August 2008 News History Archives

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August 31, 2008 News URL: #August-31-2008-News
20080831 Sunday

- Sarah Palin - John McCain - Ted Stevens - Money - Politics - Government - Alaska - Transportation - Construction - History - Ohio - 2008 Election
"Palin backed 'bridge to nowhere' in 2006." ... "In her nationally televised speech accepting the job as [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] John McCain's running mate, Alaska [Republican Governor] Gov. Sarah Palin said she "championed reform to end the abuses of earmark spending by Congress" and opposed federal funding for a controversial bridge to a sparsely populated island." ... "[However] While running for governor in 2006, though, Palin backed federal funding for the infamous bridge, which McCain helped make a symbol of pork barrel excess." ... "And as mayor of the small town of Wasilla [Alaska] from 1996 to 2002, Palin also hired a Washington lobbying firm that helped secure $8 million in congressionally directed spending projects, known as earmarks, according to public spending records compiled by the watchdog group Citizens Against Government Waste and lobbying documents." ... "Wasilla's lobbying firm was headed by Steven Silver — a former chief of staff to Alaska [Republican Senator] Sen. Ted Stevens, a key proponent of the bridge project." ... ""We need to come to the defense of Southeast Alaska when proposals are on the table like the bridge, and not allow the spinmeisters to turn this project or any other into something that's so negative," Palin said in August 2006, according to the Ketchikan Daily News."" -By Ken Dilanian -USATODAY

- Sarah Palin - John McCain - Federal - Money - Alaska - Transportation - Construction - 2008 Election
"Palin touts stance on 'Bridge to Nowhere,' doesn't note flip-flop." ... "When [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] John McCain introduced [Alaska Republican Governor] Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate Friday, her reputation as a tough-minded budget-cutter was front and center." ... ""I told Congress, thanks but no thanks on that bridge to nowhere," Palin told the cheering McCain crowd, referring to [Alaska's] Ketchikan's Gravina Island bridge." ... "But Palin was for the Bridge to Nowhere before she was against it." ... "The Alaska governor campaigned in 2006 on a build-the-bridge platform, telling Ketchikan residents she felt their pain when politicians called them "nowhere." They're still feeling pain today in Ketchikan [Alaska], over Palin's subsequent decision to use the bridge funds for other projects -- and over the timing of her announcement, which they say came in a pre-dawn press release that seemed aimed at national [Eastern] news deadlines." ... ""I think that's when the campaign for national office began," said Ketchikan Mayor Bob Weinstein on Saturday." ... "Alaska's congressional delegation endured withering criticism for earmarking $223 million for Ketchikan and a similar amount for a crossing of Knik Arm at Anchorage [Alaska]." ... "Congress eventually removed the earmark language but the money still went to Alaska, leaving it up to the administration of then-[Alaska Republican Governor ]Gov. Frank Murkowski to decide whether to go ahead with the bridges or spend the money on something else." ... "In September, 2006, Palin showed up in Ketchikan on her gubernatorial campaign and said the bridge was essential for the town's prosperity." -By Tom Kizzia -ADN.com

- McCain - Palin - Alaska - Newspaper - History - 2008 Election
"McCain Camp Didn't Search Palin's Hometown Paper Archives." ... "The [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate John] McCain campaign has gone to great lengths to present the selection of [Alaska Republican] Sarah Palin as one made after a careful, meticulous vetting process. But evidence continues to suggest that the Arizona Republican made his VP choice with surprising haste." ... "On Saturday, a Democrat tasked with opposition research contacted the Huffington Post with this piece of information: as of this weekend, the McCain campaign had not gone through old newspaper articles from the Valley Frontiersman, Palin's hometown newspaper." ... "How does he know? The paper's (massive) archives are not online. And when he went to research past content, he was told he was the first to inquire." ... ""No one else had requested access before," said the source. "It's unbelievable. We were the only people to do that, which means the McCain camp didn't."" -By Sam Stein -HuffingtonPost.com

- Sarah Palin - John McCain - Political - Investigation - Attorney - Government - Transportation - Construction - Money - Alaska - Oil - Global - Climate - 2008 Election
"What McCain Didn't Know About Sarah Palin." ... "They've [the 2008 Election Republican Presidential campaign of John McCain] bragged that [Alaska Republican Governor Sarah] Palin opposed the famous "Bridge to Nowhere," only to learn that Palin supported the project and even told residents of Ketchikan [Alaska] that they weren't "nowhere" to her. After the national outcry, she decided to spend the funds allocated to the bridge for something else. Actually, maybe it's more fair to say that coincident with the national outcry, she changed her mind. The story shows her political judgment, but it is not a reformer's credential." ... "Likewise, though she cut taxes as mayor of Wassila [Alaska], she raised the sales tax, making her hardly a tax cutter." ... "She denied pressuring the state's chief of public safety to fire her sister-in-law's husband even though there's mounting evidence that the impetus did indeed come from her. Ostensibly to clear her name, Palin asked her attorney general to open an independent investigation—the legislature had already been investigating. (I am told that the campaign was aware of the ethics complaint filed against her but accepts Palin's account.)" ... "McCain's campaign seemed unaware that she supported a windfalls profits tax on oil companies and that she is more skeptical about human contributions to global warming than McCain is." ... "They did not know that she took trips as the mayor of Wasilla to beg for earmarks." ... "They did not know that she told a television interviewer this summer that she did not fully understand what it is that a vice president does." -By Marc Ambinder -TheAtlantic.com

- John McCain - Joe Biden - Barack Obama - Hillary Clinton - Hurricane Katrina - Weather - Emergency - Investigation - Legislation - Politics - History - Federal - NY - New Orleans - Louisiana - Communications - Funds - Children - Transportation - 2008 Election
"McCain To Katrina Victims In 2005: You're On Your Own." ... "It doesn’t really come as a surprise to those of us who have watched [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] John McCain over the years that he's about to make a campaign stop in New Orleans [Louisiana] after Hurricane Gustav hits this week. After all, he's been exploiting the troops for years, what's a few hurricane victims after that?" ... "What does seem odd is that McCain thinks Gulf Coast residents will forget how he, [Republican President] George W. Bush and the then-Republican Congress turned their backs on them so many times in the months after Katrina thundered ashore in 2005." ... "Too bad he spent the months to follow leading the Republican charge against every Senate bill that would have actually helped Katrina victims or mandated investigations on how the Bush administration could have blown disaster response so thoroughly." ... "[2008 Election] Democratic Vice Presidential nominee Joe Biden jumped immediately to the aid of hurricane victims in the week after the 2005 disaster, authoring S.Amdt. 1661 "…to provide emergency funding for victims of Hurricane Katrina."" ... "Biden's legislation would have provided many things including money to purchase interoperable communications equipment to help first-responders dealing with the disaster, $10 million "to find, unite, and transport children impacted by Hurricane Katrina to their parents, legal guardian, or next of kin" and funding to assist victims of domestic violence in affected areas." ... "But with John McCain's help, the Republican-led Senate shot down the funding on a 41-56 vote with McCain voting against, while Biden and Democratic Presidential nominee Barack Obama voted for the funding." ... "When [New York Democratic] Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY[ Democratic-New York]) proposed the creation of a Congressional Commission to "examine the Federal, State, and local response to the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina.. and make immediate corrective measures to improve such responses in the future," John McCain was once again exactly where [Republican President] George W. Bush wanted him to be: On the "nay" side of a straight party-line vote (44-54) that killed that legislation." ... "And lest you think it was McCain taking a stand against what might become a Democratic witch hunt on the failures of his bosses in the White House, the bill called for a wholly bipartisan panel, stating specifically of the 10-member group that "not more than 5 members of the Commission shall be from the same political party."" ... "Unlike McCain, Barack Obama was one of the cosponsors of that bill and both he and Biden voted for immediate oversight on the bungled Katrina response." ... "But that's not all." -By Bob Geiger

- Sarah Palin - John McCain - Political - Investigation - Safety - Alaska - 2008 Election
"'Troopergate' inquiry hangs over campaign: Inquiry: Ex-commissioner brings up undisclosed e-mails that he says mentioned trooper." ... "Alaska's former commissioner of public safety says [Alaska Republican Governor] Gov. Sarah Palin, [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] John McCain's pick to be vice president, personally talked with him on two occasions about a state trooper who was locked in a bitter custody battle with the governor's sister." ... "In a phone conversation Friday night, Walt Monegan, who was Alaska's top cop until Palin fired him July 11, told the Daily News that the governor also had e-mailed him two or three times about her ex-brother-in-law, Trooper Mike Wooten, though the e-mails didn't mention Wooten by name." ... "Monegan claims his refusal to fire Wooten was a major reason that Palin dismissed him. Wooten had been suspended for five days previously, based largely on complaints that Palin's family had initiated before Palin was governor." ... "The events surrounding Monegan's dismissal currently are under investigation by the state's legislature. Palin has acknowledged that a member of her staff phoned a trooper lieutenant in an effort that could have been perceived as pressure to have Wooten dismissed and that her husband and other officials also had contacted Monegan about Wooten." ... "She has insisted, however, that she did not authorize the phone call and was not aware of it. She has said she doesn't believe any of the contacts amounted to pressuring Monegan." ... "Monegan, however, said that Palin raised the subject of Wooten with him herself on two occasions after becoming governor -- once on the phone soon after she took office and once in person not long after that." ... "Monegan also said that the governor's husband, Todd, talked to him several times about Wooten and that three top officials in her administration contacted him." ... "Monegan also disclosed for the first time that Palin sent him two or three e-mails that referenced her ex-brother-in-law and his status with troopers. Monegan declined to provide the e-mails because of the ongoing investigation." ... "Monegan said he believes his firing was directly related to the fact Wooten stayed on the job. "It was a significant factor if not the factor," Monegan said." ... "Palin's replacement for Monegan, Chuck Kopp, was forced to resign just two weeks after he was appointed because of a sexual harassment complaint that had been filed against him when he was the chief of police in Kenai [Alaska]." -By Lisa Demer -ADN.com

- Sarah Palin - Alaska - Newspapers - US - Iraq - Military - Politics - McCain - 2008 Election
"2 Top Alaska Newspapers Question Palin's Fitness." ... "For the past 24 hours, the pages and web sites of the two leading papers up there have raised all sorts of issues surrounding [2008 Election Republican Vice Presidential Candidate Sarah] Palin, from her ethics problems to general lack of readiness for this big step up." ... "A reporter for the Anchorage daily, Gregg Erickson, even did an online chat with the Washington Post, in which he revealed that Palin's approval rating in the state was not the much-touted 80%, but 65% and sinking -- and that among journalists who followed her it might be in the "teens." He added: "I have a hard time seeing how her qualifications stack up against the duties and responsibilities of being president.... I expect her to stick with simple truths. When asked about continued American troop presence in Iraq, she said she knows only one thing about that (I paraphrase): no one has attacked the American homeland since [Republican President] George Bush took the war to Iraq."" ... "Dermot Cole, a columnist for the Fairbanks paper, observed that he thinks highly of Palin as a person but "in no way does her year-and-a-half as governor of Alaska qualify her to be vice president or president of the United States." ... ""One of the strange things Friday was that so many commentators and politicians did not know how to pronounce her name and had no clue about what she has actually done in Alaska....I may be proven wrong, but the decision announced by McCain strikes me as reckless. She is not prepared to be the next president should something happen to McCain."" -By Greg Mitchell -HuffingtonPost.com

