Friday, October 27, 2006
Control of Senate hinges on four races
RICHMOND, Virginia (AP) -- With designs on the White House, Republican Sen. George Allen hoped all along his 2006 Virginia re-election campaign would draw national attention.
But what he probably didn't have in mind was a stumble- marred race that is so close his party recently felt obliged to pay for $1.4 million in television ads to safeguard a seat long thought safe. Allen's attempt to hold off Democratic challenger Jim Webb is one of four races that strategists in both parties say will likely settle the overall battle for Senate control. In a reflection of the stakes, the two parties will spend more than $20 million combined on television in the campaign's final two weeks in Tennessee, Missouri, New Jersey and Virginia, a lineup that could not have been forecast even a few weeks ago. --For CNN's coverage of key races, check out America Votes 2006 ABC's Compton: Cheney doesn't make mistakes?
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Ann Compton of ABC News got in bit of a zinger during Friday's White House briefing with Press Secretary Tony Snow.
When asked whether Vice President Dick Cheney endorsed water boarding when he agreed with an interviewer that it would be OK to dunk terrorists in water to save lives, Snow said "you got Dick Cheney, who had been head of an intelligence committee. He's been the Secretary of Defense. He's been the Vice President. He's not a guy who slips up, and he's also not a guy who does winks and nods about things that involve matters that you don't talk about for political reasons." That led to this exchange between Snow and Compton: COMPTON: To say that Vice President Cheney doesn't make mistakes like this, he did go up and curse a senator to his face on the Senate floor, and accidentally shot his friend, so he's not perfect. (Laughter.) (To which Snow responded) SNOW: No, I mean, it's just -- that's -- that's a great line, but it's not germane. Yes, Helen. Compton was referring to a June 2004 incident in which Vice President Cheney told Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont to "F--- yourself" on the Senate floor and a February 2006 incident in which the vice president shot a friend while hunting for quail on a South Texas ranch. GOP focuses on Georgia ahead of elections
MACON, Georgia (AP) -- Republicans furiously working to counter expected losses in this year's elections are focusing on friendly territory in Georgia.
Playing defense elsewhere, GOP strategists have identified just four House seats nationwide where they say they have a good chance of knocking off Democrats. Two are in Georgia, where the party hopes a strong state ticket and new, Republican-drawn congressional districts can help them hold a majority in Washington. President Bush is scheduled to campaign in the state next week, and the National Republican Congressional Committee has sent out a "push list" urging donors to steer last-minute cash to a short list of candidates: one in Illinois, one in Iowa and two Georgia challengers. For CNN's coverage of the midterm elections, check out America Votes 2006 CNN's Georgia election page On the campaign trail with potential '08ers
Dodd heads to South Carolina Friday
Who: Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Connecticut What: Fundraiser for South Carolina Democratic Party Details: -Attends reception at South Carolina Democratic Party headquarters, 10/27 Snow is grilled about Cheney's comments
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Vice President Cheney's comments on interrogation methods was the main topic of conversation at Friday's White House briefing with Press Secretary Tony Snow.
Snow also briefed the press corps about President Bush's meeting with NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer as well as Bush's call to a Forest Service official regarding the deaths of four firefighters killed fighting the Esperanza fire. Full transcript Ahead on CNN
4 p.m. ET, The Situation Room
-Democratic strategist Donna Brazile and former GOP congressman J.C. Watts will square off on the midterm elections, Vice President Dick Cheney's recent comments on torture, and Virginia Senate candidate Jim Webb's sexual fiction writings. -Stuart Rothenberg, of the "Rothenberg Political Report," and Amy Walter, of the "Cook Political Report," will discuss how the midterm elections are shaping up. 5 p.m. ET, The Situation Room -Lynne Cheney, Vice President Dick Cheney's wife, joins Wolf to discuss her new children's book, "Our 50 States." 10 p.m. ET, Anderson Cooper 360 -Democratic strategist James Carville will discuss the latest campaign scandals. McCain: Send 20,000 more troops to Iraq
LANCASTER, N.H. (AP) -- Republican Sen. John McCain, a possible 2008 presidential candidate, said Friday the United States should send another 20,000 troops to Iraq.
