A sign in one Barefoot Bay yard is stirring up a controversy. Neighbors of Andy Lacasse say the sign, which says "OBAMA HALF-BREED MUSLIN " breaches the fine line between free speech and inappropriateness. "I got nothing good to say about Obama," Lacasse told local news. Lacasse put the sign in his front yard four days ago. "If I see anybody touching that sign, I got a club sitting right over there," Lacasse said. The Korean War veteran said he was a registered Democrat until Obama won the nomination. "That's the Democratic Party.They're nothing but a bunch of cutthroats. Like I always said, you show me an honest politician, I'll show you an honest thief," Lacasse said. But Lacasse's neighbors are not all content with letting him show his opinion where everyone can see it. "When you use words in that nature, people tend to discount anything you have to say," said Steve Rice. "If you're going to attract attention, at least make sure your spelling is right." Rice was referring to the misspelling of Muslim. He lives a couple streets away and says everyone is talking about the sign. He said he has no problem with free speech. He just doesn't think it's appropriate to bring race into the issue.Rice dropped by to chat with Lacasse, whom he hadn't met before. They talked about campaign tactics and the fact Rice was a Clinton supporter. "Are you happy what they did to her?" Lacasse asked. "Of course not, but am I going to post a sign going after a race or group of people because of it? No, I'm going to say vote for someone else," Rice replied. "Look what he's doing to Palin. Come on. He got people going to Alaska, looking for something to say bad about her," Lacasse said. Lacasse said he plans to put an even bigger sign in place of the small handmade one that is already there.
Speculation was mounting last night over the health of the North Korean leader, Kim Jong Il. He has not been seen in public for more than three weeks, and, according to a source who has seen intelligence reports, five Chinese physicians entered North Korea about a week ago and are still there.The 66-year-old leader was last seen on 14 August, when he inspected a military unit. State media carry reports every time Mr Kim attends a public event, but never comment on his health.An official with South Korea's main spy agency, the National Intelligence Service, has said Mr Kim has chronic heart disease and diabetes but that his illnesses have not affected his public duties. North Korea next week marks 60 years since its foundation. An annual military parade is usually staged on the anniversary. If Mr Kim doesn't attend, this may indicate his health has worsened, South Korean officials believe.
Pennsylvania Republicans want Libertarian presidential candidate Bob Barr booted from the state’s ballot, alleging shady dealings by local Libertarians. Meanwhile, the Barr camp blamed Republican presumptive nominee Sen. John McCain for trying to shove him off the ballot and demanded that McCain personally intervene. Cumberland County GOP chairman Victor Stabile, an attorney who filed suit to remove Barr, said he’s fine with third-party candidates, but is crying foul because Libertarians listed Rochelle Etzel of Clarion County as their prospective presidential candidate when gathering petition signatures to put a nominee on the ballot. Stabile acknowledged that state law allows parties to replace a candidate who withdraws, but said Pennsylvania Libertarians never intended for Etzel to run. “The problem we have is that, as we understand it, and based upon the evidence that I’ve seen is that they circulated these petitions with Etzel’s name, never intending her to be the candidate," Stabile said. "They went to the convention, nominated Barr, and then she withdrew.” Stabile said his court filing cites internal Libertarian e-mail indicating that they intended to nominate Barr, not Etzel, and likened it to voter fraud. “We have a horrible problem in this state with voter fraud,” Stabile said. “This is just another variety of that.You can’t go around and, under false pretenses, saying ‘Hey, sign this petition.'” But according to the Barr camp, the lawsuit is nothing more than a ploy to dislodge Barr’s Pennsylvania campaign. Barr, a former Republican congressman from Georgia, runs on a conservative platform that some fear could splinter the McCain vote. "This move by the McCain campaign completely contradicts everything John McCain stood for in 2000 when his competitors were trying to keep him off the ballot," Barr said in a statement issued Thursday. "McCain has become a part of the same corrupted machine he spoke vehemently against only eight years ago." In his statement, Barr accuses McCain of hypocrisy, citing a New York Times report from the 2000 election cycle that detailed McCain’s struggle with George W. Bush to get on the New York ballot. The Times quoted McCain as saying: ''People should be able to get on the ballot in states. I'm sure that if Gov. Bush told them, don't do that, don't remove McCain's name, they would respond. Everybody knows that I am a legitimate candidate. I should be on the ballot.'' McCain spokesman Paul Lindsay defered all questions to the Pennsylvania GOP. "They're the ones who are handling that suit," Lindsay said. Calls to the Pennsylvania Libertarian party were not immediately returned Thursday night.
