| 10:10 PM: | A Search for Answers in Russert’s Death. Tim Russert’s sudden death last week at 58 from a heart attack was a sad reminder that heart disease can be silent. NYT. | |
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| 10:10 PM: | Is McCain Like Bush? It Depends on the Issue. It is hard to categorize John McCain as doctrinaire, but he appears to have ceded some of his maverick reputation. NYT. | |
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| 7:51 PM: | Virginia: Obama Keeps Gaining Ground in State that Has Voted GOP for Forty Years. Barack Obama continues to gain ground on John McCain in Virginia, for the first time edging ahead of his Republican opponent for the presidency in a state Democrats are increasingly hopeful of peeling away from the GOP. Rasmussen. | |
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| 7:43 PM: | Election 2008: Declare a forfeit. To avoid humiliating a once-great party and subjecting America to more painful glimpses of McCain's ideas and teeth, the mercy rule must be invoked now. Salon. | |
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| 7:42 PM: | And Obama's veep is ... a Republican? Some are buzzing about Chuck Hagel, a strong critic of Bush and the war, for the Democratic ticket. A bold idea or political fantasy? Salon. | |
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| 7:41 PM: | Gore endorses Obama. In a speech Monday night, the former vice president threw his support behind the presumptive Democratic nominee, describing him as a man who can bring needed change to the U.S. and the world. Salon. | |
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| 6:32 PM: | Moderate Republicans Express Concern Over Push For Conservative Agenda. Moderate House Republicans are pushing back against efforts to march the GOP Conference in a conservative direction for this fall's campaign season. CQ. | |
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| 6:25 PM: | Gore Endorses Obama. The former vice president introduces the presumptive Democratic nominee at a rally in Detroit Monday night, offers his hearty support. Calls the nomination fight a historic process, urges a general election campaign that's conducted in a respectful manner. Mark Halperin. | |
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| 6:14 PM: | Goodbye to a Standup Brother. "I was thinking: What would I like to do tomorrow?" he said to the camera, his face shiny with excitement. "No more primaries to cover! One, I'd like to be in that meeting between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. But absent that, I would LOVE to teach American history in an inner-city American school tomorrow morning. How GREAT would that be? Just to look in those faces and listen to those kids -- what they witnessed and saw tonight." Gwen Ifill. | |
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| 5:50 PM: | Gay Marriages Begin in California. Gay and lesbian couples across California began the state's court-approved and potentially short-lived experiment with same-sex marriage on Monday. NYT. | |
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| 5:50 PM: | Proud To Be A Californian Today. Today, at 5:01pm PDT, California became only the second state to allow same sex marriage. MyDD. | |
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| 5:13 PM: | McCain Doubles Down On Town Halls. John McCain's campaign sees an opportunity in Barack Obama's refusal to accept multiple joint town hall meetings before the party conventions. Marc Ambinder. | |
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| 5:11 PM: | Obama Drops By Michigan GM Plant. The Illinois Senator gets caught in the rain as he stands outside the Flint factory to shake hands during a shift change. Mark Halperin. | |
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| 5:08 PM: | NOAA: New Orleans at risk from Cat. 2 hurricane. Despite a massive effort to repair and upgrade flood defenses since Hurricane Katrina, storm surge could pour over levees in New Orleans if a strong Category 2 or higher hurricane strikes the city. AP. | |
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| 5:07 PM: | The media overdo the death of Tim Russert. Almost nothing aired contained much in the way of news. After reporting his passing and a postmortem by his physician, nearly every minute of NBC and MSNBC coverage tried to convey the loss felt by his peers. Slate. | |
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| 4:58 PM: | POLL: Rasmussen Virginia. Rasmussen Reports Virginia Obama 45, McCain 44. Pollster.com. | |
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| 4:56 PM: | Democrats cut convention events, hope for cash. Facing a $15 million budget shortfall, organizers of the Democratic National Convention are cutting events. USA Today. | |
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| 2:16 PM: | Quote of the day. Responding to unsubtle jabs about its candidate's age and unfamiliarity with the Internet, the McCain campaign gets a little snippy. Salon. | |
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| 2:09 PM: | Democrats to back down on Iraq war conditions. Democrats in the Congress, who came to power last year on a call to end the combat in Iraq, will soon give President George W. Bush the last war-funding bill of his presidency without any of the conditions they sought for withdrawing U.S. troops, congressional aides said on Monday. Reuters. | |
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| 1:48 PM: | Where They Are Monday. Obama: Flint, Detroit, MI. McCain: Washington, DC; Arlington, VA; Dallas, TX. Mark Halperin. | |
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| 1:48 PM: | Quote of the Day. "You don't hire Patti Solis Doyle for her operational expertise," said the bundler. "You don't do that. This is someone who failed dramatically at her job. You only bring her on to fuck someone else." -- A "former Clinton bundler," quoted by the New York Observer , noting that "Clinton loyalists were livid over the pick." Political Wire. | |
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| 1:36 PM: | Poll of Latinos gives Obama a 2-1 edge. A nationwide survey of 800 Latino voters found 60% currently supporting Democrat Barack Obama's presidential bid, 23% favoring Republican John McCain and 16% undecided. USA Today. | |