A member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, McCain said increasing U.S. forces would require expanding the standing Army and Marine Corps -- a step the Bush administration has resisted. The Arizona Republican also reiterated his opposition to a hasty U.S. withdrawal. "If we leave ... the fighting will evolve into chaos there," McCain told reporters after speaking at an event for local Republican candidates. Virginia's 2nd Congressional District is neck-and-neck
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Rep. Thelma Drake (R) has a two-point edge over Democratic challenger Phil Kellam for Virginia's 2nd Congressional District. The poll was conducted by Mason-Dixon Polling and Research Inc. for the Virginian-Pilot and WVEC-TV.
--CNN Political Researcher Xuan Thai Webb says Allen's attacks are latest 'smear'
RICHMOND, Virginia (CNN) -- Democratic Virginia Senate candidate Jim Webb Friday called the circulation of several sexual passages from his novels by his Republican opponent, Sen. George Allen, a baseless character assassination.
The first, and most disturbing, quote describes a shirtless man picking up a naked boy who runs toward him. The book describes what happens after the man picks up the boy and turns him upside down. It comes from the 2001 book "Lost Soldiers." "Let me explain what that was," Webb told the Washington Post Radio. "I actually saw this happen in a slum of Bangkok and when I was there as a journalist. A man placing his lips on his son's private parts. ...And the duty of a writer is to illuminate the surroundings. "There is nothing that's been in any of my novels that, in my view, hasn't been illuminating the surroundings or defining a character or moving a plot," Webb added. The former Navy secretary said that to pull excerpts from his writings "and force them on people, sort of, like pound them over the head with them" rather than having someone read the entire book "is just a classic example of the way this (Allen) campaign has worked. And you know, its smear after smear." "This is a Karl Rove campaign," Webb said, referring to the head of President Bush's 2004 re-election bid. "We have known this one was coming for quite some time." Full story --CNN's Joshua Levs
A Democratic majority would investigate Iraq intel
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Democrats will aggressively investigate pre-Iraq war intelligence failures if they win back the Senate, a Democratic leader said Friday.
While releasing a report on U.S. contracting problems with the Iraq war -- which he called "the most significant waste, fraud and abuse in the history of the country," Senate Democratic Policy Committee Chairman Byron Dorgan said Democrats will hold "aggressive oversight hearings" on pre-war intelligence, contracting, and a other issues related to the war. "There's no question that we will finally understand what happened," with intelligence failures, the North Dakota Senator said. Asked about Republican concerns that Democrats want to get back at Republicans -- possibly even impeach President Bush -- Dorgan said, "it's not retribution," but an attempt to make up for Republicans who "abdicated oversight" of the war because they have "one party control and no one wants to embarrass anyone." --CNN Congressional Producer Ted Barrett
Nevada Governor's race still close
WASHINGTON (CNN) --The race for Nevada governor's house is still close. Republican Jim Gibbons has a six-point advantage over Democrat Dina Titus. The poll was conducted by Research 2000 Nevada for The Reno Gazette Journal and KRNV-TV.
--CNN Political Researcher Xuan Thai Dead heat in New Jersey senate race
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Sen. Bob Menendez (D) is in a virtual tie with Tom Kean, Jr. (R) in New Jersey's senate race. The poll was conducted by the New York Times/CBS News.
--CNN Political Researcher Xuan Thai First lady heads to Florida
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- First lady Laura Bush heads to the Sunshine State Friday to campaign in two battleground congressional districts closely watched by both sides this election season.
Bush is slated to speak at a fundraiser for GOP Congressional candidate Vern Buchanan in Sarasota, a wealthy car dealership owner vying for outgoing GOP Rep. Katherine Harris' seat. Christine Jennings is the Democrat in this increasingly competitive contest. The first lady then heads to a reception in Florida's 22nd district where incumbent GOP Rep. Clay Shaw is in the political fight of his life against a well funded Democrat, Ron Klein. Bush has assumed a visible role on the 2006 campaign trail, crisscrossing the country on behalf of GOP candidates. On Saturday the first lady is slated to make stops in three northeastern states. Related: CNN's Ed Henry reports on Laura Bush's first comments on Woodward book For more of CNN's coverage of key races, check out America Votes 2006 --CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney
Sanders has a 21-point lead over Tarrant in Vermont senate race
WASHINGTON (CNN)-- Independent candidate Bernie Sanders has the lead over Republican candidate Richard Tarrant for the open senate seat in Vermont. The poll was conducted by Research 2000 for WCAX-TV.