Was Sen. Barack Obama a citizen of Indonesia at any point in his life? That question has been circulating on the blogosphere with increased fury the past few days, ever since a photograph emerged of Obama's school registration papers as a child in Indonesia – the world's most populous Muslim nation – showing the presidential candidate listed as a "Muslim" with "Indonesian" citizenship. An investigation into Indonesian citizenship law and a review of Obama's biography and travels suggest the Illinois senator at one point may have been a citizen of Indonesia. That would not necessarily disqualify Obama to run for president, but it could raise loyalty concerns. A 2007 Associated Press photograph taken by Tatan Syuflana, an Indonesian AP reporter and photographer, surfaced last week on the Daylife.com photographic website showing an image of Obama's registration card at Indonesia's Fransiskus Assisi school, a Catholic institution. In the picture, Obama is registered under the name Barry Soetoro by his step-father, Lolo Soetoro. The school card lists Barry Soetoro as a Indonesian citizen born on August 4, 1961 in Honolulu, Hawaii. His religion is listed as Muslim. Jack Stokes, manager of media relations for the AP, confirmed to WND the picture is indeed an AP photo. It was supposed to accompany an AP story last January refuting charges that Obama attended an Islamist school, but the picture was not used. After attending the Assisi Primary School, Obama was later enrolled at SDN Menteng 1, an Indonesian public school.Obama's campaign did not return repeated WND phone calls and e-mail queries the past week asking for a clarification regarding the school documentation listing the presidential candidate's citizenship as Indonesian. Obama spokesmen have in the past stated the candidate is a natural-born citizen amid rumors he may have been born in his father's home country of Kenya, but the campaign has not addressed whether Obama became a citizen of Indonesia at any point. Obama's American mother, Ann Dunham, separated from her first husband, Barack Obama Sr., in 1963 when the presidential candidate was two years old. Dunham and Obama Sr. are reported to have later divorced. Dunham married Lolo Soetoro, an Indonesian, and moved to Indonesia sometime between 1966 and 1967. It was not clear whether Soetoro adopted Obama, either in Hawaii or in Indonesia, but there is strong circumstantial evidence that he did as far as Indonesian law was concerned. In Indonesia, which was under tight rule in 1967, Obama clearly took on the last name of his stepfather in school registration documents. All Indonesian students were required to carry government identity cards, or Karty Tanda Pendudak's, which needed to bear the student's legal name, which should be matched in public school registration filings. Following his enrollment at the private Assisi school, Obama attended public schooling in Indonesia until he returned to Hawaii at age 10. According to Indonesian legal experts, it was difficult to enroll non-Indonesian citizens in public schooling. Obama arrived in Indonesia at about the age of five according to most accounts, although it was possible he arrived at the age of six, according to a few sources. If Lolo Soetoro adopted Obama at age five or younger, than Obama would automatically have become an Indonesian citizen according to the country's laws in the 1960's, which stipulated any child aged five or younger adopted by an Indonesian father is immediately granted Indonesian citizenship upon completion of the adoption process. Lolo Soetoro could have adopted Obama in Hawaii, although such an adoption would not have necessarily been recognized by Indonesia. Indonesian law at the time also did not recognize duel citizenship, meaning if Obama became Indonesian, then as far as that country was concerned, his U.S. citizenship was no longer recognized by Indonesia. But U.S. law would still recognize Obama as an American citizen.In a revelation that raised a few eyebrows, Obama last April disclosed he traveled as a college student to Pakistan in 1981. "I traveled to Pakistan when I was in college – I knew what Sunni and Shia was [sic] before I joined the Senate Foreign Relations Committee," Obama reportedly stated at a fundraising event. The senator had not previously discussed any trip to Pakistan, either in his books or in scores of policy talks regarding Pakistan. Prompted by Obama's statements, ABC News contacted the presidential candidate's campaign, which affirmed that in 1981 – the year Obama transferred from Occidental College to Columbia University – Obama visited his mother and sister Maya in Indonesia. Obama then went on to Pakistan with a friend from college whose family was from that country, the campaign said. Obama was in Pakistan for about three weeks, said the campaign, staying with his friend's family in Karachi and also visiting Hyderabad in Southern India. Pakistan in 1981 was under military rule. It was difficult for U.S. citizens to travel to the country without assistance. It would have been easier for someone to enter Pakistan on an Indonesian passport. If Obama indeed possessed Indonesian citizenship as a child, it is unlikely he retains such citizenship. The country's bylaws require any Indonesian citizen living abroad for more than five years to formally declare his intention to return, otherwise risk losing his citizenship status. The law does not necessarily mean Indonesian citizenship would be immediately lost. The law can be overruled by ministerial order. Obama's registration in Indonesia under the name "Barry Soetoro" also raises questions as to whether he adopted that name in the U.S. at any time. According to Illinois state filings, when Obama registered as an attorney in 1991, he stated he did not have any former names.