- Sarah Palin - Ted Stevens - Political - Ad - 2006 Election - 2008 Election - Alaska
"Palin Ad Starring Ted Stevens Already Scrubbed From Palin's Campaign Website." ... "This morning, an ad from [2008 Election Republican Vice Presidential Candidate] Sarah Palin's 2006 [Election for Alaska's Governor] gubernatorial campaign featuring an endorsement from scandal-plagued Alaska [Republican] Senator Ted Stevens was available on Palin's campaign Web site." ... "...but now the Stevens ad has already been scrubbed." ... "Luckily, the ad featuring Stevens and Palin is still available for your viewing pleasure!" -By Greg Sargent -TPMElectionCentral .TalkingPointsMemo

- Sarah Palin - John McCain - Law - Politics - Safety - Alaska - 2008 Election
"Exclusive: Chief Fired by Palin Speaks Out." ... "The July firing of Alaska Public Safety Commissioner Walter Monegan by [Alaska Republican Governor] Gov. Sarah Palin, who was announced as [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] John McCain's running mate on Friday, has unearthed a stream of soap-opera-like details about Palin, her husband, her family and top state appointees. The controversy has also cut against Palin's reputation for holding an ethical line and standing up to colleagues in the Republican Party over matters of principle." ... "Monegan, 57, a respected former chief of the Anchorage [Alaska] Police Department, said in an interview with The Washington Post's James V. Grimaldi on Friday that the governor repeatedly brought up the topic of her ex-brother-in-law, Michael Wooten, after Monegan became the state's commissioner of public safety in December 2006. Palin's husband, Todd, met with Monegan and presented a dossier of information about Wooten, who was going through a bitter custody battle with Palin's sister, Molly. Monegan also said Sarah Palin sent him e-mails on the subject, but Monegan declined to disclose them, saying he planned to give them to a legislative investigator looking into the matter." ... "Palin initially denied that she or anyone in her administration had ever pressured Monegan to fire the trooper, but this summer acknowledged more than a half a dozen contacts over the matter, including one phone call from a Palin administration official to a state police lieutenant." -WashingtonPost

- John McCain - Sarah Palin - Law - Politics - Safety - Alaska - Arizona - 2008 Election
"McCain's VP Pick Palin Facing Ethics Investigation." ... "... [T]he 44-year-old [Alaska Republican Governor Sarah] Palin, who was selected as [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate and Arizona Senator] Sen. John McCain's running mate today, is now the focus of her own state ethics investigation as part of the so-called "Troopergate" scandal, a bizarre controversy involving the firing of a state police chief and his reluctance to fire an Alaska state trooper, Palin's former brother-in-law who has been involved in a bitter custody fight with her younger sister." ... "Just two weeks ago, Palin revealed an audio recording of an aide pressuring the state's Public Safety Department to fire trooper Mike Wooten, the Anchorage Daily News reported." ... "Palin also acknowledged that her staff had contacted Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan about two dozen times about Wooten. Monegan himself was fired July 11 (the dismissal was "out of the blue," he told reporters) and he later said that he was pressured by Palin's staff and family to get rid of Wooten, a trooper based in Palmer, Alaska." ... "(To counter the "Troopergate" tag, the alternative-weekly Anchorage Press has dubbed the firing scandal "Wootengate")" ... "In July, Palin came under a state ethics investigation and critics have said Palin's claim that she did not know of the political pressure being placed on Monegan was a "little too convenient."" -By Derek Kravitz -WashingtonPost

- Sarah Palin - John McCain - Hillary Clinton - Women - Politics - Alaska - Los Angeles -California - Arizona - New York  -2008 Election
"Palin: Hillary Clinton's "Whining" Turned Me Off." ... "When Alaska [Republican Governor] Gov. Sarah Palin arrived backstage for our NEWSWEEK Women & Leadership Event in Los Angeles [California] last March, [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] John McCain had just wrapped up the GOP [GOP=Grand Old Party=Republican] nomination. Palin had yet to endorse McCain--she liked [former 2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] Mitt Romney--and as we waited in the green room, I urged her to "feel free" to make some news on stage. She grinned broadly--looking back, I guess it was a grin of the Cheshire Cat variety--and thanked me for the offer." ... "Once onstage, together with Arizona [Democratic Governor] Gov. Janet Napolitano, Palin talked about what women expect from women leaders; how she took charge in Alaska during a political scandal that threatened to unseat the state's entire Republican power structure, and her feelings about [former 2008 Election Democratic Presidential Candidate and New York Senator] Sen. Hillary Clinton. (She said she felt kind of bad she couldn't support a woman, but she didn't like Clinton's "whining.")" -By Karen Breslau -Newsweek /article via -HuffingtonPost.com

- Sarah Palin - John McCain - Alaska - Ariz - 2008 Election
"Palin dissed veep job." ... "Count Alaska [Republican Governor] Gov. Sarah Palin as one of the most surprised that she was chocen as unning mate for [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate and Arizona Senator] Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz. [Republican-Arizona])." ... "In an interview just a month ago, she dissed the job, saying it didn’t seem “productive.”" ... "In fact, she said she didn’t know what the vice president does." ... "Palin replied: “As for that VP talk all the time, I’ll tell you, I still can’t answer that question until somebody answers for me what is it exactly that the VP does every day?["]" ... "Before Palin’s election in December 2006 as the state’s first woman governor, she served two terms on the city council of Wasilla, Alaska (population 6,700), and two terms as the mayor/manager of Wasilla." -By Mike Allen -Politico.com

-Sarah Palin - Science - Politics - Global - Climate - Atmosphere - 2008 Election - John McCain - Alaska - Arizona
"Palin Not Convinced on Global Warming." ... "Some scientists believe Alaska will be among the first to feel the impact of global warming, but [2008 Election Republican Vice Presidential Candidate] Sarah Palin told voters there she wasn't sure climate change wasn't simply part of a natural warming cycle." ... ""I will not pretend to have all the answers," Palin said about global warming, according to the Anchorage Daily News. Her spokesman clarified at the time that "she's not totally convinced one way or the other. Science will tell us . . . She thinks the jury's still out."" ... "Palin shared her views in the run-up to the 2006 governor's race, at an Alaska Federation of Natives convention, where delegates passed a resolution calling for a mandatory reduction in pollution affecting the atmosphere." ... "Answering a question from the Daily News, Palin cautioned against "overreaction."" ... "Those were among the comments that brought condemnation today from Greenpeace to her selection as [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate and Arizona Senator] Sen. John McCain's running mate on the Republican ticket. The environmental group's Alaska Global Warming Campaigner, Melanie Duchin, described Palin as "one of the most anti-environment records of any governor in the United States." -By Matthew Mosk and Juliet Eilperin -WashingtonPost

- John McCain - Sarah Palin - Science - Education - Politics - Law - History - 2008 Election - Alaska - Tennessee
"McCain's VP Wants Creationism Taught in School." ... "[2008 Election] Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin wants creationism taught in science classes." ... "In a 2006 gubernatorial debate, the soon-to-be governor of Alaska said of evolution and creation education, "Teach both. You know, don't be afraid of education. Healthy debate is so important, and it's so valuable in our schools. I am a proponent of teaching both."" ... "Asked by the Anchorage Daily News whether she believed in evolution, Palin declined to answer, but said that "I don't think there should be a prohibition against debate if it comes up in class."" ... ""I'm not going to pretend I know how all this came to be," she said." ... "The battle between evolution and creationism -- specifically, Christian creationism -- in U.S. classrooms dates back to the 1925 Scopes trial, when a Tennessee court banned the teaching of evolution. Since then, state and federal courts have repeatedly rejected so-called creation science in public schools, calling it religion rather than science." ... "The latest courtroom defeat came in the 2005 Kitzmiller v. Dover case, when the superficially religion-neutral theory of intelligent design was classified as religious creationism. The Supreme Court ruled in 1987 that teaching creationism violated the separation of church and state." ... "Nevertheless, pro-creationism education initiatives driven by Christian conservatives have flourished, and defenders of evolution -- and, more broadly, scientific integrity -- worry that Palin's pick will give momentum to this church-over-state push." ... ""It's unfortunate McCain would pick someone who shares those particular anti-science views, but it's not a surprise," said Barbara Forrest, a Southeastern Lousiana University philosophy professor and prominent critic of creationist science. "She's a choice that pleases the religious right. And the religious right has been the chief force against teaching evolution."" -By Brandon Keim -Wired

- Sarah Palin - Alaska - Lawmakers - Investigation - Global - Climate - Ice - Environment - Species - 2008 Election
"Palin candidacy raises eyebrows in Alaska." ... "State lawmakers have launched a $100,000 investigation to determine if [2008 Election Republican Vice Presidential Candidate and Alaska Governor Sarah] Palin dismissed Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan last month because Monegan wouldn't fire a state trooper involved in a messy custody battle with her sister." ... "She also is under fire from environmentalists for opposing the [Republican President] Bush administration's decision in May to list the polar bear as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act because global warming is melting the polar ice cap." ... "Dermot Cole, a longtime columnist for Alaska's second-largest newspaper, the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, called McCain's choice of Palin reckless and questioned her credentials." ... ""Sarah Palin's chief qualification for being elected governor was that she was not Frank Murkowski," Cole said of her enormously unpopular predecessor, who lost favor with Alaskans in part because of unpopular budget cuts. "She was not elected because she was a conservative. She was not elected because of her grasp of issues or because of her track record as the mayor of Wasilla [Alaska]."" -By Dan Joling with contributions by Sharon Theimer and H. Josef Hebert -AP via -Chron

- Sarah Palin - John McCain - Politics - People - Family - Drugs - Health - Federal - US - Foreign - Military - Terrorism - Alaska - Idaho - 2008 Election
"On Sarah Palin." ... "[2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] John McCain has selected Alaska [Republican] Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate. [Governor] Gov. Palin was first elected to the position in 2006 and previously served as the mayor of Wasilla (pop. 5,470) [Alaska]. She also served on the town's city council. She has a degree from the University of Idaho where she minored in political science. That is the extent of her political experience." ... "Her biography is fascinating. She is only 44 years-old. She eloped with her highschool sweetheart, a Yup'ik Eskimo. They have five children named: Track 18, Bristol, 17, Willow, 13, Piper, 7, and Trig (who was born on April 18th). Trig has Down's Syndrome. The Palins knew that Trig had an extra chromosome but decided to go ahead with the pregnancy." ... "She has admitted to smoking the ganja [marijuana] but says she didn't enjoy it. She was the runner-up in the Miss Alaska contest." ... "I am not aware of Palin having any knowledge or experience with foreign affairs, terrorism, the armed forces, or the federal bureaucracy." ... "Considering [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] John McCain's age and history with cancer, this pick has extra importance. It's hard to envision Gov. Palin becoming president on short notice. It also undermines McCain's focus on foreign policy and experience." -By BooMan Tribune