--CNN Political Researcher Xuan Thai
Democrats have the edge in Michigan governor and senate race
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Gov. Jennifer Granholm (D) holds a 5-point edge over Republican challenger Dick DeVos for Michigan's governor's seat. Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D) has a 9-point advantage over Republican nominee Michael Bouchard for the senate seat. The poll released was conducted by EPIC-MRA for The Detroit News/WXYZ TV7/WOOD TV8/WILLX TV 10/WJRT 12.
--CNN Political Researcher Xuan Thai Sexual passages become an issue in Virginia race
RICHMOND (CNN) -- A bitter Senate campaign entering its final stretch turned even uglier Friday, as a Republican incumbent pulled up sexual passages from novels written by his Democratic opponent, who called the move baseless character assassination. In a news release and list of quotes posted Friday on the Drudge Report Web site, Sen. George Allen, R-Va., accused his opponent, former Navy Secretary Jim Webb, of "demeaning women" and "dehumanizing women, men and even children" through his fiction writings. At least two of the passages listed include children in sexual situations. Allen's campaign did not include the press release and list of passages on its Web site, where press releases are generally posted. There was, however, a statement dated Thursday from Chris LaCivita, general consultant for the Allen campaign, saying some references in Webb's novels are "disturbing" and "portray women as servile, subordinate and promiscuous." -- CNN's Joshua Levs Welch has 10-point lead in Vermont congressional race
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Democrat Peter Welch has a 10-point advantage over Republican Martha Rainville for Vermont's lone congressional seat. The poll was conducted by Research 2000 for WCAX-TV.
--CNN Political Researcher Xuan Thai Indiana congressional races still close
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Incumbent Rep. John Hostettler (R) is behind challenger Brad Ellsworth (D) by seven points in the Indiana 8th Congressional District race. Rep. Mike Sodrel (R) is in a virtual tie with Democratic nominee Barron Hill for the Indiana 9th Congressional District. The poll was conducted by Research 2000.
-- CNN Political Researcher Xuan Thai
Kulongoski has the lead over Saxton in Oregon
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Gov. Ted Kulongoski has an 11-point advantage over Republican nominee Ron Saxton for the governor's seat in Oregon. The poll was conducted by Riley Research Associates.
--CNN Political Researcher Xuan Thai Fox: I wasn't acting or off medication
NEW YORK (AP) -- In a response to charges by conservative talk-show host Rush Limbaugh, Michael J. Fox defended his appearance in recent political campaign ads, saying he was neither acting nor off his medication for Parkinson's disease.
On the contrary, he had been overmedicated, the actor said during an interview aired on Thursday's "CBS Evening News with Katie Couric." "The irony of it is that I was too medicated," Fox told Couric, adding that his jumpy condition as he spoke to her reflected "a dearth of medication -- not by design. I just take it, and it kicks in when it kicks in." "That's funny -- the notion that you could calculate it for effect," he said. "Would that we could." Full story RNC won't run ads for DeWine in final week
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Republican National Committee said Thursday it won't run any television ads in Ohio on behalf of Sen. Mike DeWine during the final week of the campaign.
RNC spokesman Aaron McLear said the national party organization had reserved time to run statewide TV ads next week as DeWine tries to come back against Democratic Rep. Sherrod Brown, who leads in recent polls. But in the end, the RNC decided not to make the purchase, McLear said. National Democrats said it showed the Republicans were giving up on the two-term senator. "Even the RNC is basically saying now that Mike DeWine has a slim chance of winning this campaign," said Phil Singer, spokesman for the Democrats' national Senate campaign organization. For CNN's coverage of key races, check out America Votes 2006 Steele hopes to attract unlikely GOP voters
QUEENSTOWN, Md. (AP) -- As a black Republican running for Senate, Lt. Gov. Michael Steele needs to upset some traditions -- the historical reliance of blacks on the Democratic Party and the reluctance of many whites to vote for a minority.
