacks in that country, outgoing Commander Gen. David Petraeus is loath to declare victory over al Qaeda in Iraq. Newsweek reports Petraeus "cautions against premature declarations of victory. ... So when his aides proposed a valedictory interview with NEWSWEEK, they made it clear the theme would not pick up from our 2004 cover, 'Can This Man Save Iraq?'" Petraeus is "far too politic to refer to the commander in chief's May 1, 2003, declaration of 'Mission accomplished.' But Petraeus acknowledged that this policy of modesty in the face of success is very much informed by our premature victory ejaculations of previous years (before he took charge, of course)."
U.S. News and World Report excerpts a portion of the new book "Tell Me How This Ends" by war correspondent Linda Robinson in which she assesses the performance of Gen. Petraeus. According to Robinson, "Petraeus, with the help of many others, pulled Iraq back from the brink of civil war and created an opportunity for the next administration to bring the war to a soft landing."
Suicide Bomb Kills 25 In Iraq The relative peacefulness in Iraq was shattered on Sunday as a suicide bombing killed at least 25 near the Iraqi capital. The Washington Post says the attack "at a tribal feast in suburban Baghdad's Abu Ghraib area was one of the deadliest attacks in recent months. It served as a grisly reminder of the carnage that insurgents can still inflict in Iraq even as violence reaches its lowest level since the war began.
The AP reports, "Residents and police said Ayyid Salim al-Zubaie, a local sheik in the mainly Sunni area, had invited dozens of guests to a banquet in honor of his son, who was released earlier in the day from Camp Bucca in southern Iraq." According to "residents...the detainee-son had quarreled with al-Qaida members while in detention and may have been the target of the attack."
The Los Angeles Times reports, "A police official from the nearby city of Fallouja, Dawood Suleiman, said many of the survivors were critically injured. It was not known whether the dead included the released detainee or his father." AFP, meanwhile, notes "Al-Qaeda has frequently warned that members of Awakening groups will be specially targeted because of their cooperation with the US military in fighting the jihadists." The New York Times also reports the story.
Maliki Wants Security Deal Change AFP reports Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki "is demanding changes to a draft deal on the status of US forces beyond this year, a key Shiite ally in the governing coalition said on Sunday." The Supreme Iraqi Islamic Council (SIIC) quoted Maliki as telling fellow Shiite politicians at a meeting over the weekend, "There are points in the agreement that are still pending and they can't be approved without changes in order to preserve the complete sovereignty of Iraq."
In a development that would add further uncertainty to a region key to the US war against terrorism, the fragile coalition governing Pakistan is said to be on the verge of collapsing. The Wall Street Journal reports the Pakistan Muslim League "planned to meet Monday to decide whether to abandon support for the Pakistan People's Party, the coalition's senior partner, according to a spokesman," Ahsan Iqbal. The spokesman "says the Pakistan People's Party has 'unilaterally' made recent decisions, casting a pall over a political partnership formed after February's parliamentary elections."
The AP reports the "political instability has Pakistanis and their foreign backers, including the United States, worried that the government is too distracted to tackle rising Islamic militancy and serious economic problems." USA Today reports the "squabbling between the coalition leaders has revived memories of the divisive politics of the 1990s and has distracted attention from Pakistan's fight against Islamic militants and the worsening economy."
AFP notes "the PPP still would have enough allies in parliament to hold the government together with the withdrawal of Sharif's party, but analysts say that governing in the long term would be difficult with" Nawaz Sharif of the Muslim League "in opposition." McClatchy runs a similar report, while the Financial Times says the coalition "appeared on the brink of collapse" last night.
US Deaths At 101 In Afghanistan The AP reports "the US military suffered its 101st death of the year in Afghanistan last week when Sgt. 1st Class David J. Todd Jr., a 36-year-old from Marrero, La., died of gunfire wounds while helping train Afghan police in the northwest. The total number of US dead last year 111 -- was a record itself and is likely to be surpassed."
US Military Warns Taliban Targeting Kabul U.S. News and World Report reports U.S. Gen. David McKiernan, commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan, "says that it is clear that the Taliban increasingly is trying to create instability in the capital. 'I'm certainly concerned about security in Kabul,' he says. U.S. military officials have expressed mounting concern at the stepped-up activity and growing force of the Taliban and other militant groups in provinces around the capital."
Sign up here to get the US News Political Bulletin emailed to you each morning at 8 a.m.
On its front page, the New York Times details the "web of shadowy deals" that led to the Swiss government's destruction of "a huge trove of computer files and other material documenting the business dealings of a family of Swiss engineers suspected of helping smuggle nuclear technology to Libya and Iran." The files "were of particular interest not only to Swiss prosecutors but to international atomic inspectors working to unwind the activities of Abdul Qadeer Khan." Sources said the US, however, "had urged that the files be destroyed." The purpose, "the officials said, was less to thwart terrorists than to hide evidence of a clandestine relationship between" the CIA and the Tinner family, who "were accused of having deep associations" with Khan. AFP this morning reports on the Times article.
In a piece for U.S. News and World Report Chris Battle, former chief of staff at US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, writes Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents "are finding themselves under withering assault. Most recently, immigration agents were smeared as the 'Gestapo' by Rep. Luis Gutierrez of Illinois. During a moment of frustration -- and without any evident sense of irony -- Gutierrez complained that nobody was taking the lead to pass immigration reform (as if he and his colleagues on the House Judiciary Committee were irrelevant to this process)."
Sign up here to get the US News Political Bulletin emailed to you each morning at 8 a.m.
Top
All late-night talk shows were re-runs on Friday.
Sign up here to get the US News Political Bulletin emailed to you each morning at 8 a.m.
Top
Click image for larger view.
Smart analysis, insightful reporting, in-depth perspective—in a new, digital format.
Log in | Buy Now | See sample
View sample page 2View sample page 3View sample page 4View sample page 5advertisement
Get your POLITICALBULLETIN
Click image for larger view.
Smart analysis, insightful reporting, in-depth perspective—in a new, digital format.
Log in | Buy Now | See sample
View sample page 2View sample page 3View sample page 4View sample page 5Embed exclusive U.S. News headlines, rankings, columns, and blog postings to your Web site, blog, or social network.
advertisement
Use of this Web site constitutes acceptance of our Terms and Conditions of Use and Privacy Policy.