- John McCain - Sarah Palin - Science - Politics - Oil - Money - Wildlife - History - Global - Climate - Ice - Law - Alaska - Arizona - 2008 Election - US - Canada
"McCain VP Pick No Friend to Polar Bears." ... "Alaska [Republican] Governor Sarah Palin has ignored research showing that polar bear populations are declining in the quest to plumb new sources of energy, according to scientists, and environmental groups who fought to put the bears on the endangered species list." ... "[2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate and Arizona Senator] Sen. John McCain tapped Alaska Governor Sarah Palin to be his vice presidential candidate Friday. Palin is only the second woman to be on a major party's ticket as VP -- the first was Geraldine Ferraro, who ran with Democrati Walter Mondale in 1984." ... "The 44-year-old Palin, a beauty pageant winner and former mayor of a small town in Alaska, is an advocate of drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. She has infuriated environmentalists  for her support of the aerial shooting of wolves as a way to build up herds of moose and caribou. She's also sued the Interior Department for putting  polar bears on the endangered species list." ... "In the lawsuit, filed this month in federal district court in the District of Columbia, Palin argues that the government's move to list polar bears as endangered is not based on sound science, and restricts oil and natural gas development. The Interior Department had put the bears on the list in response to a lawsuit filed by environmental groups, who argued that the bears are being threatened by global warming." ... "In an interview on the conservative CNN talk show hosted by Glenn Beck earlier this year, Palin said that she was worried that environmentalists are using the Endangered Species Act to block the extraction of oil and gas." ... ""In fact, the number of polar bears has risen dramatically over the past 30 years," she said. "Our fear (is) that extreme environmentalists will use this tool, the ESA, to eventually curtail or halt the North Slope production of very rich resources that  America needs."" ... "But biologists who have studied polar bear populations counter that the facts simply do not support Palin's assertion that polar bear populations are on the rise." ... ""Polar bear populations have not been increasing for the past 30 years, and that's a well-known fact," said  Ian Stirling, an emeritus scientist with Canada's Department of the Environment and an adjunct professor at the University of Alberta in an interview. Stirling has studied polar bears for 37 years -- the longest of anyone." ... "In fact, the polar bear population has actually declined by 20 percent in Alaska's Southern Beaufort Sea since the mid-1980s, he says, referring to peer-reviewed research that he's conducted with other scientists for the US Geological Survey. The reason: Loss of their habitat in the form of melting ice." -By Sarah Lai Stirland -Wired

- Sarah Palin - John McCain - Investigation - Legislature - Alaska - Colorado - 2008 Election
"Choice stuns state politicians." ... "[2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] John McCain's choice of Alaska [Republican Governor] Gov. Sarah Palin as his vice presidential running mate stunned and divided Alaska political leaders on Friday. Supporters said she was a shrewd choice, but others argued Palin has no business being a heartbeat away from the presidency." ... "State Senate President Lyda Green said she thought it was a joke when someone called her at 6 a.m. to give her the news." ... ""She's not prepared to be governor. How can she be prepared to be vice president or president?" said Green, a Republican from Palin's hometown of Wasilla [Alaska]. "Look at what she's done to this state. What would she do to the nation?"" ... "... Anchorage [Alaska] Democratic state [Senator] Sen. Hollis French said it's a huge mistake by McCain and "reflects very, very badly on his judgment." French said Palin's experience running the state for less than two years hasn't prepared her for this." ... "Alaska Democratic Party chairwoman Patti Higgins, attending her party's national convention in Denver [Colorado], said she was shocked to hear the news this morning." ... ""In this very competitive election for them to go pick somebody who is ... under a cloud of suspicion, who is under investigation for abuse of power. It just sounds like a pretty slow start to me," Higgins said." ... "The state Legislature is investigating whether Palin and her staff broke state law by pressuring the public safety department to fire a state trooper who was in a custody battle with her sister." ... ""We need a vice president who can step in if, God forbid, something happened to John McCain," Higgins said. "I don't think she's someone who is ready for that 3 a.m. phone call."" -By Sean Cockerham and Wesley Loy with contributions by Lisa Demer, Tom Kizzia and Elizabeth Bluemink -ADN.com

- Cindy McCain - John McCain - Barack Obama - 2008 Election - Phoenix - Arizona - Family
"Cindy McCain's Half Sister: "I'm Voting for Barack Obama"." ... "Cindy McCain's half sister is planning on voting for [2008 Election Democratic Presidential Candidate] Barack Obama, she tells -+Usmagazine.com." ... ""I'm not voting for McCain," Kathleen Hensley Portalski tells Us. "I have a different political standpoint." ... ""I'm voting for Obama," the Phoenix [Arizona's capital] resident says. "I think his proposals to improve the country are more positive and I'm not a big war believer."" ... "Portalski, 65, and the potential first lady, 54, have the same father: Jim Hensley, the founder of the beer distributor Hensley and Co. that Cindy McCain now chairs." ... "In an interview with NPR News' All Things Considered last week, Portalski said she felt "like a non-person" after Cindy McCain described herself as an "only child."" ... "Portalski's mother is Hensley's first wife; Cindy McCain's mother, Marguerite Hensley, also had another daughter from her first marriage." -UsMagazine.com

- US - KBR - Corporation - Jordan - Nepal - Workers - Human - Rights - Iraq - Military - California
"KBR, Partner in Iraq Contract Sued in Human Trafficking Case." ... "Agnieszka Fryszman, a partner at Cohen, Milstein, Hausfeld & Toll, said 13 Nepali men, between the ages of 18 and 27, were recruited in Nepal to work as kitchen staff in hotels and restaurants in Amman, Jordan. But once the men arrived in Jordan, their passports were seized and they were told they were being sent to a military facility in Iraq, Fryszman said." ... "As the men were driven in cars to Iraq, they were stopped by insurgents. Twelve were kidnapped and later executed, Fryszman said. The thirteenth man survived and worked in a warehouse in Iraq for 15 months before returning to Nepal." ... "The lawsuit, filed in a federal court in California on behalf of the workers' families and the survivor, claims that the trafficking scheme was engineered by KBR and its Jordanian subcontractor, Daoud & Partners, according to Fryszman." -By Dana Hedgpeth -WashingtonPost

- KBR - Lawsuit - Human - Rights - Iraq - Nepal - Workers - US - Company - Military
"KBR Suit Alleges 'Forced Labor' and 'Slavery'." ... "We've now looked through the lawsuit against KBR that we told you about this morning. The complaint (pdf) alleges that the company -- the biggest U.S. [United States] contractor in Iraq during the period at issue -- engaged in a human trafficking scheme whereby 12 Nepali men were brought to Iraq to work and were prevented from leaving. The men were then kidnapped by insurgents, and all but one were executed." ... "In sum: "Defendants' actions as set forth above constitute the torts of trafficking in persons, involuntary servitude, forced labor, and slavery."" ... "This is hardly the first time that KBR has been in hot water, of course. As we noted back in June, the company "was criticized in March for making troops sick by failing to provide clean water. And top military officials have given false statements to Congress to quell controversy over the company." In addition, at least two female former KBR employees in Iraq have alleged that they were raped or sexually assaulted by co-workers, and that KBR was less than aggressive in investigating their claims." -By Zachary Roth -TPMMuckracker .TalkingPointsMemo

- Global - Climate - Ice - Science - History
"Arctic ice shrinks to second-lowest level ever." ... "Arctic sea ice, which melts partly during each polar summer, has shrunk more this year than in any on record except for 2007, the National Snow and Ice Data Center has found." ... "Scientists said the data provided more ominous indications that a global warming "tipping point" in the Arctic seems to be happening before their eyes: Sea ice in the Arctic Ocean is now at its second lowest level in about 30 years." ... "With several weeks left of the melting season, the National Snow and Ice Data Center reported yesterday that sea ice in the Arctic now covers about 2.03 million square miles. The lowest point since satellite measurements began in 1979 was 1.65 million square miles, measured on Sept. [September] 16, 2007." ... "Declining ice as a result of warmer temperatures in the air and ocean threatens to amplify global warming because the sea is darker than ice and absorbs more sunlight." -Newsday.com

- US - Iraq - Military - Money - PA
"U.S. increases spending on contractors in Iraq." ... "The United States is spending more money than ever on private security contractors in Iraq as thousands of troops return home amid steady declines in insurgent attacks, federal records show." ... "This year, spending on contractors, who protect diplomats, civilian facilities and supply convoys, is projected to exceed $1.2 billion, according to federal contract and budget data obtained by USA TODAY. Most of that bill — about $1 billion —is State Department spending, which is up 13% over 2007. The remaining $200 million covers Pentagon contracts." ... "A Congressional Budget Office report released this month showed that U.S. agencies spent a total of $85 billion on contractors of all types in Iraq from 2003 through 2007 — about 20% of all U.S. spending for operations in the country during that period." ... "Some security costs may be undocumented because they're buried inside contracts for other services, the report said." ... "That's an unacceptable lack of clarity, says [Pennsylvania Democratic Representative] Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa [Democratic-Pennsylvania]., who chairs the House subcommittee that controls defense spending. He has proposed to cut $4.5 billion from contracting accounts in next year's defense budget and add $943 million to other Pentagon accounts so more of the work can be shifted to civilian government employees." -By Peter Eisler -USATODAY

- Ted Stevens - Don Young - Oil - Money - VECO - Legal - Investigation - Alaska - Florida - Road - Construction
"Indicted Senator Wins G.O.P. Primary." ... "[Alaska Republican] Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska won the Republican primary in his home state on Tuesday, soundly defeating six Republican challengers less than a month after he was indicted by a federal grand jury for concealing more than $250,000 in gifts from an oil services company." ... "The victory for Mr. Stevens, 84, means he now moves to a tough general election campaign against [Anchorage, Alaska Democratic] Mayor Mark Begich of Anchorage, who easily won the Democratic primary on Tuesday and leads the senator in polls. Mr. Stevens enters the general election also having to prepare for his trial, which is scheduled to begin in late September." ... "[Alaska Republican] Representative Don Young, the state's lone House member and a 35-year incumbent, was locked in a close primary race with Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell early Wednesday. With nearly 98 percent of precincts reporting, Mr. Young led by fewer than 150 votes out of more than 85,000 cast." ... "Like Mr. Stevens, Mr. Young is under federal investigation for his ties to VECO, a former oil services company, but he also faces scrutiny on other matters, including a controversial $10 million earmark he pushed through for a Florida road project. Mr. Young has spent more than $1 million of his campaign funds on legal fees." -By William Yardley -NYTimes

- John McCain - Houses - Economy - Car - Internet - US - Foreign - Gas - Torture - Guantanamo - Prison - Stem Cells - Health Care - Politics - 2008 Election
"Trust Me." ... ""You’re the Republican candidate for president and you want to fix the country's problems even though you don’t know much about the economy, you don’t know how to use the internet, you don’t know how many houses you own or what kind of car you drive, you admit you don’t think clearly when you’re tired, you make frequent gaffes on foreign policy, you think offshore drilling is a short-term solution to high gas prices, you support torture and keeping the Guantanamo prison open, you make rash decisions and statements from which you have to quickly backtrack, you have an explosive temper on a hair trigger, your idea of health care reform is 'wear more sunscreen,' you're for stem cell research except when it's done on stem cells because you consider them all American citizens, and you voted to support the policies of the worst president ever 100 percent of the time this year?"" ... ""Trust me, my friends. I was a POW."" ... "Only in Republicanland." -Bill in Portland Maine -DailyKos.com

- Money - History
"FDIC Warns of More Bank Troubles: The Government Insures Depositors When Banks Fail, But Does It Have Enough Cash?" ... "The health of U.S. banks is quickly deteriorating, and the government fund set up to protect depositors might not have enough money to insure everybody, analysts told ABCNews.com." ... "The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, or FDIC, insures bank deposits of up to $100,000 at nearly 8,500 of the nation's banks and also keeps a watch list of banks that it considers in trouble." ... "At the beginning of the year, 90 banks were on the FDIC watch list. There are now 117, FDIC chairwoman Sheila C. Bair announced at a news conference this afternoon. That is the highest number in five years, but some analysts expect the list to grow even more in coming months." ... ""I think there's going to be a steady drip, drip, drip of bad news," said Sean Ryan, a banking analyst with Sterne Agee. "We've only seen the very tip of the iceberg in terms of bank failures."" ... "The FDIC, created in 1933 during the Great Depression to help restore the public's confidence in the nation's banking system, receives no federal tax dollars and is funded through the institutions that it insures. Currently it has $50.2 billion set aside to cover bank failures, nearly 20 percent of which is likely to be depleted in the IndyMac insurance payback alone." (1, 2, 3) -By Scott Mayerowitz -ABCNEWS.com