While defending Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama's record, Gov. Brian Schweitzer said Tuesday that Montana voters whose main issue is guns might consider voting for Libertarian presidential candidate Bob Barr instead of either Obama or Republican John McCain. Schweitzer said he doesn't believe McCain can point to any edge over Obama with voters on the gun issue because the Republican senator sponsored a 2004 amendment to require criminal background checks on all firearms transactions at gun shows. Still, Schweitzer, a Democrat endorsed by the NRA, conceded that neither Obama nor McCain “are the favorites of the NRA.” “If guns are your primary issue, you're probably not going to like either of these guys,” Schweitzer said during an telephone news conference put on by the Obama campaign. He said a third option for voters for whom guns is their primary issue is to vote for Barr, a former Georgia congressman, “if you're absolutely not going to vote for McCain or Obama on guns.” The NRA has given Barr a grade of A-plus, while handing McCain a C and giving Obama an F for their votes on gun-related issues in Congress over the years. Schweitzer, who said he enjoys going to gun shows, said McCain's amendment could have shut down them down in Montana and elsewhere.As for Obama, Schweitzer said, “He ain't going to take your gun away. He ain't ever going to take your gun away.” Obama also favors improving access to public lands for hunting, camping and fishing, Schweitzer said, contrary to the Bush administration's efforts to limit public access. Obama campaign spokesman Caleb Weaver said later that he doesn't believe Schweitzer was really suggesting that Montanans vote for Barr. “My understanding is that Gov. Schweitzer's point was that gun owners have nothing to fear from Sen. Obama, and because Sen. McCain has also taken positions at odds with (the) NRA on some key issues, such as the gun show loophole, voters who make their decision only on the gun issue will find that neither McCain or Obama are entirely acceptable,” Weaver said. In response, Republican National Committee spokesman Bill Riggs said that Schweitzer knows that Obama is “possibly the most anti-gun candidate to ever seek the presidency and even predicted he would not win Montana.” “John McCain worked to ensure citizens continue to have the right to purchase firearms at gun shows by instituting an instant background check,” Riggs said. He said that Obama, in a questionnaire he filled out while running for the Illinois Senate, said he opposed “the manufacture, sale, and possession of firearms” Riggs called the news conference “just more political posturing from the Obama campaign to try to divert attention from his actual record.”During the conference call, Steve Hildebrand, Obama's national deputy campaign manager, said the Obama campaign believes Montana is up for grabs along with six other states that often vote Republican for president - Alaska, Georgia, Indiana, North Carolina, North Dakota and Virginia. The Obama campaign believes they have a good chance of winning these seven state. “We are spending significant resources here,” Hildebrand said. “It's unmatched for a Democratic campaign in Montana. We have a giant volunteer structure.” Obama campaigned here three times in the primary election and spent the Fourth of July holiday in Butte with his wife and two children. Obama's national television ads have been running in Montana. He said the campaign's goal is to have Montanans talking with each other about Obama. So far, the campaign has 14,000 active volunteers in Montana, 1,100 team members and 40 team captains, said Mike Dorsey, Obama's Montana campaign director. Those numbers are expected to grow significantly between now and Nov. 4. But those numbers today would enable the Obama campaign to knock on 363,000 doors of their neighbors and call 687,000 voters in their towns through the get-out-the-vote effort in a month, Dorsey said. In addition, Dorsey announced that Obama's campaign has opened 10 more offices in addition to the six previously open in Billings, Bozeman, Butte, Great Falls, Helena and Missoula. The newest Obama offices opened in Bigfork, Dillon, Glendive, Hamilton, Havre, Kalispell, Livingston, Miles City, Whitefish and Wolf Point.
Barack Obama is not a left candidate. This fact has seemingly surprised a number of progressive people who are bemoaning Obama’s “shift to the center.” (Right-wingers are happy to join them, suggesting Obama is a “flip-flopper.”) It’s sad that some who seek progressive change are missing the forest for the trees. But they will not dampen the wide and deep enthusiasm for blocking a third Bush term represented by John McCain, or for bringing Obama by a landslide into the White House with a large Democratic congressional majority. A broad multiclass, multiracial movement is converging around Obama’s “Hope, change and unity” campaign because they see in it the thrilling opportunity to end 30 years of ultra-right rule and move our nation forward with a broadly progressive agenda. This diverse movement combines a variety of political currents and aims in a working coalition that is crucial to social progress at this point. At the core are America’s working families, of all hues and ethnicities, whose determination to move forward does not depend on, and will not be diverted by, the daily twists and turns of this watershed presidential campaign. They are taking the long view.Notably, the labor movement has stepped up its independent mobilization for this election. It is leading an unprecedented campaign to educate and unify its ranks to elect the nation’s first African American president. Last week, AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard Trumka told the Steelworkers convention that there is “no evil that’s inflicted more pain and more suffering than racism — and it’s something we in the labor movement have a special responsibility to challenge.” If Obama’s candidacy represented nothing more than the spark for this profound initiative to unite the working class and defeat the pernicious influence of racism, it would be a transformative candidacy that would advance progressive politics for the long term. The struggle to defeat the ultra-right and turn our country on a positive path will not end with Obama’s election. But that step will shift the ground for successful struggles going forward. One thing is clear. None of the people’s struggles — from peace to universal health care to an economy that puts Main Street before Wall Street — will advance if McCain wins in November. Let’s keep our eyes on the prize.
