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FOCUS:
 Special
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9-11
Meta Index September 11 2001
CLONING
NEWS
STEM
CELL NEWS
ENRON
NEWS
MICROSOFT
NEWS
WORLDCOM
NEWS
|
Parents News:
20081006
 John
McCain - Poor
- Families
-  Seniors
-  Federal
-  Health
-  Politics
-  Arizona
- 2008
Election
"McCain
Plans Federal Health Cuts: Medicare, Medicaid Spending
Would Be Reduced to Offset Proposed Tax Credit." ... "[Republican Presidential
Candidate] John McCain would pay for his health plan with major reductions
to Medicare and Medicaid, a top aide said, in a move that independent analysts
estimate could result in cuts of $1.3 trillion over 10 years to the government
programs." ... "The Republican presidential nominee has said little about
the proposed cuts, but they are needed to keep his health-care plan "budget
neutral," as he has promised. The McCain campaign hasn't given a specific
figure for the cuts, but didn't dispute the analysts' estimate." ... "In
the months since Sen. McCain introduced his health plan, statements made
by his campaign have implied that the new tax credits he is proposing to
help Americans buy health insurance would be paid for with other tax increases."
... "But Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Sen. McCain's senior policy adviser, said
Sunday that the campaign has always planned to fund the tax credits, in
part, with savings from Medicare and Medicaid. Those government health-care
programs serve seniors, poor families and the disabled." ... "In April,
when [Arizona Senator] Sen. McCain gave a major speech about his health
plan, Mr. Holtz-Eakin, the senior policy adviser, said the tax provisions
alone were budget neutral -- meaning that health benefits would have to
be subject to both income and payroll taxes." -By
Laura Meckler -WSJ.com
20080923
 Housing
- Consumer
-  People
-  Working
- Families
"Millions
spend half of income on housing." ... "[Al] Ray is
one of more than 7.5 million people — almost 15 percent of American homeowners
with a mortgage — who are spending half of their income or more on housing
costs, according to 2007 data released Tuesday by the U.S. Census Bureau.
That is up from nearly 7.1 million the year before." ... "Traditionally,
the government and most lenders consider a homeowner spending 30 percent
or more of their income on housing costs to be financially burdened. But
that definition now covers almost 38 percent of American homeowners with
a mortgage — 19 million of them." ... "Though home prices have fallen this
year, in the most expensive markets where home prices tripled during the
boom, many working families still cannot afford to buy a home." ... "More
than 4 million homeowners were at least one month behind on their loans
at the end of June, and almost 500,000 had started the foreclosure process,
according to the Mortgage Bankers Association." -By
Adrian Sainz and Alan Zibel with contributions by Allen Chen
-AP via -Yahoo
20080921
John
McCain -  Barack
Obama - Health-Care
-  Economy
- Parents
- Social
Security - Journal
-  Fla
- 2008
Election
"McCain
Health-Care Article Fuels New Clash Over Economy."
... "An article [by McCain] about health care published in an obscure journal
led to a new skirmish Saturday between the campaigns of [2008 Election
Presidential Candidates] Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain
over who should be trusted with the ailing economy." ... "The article was
published in Contingencies magazine, which is produced under the auspices
of the American Academy of Actuaries. In it, McCain touted his plans for
increasing competition in health care as one way to expand coverage and
reduce costs." ... "McCain wrote, "Opening up the health insurance market
to more vigorous nationwide competition, as we have done over the last
decade in banking, would provide more choices of innovative products less
burdened by the worst excesses of state-based regulation."" ... "Obama,
appearing at Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach, Fla. [Florida],
mocked his rival for sounding out of touch at a time when Washington is
moving rapidly to re-regulate the financial industry to curb the excesses
that put the system into near-paralysis in the past week." ... ""So let
me get this straight -- he wants to run health care like they've been running
Wall Street," Obama told the audience. "Well, Senator, I know some folks
on Main Street who aren't going to think that's such a good idea."" ...
"With millions of Americans worrying about their retirement security as
federal officials rushed to stabilize the shaky financial system, Obama
also seized on McCain's support for partial privatization of Social Security.