- WATCH - 2008 Election - Politics -Noteworthy - US - Iraq - Military - Global - Climate - Environment - Fiscal - History - Iowa
"Full Text: Former U.S. Rep. Jim Leach Speech to Democratic National Convention." ... [Speech by Iowa Republican Representative Jim Leach:] "In troubled times, it was understood that country comes before party, that in perilous moments mutual concern for the national interest must be the only factor in political judgments. This does not mean that debate within and between the political parties should not be vibrant. Yet what frustrates so many citizens is the lack of bipartisanship in Washington and the way today’s Republican Party has broken with its conservative heritage." ... "The party that once emphasized individual rights has gravitated in recent years toward regulating values. The party of military responsibility has taken us to war with a country that did not attack us. The party that formerly led the world in arms control has moved to undercut treaties crucial to the defense of the earth. The party that prides itself on conservation has abdicated its responsibilities in the face of global warming. And the party historically anchored in fiscal restraint has nearly doubled the national debt, squandering our precious resources in an undisciplined and unprecedented effort to finance a war with tax cuts." ... "America has seldom faced more critical choices: whether we should maintain an occupational force for decades in a country and region that resents western intervention or elect a leader who, in a carefully structured way, will bring our troops home from Iraq as the heroes they are. Whether it is wise to continue to project power largely alone with flickering support around the world or elect a leader who will follow the model of General Eisenhower and this president’s father and lead in concert with allies." ... "Whether it is prudent to borrow from future generations to pay for today’s reckless fiscal policies or elect a leader who will shore up our budgets and return to a strong dollar. Whether it is preferable to continue the policies that have weakened our position in the world, deepened our debt and widened social divisions or elect a leader who will emulate John F. Kennedy and relight a lamp of fairness at home and reassert an energizing mix of realism and idealism abroad." ... "The portfolio of challenges passed on to the next president will be as daunting as any since the Great Depression and World War II. This is not a time for politics as usual or for run-of-the-mill politicians. Little is riskier to the national interest than more of the same. America needs new ideas, new energy and a new generation of leadership." ... "Hence, I stand before you proud of my party’s contributions to American history but, as a citizen, proud as well of the good judgment of good people in this good party, in nominating a transcending candidate, an individual whom I am convinced will recapture the American dream and be a truly great president: the senator from Abraham Lincoln’s state—Barack Obama. Thank you." -By Jim Leach via -Clips&Comment

- John McCain - Housing - Politics - Arizona - California - Virginia - 2008 Election
"A housing issue: McCain not sure how many they own." ... "Days after he cracked that being rich in the U.S. [United States] meant earning at least $5 million a year, [2008 Election] Republican presidential candidate John McCain acknowledged that he wasn't sure how many houses he and his wealthy wife actually own." ... ""I think — I'll have my staff get to you," McCain responded to a question posed by Politico, according to a story Thursday on the publication's Web site. "It's condominiums where — I'll have them get to you."" ... "Later, the McCain campaign told Politico that McCain and his wife, Cindy, have at least four in three states, Arizona, California and Virginia. Newsweek recently estimated the two owned at least seven properties." ... "On the campaign trail, McCain doesn't refer to his wife's wealth, estimated by some at $100 million and based on her late father's Arizona beer distributorship." ... "According to her 2006 tax returns, Cindy McCain had a total income of $6 million." -By Douglass K. Daniel with contributions by Phil Elliott and Ann Sanner -AP via -Yahoo

- John McCain - Homes - Money - Politics - 2008 Election - Working - Families
"McCain owns so many homes, he’s lost count." ... "It’s one thing to be so extraordinarily wealthy that you own multiple homes. It’s another to be so extraordinarily wealthy that you can’t even remember how many homes you own." ... "By one count, the actual number [of homes owned by 2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate John McCain] is actually 10." ... "But in most respects, the exact number isn’t especially relevant. The point is a) McCain is so rich he owns a lot of homes; b) McCain is so out of touch he can’t even remember the number of homes he owns; and c) despite his extravagant wealth, McCain is anxious to push an agenda that favors the rich even more while screwing over the middle class and working families." -By Steve Benen -TheCarpetbaggerReport.com

- John McCain - Money - Politics - Phoenix - Arizona - Condo - 2008 Election
"Two Become One." ... "I was wondering yesterday how it is that you manage to spend almost $4.7 million on a condo in Phoenix [Arizona], and the answer turns out to be that the McCains bought two luxury condos and combined them. The $4.66 million figure is the combined price of his cribs. What’s more, at 2211 Camelback you’re not just paying for a swanky pad, you’re getting top-notch amenities like an edgeless rooftop pool and a concierge staff prepared to cater to your every whim:"

"* Laundry and dry cleaning service with pick-up and delivery"
"* Personal spa services"
"* Travel and driver services"
"* Dining reservations and catering"
"* Special events tickets"
"* Shopping services"
"* Housekeeping and maintenance services"
"* Pet services, auto detailing, plant care, etc."
"* Business services"

_2008 News News Reference August 2008 News
August 20, 2008 News URL: #August-20-2008-News
20080820 Wednesday

- John McCain - Family - US - Bangladesh - Vietnam - History - 2008 Election
"Watchdogs make it harder for politicians to stretch the truth: Cindy McCain's past is the latest to be questioned after errors were found." ... "The latest embellishments come from the [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate John] McCain camp. Cindy McCain has repeatedly referred to herself as an “only child.” This week came news that she actually has two half sisters, although apparently she had very little contact with them." ... "The McCain campaign had also put out the story that Mother Teresa “convinced” Cindy to bring home two orphans from Bangladesh in 1991." ... "Mrs. McCain, it turns out, never met Mother Teresa on that trip." ... "In another instance, McCain told the Chicago Tribune earlier this year that on one of her medical missions to Vietnam she was in “the very hospital – and in the very room – where her husband was brought after being shot down and then beaten by a mob during the war.”" ... "A 1992 Washington Times story recounts a different version: “Mrs. McCain asked to see the operating room and her husband’s cell, but was turned down. She took the rejection philosophically. ‘It’s 27 years later. Let’s go on,’ Mrs. McCain said.”" -By Alexandra Marks -CSMonitor

- Cindy McCain - John McCain - 2008 Election - Family
"Cindy McCain's Half Sister: She "Makes Me Feel Like a Non-Person"." ... "[2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] John McCain's wife Cindy is coming under criticism from her older half sister for claiming to be an "only child."" ... "Just last month, Cindy McCain told CNN: "I grew up with my dad. I'm an only child. My father was a cowboy and he really loved me very much, but I think he wanted a son occasionally."" ... "But in an interview with NPR News' All Things Considered, half sister Kathleen Hensley Portalski responded: "I'm upset. I'm angry. It makes me feel like a non-person, kind of."" ... "Portalski's son Nicholas told NPR it's "just very, very hurtful" that "we don't exist" and "Cindy has to put such a fine point on it by saying something that's not true."" -UsMagazine.com

- Afghanistan - French - US - Terrorism - History
"Taliban kill 10 French troops in Afghanistan." ... "Taliban insurgents killed 10 French soldiers and wounded 21 in a major battle in Afghanistan, the French president's office said on Tuesday, the biggest single loss of foreign troops in combat there since 2001." ... "The Taliban have gradually closed in on Kabul [Afghanistan's capital] in the past year, making travel south, west or east of the capital extremely hazardous for troops, aid workers and civilians and spreading fear among the population." ... "The battle that ensued lasted deep into the night and the mixed French, Afghan and U.S. force summoned reinforcements and air support, General Jean-Louis Georgelin, chief of the army general staff, told a news conference in Paris." ... "France has 2,600 troops in Afghanistan, after Sarkozy sent an extra 700 soldiers this year in response to a U.S. call for NATO allies to provide more forces to check a surge in violence." ... "TALIBAN CLOSING IN" ... "The Taliban have stepped up attacks in provinces bordering the Afghan capital over the past year, closing in from the volatile south and east, where the bulk of the fighting has occurred since militants relaunched their insurgency in 2005." (1, 2, 3) -By Sayed Salahuddin with contributions by James Mackenzie, Elyas Wahdat in Khost, Jon Hemming, and Michael Winfrey -Reuters

- Prices - History - Energy - Labor
"Wholesale prices: Highest annual rate in 27 years: The Labor Department reports that its Producer Price Index increased by 1.2% in July and by 9.8% in the past year." ... "In another indication of growing inflation, wholesale prices increased in July to the highest annual rate in 27 years, according to a government report released Tuesday." ... "The annual Producer Price Index for finished goods rose 9.8% in the 12 months that ended in July." ... "The jump in wholesale prices is the fastest rate of increase since a 10.4% bump-up in June 1981, according to Joseph Kowal, economist at the Bureau of Labor Statistics." ... "The Labor Department also reported that PPI rose 1.2% in July, after increasing 1.8% in June. Analysts polled by Briefing.com had expected an increase of only 0.6%." ... "The surge in producer prices is in large part due to higher energy prices, said Doug Roberts, chief investment strategist for ChannelCapitalResearch.com." -CNN

- Cindy McCain - Family - Phoenix - Arizona - John McCain - 2008 Election
"Cindy McCain's Half Sister 'Angry' She's Hidden." ... "Last Tuesday, NPR broadcast a story about [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate John McCain's wife] Cindy McCain's business and charity work. In it, Ted Robbins described McCain as the only child of Jim Hensley, a wealthy Arizona businessman. The next morning, NPR received an e-mail from Nicholas Portalski of Phoenix [Arizona], who heard the story with his mother." ... ""We were listening to the piece about Cindy McCain on NPR, All Things Considered, and it just struck us very hard," Portalski said." ... "His mother, Kathleen Hensley Portalski, is also Hensley's daughter." ... "McCain herself routinely uses the phrase "only child," as she did on CNN last month. "I grew up with my dad," she said then. "I'm an only child. My father was a cowboy, and he really loved me very much, but I think he wanted a son occasionally."" ... ""I'm upset," Kathleen Portalski says. "I'm angry. It makes me feel like a nonperson, kind of."" ... ""The fact that we don't exist," he says. "The fact that we've never been recognized, and then Cindy has to put such a fine point on it by saying something that's not true. Recently, again and again. It's just very, very hurtful."" -By Ted Robbins -NPR.org

- John McCain - Ralph Reed - Jack Abramoff - Criminal Investigation - Religion - Politics - Georgia - 2008 Election
"McCain nets $1.75 million at Reed-linked event." .. "[2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] John McCain raised more than $1.75 million for Republicans Monday at a fundraiser [in Georgia's capital Atlanta] clouded by confusion over the role of a political operative connected to disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff." .. "The downtown event was promoted by Ralph Reed, a former head of the Christian Coalition. McCain's campaign said the event was organized by the Republican National Committee — not Reed, who was linked to the Abramoff scandal that McCain investigated in the Senate." .. "A House investigative committee in 2006 did not call Reed as a witness, but concluded that he interceded with the [Republican President] Bush White House to help some of Abramoff's clients. Reed's public relations firm also received $4.2 million from Abramoff to mobilize Christian voters to fight the opening of casinos that could compete with Abramoff's Indian tribe clients." .. "Abramoff went to prison for conspiracy, mail fraud and tax evasion." -By Philip Elliott -AP via -Yahoo