This demographic and political high-wire act has turned the contest to succeed veteran Democratic Sen. Paul Sarbanes into what unavoidably has become a campaign rife with racial politics. Neither Steele nor his Democratic opponent, Rep. Ben Cardin, has made race an issue. But Steele doesn't hesitate to point out that he is descended from sharecroppers or to plaster his photo on the bus he uses to tour the state. For more of CNN's coverage of key races, check out America Votes 2006 CNN's Maryland 2006 elections page Gingrich references '94 in fundraising appeal
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich sharply criticizes House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi in a new fundraising appeal titled "Help Me Do It Again" sent overnight to Republican activists on behalf of House Republicans.
"We are in the midst of a battle for Congress and the Democrats have their first serious chance in over a decade to take back the majority in Congress," Gingrich writes in the e-mail solicitation. It was Gingrich, a Georgia Republican, who led the GOP into the majority in what is known as the 1994 Republican Revolution. House Democrats have not been in the majority since 1995. As for Pelosi, Gingrich describes the California Democrat as "ultra-liberal." "This left-wing Congresswoman will be third in line to the presidency if she becomes speaker," Gingrich writes. "The prospect of Pelosi bringing San Francisco values and a foreign policy attitude of weakness, appeasement and surrender would be a disaster for the country." For more of CNN's coverage of the midterm elections, check out America Votes 2006 -- CNN Political Editor Mark Preston
White House denies Cheney endorsed `water boarding'
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The White House said Friday that Vice President Dick Cheney was not talking about a torture technique known as "water boarding" when he said dunking terrorism suspects in water during questioning was a "no-brainer."
Human rights groups said Cheney's comments amounted to an endorsement of water boarding, in which the victim believes he is about to drown. "You know as a matter of common sense that the vice president of the United States is not going to be talking about water boarding. Never would, never does, never will," presidential spokesman Tony Snow said. "You think Dick Cheney's going to slip up on something like this? No, come on." Safavian faces sentencing in Abramoff case
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Sentencing for former Bush administration official David Safavian was set for Friday, another election-season reminder of the Jack Abramoff scandal.
Safavian was convicted in June of lying to investigators about his relationship with the disgraced former lobbyist while Safavian was chief of staff in the General Services Administration. It was the first jury conviction handed down in the Abramoff case, and prosecutors sought a three-year prison sentence. Safavian says that would be unfair and is asking for house arrest or probation. Abramoff is cooperating with an FBI corruption investigation. He has admitted using gifts to influence lawmakers. The investigation snared its first congressman this month when Rep. Bob Ney, R-Ohio, pleaded guilty to covering up expensive gifts and trips from Abramoff. Judge temporarily suspends Ohio's new voter ID law
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- A federal judge suspended Ohio's new voter identification law Thursday as it applies to absentee voting, saying the state's 88 counties are inconsistently applying the rule in the voting, which is already under way.
U.S. District Judge Algenon Marbley granted the temporary restraining order on behalf of labor and poverty groups who sued Tuesday. The ruling is in effect until Wednesday, when the judge will consider arguments from the same groups seeking to block application of the identification law for voters who go to the polls Nov. 7. It's unclear how many absentee ballots have been cast since early voting began Oct. 3, said James Lee, spokesman for Secretary of State Ken Blackwell. None were scheduled to be counted before Election Day, and none will be disqualified, he said. Where the right went wrong
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Fifty years ago, when a 29-year-old Yale graduate named William F. Buckley Jr. funded National Review magazine, conservatism was a small insurgency, fighting the dominant tide of liberalism that had governed the United States for a quarter century. Today, the right is politically dominant. The president is an avowed conservative; so are the vast majority of Republicans who control the Congress. The courts have moved to the right; conservative voices are prominent in the media; and three Americans call themselves conservative for every two who say they are liberal. Full story -- CNN Senior Analyst Jeff Greenfield Tonight, Greenfield reports on "Where the Right Went Wrong" in the latest installment of CNN's "America's Broken Government" series. With Republicans firmly in power, many of those most deeply committed to the conservative cause are enraged over out-of-control government spending, political pork, nation-building and the president's more lenient approach to immigration. Airs tonight at 8 and 11 p.m. ET. U.S. Muslims moving into prime-time politics
CHICAGO (Reuters) - At less than 3 percent of America's 300 million residents, Muslims are still on the fringe of political influence and power, experts say. But that may be changing.