Russia-Georgia Conflict Demonstrates Importance Of Avoiding Unnecessary Foreign Entanglements
“George Washington long ago warned America against ‘entangling alliances,’ and he was right,” says Bob Barr, the Libertarian Party candidate for President. “Russia and Georgia risk falling into a full-scale war in which the U.S. can and hopefully will avoid any involvement. But had Georgia been a member of NATO we would now be risking a full-scale confrontation with nuclear-armed Russia,” Barr observes. “Obviously, America should encourage both countries to back down and resolve their differences peacefully,” explains Barr. But “the status of South Ossetia, as well as Abkhazia, another Russian-supported separatist zone within Georgia, matters a lot more to Russia, on which the two territories border, than to the U.S. Moreover, Washington itself set a precedent for Russia when it intervened in Kosovo a decade ago, attacking Serbia to win independence for the separatist ethnic-Albanian majority,” notes Barr. “The purpose of alliances is to defend America,” says Barr. “We should not create or expand alliances where the U.S. does not have vital interests. If the Europeans want to defend distant countries like Georgia, they can do so—after all, the European Union has a larger population and bigger GDP than America, without any of Washington’s other global military commitments.It is time for Europe to accept responsibility for its own security.” “Any war is tragic, but not every war requires American intervention,” explains Barr. “We can do our best to mediate between Russia and Georgia, but we should avoid any military involvement. It is time to put the defense of America back into America’s defense policy.” Bob Barr represented the 7th District of Georgia in the U. S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 2003, where he served as a senior member of the Judiciary Committee, as Vice-Chairman of the Government Reform Committee, and as a member of the Committee on Financial Services. Prior to his congressional career, Barr was appointed by President Reagan to serve as the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia, and also served as an official with the CIA. Since leaving Congress, Barr has been practicing law and has teamed up with groups ranging from the American Civil Liberties Union to the American Conservative Union to actively advocate every American citizens’ right to privacy and other civil liberties guaranteed in the Bill of Rights. Along with this, Bob is committed to helping elect leaders who will strive for smaller government, lower taxes and abundant individual freedom.
As US media devote wall-to-wall coverage to the bitter race between Barack Obama and John McCain for the White House, it's easy to forget there are 11 other candidates running for president. None of them has any chance of actually winning though, and few are likely to become household names like Democrat Obama and his Republican rival McCain locked in battle with just three months to go until the November 4 elections. Instead their ambitions are more modest, and their first hurdle is to get their names added onto the ballot in as many states as possible. It is a difficult task, requiring a grass-roots organization that many lack as well as funds, again often in short supply for candidates seeking to work outside of the traditional Democratic and Republican party behmoths. Legislation also varies from state to state. Signatures have to be collected and draconian timetables have to be adhered to. But some, such as independent consumer champion Ralph Nader and Libertarian Party candidate Bob Barr, could end up being a thorn in the side for both the Illinois senator Obama and his rival from Arizona. Mere mention of Nader's name still triggers howls of fury from Democrats who blame him for Al Gore's defeat in the 2000 presidential elections, when George W. Bush won in Florida by just 537 votes.Standing as a Green party candidate then, Nader had snapped up some 97,000 votes in the Sunshine State. Similarly Barr, a representative for southern Georgia from 1995-2003, who played a key role in the congressional impeachment of former president Bill Clinton, could siphon off votes from McCain this time round. "Barr conceivably could be to John McCain what Ralph Nader was to Al Gore in 2000: ruinous," wrote political columnist George Will in Newsweek magazine. A leading conservative voice and champion of indivdiual liberties, Barr, a former Republican, broke with the Bush administration after the Patriot Act was introduced in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks. Barr will appear on the ballots in at least 34 states, some of which such as northern Ohio and western Nevada are seen as key swing states this year. In Georgia, where polls give McCain only a seven-point advantage over Obama, Barr's presence could significantly muddy the vote. Barr himself faces competition from another former Republican, Chuck Baldwin, who is running as a candidate for the Constitution Party, which has an election manifesto very similar to the Libertarian's. Baldwin is standing in at least 24 states. Nader, 74, is making his fifth tilt at the White House, this time as an independent and will be running in at least 29 states, including key battleground Michigan. Nader, who is of Lebanese origin, could win significant support among the large Arab-American community in the northern state, and according to some polls could even take some 25 percent of their vote."You have in Ralph Nader's candidacy a genuine Arab-American who has a lot of notoriety and publicity. It would be detrimental to Obama's candidacy," said Morley Winograd, former chairman of the Michigan Democratic Party. The Green Party has chosen as its candidate African-American former Democratic congresswoman Cynthia McKinney, who will be on the ballot in 24 states. Her presence could handicap Obama by slicing into his support among women and pacifists against the Iraq war. "Obama cannot take the peace vote for granted. There are peace candidates running from across the political spectrum," said Kevin Zeese, executive director of Voters for Peace. "On the right are Bob Barr and Chuck Baldwin. On the left are Cynthia McKinney and Ralph Nader. He needs to earn the vote of Americans opposed to further war." At least three of the others who have thrown their hats into the ring are standing under a Socialist ticket, including Gloria La Riva who is the candidate for a pro-Castro party defending the interests of Cuba. There is also a former sports agent standing for the conservative Boston Tea Party, as well as pastor Gene Amondson who won't be quaffing any champagne on election night. He is the candidate for the temperance Prohibition Party.