- John McCain - Ralph Reed - Jack Abramoff - Money - Religion - Georgia - 2006 Election - 2008 Election
"Protesters mark McCain’s visit to Atlanta for fund-raiser." ... "More than 50 protesters marched in front of the Marriott Marquis [in Georgia's capital Atlanta] on Monday, shouting “Bush, McCain, same thing!”" ... "Across Peachtree Center Avenue, Georgia Democratic Party chairwoman Jane Kidd and state [Georgia Democratic state Senator] Sen. David Adelman (D-Atlanta) held a news conference to add a more official voice of protest." ... "Kidd blasted McCain for only coming to the state to raise money and not to meet with regular voters." ... "“Instead of listening to Georgians, John McCain chose to talk with people who have given him thousands of dollars,” she said." ... "That includes Ralph Reed, said Adelman." ... "Reed is the former head of the Christian Coalition who in 2006 [election] lost a bid for the Georgia GOP [GOP=Grand Old Party=Republican] nomination as lieutenant governor after he was implicated, but not charged, in the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal in Washington." ... "Reed e-mailed supporters and friends to urge them to give to the [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate John] McCain campaign. Reed also instructed potential donors to send contributions directly to him. Reed told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he sent the e-mail at the request of the campaign and was given boilerplate language to use. He said he has no role in the campaign or in this event, something the McCain campaign confirmed." ... "But Reed’s involvement in raising money has been a source of ridicule and scorn from Democrats." ... "Reed, Adelman said, “has sold his influence with Christian conservative voters to the highest bidder.”" -By Aaron Gould Sheinin -AJC

- Sarah Palin - Political - Law - Investigation - Alaska
"Palin staff pushed to have trooper fired: Governor says she's learned calls were made about Wooten's ouster." ... "[Alaska Republican Governor] Gov. Sarah Palin on Wednesday revealed an audio recording that shows an aide pressuring the Public Safety Department to fire a state trooper embroiled in a custody battle with her sister." ... "Palin, who has previously said her administration didn't exert pressure to get rid of trooper Mike Wooten, also disclosed that members of her staff had made about two dozen contacts with public safety officials about the trooper." ... ""I do now have to tell Alaskans that such pressure could have been perceived to exist although I have only now become aware of it," Palin said." ... "But Palin said her decision to fire Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan last month had nothing to do with his refusal to dump trooper Mike Wooten." ... "The governor said evidence of what she called a "smoking gun" conversation, and other calls made by her aides, only recently surfaced as the attorney general started an inquiry at her request into the circumstances surrounding her firing of Monegan. Palin wanted the review because a special investigator hired by the Legislature is about to investigate the firing and a legislator has been quoted in a newspaper story talking about impeachment." ... "The majority of the calls came from Palin's chief of staff at the time, Mike Tibbles, according to information gathered by the state attorney general's office. Attorney General Talis Colberg and Palin's husband, Todd, also contacted Monegan about the trooper." ... "Palin said the "most disturbing" was a phone call Frank Bailey, the governor's director of boards and commissions, made to trooper Lt. Rodney Dial in February. The Public Safety Department recorded the call, as it does routinely." ... "Palin, who said she'd only just learned of the call, released a recorded copy of it to the press on Wednesday. In it, Bailey clearly pressures the lieutenant." ... "Bailey told him during the conversation that Palin and her husband want to know why Wooten still has a job." ... ""Todd and Sarah are scratching their heads, 'Why on earth hasn't this, why is this guy still representing the department?' He's a horrible recruiting tool, you know," Bailey told the lieutenant." ... "Bailey made several accusations against Wooten in the call, including that he lied on his application. Dial asked Bailey how he knew about any issue with the application." -By Sean Cockerham -ADN.com

- Barack Obama -John McCain - Ron Paul - Military - People - Overseas - Politics - History - Iraq - US - 2008 Election
"Troops Deployed Abroad Give 6:1 to Obama." ... "During World War II, soldiers crouching in foxholes penned letters assuring their sweethearts that they'd be home soon. Now, between firefights in the Iraqi desert, some infantrymen have been sending a different kind of mail stateside: two or three hundred dollars -- or whatever they can spare -- towards a presidential election that could very well determine just how soon they come home." ... "According to an analysis of campaign contributions by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics, [2008 Election Democratic Presidential Candidate] Democrat Barack Obama has received nearly six times as much money from troops deployed overseas at the time of their contributions than has [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] Republican John McCain, and the fiercely anti-war [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] Ron Paul, though he suspended his campaign for the Republican nomination months ago, has received more than four times McCain's haul." -By Luke Rosiak -OpenSecrets.org

- Michigan - Economic - History - Auto - Manufacturing
"[Michigan] State's jobless rate is 8.5%: Unemployed number remains steady as work force drops by 33,000. U.S. [United States] average is 5.7%." ... "The state's unemployment rate remained stubbornly high at 8.5 percent in July, the third consecutive month the jobless rate remained at a level not seen since the recession of the early '90s." ... "The rate remained steady not because the state stopped losing jobs -- a total of 29,000 positions were cut by employers with few new jobs added -- but because the number of people in the work force fell by 33,000." ... "Michigan's jobless rate -- far higher than the national rate of 5.7 percent -- is another sign the woes of the auto industry continue to grip the state. Since July 2007, the number of unemployed workers in the state has increased by 65,000 or 18.4 percent." ... ""With somewhat more than half of the year already in the books, it is pretty obvious that 2008 will be the fifth consecutive year of recession for Michigan," said Dana Johnson, chief economist for Comerica Inc." -By Louis Aguilar -DetNews.com

- Michigan - Economy
"Foreclosure fallout: Houses go for a $1." ... "One dollar can get you a large soda at McDonald's, a used VHS movie at 7-Eleven or a house in Detroit [Michigan]." ... "The fact that a home on the city's east side was listed for $1 recently shows how depressed the real estate market has become in one of America's poorest big cities." ... "And it still took 19 days to find a buyer." ... "The sale price of the home may be an anomaly, but illustrates both the depths of the foreclosure crisis in Detroit and the rapid scuttling of vacant homes in some of the city's impoverished neighborhoods." ... "The home, at 8111 Traverse Street, a few blocks from Detroit City Airport, was the nicest house on the block when it sold for $65,000 in November 2006, said neighbor Carl Upshaw. But the home was foreclosed last summer, and it wasn't long until "the vultures closed in," Upshaw said. "The siding was the first to go. Then they took the fence. Then they broke in and took everything else."" ... "The company hired to manage the home and sell it, the Bearing Group, boarded up the home only to find the boards stolen and used to board up another abandoned home nearby." ... "Scrappers tore out the copper plumbing, the furnace and the light fixtures, taking everything of value, including the kitchen sink." ... "So desperate was the bank owner of 8111 Traverse Street to unload the property that it agreed to pay $2,500 in sales commission and another $1,000 bonus for closing the $1 sale; the bank also will pay $500 of the buyer's closing costs. Throw in back taxes and a water bill, and unloading the house will cost the bank about $10,000." -By Ron French -DetNews.com

- John McCain - Randy Scheunemann - Money - Politics - Georgia - Russia - Military - Arizona - US - 2008 Election
"While Aide Advised McCain, His Firm Lobbied for Georgia: Campaign Dismisses Timing of Phone Call, Contract." ... "[2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate and Arizona Senator] Sen. John McCain's top foreign policy adviser prepped his boss for an April 17 phone call with the president of Georgia and then helped the presumptive Republican presidential nominee prepare a strong statement of support for the fledgling republic." ... "The day of the call, a lobbying firm partly owned by the adviser, Randy Scheunemann, signed a $200,000 contract to continue providing strategic advice to the Georgian government in Washington." ... "The McCain campaign said Georgia's lobbying contract with Orion Strategies had no bearing on the candidate's decision to speak with President Mikheil Saakashvili and did not influence his statement. "The Embassy of Georgia requested the call," said campaign spokesman Brian Rogers." ... "But ethics experts have raised concerns about former lobbyists for foreign governments providing advice to presidential candidates about those same countries. "The question is, who is the client? Is the adviser loyal to income from a foreign client, or is he loyal to the candidate he is working for now?" said James Thurber, a lobbying expert at American University. "It's dangerous if you're getting advice from people who are very close to countries on one side or another of a conflict."" ... "For months while McCain's presidential campaign was gearing up, Scheunemann held dual roles, advising the candidate on foreign policy while working as Georgia's lobbyist. Between Jan. 1, 2007, and May 15, 2008, the campaign paid Scheunemann nearly $70,000 to provide foreign policy advice. During the same period, the government of Georgia paid his firm $290,000 in lobbying fees." ... "Since 2004, Orion has collected $800,000 from the government of Georgia." -By Matthew Mosk and Jeffrey H. Birnbaum with contributions by Alice Crites -WashingtonPost

- John McCain - Randy Scheunemann - Politics - Georgia - Russia - Taiwan - Macedonia - Romania - Latvia - US - Law - 2008 Election
"McCain adviser got money from Georgia." ... "[2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] John McCain's chief foreign policy adviser and his business partner lobbied the senator or his staff on 49 occasions in a 3 1/2-year span while being paid hundreds of thousands of dollars by the government of the former Soviet republic of Georgia." ... "The payments raise ethical questions about the intersection of Randy Scheunemann's personal financial interests and his advice to the Republican presidential candidate who is seizing on Russian aggression in Georgia as a campaign issue." ... ""Scheunemann's work as a lobbyist poses valid questions about McCain's judgment in choosing someone who — and whose firm — are paid to promote the interests of other nations," said New York University law professor Stephen Gillers. "So one must ask whether McCain is getting disinterested advice, at least when the issues concern those nations."" ... ""If McCain wants advice from someone whose private interests as a once and future lobbyist may affect the objectivity of the advice, that's his choice to make."" ... "Scheunemann's firm lobbied McCain's office on four bills and resolutions regarding Georgia, with McCain as a co-sponsor or supporter of all of them." ... "In addition to the 49 contacts with McCain or his staff regarding Georgia, Scheunemann's firm has lobbied the senator or his aides on at least 47 occasions since 2001 on behalf of the governments of Taiwan and Macedonia, which each paid Scheunemann and his partner Mike Mitchell over half a million dollars; Romania, which paid over $400,000; and Latvia, which paid nearly $250,000." -By Pete Yost -AP via -Yahoo

- Georgia - Russia - EU - Belgium - France - Military - History
"Georgia Says Russian Troops Move Beyond Conflict Zone (Update2)." ... "Georgia accused Russia of sending troops beyond the South Ossetia [Republic of Georgia region] conflict zone in violation of a cease-fire. A Russian official denied the claim, saying the troops are eliminating Georgia's ability to renew attacks." ... "Georgian Security Council chief Kakha Lomaia said a column of Russian troops may be moving from the city of Gori [Republic of Georgia] toward the Uplistsikhe military base, which Georgian forces abandoned earlier in the conflict. The Russians are advancing ``well beyond the conflict zone,'' he said today." ... "The Russian troop movements come one day after Georgia and Russia agreed to a European Union-brokered peace plan to end five days of fighting. EU foreign ministers are meeting in Brussels [the capital of Belgium and the European Union] to push the peace deal forward. The 27-nation bloc may send military personnel to monitor the cease-fire, said French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, whose country brokered the accord." ... "Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili said Russian tanks continue to operate within Georgia, destroying ``infrastructure,'' as Russia said it was responding to sporadic attacks by Georgian snipers while observing the terms of a cease-fire declared by [Russian] President Dmitry Medvedev." ... "Medvedev ordered a halt to the military campaign, which was sparked by fighting between Georgia and South Ossetia on Aug. 7. Saakashvili said Russia launched a ``well-planned invasion'' of Georgia the next day. Nogovitsyn said Georgia planned its incursion into South Ossetia in advance and expected to meet resistance only from Ossetian forces and the 588 Russian peacekeepers deployed in the region." ... "South Ossetia and Abkhazia broke away from Georgian control in wars in the early 1990s and Russian forces have been stationed as peacekeepers in the regions under a Commonwealth of Independent States mandate. Most people living in both regions have Russian passports. Saakashvili yesterday said Georgia is quitting the CIS, a loose association of all former Soviet republics except the three Baltic states. " -By Henry Meyer and Lucian Kim -Bloomberg