A voter registration and get-out-the-vote drive is under way in the Muslim community before the Nov. 7 mid-term election. And it comes at a time when their interest in politics may have been sharpened to a new edge by the expected election of the first Muslim to Congress. That will likely come in a heavily Democratic Minneapolis district for 43-year-old Keith Ellison, a native-born convert to Islam who would also be the first black member of Congress from Minnesota. His candidacy "is being followed very closely in the Muslim community throughout the country," said one activist in Chicago, where more than 1,000 new Muslim-American voters have been registered in recent weeks. Ellison's likely election would carry "a great symbolic meaning" but future political gains will be one step at a time, cautioned Louise Cainkar, research fellow at the Great Cities Institute at the University of Illinois-Chicago. Bush remains 'eternal optimist" despite polls
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A lot of Republicans look at Nov. 7 and are very afraid. Not President Bush. Despite polls showing his party is in for a drubbing, the cheerleader in chief sees a good day.
Sinking under the weight of grim news from Iraq, discontent with Bush's leadership and lawmaker scandals, Republicans could be on the verge of a crushing defeat in next week's congressional elections, costing them control of the House and maybe the Senate. But if he is worried, Bush going to lengths not to show it. He remains the "eternal optimist" against a tide of opinion polls and declaring Democrats so cocky that they are prematurely "measuring the drapes." He insisted, "November 7th is going to be a good day for the Republicans." 3rd-qtr GDP growth weakest in over 3 years
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- A slumping housing sector helped slow U.S. economic growth in the third quarter to its weakest pace in more than three years, the Commerce Department reported Friday, leading financial markets to raise bets on interest-rate cuts next year.
Gross domestic product, which measures total economic activity within U.S. borders, expanded at a 1.6 percent annual rate during the third quarter, down from 2.6 percent in the second quarter for the slowest advance since 1.2 percent in the first quarter of 2003. Consumers showed no sign that weakening housing prices were dampening their spirits, instead boosting their spending in a sign that the slowdown was unlikely to worsen. Third-quarter GDP growth was well below Wall Street analysts' forecasts for a 2.2 percent rate of growth and reflected a range of influences that combined to slow the economy. Frist tries to counter Clinton's fundraising plea
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist sent a fundraising appeal Thursday night to his political supporters urging them to donate to Iowa GOP House candidate Mike Whalen. The Tennessee Republican's request came hours after Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-New York, made a similar plea on behalf of Whalen's Democratic opponent, Bruce Braley. Whalen and Braley are running for retiring Rep. Jim Nussle's, R-Iowa, seat, in what is one of the hottest House races this election cycle. "In a recent poll, Mike Whalen leads his opponent," Frist writes in a note sent to his Volunteer PAC e-mail list. "His lead however, could be in jeopardy if Hillary Clinton and national Democrats tip the scales in favor of Mike’s opponent with an unexpected wave of money to fund negative attack ads." In an interesting side note, both Frist and Clinton are considering presidential bids and these respective fundraising appeals could buy them some good will with influential Iowa Caucus voters. -- CNN Political Editor Mark Preston Dean to rally in Nevada
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean heads to Nevada Friday to rally Democratic supporters in the Western battleground state.
Dean will be joined by California Democratic Rep. Mike Honda and other Nevada Democratic leaders at a get-out-the-vote rally for Asian American and Pacific Islanders in Las Vegas. The DNC head is also slated to attend a Nevada Democratic Party rally for early voters Saturday morning in Henderson. -- CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney Cheney rallies Friday in two states
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Vice President Dick Cheney is rallying the B-2 Bomber forces and GOP supporters Friday when he heads to Missouri and South Carolina.
Cheney is slated to speak at a rally for the B-2 Bomber forces at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri before he heads to South Carolina for a Republican National Committee fundraiser. The fundraiser, being held at the Sanctuary at Kiawah Island, is closed to the press. -- CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney Santorum's soft side
Sen. Rick Santorum is often accused of having a hard edge. Today, we look at a campaign ad that attempts to show the softer side of the Pennsylvania Republican.