Obama's "Birth Certificate" Forged With Sister Maya's Original
Independent analysts, working separately, claim to have discovered that the original Hawaiian Certificate of Live Birth used in the fabrication of the Barack Obama "birth certificate" belongs to the Presidential candidate's younger half-sister, Maya. Examining the high resolution image originally posted by the "Daily Kos" left-wing blog and subsequently claimed as authentic by the campaign, and posted in lower resolution on the campaign official "Fight the Smears" website, at least two analysts have been able to independently discern the name "Maya Kassandra Soetoro" from artifacts left behind in the process of forging a new fake document for Barack from an image of Maya's original document. Additional confirmatory information, such as her birthday and the nationality of her father have also been resurrected. A full report documenting all details is to be published in the coming days. Israel Insider has not yet seen proof that would validate the claim. The dramatic claim comes just a day after a forensic specialist, posting on the Texas Darlin blog under the name Techdude (his real name is known to Israel Insider), announced the discovery of the identity of the original owner of the COLB document used in the forgery but would initially only indicate that it was a woman born in the 1970's. However, he provided enough clues to enable another graphic specialist (screen name KG) to independently reproduce the incriminating evidence. (Techdude had said that he wanted to give the guilty parties time to confess to the forgery, but also to allow independent confirmation of his discovery. He even offered to pay for a trip to Vegas to the first person to discover the name and detail the method by which it was discovered.)According to Texas Darlin, which exclusively published these latest revelations, there is more to come: "In the coming days, Techdude will provide a final report that fully discloses his discovery, and provides all the fancy technical data, images, formulae etc. that everyone has come to expect. He will respond to questions posted on this blog to the best of his ability. (NOTE: KG has asked Techdude to donate the trip funds to help retire Hillary's debt, and Techdude has agreed.)" In the meantime, KG has posted details on how artifacts of the name "Maya Kassandra Soetero" were discerned. The revelation that the COLB of Obama's own sister was evidently used to create the electronic forgery represents what supporters of this analysis claim is a "smoking gun" that appears to implicate Senator Obama directly. Hawaii law limits access to vital records to family members only, a fact which slowed down the ability of researchers to compare the purported Obama "birth certificate" -- which displayed from the start a peculiar provenance and inexplicable features -- to genuine specimens. Therefore, it would seem that either Maya K. Soetoro-Ng (as she is now called) supplied the document or its image to half-brother Barack or his campaign, or Obama/his campaign used it without her permission.
Embossed seal of the State of Hawaii absent from the purported "birth certificate" of Barack Obama
It appears unlikely, to say the least, that the campaign would have independently managed to obtain Maya's COLB, forged Barak's fake COLB using Maya's original, and verified the result as genuine without the candidate's knowledge and involvement. This is particularly true given the high profile treatment with which the campaign has treated the purported veracity of the supposed "birth certificate" in its Fight the Smears website. The apparent use of the Soetero document increases the likelihood of direct Obama involvement in the supply, production, and/or propagation of the forgery. The stakes couldn't be higher. Even the Snopes anti-rumor site acknowledges that Obama's constitutional fitness to be president depends solely on his being born in the United States, because his mother -- not yet 19 at the time of his birth -- would not have had a sufficient number of years as an adult citizen, according to the laws prevailing at the time, to pass on "natural born citizenship" automatically.There have been reports, so far unconfirmed, that Obama was born outside the country, either in Kenya, his presumed father's native land, or in Canada. The fact that the Obama campaign has been touting as genuine a forgery since June 12 will likely increase pressure to not only account for the fake but produce a genuine paper birth certificate. Obama, in his book Dreams from My Father, specifically mentioned having such a document in his possession, but it has not been submitted for public inspection or analysis if it in fact exists. As strident as the claims are with respect to the source of the purported Obama COLB, and despite the claimed ability to replicate Techdude's work, not all experts are convinced. Veteran forensic analyst Joseph Cannon expresses frustration with what he considers Techdude's vague instructions for "resurrecting" the artifacts that allegedly spell Maya's name.AJ Strata, who has been an extreme skeptic with respect to the fake certificate claims, believes this latest analysis is a "joke" from a "cult," proof that "the inmates have taken over the asylum." Indeed, there are still too many unanswered questions to reach a reliable assessment about the veracity of Techdude's claims for the hidden name. Much appears dependent on his ability to lay out replicable instructions and demonstrate graphics which show the hidden name appearing. He promises a full report in coming days. Until then, the jury is still out. Intriguingly, too, Maya Soetoro-Ng is believed to have been born outside the United States, in Indonesia, so her apparent ownership of a Hawaiian Certificate of Live Birth raises questions about how such a document could have been produced for an Indonesian-born girl. There do appear to be circumstances which would enable a foreign born child to get a US birth certificate, including a consular report of an overseas birth by an American citizen, or an adoption. Those factors and circumstances, too, may shed light on Barack Obama's citizenship status and his ability, or inability, to document it. Ironically, but perhaps not coincidentally, the Obama campaign has challenged the credentials of Republican opponent John McCain, because he makes no secret of being born out of the country, in Panama. But both of McCain's parents were Americans so, unlike Obama, are by statute able to pass on natural born citizen status to their foreign-born child.