- John McCain - Ralph Reed - Jack Abramoff - Grover Norquist - Politics - Georgia - Arizona - 2008 Election
"McCain ignoring calls to cancel controversial fundraiser." ... "[2008 Election] Republican presidential candidate John McCain so far is ignoring calls from several watchdog groups to cancel an Atlanta [Georgia] fundraiser promoted by [Georgia Republican] Ralph Reed, a longtime friend and business partner of imprisoned [Republican] lobbyist Jack Abramoff." ... "Public Citizen, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), and Campaign Money Watch are urging the Arizona senator to cancel plans for the [August] Aug. 18 fundraiser at the Marriott Marquis in downtown Atlanta and remove Reed from McCain’s Victory 2008 Team." ... "Reed lost his 2006 campaign for Georgia lieutenant governor in large part because of details about his relationship with Abramoff — much of the information uncovered by McCain’s Indian Affairs Committee investigation into the wide-ranging lobbying corruption scandal." ... "The Senate probe discovered $4 million in payments Reed accepted to run a bogus anti-casino campaign aimed at reducing gambling competition. An Indian tribe with a competing casino made payments to Reed, which according to the Senate investigation’s final report, were “passed through” Abramoff’s firm, Preston, Gates, Ellis & Rouvelas Meeds, and another organization, Grover Norquist’s Americans for Tax Reform." -By Susan Crabtree -TheHill.com

- Bob Perry - Bob Schaffer - Colorado - Texas - Money - Politics - 2008 Election
"Swift Boat Vet Financier Dumping Huge Money Into Key Senate Race." ... "[Texas Republican] Bob Perry, the wealthy businessman who bankrolled the Swift Boat Veterans For Truth to the tune of several million dollars, has a new cause: He's lavishing huge funds on the conservative group Club for Growth, which is in turn putting big money behind GOP [GOP=Grand Old Party=Republican] candidates in key Senate races." ... "Perry has just plowed a whopping $400,000 into the coffers of the Club for Growth, the big right-wing group that advocates for conservative economic policies, the latest FEC [Federal Election Commission] records show." ... "Club For Growth, in turn, is now spending about $227,000 of that money to air an attack ad in Colorado against [Colorado Democratic Senate Candidate] Mark Udall, who is the presumptive Dem nominee is going up against scandal-plagued [Colorado Republican] GOP Senate candidate Bob Schaffer." -By Greg Sargent and Eric Kleefeld -ElectionCentral - TalkingPointsMemo.com

- Barack Obama - John McCain - Racist - Political - Ads - 2008 Election
"Missing the Point of McCain's Ads." ... "I've gotta disagree with Markos and Josh Marshall on this one. [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate John] McCain's new "hot chicks dig Obama" ad is not intended to be a racist dog-whistle. If it was, they would have put more effort into it and they'd be playing it in heavy circulation in the South. Instead, the ad is a hastily thrown together, low-budget web ad that only political junkies like Markos and Josh are likely to bother watching." ... "In other words, this particular dog-whistle isn't directed at racists; it's directed at liberals. The McCain camp knows that all they have to do is put a few young white women in an anti-Obama ad (even one they don't intend to air), and [2008 Election Democratic Presidential Candidate Barack] Obama's liberal defenders will instantly flip out and accuse them of being racists. That then gives them the opportunity to, once again, play the role of the victim and accuse Obama and his defenders of "playing the race card." Wash. Rinse. Repeat." ... "The McCain camp knows that whenever the discussion turns to race, it's a bad day for Obama, so they are deliberately trying to bait Obama's supporters into making accusations of racism. They're [McCain's campaign are] trying to stoke white racial resentment indirectly by setting themselves up as the falsely accused." -AnonymousLiberal.com

- Barack Obama - Family - Hawai'i -  - Journalist - Politics - Military - Sports - Illinois - 2008 Election
"Akaka defends Obama's Hawaii vacation from ABC commentator: Journalist questions [2008 Election Democratic Presidential Candidate Barack] Obama's vacation in 'foreign' destination." ... "A group called Asian Americans for Obama sent out a media alert yesterday with the headline, "BREAKING: Hawai'i is a State," as U.S. [Unisted States Hawaii Democratic Senator] Sen. Daniel Akaka and others defended U.S. [Illinois Democratic Senator] Sen. Barack Obama's decision to spend a weeklong vacation in the Islands." ... "Obama had another casual day yesterday: Visit his grandmother at her Makiki apartment again, watch a movie at the Ward Complex theaters and go to dinner. But his choice of vacation destinations — his hometown of Honolulu — prompted [Disney TV's] ABC News' Cokie Roberts to twice call Hawai'i a "foreign" and "exotic" vacation destination for the man who wants to be president." ... ""I know his grandmother lives in Hawai'i," Roberts said on ABC's This Week with George Stephanopoulos. "And I know Hawai'i is a state. But it has the look of him going off to some sort of foreign, exotic place. He should be in Myrtle Beach if he's going to take a vacation at this time."" ... "But Akaka didn't see any humor in Roberts' comments." ... ""Saying our 50th state is somehow 'foreign,' does a great disservice to the hardworking, patriotic Americans who call Hawai'i home," Akaka said. "For months, people have been asking me, 'When is Sen. Obama going to come home?' I'm so glad he found time to visit his sister and his grandmother, and for him and his family to bond and recharge in his home state. Hawai'i is a great U.S. destination; just ask the 5.5 million Americans who visited last year for business and pleasure."" ... "Akaka's press secretary, Jesse Broder Van Dyke, wants Roberts to see firsthand evidence of Hawai'i's history and its role in the country's future." ... ""I would love to take Ms. Roberts on a tour of O'ahu, with stops at the Arizona Memorial and Punchbowl, followed by a visit with Hawai'i Army National Guard soldiers training for their second deployment to the Middle East," he said. "Then I would take her to Eastside Grill to watch Team USA women's volleyball and Bryan Clay. I would introduce her to Hawai'i residents so she could witness our diversity and learn about the aloha spirit. Part of what makes America great is the unique contributions of all 50 states. Sen. Obama has every right to come home and visit his sister and grandmother."" -By Dan Nakaso -HonoluluAdvertiser.com

- China - US - Britain - Manufacturing - Technology - History
"China to overtake US as largest manufacturer." ... "China is set to overtake the US next year as the world's largest producer of manufactured goods, four years earlier than expected, as a result of the rapidly weakening US economy." ... "The great leap is revealed in forecasts for the Financial Times by Global Insight, a US economics consultancy. According to the estimates, next year China will account for 17 per cent of manufacturing value-added output of $11,783bn and the US will make 16 per cent." ... "Last year the US was still easily in the top slot and accounted for a fifth of the total. China was second with 13.2 per cent." ... "The expected change will end more than a 100 years of US dominance. It returns China to a position it occupied, according to economic historians, for some 1,800 years up to about 1840, when Britain became the world's biggest manufacturer after its Industrial Revolution." (1, 2) -By Peter Marsh -FT.com

- John Edwards - John McCain - Media - Politics - 2008 Election - Obama - Family - People - Money - History
"Catching the Wrong John: Why Are the Media Talking about John Edwards' Infidelity If They Aren't Going to Talk about John McCain's?" ... "If John Edwards' infidelity is news, and he's not a candidate for anything, why isn't [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] John McCain's? He reportedly had numerous affairs in the years after returning home from Vietnam to a beautiful wife who had been disfigured in a car accident, and ultimately, by his own reports, he zeroed in like a laser on beautiful a 25-year-old heiress upon meeting her one evening in 1979 while he was still married, promptly lied to her about his age, and almost as promptly left his wife for her. We all extol John McCain for enduring 5 years of extreme hardship in Vietnam. But aren't his first wife's circumstances much like Elizabeth Edwards'? After all, the first Mrs. McCain waited in agony (and presumably fidelity) during those five long years for her beloved husband to return from Vietnam, raising their children while he was away and undergoing dozens of painful operations herself, only to be repaid by a philandering husband who ultimately left her for a younger woman." ... "Now personally, I don't think anybody's sex life has any bearing on a campaign, except to the extent that the candidate runs as a hypocrite, extolling family values, fighting gays while fighting his own gay demons, etc. But John McCain is increasingly making this campaign about character, and his actions over many years suggest some worrisome patterns that fly in the face of the entire story he tells about himself. Setting aside his cheating on his first wife, what about his attending to something other than the people's business as a member of the Keating Five (and ultimately contributing to a bailout that cost middle class American taxpayers the equivalent of nearly half a trillion in 2008 tax dollars -- imagine the middle class tax break we could offer if we weren't still paying off the principal and debt on that boondoggle); or hiring the most dishonest, amoral campaign team money could buy in 2008; or generating one fabricated or grossly misleading charge after another against [2008 Election Democratic Presidential Candidate Barack] Obama in the last three weeks (as in his sleazy new tax ad where, for example, he says Obama would raise taxes on small businesses when Obama has never proposed anything of the sort)? Like [Republican] George W. Bush, he doesn't seem like a man who once was lost but now is found. He [McCain] seems more like a man's whose principles are soluble in self-interest." -By Drew Westen -HuffingtonPost.com

- WATCH - John Edwards - People
"John Edwards ABC Interview: Discusses Affair With Rielle Hunter (VIDEO)." ... "John Edwards appeared on ABC"s Nightline Friday to discuss the revelations about his affair with Rielle Hunter. During the interview Edwards spoke about how the relationship began, what drove him to adultery, its effect on his political future, and whether or not he was the father of Hunter's child." ... "Read the full transcript" -HuffingtonPost.com

- John McCain - John Edwards - Family - People - 2008 Election - Politicians
"How is John McCain's Affair Different than John Edwards'?" ... "We have this weird notion in America now that if a politician is caught in an affair that his career is done. We seem to be saying that what he did in his private life effects his policies or how he governs. But we all know that isn't true. We know that because almost all of our great presidents, and great leaders throughout history, have had numerous affairs. Obviously it didn't hurt how they governed at all." ... "Now, we get to the most relevant question - if [former 2008 Election Democratic Presidential Candidate] John Edwards' political career is done, why isn't John McCain's? [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] John McCain had a well-documented affair on his first wife, with his current wife. He has admitted in the books he has written about his life that he ran around with several different women while still married to his first wife. And don't forget that he left her for a younger, richer woman - multi-millionaire Cindy Hensley who is now Cindy McCain - after she had been severely hurt in a car accident." ... "So, why are McCain's actions any more excusable than Edwards'? Because it was thirty years ago? Does that wash it away? Will we be fine with Edwards running for office again in a couple of years because then it will all be in the past? What is the statute of limitations on an affair?" ... "Remember Ronald Reagan, Nancy Reagan and Ross Perot were so upset with how John McCain dealt with his first wife that they didn't forgive him for a very, very long time. Perot still hasn't forgiven him. In fact, he said recently about McCain dumping his first wife for Cindy, "McCain is the classic opportunist. He's always reaching for attention and glory."" ... "So, I want every pundit who condemns John Edwards today to tell me what the difference between him and McCain is and why John McCain shouldn't also be run out of politics for his adulterous affairs and what he did to his first wife." -By Cenk Uygur -HuffingtonPost.com