He said McCain was prepared to gamble with people's life savings." ...
""If my opponent had his way, the millions of Floridians who rely on it
would've had their Social Security tied up in the stock market this week,"
he said. "Millions would've watched as the market tumbled and their nest
egg disappeared before their eyes. Millions of families would've been scrambling
to figure out how to give their mothers and fathers, their grandmothers
and grandfathers, the secure retirement that every American deserves.""
(1, 2)
-By Dan Balz -WashingtonPost
20080919
Political
-  Science
-  Psychology
-  DNA
-  Nature
- Nurture
-  Nebraska
"Are
you a born conservative (or liberal)? A new study
suggests that your political attitudes are wired in from the beginning."
... "It's literally in their DNA." ... "People with strongly conservative
views were three times more fearful than staunch liberals after the effects
of gender, age, income and education were factored out." ... "Kevin B.
Smith, a political science professor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln
and a study author, said conservatives were more vigilant to environmental
threats, and he speculated that this innate tendency led them to support
policies that protect the social order." ... "Fowler said the study added
to the growing research suggesting that over millions of years, humans
have developed two cognitive styles -- conservative and liberal. Cautious
conservatives prevented societies from taking undue risks, while more flexible
liberals fostered cooperation." ... ""For the species to survive, you need
both," he said." ... "But Jon Krosnick, a political science professor at
Stanford University, said it was impossible to draw any conclusions from
a study with so few people, all from a small Midwestern town." ... "The
study is the latest to challenge the long-standing dogma that upbringing
and environmental factors determine political attitudes." -By
Denise Gellene -LAtimes
20080916
 Sarah
Palin -  Criminal
- Money
- Politics
-  Women
- Children
-  Law
- Federal
-  Alaska
- 2008
Election
"Source:
Sex Assault Program Cited in Monegan Firing Targeted Child Abusers."
... "So [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate and Alaska Governor]
Sarah Palin's latest explanation
for why she fired Walt Monegan is that he had gone over her head in seeking
federal money for an initiative to combat sexual assault crimes, before
she had approved the program." ... "But it now appears that the program
in question is one that most elected officials would be wary of admitting
they hadn't strongly backed. According to Peggy Brown, who heads the Alaska
Network on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, Monegan wanted to use
the federal money to hire retired troopers and law enforcement officials,
and assign them to investigate the most egregious cases of sexual assault
-- including those against children." ... "In other words, if Palin's new
story is true, she fired Monegan for being too aggressive in going
after child molesters." ... "ABC News reported
yesterday that, although Alaska leads the nation in reported rapes
per capita, Palin hasn't made the issue a priority as governor." ... "Monegan,
however, appeared eager to change that. "He seemed to get the issue and
really took it seriously," Brown told TPMmuckraker." ... "According to
the Palin camp, too seriously." -By Zachary Roth
-TPMMuckracker
.TalkingPointsMemo
20080915
Sarah
Palin - John
McCain - Money
- Politics
-  Travel
- Family
- Alaska
- 2008
Election
"Palin
Tax Mystery Enters Second Week: Itemizing The Questions."
