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The Morning Grind / Political Hot Topics |
Sunshine stumping, panhandle appeal and some advice to Cheney
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 VIDEO |
 CNN's John King on Bush's campaigning in North Carolina.
 CNN's Bill Schneider on what poll respondents say about Edwards.
 CNN's Barbara Starr on the GOP's criticism of Edwards' military votes.
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RELATED |
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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Check out the links below to hot political stories around the country this morning.
THE VALUES TICKET: With visual and verbal cues, the Kerry and Edwards campaign tried to paint a picture in Cleveland yesterday that they are more in touch with America's true values than President Bush. The crowd downtown soaked it up. The Kerry campaign estimated about 12,000 people showed up. The Cleveland.com: Kerry, Edwards stress values
SUNSHINE STUMPING: John Kerry and John Edwards swept into the Coliseum in St. Petersburg, hugging and pumping their fists as Bruce Springsteen's Land of Hope and Dreams boomed. The St. Petersburg Police Department generously estimated the crowd at nearly 10,000. Only about 2,000 got into the historic Coliseum for the event, which started about 10 p.m. and lasted about 45 minutes. After the rally, Kerry and Edwards went outside to greet supporters. The St. Petersburg Times: Thousands from bay area line up for Kerry, Edwards
PANHANDLE APPEAL?: Today, Kerry and Edwards visit the heart of Democratic country in Florida, Broward County, with a morning rally at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. Democratic strategists expect the telegenic Edwards and his ''by the bootstraps'' upbringing to help Kerry court voters in Florida's Panhandle, which in recent years has increasingly leaned Republican. The Miami Herald: Kerry, Edwards focus on Florida
IN THE TRIANGLE: President Bush dropped by the Triangle area of North Carolina on Wednesday and collected $2.35 million -- a record for a North Carolina political event -- in the home city of the Democratic vice presidential candidate. Bush managed to slip in a few barbs at Edwards. The Raleigh News & Observer: Bush faithful open wallets in Edwards' back yard
JUDICIAL AND MONEY POLITICS: Bush came to Oakland County, Michigan, on Wednesday to raise money at a $25,000-a-plate fund-raiser and to assure six of his judicial nominees that he will keep fighting for their slots on the federal bench. The fund-raiser was expected to raise $2.5 million for the state and national GOP. He described the judicial nominees as "six good, decent Michiganders who are not being allowed to serve because of the politics being played." The Detroit Free Press: Bush visits Oakland for $25,000-a-plate benefit
ELIZABETH THE AMALGAM: At 55, Elizabeth Edwards is much more than the mother of John Edwards's children. Smart, blunt, hilariously funny, she is a professional woman in her own right and also her husband's most trusted political adviser - Nancy Reagan and Hillary Rodham Clinton rolled into one. The New York Times: A Thoroughly Modern Blend of Other Political Wives
RETURN TO POPULISM: Analysts in both parties are wondering whether Edwards' selection signals a Kerry tilt away from his centrist, business-friendly rhetoric of the last few months toward his more polarizing primary rhetoric. The evidence from the ticket's debut suggests Kerry may be pursuing a hybrid approach that accepts Edwards' "two Americas" analysis but focuses more on a promise to lift those on the bottom than excoriating those on the top.The Los Angeles Times: Kerry-Edwards Ticket Revives Populism Issue
ADVICE FOR CHENEY: Former Republican Sen. Alfonse D'Amato of New York yesterday called on President Bush to dump Dick Cheney from the GOP ticket. D'Amato described Cheney as a "decent, honorable and patriotic American," but urged Bush to "add a bold and farsighted dimension to his ticket." The New York Post: D'Amato to party big: Dump Dick
CONVENTION SECURITY: Local and federal officials began the first inspections of Boston-bound bus riders' bags in Londonderry, New Hampshire, yesterday, as bus lines face stepped-up security measures to coincide with the Democratic National Convention in Boston. A spokesman for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority said that the T's 375,000 daily bus riders would be subjected to random bag searches in the coming days and that the searches would intensify during convention week. The Boston Globe: Searches underway on buses to Hub
SHOW ME THE MONEY: The host committees for the Republican and Democratic conventions this year will draw almost $104 million in private contributions, 12 times what they did a dozen years ago, according to a study released Wednesday. The report, compiled by the Campaign Finance Institute, argues that several decisions by the Federal Election Commission over the last decade have allowed private, unregulated money to dominate the financing of conventions. The New York Times: 12 Times the Private Cash at Conventions, Data Say
JACK BACK?: The Illinois Republican Party is under fire from grass-roots groups who say the party forced Senate candidate Jack Ryan to withdraw from the race, and they want his name returned to the ballot. The Washington Times: Groups want Ryan back in Illinois race
CLINTON'S RECORDS: Former President Clinton will release thousands of domestic-policy records from his presidency nearly a year sooner than the law requires. Clinton will make 100,000 such `documents available to scholars and researchers Nov. 18, the day his presidential library opens, said Skip Rutherford, president of Clinton's nonprofit foundation. The Associated Press: Bill Clinton to release some papers early
Compiled by Mark H. Rodeffer