- Elizabeth Edwards - John Edwards - Family - 2008 Election - Politics
"Today." [By Elizabeth Edwards] ... "Our family has been through a lot. Some caused by nature, some caused by human weakness, and some – most recently – caused by the desire for sensationalism and profit without any regard for the human consequences.  None of these has been easy.  But we have stood with one another through them all.  Although John believes he should stand alone and take the consequences of his action now, when the door closes behind him, he has his family waiting for him." ... "John made a terrible mistake in 2006.  The fact that it is a mistake that many others have made before him did not make it any easier for me to hear when he told me what he had done. But he did tell me. And we began a long and painful process in 2006, a process oddly made somewhat easier with my diagnosis in March of 2007.  This was our private matter, and I frankly wanted it to be private because as painful as it was I did not want to have to play it out on a public stage as well.  Because of a recent string of hurtful and absurd lies in a tabloid publication, because of a picture falsely suggesting that John was spending time with a child it wrongly alleged he had fathered outside our marriage, our private matter could no longer be wholly private." ... "The pain of the long journey since 2006 was about to be renewed." ... "John has spoken in a long on-camera interview I hope you watch. Admitting one’s mistakes is a hard thing for anyone to do, and I am proud of the courage John showed by his honesty in the face of shame.  The toll on our family of news helicopters over our house and reporters in our driveway is yet unknown.  But now the truth is out, and the repair work that began in 2006 will continue.  I ask that the public, who expressed concern about the harm John’s conduct has done to us, think also about the real harm that the present voyeurism does and give me and my family the privacy we need at this time." -By Elizabeth Edwards -DailyKos.com

- John Edwards - Elizabeth Edwards - North Carolina - Politics
"Transcript: John Edwards Interview: Read Selections of Bob Woodruff's Interview With John Edwards." ... "The following excerpts are from an interview by ABC News' Bob Woodruff of former [North Carolina Senator] Sen. John Edwards for ABC News "Nightline" on Aug. 8, 2008." ... "JOHN EDWARDS: In 2006 2 years ago, I made a very serious mistake. A mistake that I am responsible for and no one else. In 2006 I told Elizabeth about the mistake, asked her for her forgiveness, asked God for his forgiveness. And we have kept this within our family since that time. All of my family knows about this and just to be absolutely clear, none of them are responsible for it. I am responsible for it. I alone am responsible for it. And it led to this most recent incident at the Beverly Hilton. I was at the Beverly Hilton. I was there for a very simple reason, because I was trying to keep this mistake that I had made from becoming public." ... "BOB WOODRUFF: Is this affair completely over?" ... "JOHN EDWARDS: Oh yes, it's been over for a long time." ... "WOODRUFF: I know this is a very difficult question, but were you in love with [Rielle Hunter]?" ... "EDWARDS: I'm in love with one woman. I've been in love with one woman for 31 years. She is the finest human being I have ever known. And the fact that she is with me after this having happened is a testament to the kind of woman and the kind of human being she is. There is a deep and abiding love that exists between Elizabeth and myself. It's always been there, it in my judgment has never gone away. " (1, 2, 3, 4) -ABCNEWS.com

- John McCain - Oil - Politics - Military - 2008 Election - Arizona - Calif - Fla- US - Iraq - International
"Bundler Collects From Unlikely Donors." ... "The bundle of $2,300 and $4,600 checks that poured into [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate and Arizona Senator] Sen. John McCain's presidential campaign on March 12 came from an unlikely group of California donors: a mechanic from D&D Auto Repair in Whittier [California], the manager of Rite Aid Pharmacy No. 5727, the 30-something owners of the Twilight Hookah Lounge in Fullerton [California]." ... "But the man who gathered checks from them is no stranger to McCain -- he shuttled the Republican on his private plane and held a fundraising event for the candidate at his house in Delray Beach, Fla [Florida]." ... "Harry Sargeant III, a former naval officer and the owner of an oil-trading company that recently inked defense contracts potentially worth more than $1 billion, is the archetype of a modern presidential money man." ... "Some of the most prolific givers in Sargeant's network live in modest homes in Southern California's Inland Empire. Most had never given a political contribution before being contacted by Sargeant or his associates. Most said they have never voiced much interest in politics. And in several instances, they had never registered to vote. And yet, records show, some families have ponied up as much as $18,400 for various candidates between December and March." ... "Both Sargeant and the donors were vague when asked to explain how Sargeant persuaded them to give away so much money." ... "His firm, International Oil Trading Co. (IOTC), holds several lucrative contracts with the Defense Department to carry fuel to the U.S. military in Iraq." ... "The work has not been without controversy. Last month, [California Democratic Representative] Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Calif. [Democratic-California]) initiated a review of IOTC's contract to determine whether it was overcharging the military for jet fuel, and to learn how the company, which did not submit the lowest bid, landed the contract to supply the fuel." (1, 2) -By Matthew Mosk with contributions by Ashley Surdin, Lucy Shackelford, Alice Crites and Julie Tate-WashingtonPost

- Barack Obama - John McCain - Oil - Companies - Politics - 2008 Election - Ohio - Arizona - Working - Families
"Energy wars continue on trail." ... "In Youngstown [Ohio], [2008 Election Democratic Presidential Candidate Barack] Obama said that [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate John] McCain has "proposed an energy plan that’s nothing but four years more of the same," and that helps oil companies and not consumers, according to excerpts provided by the Obama campaign." ... "Obama says that "under [Arizona] Senator McCain’s plan, the oil companies get billions more, we don’t pay any less at the pump, and we stay in the same cycle of dependence on oil that got us into this crisis. The oil companies have placed their bet on Senator McCain, and if he wins, they will continue to cash in while our families and our economy suffer and our future is put in jeopardy.That’s the choice we face in this election. We can choose four years more of the same failed policies that have gotten us where we are. Four years more of oil companies calling the shots while hard working families are struggling. That’s what Senator McCain is offering."" ... "Obama then promotes his own plan for alternative energy and green-collar jobs." ... "Trying to reinforce Obama's point about McCain't ties to Big Oil, the Democratic National Committee posted a web video that shows McCain as a puppet whose strings are being pulled by oil company lobbyists." ... ""Big Oil in the White House. We've seen this show before," the video concludes. " -By Foon Rhee -Boston/Globe

-Hillary Rodham Clinton - Dick Cheney - Halliburton KBR - Blackwater - Corporate - Government - Disaster - Politics - Military - Peoples - Health - Investigators - Hurricane Katrina - Housing - US - Iraq - Cayman Islands
"No Crisis Is Immune From Exploitation Under Bush." ... [By HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON:] "Tucked away on the Cayman Islands sits Ugland House, an unassuming, nondescript building of modest scale and size. However, according to a recent report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), this five-story office building is home to more than 18,000 corporate entities, nearly half of which have U.S. [United States] ties." ... "In the past few years, the number of corporations flocking to places like the Cayman Islands to evade U.S. taxes has exploded. One of these companies, [Republican Vice President Dick Cheney's] former Halliburton subsidiary KBR, has used offshore tax havens to avoid paying hundreds of millions of dollars in federal taxes. To no one's surprise, instead of cracking down on KBR, the [Republican President] Bush administration has rewarded the company in April of this year with a 10-year, $150 billion contract in Iraq." ... "There appears to be no crisis, tragedy or disaster immune from exploitation under the Bush administration. The examples of the waste, fraud and abuse are legion -- from KBR performing shoddy electrical work in Iraq that has resulted in the electrocution of our military personnel according to Pentagon and Congressional investigators, to the firing of an Army official who dared to refuse a $1 billion payout for questionable charges to the same company. In another scam, the Pentagon awarded a $300 million contract to AEY, Inc. [Incorporated], a company run by a 22-year-old who fulfilled an ammunition deal in Afghanistan by supplying rotting Chinese-made munitions to our allies." ... "But the fraud and waste are not limited to the war. In the weeks after Hurricane Katrina, for example, FEMA [Federal Emergency Management Agency] awarded a contract worth more than $500 million for trailers to serve as temporary housing. The contractor, Gulf Stream, collected all of its money even though they knew at the time that its trailers were contaminated with formaldehyde." ... "While touting fiscal responsibility, [Republican] President Bush and his administration have lined the pockets of political cronies like Halliburton and Blackwater. While calling for earmark reform, the president has allowed no-bid and questionable contracting throughout the federal government to dwarf earmark spending by a 10-to-1 ratio." -By Hillary Rodham Clinton -WSJ.com

- Hacking - Business - Computer - Consumer - Data - Identity Theft - Privacy - US - Ukraine -China
"Theft ring accused of hacking 41 million credit card numbers." ... "Eleven people, including a U.S. [United States] Secret Service informant, have been charged in connection with the hacking of nine major retailers and the theft and sale of more than 41 million credit- and debit-card numbers, the Justice Department announced Tuesday." ... "The data breach is believed to be the largest hacking and identity-theft case ever prosecuted by the Department of Justice, which said the suspects were charged with conspiracy, computer intrusion, fraud and identity theft." ... "Three of those charged are U.S. citizens, while the others are from places such as Estonia, Ukraine, Belarus and China." -StarTribune

- John McCain - Rick Davis - Foreign - Corporate - Politics - Airport - Transport - Jobs - 2008 Election - Obama - Ohio - Ky - Arizona - US - German
"McCain had role in original Wilmington DHL deal." ... "When [2008 Election] Republican presidential candidate John McCain meets Thursday with citizens and officials in Wilmington, Ohio, he won't need a playbook to understand why they're worried about deep job losses at the local freight airport." ... "Little known to those citizens, McCain and his campaign manager, Rick Davis, played roles in the fate of DHL Express and its Ohio air park as far back as 2003. Back then, however, their actions that helped DHL and its German owner, Deutsche Post World Net, acquire the Wilmington operations resulted in expansion, not retraction." ... "In a private meeting Thursday, Wilmington residents will ask McCain for help in stopping DHL's proposal to quit using the airport as a hub, which could cost more than 8,000 jobs. DHL says that it wants to stay in the freight business but that it can stem financial losses if it can put its packages aboard the planes of a rival - United Parcel Service - before delivering them in DHL trucks. UPS flies out of Louisville, Ky. [Kentucky], so the proposed change would render the Wilmington airport unnecessary." ... "None of that was anticipated in 2003, when McCain and Davis, who was a Washington lobbyist before managing the presidential campaign, first got involved. Several Wilmington civic leaders said that what happened in 2003 created an economic gain for their community, lasting several years." ... "But because that gain, and now the prospective loss, came from the decisions of a foreign-owned corporation, look for some Democrats and labor to seek to tie Wilmington's current troubles to McCain." ... ""Those jobs are on the chopping block because [Arizona Senator] Sen. McCain and his campaign were involved in a deal that resulted in control of those positions being shifted to a foreign corporation, and there's no getting around that," said Joe Rugola, president of the Ohio AFL-CIO." ... "Isaac Baker, a spokesman for [2008 Election] Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, said, "This episode represents everything that's wrong with Washington, D.C." " -By Stephen Koff -PlainDealer