Click here to see the ad First lady urges Republicans to vote
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- First lady Laura Bush urges Republicans to vote early in a new e-mail sent out by the Republican National Committee.
The first lady also notes that the November "election will set the course of George's last two years in office. It's important to make sure you vote." "I know how much George appreciates your loyal support, and he is counting on your vote for a Republican Congress he can work with to make America stronger and better," the first lady writes in the letter that also contains a picture of her alongside President Bush. -- CNN Political Editor Mark Preston CNN Political Ticker AM
For the latest, breaking political news, check for updates throughout the day on the CNN Political Ticker. All politics, all the time.
Compiled by Stephen Bach CNN Washington Bureau Making news today... TONIGHT, CNN's Senior Political Analyst Jeff Greenfield reports, "Where the Right Went Wrong": With Republicans firmly in power, many of those most deeply committed to the conservative cause are enraged over out-of-control government spending, political pork, nation-building and the president's more lenient approach to immigration. Airs tonight at 8 and 11 p.m. ET. President's Schedule: Also on the Political Radar today: At 6 pm ET, Cheney participates in a fundraiser for the Republican National Committee at The Sanctuary at Kiawah Island, in South Carolina. Mrs. Bush will also speak at a Clay Shaw for Congress reception at a private residence in Palm Beach at 5 pm ET. ================================================================= Political Hot Topics (Today's top political stories from news organizations across the country) LAURA BUSH TAKES ISSUE WITH WOODWARD ACCOUNT: In her first public comments about Bob Woodward's explosive book "State of Denial," first lady Laura Bush sharply denied claims in the book that her husband has misled the public about the level of violence in Iraq. "Absolutely I think that is wrong," Bush said in an exclusive interview with CNN Wednesday. "Of course, the president has been frank from the very very first speech he gave to the country after the September 11 attacks, talking about this is a long war, this is a very difficult war... The first lady also bristled when asked about Woodward's suggestion that she privately supported an effort by then-White House Chief of Staff Andy Card to push out Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. "Andy Card also went onto television and said that's not true," she said. "And let me just say the one thing about that book. Those 'quotes' of mine are in quotes and the author didn't call me and fact check, and it just didn't happen." CNN: Laura Bush: My husband never misled about Iraq AP-AOL NEWS POLL GIVES DEMS 19 PT LEAD: Less than two weeks before the Nov. 7 election, the latest Associated Press-AOL News poll found that likely voters overwhelmingly prefer Democrats over Republicans. They are angry at President Bush and the Republican-controlled Congress, and say Iraq and the economy are their top issues. At the same time, fickle middle-class voters are embracing the Democratic Party and fleeing the GOP - just as they abandoned Democrats a dozen years ago and ushered in an era of Republican control... The AP-AOL News telephone poll of 2,000 adults, 970 of whom are likely voters, was conducted by Ipsos from Oct. 20-25. In it, 56 percent of likely voters said they would vote to send a Democrat to the House and 37 percent said they would vote Republican - a 19-point difference. Democrats had a 10-point edge in early October. AP via Yahoo! News: Poll: Middle class voters abandoning GOP TOPLINE POLL RESULTS (pdf via Ipsos.com) IRS DELAYS COLLECTIONS "TO AVOID NEGATIVE PUBLICITY" BEFORE ELECTIONS: The commissioner of internal revenue has ordered his agency to delay collecting back taxes from Hurricane Katrina victims until after the Nov. 7 elections and the holiday season, saying he did so in part to avoid negative publicity. The commissioner, Mark W. Everson, who has close ties to the White House, said in an interview that postponing collections until after the midterm elections, along with postponing notices to people who failed to file tax returns, was a routine effort to avoid casting the Internal Revenue Service in a bad light... The tax agency has broad discretion to change filing deadlines in the case of disasters and has traditionally eased off tax collections before the December holidays. But four former I.R.S. commissioners, who served under presidents of both parties, said that doing so because of an election was improper and indefensible. New York Times: I.R.S. Going