National Poll: John McCain 42%, Barack Obama 41%, Bob Barr 2%
Here are the latest results from the Zogby National Polls poll by Zogby International for Associated TV published on USAElectionPolls.com: There were 1011 voters polled on 7/31-8/1. McCain gained 20% and Obama lost 16% among voters ages 18-29. Obama still leads that group, 49%-38%. Among women, McCain closed 10 points on Obama, who still leads by a 43%-38% margin. Obama has lost what was an 11% lead among Independents. He and McCain are now tied.Obama had some slippage among Democrats, dropping from 83% to 74%. Obama’s support among single voters dropped by 19%, and he now leads McCain, 51%-37%. Even with African-Americans and Hispanics, Obama shows smaller margins. Pollster John Zogby: “The McCain camp seems to have turned lemons into lemonade. Huge crowds and mostly favorable press reviews of Obama’s overseas trip have been trumped by McCain’s attacks on Obama. Loss of support for Obama among young voters may also be due to his perceived reversals on issues they care about, such as the war and government eavesdropping.”
Barack Obama and John McCain have moved into a statistical dead heat, according to the latest Gallup Poll Daily tracking update for the presidential general election, which tracks responses for July 28-30. Obama is supported by 45 percent of respondents, while 44 percent support McCain, the poll shows.Obama briefly held a 49 percent to 40 percent lead over McCain among registered voters "at the height of publicity surrounding his weeklong visit to Afghanistan, Iraq, the Middle East, and Europe," reports Gallup but he hasn't held on to it. "The story of the election through the summer months has been a close race that simply does not seem to want to change. Obama has generally been in the lead, and it is significant that McCain has never held even a 1-point lead among registered voters," reports Gallup.In other words, the race has been essentially stable. Don Frederick of LATimes.com's "Top of the Ticket" blog tells readers he will be "watching the track closely over the next couple of days to see if ... the McCain camp's spot tying, improbably to many, Obama with Paris Hilton and Britney Spears has a clear effect on either candidate's standing." Gallup editor Frank Newport writes: "It may be the conventions in late August and early September that will offer the next potential timeframe for significant and/or sustained change."
There’s a certain amount of humiliation that comes with running as a third-party candidate for president. The federal deficit, loose nukes, angry Muslims, the economy — these are topics that the major party candidates are asked to address. But if you’re Bob Barr, the Libertarian candidate, there are times when your campaign must seem like a never-ending Star Trek convention, with no Scotty to beam him up.This is a recent blog entry on Dispatches from the Culture Wars:I got to ask Barr a question I’ve wanted to ask him for quite some time. He’s repudiated and apologized for many of his previous positions and I asked him if he would repudiate his absurd anti-Wiccan crusade of 1999, when he wanted all Wiccans banned from the military. He said yes, with a bit of hemming and hawing. He said that he had reports from several military leaders that Wiccans doing rituals on military bases were causing problems and that’s why he did what he did, but that since that time it’s become clear that there are no problems with allowing Wiccans to serve and to practice their religion on military bases like any other religion.
Bob Barr'sLibertarian Party bid for the White House needs cash, but is NOT on the verge of being broke, Barr's campaign manager said Tuesday. Despite a fund-raising plea he sent out recently that said the campaign's progress "will stop dead in its tracks" without an immediate cash infusion, Russ Verney told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that Barr has enough money to maintain his campaign at present levels. But that's not the goal, Verney said. "We're able to raise enough money to execute our plan, but we've got ambitions and that takes even more money," Verney said Tuesday. Those ambitions center around participating in the national debates with Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama. Barr, a former Republican congressman from Cobb County, has said he needs to be at 15 percent in the national polls by mid-September to qualify. He's yet to come close to that mark, although recent polls have shown him at or near 10 percent in several states, including New Hampshire, Nevada and Arizona. Money would help that effort by allowing Barr to buy advertising, do direct mail and other staples of national campaigns.
Bob Barr (right) with his running mate, Wayne Allyn Root.