- John McCain - Oil - Politics - 2008 Election - NY
"Did New York couple give $61,600 to McCain, GOP?" ... "Alice Rocchio is an office manager at the New York headquarters of the Hess Corp. [Corporation], drives a 1993 Chevy Cavalier and lives in an apartment in Queens, N.Y. [New York], with her husband, Pasquale, an Amtrak foreman." ... "Despite what appears to be a middle-class lifestyle, the couple has written $61,600 in checks to John McCain's presidential campaign and the Republican National Committee, most of it within days of McCain's decision to endorse offshore oil drilling." ... "At a June fundraiser, the Rocchios joined top executives at Hess Corp. — Chairman and Chief Executive Officer John Hess, his wife, Susan, his mother, Norma Hess, and six other officials in giving a total of $313,500 to a joint McCain-RNC fundraising committee, Federal Election Commission records show." ... "The donations, first traced by Campaign Money Watch last week, were part of $1.2 million in oil industry contributions to McCain's Victory '08 Committee, 73 percent coming after McCain reversed his long-held opposition to offshore oil drilling." -ByGreg Gordon -McClatchyDC.com

- Dick Cheney - US - Iraq -Military - Intelligence - Terrorism - Politics - History - Book
"Did White House fake link between Saddam and Al Qaeda?" ... "First, former CIA [Central Intelligence Agency] Director George Tenet told the president it was a "slam dunk" that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction. Then came efforts by the [Republican President] Bush White House to discredit critics, like ambassador Joe Wilson, who questioned the wisdom of going to war in Iraq." ... "Now comes a new book by author Ron Suskind claiming that the [Republican President Bush] White House ordered the CIA to forge and backdate a handwritten letter from the head of Iraqi intelligence to Saddam Hussein to link the Iraq regime to Al Qaeda. The White House calls the assertion nonsense." ... "In “The Way of the World,” to be published today, Suskind writes:"

"The White House had concocted a fake letter from Habbush to Saddam, backdated to July 1, 2001. It said that 9/11 ringleader Mohammad Atta had actually trained for his mission in Iraq –- thus showing, finally, that there was an operational link between Saddam and al Qaeda, something the vice president’s office [Republican Dick Cheney] had been pressing CIA to prove since 9/11 as a justification to invade Iraq. There is no link."

- Political - Terrorism - Intelligence - Crime - Noteworthy - Government - Law - US - Iraq - Military - History - Journalist
"Author claims White House knew Iraq had no WMD: Journalist Ron Suskind says [Republican President] Bush ordered forgery linking Saddam, al-Qaeda." ... "President Bush committed an impeachable offense by ordering the CIA [Central Intelligence Agency] to to manufacture a false pretense for the Iraq war in the form of a backdated, handwritten document linking Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda, an explosive new book claims." ... "The charge is made in “The Way of the World: A Story of Truth and Hope in an Age of Extremism” by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Ron Suskind, released today." ... "Suskind says he spoke on the record with U.S. [United States] intelligence officials who stated that Bush was informed unequivocally in January 2003 that Saddam had no weapons of mass destruction. Nonetheless, his book relates, Bush decided to invade Iraq three months later — with the forged letter from the head of Iraqi intelligence to Saddam bolstering the U.S. [United States] rationale to go into war." ... "“It was a dark day for the CIA,” Suskind told TODAY co-host Meredith Vieira on Tuesday. “It was the kind of thing where [the CIA] said, ‘Look, this is not our charge. We’re not here to carry forth a political mandate — which is clearly what this was — to solve a political problem in America.’ And it was a cause of great grievance inside of the agency.”" ... "The author writes that Bush’s action is “one of the greatest lies in modern American political history” and suggests it is a crime of greater impact than Watergate." ... "The letter" ... "On page 371 of “The Way of the World,” Suskind describes the [Republican President Bush's] White House’s concoction of a forged letter purportedly from the hand of [Iraqi intelligence chief Tahir Jalil] Habbush to Saddam Hussein to justify the United States’ decision to go to war." ... "CIA officers [Bob] Richer and John Maguire, who oversaw the Iraq Operations Group, are both on the record in Suskind’s book confirming the existence of the fake Habbush letter." -By Bob Considine -MSNBC

- Government - Intelligence - Secretly - Marketing - Media -Opinion - Noteworthy - Military - Terrorism - Political - History - Book - US - Iraq
"Book says White House ordered forgery." ... "A new book by the author Ron Suskind claims that the White House ordered the CIA [Central Intelligence Agency] to forge a back-dated, handwritten letter from the head of Iraqi intelligence to Saddam Hussein." ... "Suskind writes in “The Way of the World,” to be published Tuesday, that the alleged forgery – adamantly denied by the White House – was designed to portray a false link between Hussein’s regime and al Qaeda as a justification for the Iraq war." ... "Suskind writes in his new book that the order to create the letter was written on “creamy White House stationery.” The book suggests that the letter was subsequently created by the CIA and delivered to Iraq, but does not say how." ... "The author claims that such an operation, part of “false pretenses” for war, would apparently constitute illegal White House use of the CIA to influence a domestic audience, an arguably impeachable offense." ... "Suskind writes that the White House had “ignored the Iraq intelligence chief’s accurate disclosure that there were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq – intelligence they received in plenty of time to stop an invasion." ... "“They secretly resettled him in Jordan, paid him $5 million – which one could argue was hush money – and then used his captive status to help deceive the world about one of the era’s most crushing truths: that America had gone to war under false pretenses,” the book says." ... "Suskind writes that the forgery “operation created by the White House and passed to the CIA seems inconsistent with” a statute saying the CIA may not conduct covert operations “intended to influence United States political processes, public opinion, policies or media.”" ... "“It is not the sort of offense, such as assault or burglary, that carries specific penalties, for example, a fine or jail time,” Suskind writes. “It is much broader than that. It pertains to the White House’s knowingly misusing an arm of government, the sort of thing generally taken up in impeachment proceedings.”" -By Mike Allen -Politico.com

- John McCain - Oil - Money - Politics - 2008 Election - New York - Texas - Ocean - Environment
"Oilman greases skids for McCain campaign: Among the donors from John B. Hess' company are an office manager and her husband, who pony up $57,000." ... "On June 10, John B. Hess, a top executive at the oil company with his family name, summoned friends to the 21 Club, a former speakeasy in Manhattan [New York], and delivered $285,000 to [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] John McCain and the Republican National Committee." ... "A week later, McCain traveled to Texas and announced his support for offshore oil drilling." ... "Hess Corp. is an East Coast gasoline retailer with major refining and exploration operations, some of which happen to be offshore in the Gulf of Mexico." ... "Hess was one of half a dozen hosts who tapped friends for the maximum $28,500 donation to the GOP. Others included investor Henry Kravis and hedge fund mogul Paul E. Singer." -By Dan Morain -LAtimes

- Housing - Market - US_Debt - McCain - Politics - Government - Arizona - 2008 Election - Consumer - Jobs
"The Housing Market's Double Bubble: The Big One Still Has Yet To Pop." ... "Look what the Republicans have done to our economy by following their core "trickle down" economic ideology, which really means borrow and spend. They have run up a massive debt which combined with no oversight, a near total removal of regulations on corporate conduct, and watched and let Neil Bush run a savings and loan (oh, sorry, that was that other [Republican] Bush presidency -- when S&L owners and Republican campaign contributors robbed us blind and bribed Senators like [Arizona Senator and 2008 Election Republican Presdential Candidate] John McCain and then got a massive government bailout.)" ... "We have all been hearing a lot about housing prices falling, and about the effect housing prices have on the economy. The impact to date, while real, is actually overstated. Why? Well, housing markets and their impact are the turtle of economics, they happen very very slowly. Prices have to fall and people have to sell, when they sell they, if they get less than they expected, may not spend as much as they would have if they had reaped a huge profit." ... "Unquestionably the economy is slowing. Consumer debt is massive, companies are cutting jobs, inflation is rising, unemployment is a full percentage point ABOVE where it was a year ago, and with a work force of 200 million plus, that's 2,000,000 newly unemployed Americans." ... "Slowing economies manifest themselves in many ways. But the most prominent is in the corresponding fall in housing prices. In every modern recession, the fall in housing prices follows the economy slowing down. What we have yet to see is the falling economy's effect on housing prices. So if you think prices have already dropped, and might even be reaching a bottom, we think it's the other way around: prices are about to start dropping. " -By Dave Johnson and James Boyce -HuffingtonPost.com

- Employers
"Looming job cuts march on - report: The number of job cuts announced in July jumps 26%." ... "Challenger, Gray & Christmas, an outplacement consultancy firm, said Monday that planned job cuts announced by employers in July jumped 26% to 103,312 from 81,755 announced in June. That's up 141% from a year ago, when employers announced planned job cuts totaling 42,897." ... "The July figure marks the second-highest number of planned job cuts this year, rivaling the May reading that showed 103,522." ... "The Challenger report follows a Labor Department report Friday that showed the nation's unemployment rate climbing to a four-year high of 5.7%. It was the worst reading since March 2004, and slightly worse than economists' forecast of 5.6%." -By Ben Rooney -CNN

- Money - Gasoline - Unemployment
"U.S. Economy: Inflation Erodes Buying Power, Tax-Rebate Effects." ... "The biggest increase in prices in almost three years eroded consumers' buying power, reinforcing speculation the Federal Reserve won't raise interest rates in the face of faster inflation and slow growth." ... "Consumer inflation in June climbed 0.8 percent, the most since September 2005, the Commerce Department said today in Washington. Spending increased 0.6 percent, more than forecast, compared with a gain of 0.8 percent the prior month. Price jumps in petroleum and chemicals also swelled the value of orders to American factories in June." ... "Tax rebates from $168 billion in fiscal stimulus will provide only a temporary boost for Americans facing $4 a gallon gasoline and unemployment at the highest level since 2004. Fed officials, meeting tomorrow, must find a way to acknowledge the risk of accelerating inflation without signaling a rate increase that would worsen the economic slowdown, economists said." ... "The Fed's preferred gauge of prices, which excludes food and fuel, climbed 0.3 percent, more than economists forecast." -By Bob Willis and Shobhana Chandra -Bloomberg

- US_Debt - Government - Money - Countrywide Financial Corporation - Real Estate - North Carolina - New York -US - United Kingdom
"Fewest Treasury Traders Since 1960 Hit Taxpayers (Update4)." ... "For the first time since 1960, when it created the network of securities firms obligated to buy and sell Treasury bonds, the U.S. government has the fewest bond traders making markets in its debt and a bigger burden for American taxpayers financing record federal deficits." ... "The number of so-called primary government securities dealers declined to 19 last month when Bank of America Corp., based in Charlotte, North Carolina, acquired the troubled Countrywide Financial Corp. The sale was the climax of dozens of bank failures, triggered by the biggest decline in residential real estate since the Great Depression and the seizing up of credit markets from New York to London [United Kingdom's capital]. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the agent of the U.S. Treasury, plans to shrink the dealers again when JPMorgan Chase & Co. completes its takeover of Bear Stearns Cos." ... "The paucity of primary dealers coincides with the largest borrowing requirement in American history and the acknowledgment by the administration of [Republican] President George W. Bush that the U.S. will finance a budget deficit totaling a record $482 billion next year. When the dealer system began 48 years ago with 18 firms, the U.S. had a $300 million surplus. The group has shrunk from a peak of 46 in 1988. " -By Sandra Hernandez -Bloomberg