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| 1:35 PM: | Gore to endorse Obama tonight in Detroit. Former vice president Al Gore will take the Joe Louis Arena stage with Sen. Barack Obama tonight in Detroit to formally endorse ... USA Today. | |
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| 1:35 PM: | Blogger Raises Money to Retire Clinton's Debt. Blogger and Georgetown law professor Heidi Feldman says she has raised $6,800 aimed at retiring Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's (D-N.Y.) presidential campaign debt through her blog this month. The Hill. | |
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| 1:29 PM: | The Real Tragedy. Tim Russert's untimely death is unfortunate, but let's keep some perspective here. What if in journalism -- mourning -- not to mention expressing feeling -- wasn’t saved up just for journalists? Firedoglake. | |
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| 1:20 PM: | Does Solis Doyle mean no Clinton VP? Solis Doyle -- who after her firing midway through the primaries is no longer on speaking terms with much of the Clinton inner circle, including the senator herself -- has been tapped to serve as chief of staff to the future vice presidential running mate. MSNBC. | |
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| 1:18 PM: | Bush, Musharraf, Ahmadinejad least trusted leaders. U.S. President George W. Bush is ranked only slightly above the rulers of Pakistan and Iran as one of the least-trusted leaders in the world, a survey released on Monday showed. Reuters. | |
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| 12:58 PM: | Bushism of the Day. "There's no question this is a major human disaster that requires a strong response from the Chinese government, which is what they're providing, but it also responds a compassionate response from nations to whom -- that have got the blessings, good blessings of life, and that's us." -- Discussing relief efforts after a Chinese earthquake, Washington, D.C., June 6, 2008. Slate. | |
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| 12:57 PM: | Obama, McCain run neck and neck in important swing state. The battle for the swing state of Nevada -- which has voted for every winning president except Jimmy Carter in 1976 -- is a draw in a new poll that shows Barack Obama and John McCain in a statistical tie. CNN. | |
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| 12:56 PM: | McCain In Hoc? The Hill is reporting that Sen. John McCain and Cindy McCain have more than $100,000 in credit card debt. Next campaign stop: Suze Orman ? ("Jaaahn. You. Can't. Afford. That.") Marc Ambinder. | |
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| 12:54 PM: | Al Gore To Endorse Obama Tonight. The Obama campaign just sent out this email from former Vice-President Al Gore. MyDD. | |
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| 12:53 PM: | McCain urges end to ban on offshore drilling. Sen. John McCain said Monday the federal moratorium on offshore oil and gas drilling should be lifted, and individual states given the right to pursue energy exploration in waters near their own coasts. AP. | |
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| 12:43 PM: | Gore to endorse Obama in Detroit. Ex-veep says he'll make his support official tonight and urges AlGore.com members to donate to Obama's effort. Politico. | |
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| 11:58 AM: | Gallup Daily: Obama 46%, McCain 42% Obama reestablishes significant lead. Gallup. | |
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| 11:54 AM: | Gore to Appear With Obama. Former Vice President Al Gore will appear in Detroit tonight for his debut campaign appearance with Senator Barack Obama, extending an endorsement and urging all Democrats to rally behind the party's fall ticket. NYT. | |
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| 11:53 AM: | Withdrawal. Barack Obama reiterated his commitment to withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq during a telephone conversation this morning with the country's foreign minister, he told reporters during a brief press conference. Natl Journal. | |
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| 11:38 AM: | The AP Targets Bloggers. Some bloggers are upset, others are mostly confused. Andrew Sullivan. | |
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| 11:20 AM: | Obama Builds Staff Roster. Hillary Clinton's former campaign manager, Patti Solis Doyle, is formally joining Barack Obama's presidential campaign to serve as chief of staff to his eventual running mate. WSJ. | |
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| 11:20 AM: | What's wrong with Obama's FightTheSmears.com. Obama's new site tries to fight ugly rumors by getting people to e-mail the truth to their friends. The strategy could backfire. Salon. | |
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| 11:20 AM: | Obama to visit Iraq, Afghanistan. Obama said today on the campaign would be making an announcement as to when, but he said he he wanted to visit both Iraq and Afghanistan before the election in November. MSNBC. | |
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| 10:56 AM: | Obama Plans Trip Pre-Election Day Visit to Iraq and Afghanistan. Barack Obama also discussed his morning telephone call with Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari. NYT. | |
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| 10:55 AM: | Hillary for Veep? In a move bound to reignite speculation that Hillary might be offered the vice presidential slot, the Obama campaign announced that none other than Patti Solis Doyle, Clinton's former campaign manager, would be 'chief of staff to the vice presidential nominee.' Time. | |
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| 10:29 AM: | White House wins ruling on e-mail records. The White House Office of Administration is not required to turn over records about a trove of possibly missing e-mails, a federal judge ruled Monday. CNN. | |
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| 10:28 AM: | Obama to Visit Iraq, Afghanistan Before Election. The presumptive Democratic nominee tells reporters in Flint, Michigan that he'll visit both countries before November. Mark Halperin. | |
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| 10:00 AM: | Segway Boom. Segway sales booming in response to high gas prices. Yglesias. | |