Thus far the campaign has mostly been limited to personal appearances from Barr and his vice presidential nominee, Wayne Allen Root, as well using the Internet to raise cash and spread the word through Web videos, blogs and social networks like Facebook. But the money has been slow to come. Verney would not say how much cash the campaign currently has to spend, but Barr's June 30 monthly report to the Federal Election Commission put that figure at $68,000. His Web site, bobbarr2008.com, tracks fund-raising hour-by-hour. As of Tuesday afternoon the site said the campaign had raised about $550,000 toward its goal of $750,000 by Friday. "All campaigns, the big money flows right in close to the election," Verney said, "when there's a lot of public attention. Summertime is not a great fund-raising time and this year you have the added problem of $4 a gallon gasoline and a recession hanging over people's heads. We're asking people to give as early and often as they can." Daniel Adams, chairman of the Georgia Libertarian Party, said it's important to keep the current crunch in perspective. Barr, by polling as well as he has, is on pace to be the best-performing Libertarian Party candidate ever. "We're miles beyond any past Libertarian candidacy, so we're in unchartered territory," Adams said.
Bob Barr Says: Maintain Economic Growth & Find New Energy
Bob Barr, former member of Congress from Georgia and Libertarian Party Candidate for President, Issued the following statement on energy and global warming: As America confronts a variety of domestic and foreign challenges in the future, it is essential that we preserve our prosperous, productive, and innovative economy. Without a strong economic foundation, it will be impossible for our nation to deal with the many serious financial, social, and environmental problems facing the U.S. One of the most complicated and controversial issues facing America is global warming. Although temperatures have increased in recent decades, the scientific community has been unable to make definitive judgments as to the past cause or future course of climate change. Indeed, the models which predict problems in the future did not predict the lack of any temperature increase over the last decade. Unfortunately, many climate processes are not yet clearly understood. Thus, we need to conduct more and better scientific research about climate change to assess likely problems in the future and develop appropriate solutions. More dialogue is key to understanding global warming and developing the best means of dealing with the important questions surrounding the phenomenon. This dialogue must include scientists from all sides of the issue, including those who are skeptical of the assertion that humans are primarily responsible for global temperature changes and that those changes pose a substantial danger to humanity. Moreover, we must develop cost-effective policies which will not undermine the U.S. economy. So-called cap and trade legislation, recently rejected by the U.S. Senate, would do grievous damage to the American economy, threatening to create a permanent recession by reversing industrial growth and destroying millions of jobs. Attempting to adjust global temperatures by artificially cutting energy consumption would undermine the very prosperous and innovative market system upon which we must rely for answers to everything from health care to international poverty to environmental protection. Our energy future must be built on a commitment to both find more conventional energy sources and expand use of alternative fuels. The U.S. has large deposits of petroleum, oil shale, and natural gas. Barriers to their development in the Outer Continental Shelf, Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and other federal lands should be lowered or eliminated, which would provide Americans with a more secure source of energy over the short term and help bring down todays high prices, which are causing such economic hardship to so many Americans. Such steps would also allow us to begin seriously considering and developing alternative sources of energy that will be essential in the long term. The development of alternatives to fossil fuels would provide the country with many benefits, ranging from lower CO2 emissions to greater diversity of energy supplies. Given the failure of past government subsidy programs, this transformation can only be led by the private sector.The government must remove regulatory barriers, which limit the development of alternative as well as conventional energy sources. Moreover, public officials should cease their demagogic attacks on the energy industry, which has made money only by finding, refining, and transporting gasoline, natural gas, and heating oil for the American people. Vote-minded legislators risk creating an environment in which companies are punished for doing good, which will only make them more reluctant to invest in all technologies and fuels, alternative as well as conventional. Indeed, the challenge of promoting continuing energy innovation should cause us to reconsider other policies which discourage business investment and capital formation more generally. Americans for Tax Reform recently reported that the tax and regulatory burden rose at both the state and national level over the last year. Americas corporate income tax is one of the highest in the world, creating a self-inflicted economic wound. Congress now routinely votes for new spending programs for which we have no way to pay, putting our entire economic future at risk. The challenges that we face are serious, but I am convinced we can find solutions. We are more likely to develop policies that simultaneously promote economic growth, expand energy supplies, and lessen any adverse effects of climate change, if we promote a genuine dialogue among contending factions. Although I do not agree with the tax and regulatory policies advanced by former Vice President Al Gore, I do believe his call for greater reliance on alternative energy could be given positive effect by American industry. Only the market economy can balance his passion with the reality of preserving the growing economy upon which our future -- and that of our children and grandchildren -- depends. We must address the issue of climate change, but do so realistically, recognizing the importance of simultaneously expanding energy supplies and maintaining economic growth. Our greatest strength in confronting the problems of the future is our free market economy. Only by reducing government barriers to private research and development are we going to achieve the innovative, even transformational, changes necessary in the years and decades ahead. Barr represented the 7th District of Georgia in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 2003, where he served as a senior member of the Judiciary Committee, as Vice-Chairman of the Government Reform Committee, and as a member of the Committee on Financial Services. Prior to his congressional career, Barr was appointed by President Reagan to serve as the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia, and also served as an official with the CIA. Since leaving Congress, Barr has been practicing law and has teamed up with groups ranging from the American Civil Liberties Union to the American Conservative Union to actively advocate every American citizens right to privacy and other civil liberties guaranteed in the Bill of Rights. Along with this, Bob is committed to helping elect leaders who will strive for smaller government, lower taxes and abundant individual freedom.