Slow Before Election "KITCHEN-SINK TIME" FOR NEGATIVE ATTACKS: On the brink of what could be a power-shifting election, it is kitchen-sink time: Desperate candidates are throwing everything. While negative campaigning is a tradition in American politics, this year's version in many races has an eccentric shade, filled with allegations of moral bankruptcy and sexual perversion. At the same time, the growth of "independent expenditures" by national parties and other groups has allowed candidates to distance themselves from distasteful attacks on their opponents, while blogs and YouTube have provided free distribution networks for eye-catching hatchet jobs. Washington Post: The Year Of Playing Dirtier IMMIGRATION BACK IN FOCUS AS BUSH SIGNS BORDER FENCE BILL: President Bush yesterday signed a law committing to build nearly 700 miles of fence along the U.S.-Mexico border -- although less than 24 hours earlier, he told conservative writers that he doesn't see immigration as a major issue in this year's campaign. His signature, coming less than two weeks before the midterm elections, delighted congressional Republicans, who said it is about time that the government gets serious about border enforcement. But it infuriated Democrats and illegal alien advocacy groups, who said Mr. Bush has abandoned his earlier commitment to a more lenient immigration policy. Washington Times: Bush signs law to build border fence HIGH-TECH MEASURES TO MAKE VOTING "RELIABLE AND CONVENIENT": Haunted by breakdowns at the polls during this year's primaries, elections officials across the USA are using technology and other means to make voting on Nov. 7 more reliable and convenient. From alerts delivered by text message to polling sites at grocery stores, states and counties hope to increase turnout and decrease the number of problems in states such as Ohio and Illinois earlier this year. In Cuyahoga County, Ohio, where it took nearly a week to count votes in May, poll workers must pass a four-hour training course and practice on new electronic voting machines. The nearly 30% who fail must repeat the class. "You're imposing a technology on them that they don't understand," elections project manager Tom Hayes says. Cook County, Ill., which suffered similar delays in March, is paying $500 to equipment technicians willing to train for three days. "The job of these poll workers immediately got about five or six times harder," County Clerk David Orr says. Philadelphia Inquirer: Phila. opposes U.S. observers at polls VEGAS SHERIFF SAYS HE'LL INVESTIGATE IF ACCUSER SIGNS CRIME REPORT: Now it's up to Chrissy Mazzeo, a nonvoting single mother and cocktail waitress, to decide whether she wants police to investigate further her allegation that Rep. Jim Gibbons assaulted her in a parking garage on a rainy Friday night. Sheriff Bill Young said as much Thursday at a news conference, where he defended the integrity of the Metropolitan Police Department, the officers who conducted the initial investigation and his own actions related to the Oct. 13 incident. "Bring it on," Young said. "Come forward, sign the crime report, and I guarantee if you want an aggressive investigation... you ain't seen nothing yet. We will investigate this thing every... every nth of it. There will be no stone left unturned. "But she's (Mazzeo) going to sign a crime report first." Las Vegas Review-Journal: 'COME FORWARD': Young vows to pursue probe FINAL OH SEN DEBATE TONIGHT IN CLEVELAND: Both men use lines right out of their parties' playbooks, both give selective answers, and both stump the public by citing conflicting facts, figures and accusations that can't all be true. Sen. Mike DeWine and his re-election opponent, Rep. Sherrod Brown, face off in their fourth and final debate today at the City Club of Cleveland. Based on their previous debates, each is likely to portray the other as extreme, asleep on the job or absent from it, and beholden to special interests. Cleveland Plain Dealer: DeWine, Brown final debate likely to be a rehash RNC PULLS ANTI-BROWN ADS: The Republican National Committee yesterday canceled its on-air support of U.S. Sen. Mike DeWine (R., Cedarville), even as the two-term incumbent prepared to sharpen his televised attacks on Democratic challenger Sherrod Brown. An RNC spokesman confirmed the committee is pulling anti-Brown ads from stations across Ohio, leaving Mr. DeWine with apparently less TV airtime - at least for now - as he tries to close a deficit in the polls. The spokesman, Aaron McLear, said the committee will continue to fund a get-out-the-vote effort in Ohio and back Mr. DeWine in other ways. "This in no way reflects any lack of confidence or support for the DeWine campaign or the state [Republican] party," Mr. McLear said. Toledo Blade: GOP yanks TV support of DeWine NYT/CBS POLL FINDS STATISTICAL TIE IN NJ: Thomas H. Kean Jr., the Republican challenger for United States Senate in New Jersey, has capitalized on his father's reputation to offset voters' qualms about his inexperience. Senator Robert Menendez has been buoyed by discontent with President Bush. The result in this heavily Democratic state is an extremely tight race, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News Poll... Over all, the race is a statistical tossup, with Mr. Menendez leading 38 percent to 36 percent among registered voters, and 40 percent to 39 percent among likely voters. Yet neither candidate has generated much enthusiasm, or made much of an impression. New York Times: Family Ties Help Kean in Senate Race, Poll Says DEVAL PATRICK LEADS BY 25 IN MA GOV RACE: Democrat Deval L. Patrick led Republican gubernatorial rival Kerry Healey by 25 percentage points in a new Globe-CBS4 poll that also indicates widespread dissatisfaction with Healey's negative ads and support for lower property taxes rather than the state income tax cut that Healey favors. Patrick led the GOP nominee, 54 percent to 29 percent, in the survey of 585 likely voters that was taken Sunday through Wednesday evening. Independent Christy Mihos remained a distant third with 8 percent, and Green-Rainbow Party candidate Grace Ross received 2 percent. Only 6 percent of the respondents said they were undecided. While the margin between Healey and Patrick has not changed since a similar Globe/CBS4 poll published Oct. 1, the perception voters have of her has turned increasingly negative, despite the millions of dollars -- almost all of it her own money -- that she has put into television advertising promoting herself and attacking him. Boston Globe: Patrick stays strong in poll; voters spurn Healey ads FL 16 (FOLEY'S DISTRICT) CANDIDATES DEBATE: The future of stem-cell research, the American workforce and the war in Iraq were sticking points Thursday in the first debate among the three candidates vying to replace former U.S. Rep. Mark Foley in the 16th Congressional District. But no issue created as much tension as homeowners insurance. Democrat Tim Mahoney raised the issue several times during the one-hour debate, which was taped at WPEC-Channel 12 studios and will be shown twice this weekend. The Palm Beach Gardens businessman was accompanied to the studios by a Port Charlotte family that Mahoney said was forced to move out of the state because of votes Republican Joe Negron cast in the state legislature... Negron, a state House member from Stuart, said he was proud of the insurance bill, which paid about 42 percent of the $1.7 billion in debt accrued by Citizens Property Insurance Corp., but did allow rates to increase for coastal homes. Instead, Negron used the attack to question how Mahoney would work with other members of Congress. New York Post: GIVE HEVESI THE HEV-HO-SPITZ SCHWARZENEGGER CAMP USES "MICROTARGETING": Gin or vodka? Ford or BMW? Perrier or Fiji water? Does the car you buy or what's in your fridge say anything about how you'll vote? Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's campaign thinks so. Employing technology honed in President Bush's 2004 victory, the Republican governor's re-election team has created a vast computer storehouse of data on personal buying habits and voter records to identify likely supporters. Campaign officials say the operation is the largest of its kind in any state, at any time. Some strategists believe consumer information can reveal a voter's politics even better than a party label can. "It's not where they live, it's how they live," said Josh Ginsberg, the Schwarzenegger campaign's deputy political director. The idea is an outgrowth of techniques that businesses have long used to find new customers. Using publicly available data, the Bush campaign in 2004 knew voters' favorite vacation spots, religious leanings, the music and magazines they liked, the cars they drove. AP via Yahoo! News: Schwarzenegger camp uses consumer data |
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• Hagel to announce decision on presidential bid Monday• Does Tiger Woods have a political future? • AFL-CIO makes push to keep unions united behind one presidential candidate • Obama: "No place for politics" in voter intimidation • Muslim congressman talks up 'American values' in State Department outreach • Year of the 'smaller' Pig • Pataki joins law firm • Bush 'sad' about Libby's conviction • House Dems urge colleagues to fund a withdrawal from Iraq • Romney recruits from the Sunshine State ARCHIVE
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