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| 9:58 AM: | Obama says encouraged by drop in violence in Iraq. U.S. presidential candidate Barack Obama said on Monday he was encouraged by a reduction in violence in Iraq but underlined his support for a pullout of U.S. troops. Reuters. | |
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| 9:57 AM: | Cutter to Serve as Michelle Obama's Chief of Staff. Four years removed from running the communications department for John Kerry's presidential campaign, Stephanie Cutter is joining Barack Obama's national bid as chief of staff to the candidate's wife. Washington Post. | |
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| 9:56 AM: | Former Clinton Campaign Manager Joins Obama Team. Patti Solis Doyle, who was Hillary Rodham Clinton's campaign manager until she was ousted in a staff shake up, will join Barack Obama's campaign as the chief of staff to the vice presidential candidate -- whoever he (or she) will be, campaign officials said. NYT. | |
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| 9:51 AM: | Campaign Stops: The Souljah Legacy. John McCain needs to give a speech that allows the Republican Party to distance itself from conservative special interest groups. NYT. | |
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| 9:10 AM: | Waxman subpoenas Plame documents from Justice Dept. The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee has subpoenaed the Justice Dept. in a bid to get documents relating to the outing of Valerie Plame. The Crypt. | |
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| 9:09 AM: | Dems face convention funds shortfall. The host committee for the Democratic National Convention is facing a possible shortfall of $15 million. USA Today. | |
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| 9:08 AM: | Political Clippings. The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports that former Gov. Jesse Ventura could represent "potential trouble on the horizon" for the Senate campaign of Democrat Al Franken. CQ. | |
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| 9:07 AM: | Obama Camp Thinks It Can Get to 270 without Ohio and Fla. The AP reports that Barack Obama campaign manager David Plouffe told donors Friday that the campaign's general election strategy may not include Ohio and Florida. The Hill. | |
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| 8:57 AM: | Plouffe discusses Obama's map to victory. Barack Obama's campaign manager lays out his strategy for an Electoral College win, and discounts the importance of two states that had been key battlegrounds. Salon. | |
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| 8:56 AM: | Lieberman for veep? It remains a longshot, but Joseph Lieberman's name has been popping up as a vice presidential prospect. Politico. | |
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| 8:55 AM: | Obama in Flint, MI. I've been told that Obama will announce that he will seat the full MI delegation in Denver, with full-strength vote. Firedoglake. | |
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| 8:54 AM: | McCain to Take Questions. The presumptive GOP nominee holds a noon presser from his Arlington, Virginia office. Mark Halperin. | |
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| 8:53 AM: | The Fall and Rise of Hillary Clinton. Hillary is today a more resonant, consequential, and potent figure than she has ever been before. No longer merely a political persona, she has been elevated to a rarefied plane in our cultural consciousness. New York. | |
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| 6:48 AM: | Democrats eye Lieberman's criticism of Obama. Some Democrats are becoming concerned by Sen. Lieberman's support for Sen. McCain and recent criticism of Sen. Barack Obama. CNN. | |
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| 6:36 AM: | Edwards not ruling out veep slot. In an interview on Sunday, the former Senator and one-time Democratic vice-presidential nominee wouldn't categorically deny interest in trying for the job again. Salon. | |
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| 6:35 AM: | Debate About Debates. USA Today sums up the situation, and says talks about holding additional joint appearances are currently at a halt. Mark Halperin. | |
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| 6:33 AM: | Obama Camp's Unconventional Electoral Strategy. Campaign manager Plouffe tells donors, former Clinton supporters in a private pitch late last week that while wins in Ohio, Florida could likely ensure the presidency, they aren't necessarily needed for victory. Mark Halperin. | |
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| 6:32 AM: | Swing states. Pollster John Zogby identifies key US poll battlegrounds BBC. | |
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| 6:32 AM: | Warming up to Obama. The Los Angeles Times looks at how women are now slowly lining up behind Obama. MSNBC. | |
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| 3:27 AM: | Obama Calls for More Responsibility From Black Fathers. In a speech at one of Chicago’s largest black churches, Barack Obama addressed a sensitive topic in the African-American community. NYT. | |
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| 3:27 AM: | Obama the Delegator Picks When to Take Reins. Senator Barack Obama is more inclined to focus on the big picture over the day-to-day whirl while managing his campaign. NYT. | |
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| 3:26 AM: | Evangelical Bush-backer's pro-Obama book. Are Bush and Obama both part of the same divine plan for America? New York Times bestseller writer Steven Masfield thinks so. Politico. | |
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| 3:26 AM: | Obama camp sees possible win without Ohio, Fla. Barack Obama's campaign envisions a path to the presidency that could include Virginia, Georgia and several Rocky Mountain states, but not necessarily the pair of battlegrounds that decided the last two elections - Florida and Ohio. AP. | |
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| 3:24 AM: | Sam Nunn as VP? "[Nunn] seems more prepared to accept a vice presidential offer this year, helping to offset Obama's lack of experience on national security and giving the Democrats a fighting chance in Georgia." Mark Halperin. | |
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