Libertarian Party Presidential candidate Bob Barr says he won't draw votes from likely Republican nominee John McCain. At an appearance Sunday in Houston, Barr, a former U.S. Congressman from Georgia, said he won't play the same role for Senator McCain, R-Ariz., that independent candidate Ralph Nader did for Democratic Party nominee Al Gore in 2000, the Houston Chronicle reported. Some observers say Nader's presence drew just enough liberal votes away from Gore to allow U.S. President George Bush to win that year."Somebody willing to vote for a big government Republican like John McCain is not going to switch to a small government candidate like Bob Barr," he told reporters, adding that he'll instead try to put together a bloc comprised of young people and disillusioned voters of all political persuasions. Barr is best known as a former Republican hardliner who helped lead impeachment efforts against then-U.S. President Bill Clinton for lying under oath about sexual improprieties.
On the cover of the upcoming New Yorker: Satirical portrayal of Obama through the eyes of his opposition, or McCain recruitment poster? Senator Obama shrugged and said he had "no response" when asked about the cover on Sunday by CBS News' Maria Gavrilovic. The Obama campaign, on introspection, was more decisive on the issue; it might have appreciated the humor, if not for the delivery. The cover art, depicting Senator Obama in a turban, while wife Michelle, packing an assault rifle, shares a "fist bump" with him, is described by the New Yorker as artist's Barry Blitt's lampooning of "scare tactics and misinformation in the Presidential election to derail Barack Obama's campaign.""The New Yorker may think, as one of their staff explained to us, that their cover is a satirical lampoon of the caricature Senator Obama's right-wing critics have tried to create," countered Obama campaign spokesman Bill Burton. "But most readers will see it as tasteless and offensive. And we agree." "This is as offensive a caricature as any magazine could publish," one high-profile Obama backer told ABC News, "and I suspect that other Obama supporters like me are also thinking about not subscribing to or buying a magazine that trafficks (sic) in such trash." "We completely agree with the Obama campaign," McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds added. "It’s tasteless and offensive."
John McCain dropped in on a phone bank to tell campaign volunteers they can make or break him in Minnesota. McCain's brief stop at his regional campaign headquarters in a St. Paul warehouse was long enough for him to thank - and warn - about 125 supporters. The presumptive Republican nominee was trailing Barack Obama by 17 points in a recent statewide poll, and he said Minnesota is a battleground. "We're going to win this state because of your efforts and we can lose because of your lack of efforts. Let's have some straight talk," McCain said, to laughter and applause.Gov. Tim Pawlenty, McCain's national campaign co-chairman and a potential running mate, acknowledged that picking up Minnesota's 10 electoral votes - which haven't gone to a Republican since Richard Nixon - won't be easy. "The Upper Midwest and Minnesota in particular will be challenging - it's always challenging - for any Republican candidate for president," Pawlenty said before meeting McCain at the airport and riding on his campaign bus to the event.
They're nothing but a bunch of cutthroats. Like I always said, you show me an honest politician, I'll show you an honest thief," Lacasse said. But Lacasse's neighbors are not all content with letting him show his opinion where everyone can see it. "When you use words in that nature, people tend to discount anything you have to say," said Steve Rice. "If you're going to attract attention, at least make sure your spelling is right." Rice was referring to the misspelling of Muslim. He lives a couple streets away and says everyone is talking about the sign. He said he has no problem with free speech. He just doesn't think it's appropriate to bring race into the issue.
Rice dropped by to chat with Lacasse, whom he hadn't met before. They talked about campaign tactics and the fact Rice was a Clinton supporter. "Are you happy what they did to her?" Lacasse asked. "Of course not, but am I going to post a sign going after a race or group of people because of it? No, I'm going to say vote for someone else," Rice replied. "Look what he's doing to Palin. Come on. He got people going to Alaska, looking for something to say bad about her," Lacasse said. Lacasse said he plans to put an even bigger sign in place of the small handmade one that is already there.
They're nothing but a bunch of cutthroats. Like I always said, you show me an honest politician, I'll show you an honest thief," Lacasse said. But Lacasse's neighbors are not all content with letting him show his opinion where everyone can see it. "When you use words in that nature, people tend to discount anything you have to say," said Steve Rice. "If you're going to attract attention, at least make sure your spelling is right." Rice was referring to the misspelling of Muslim. He lives a couple streets away and says everyone is talking about the sign. He said he has no problem with free speech. He just doesn't think it's appropriate to bring race into the issue.
Rice dropped by to chat with Lacasse, whom he hadn't met before. They talked about campaign tactics and the fact Rice was a Clinton supporter. "Are you happy what they did to her?" Lacasse asked. "Of course not, but am I going to post a sign going after a race or group of people because of it? No, I'm going to say vote for someone else," Rice replied. "Look what he's doing to Palin. Come on. He got people going to Alaska, looking for something to say bad about her," Lacasse said. Lacasse said he plans to put an even bigger sign in place of the small handmade one that is already there.