... "When news broke last week that [2008 Election Republican Vice Presidential
Candidate and Governor of] Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin received more than $17,000
in state-issued per diems for evenings spent in her own home, several tax
experts and watchdogs asked whether [2008 Election Republican Presidential
Candidate] John McCain's running mate had ever declared and paid taxes
on that money as income. Including travel reimbursements for Palin's family
members, the Washington Post reported
that the total amount of potentially taxable income totals over $60,000
for Palin's first 18 months as governor." -By Seth
Colter Walls -HuffingtonPost.com
Sarah
Palin - John
McCain - Criminal
- Politics
- Women
- Children
-  Safety
- Law
- Money
- Religion
- Alaska
- 2008
Election
"Critics
Question Palin's Record on "Epidemic" Rape, Domestic Violence in Alaska:
Effort to Tackle Sex Violence Stalled by [2008 Election Republican Vice
Presidential Candidate Sarah] Palin's Office, Sources Say." ... "Evangelicals
and social conservatives have embraced [2008 Election Republican Presidential
Candidate John] McCain's vice presidential pick for what they call her
"pro-family," "pro-woman" values. But in Alaska, critics say [Alaska Republican
Governor] Gov. Sarah Palin has not addressed the rampant sexual abuse,
rape, domestic violence and murder that make her state one of the most
dangerous places in the country for women and children." ... "Alaska leads
the nation in reported forcible rapes per capita, according to the FBI
[Federal Bureau of Investigation], with a rate two and a half times the
national average – a ranking it has held for many years. Children are no
safer: Public safety experts believe that the prevalence of rape and sexual
assault of minors in Alaska makes the state's record one of the worst in
the U.S. [United States] And while solid statistics on domestic violence
are hard to come by, most – including Gov. Palin – agree it is an "epidemic.""
... "Despite the governor's pro-family image, public safety experts and
advocates for women and children struggled when asked to explain how Palin's
leadership has helped address the crisis. And current and former officials
from Palin's administration confirmed that an ambitious plan to tackle
the crisis has apparently sunk into doldrums after arriving at the governor's
office." ... ""She's really done a lot of work on oil and gas, but when
it comes to violence against women and children. . . we haven't been on
her radar as a priority," said Peggy Brown, executive director of the Alaska
Network on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault. The Juneau[Alaska's capital]-based
group is an umbrella organization for shelters and anti-violence programs
around the state." ... "State troopers respond to most domestic violence
calls outside of Alaska's major cities, but they're too short-staffed and
under-funded to do it well, according to Robert Claus, a recently retired
trooper." (1, 2,
3)
-By Justin Rood -ABCNEWS.com
20080914
Sarah
Palin -  E-Mails
-  Archive
- Politics
- Legal
- Investigation
- Family
-  Privacy
- Alaska
- 2008
Election
"Palin
asked to release her husband's e-mails." ... "Can
[2008 Election Republican Vice Presidential Candidate and Alaska Governor]
Gov. Sarah Palin legally keep e-mails between her husband and her administration
from being released to the public?" ... "That's the question the lawyer
of Andree McLeod, a self-described Republican watchdog, put to the governor
last week in an appeal to disclose e-mails between her administration and
her husband, Todd." ... "Those e-mails could shed light on how Gov. Palin,
the Republican vice-presidential candidate, runs the state. And they could
also help reveal what role Todd Palin, who the state Legislature's special
investigator called a "central figure" in the governor's firing of former
Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan, played in his wife's administration."
... "In July, the governor's office refused to disclose the contents of
about 40 e-mails between Todd Palin and Gov. Palin's administration as
part of a larger public records request by McLeod. Other e-mails between
Todd Palin and the governor's staff were released, McLeod said, but had
some parts redacted. Todd Palin is copied as a recipient on most of the
e-mails but also authored a few." ... "Some of the subject lines of the
withheld e-mails, which were created between [February] Feb. 1 and [April]
Apr. 15. of this year, included: "Andrew Halcro," and "PSEA." Halcro is
a political rival of Palin. The PSEA is the union that represents the Alaska
State Troopers, including trooper Mike Wooten, who is divorced from Gov.
Palin's sister and is also a key figure in the investigation of Monegan's
firing." ... "In redacting or denying the request for e-mails, the governor's
office mostly cited Gov. Palin's right to a "deliberative process privilege,"
a law designed to let public officials receive candid advice from their
staff and consultants regarding matters of the state without fear of that
advice going public." ... "But McLeod's lawyer, Donald Mitchell, said Gov.
Palin waived that privilege when Todd Palin was included in her staff's
e-mails. Documents released to one member of the public have to be available
to all members of the public, he said." ... ""Mr. Palin is a private citizens
whose only connection to the office of the governor is that, at your invitation,
he from time to time is physically present in the offices of ... the governor
for no reason other than that he is your spouse," Mitchell wrote in his
appeal directly to the governor." ... "Those who pay attention to Alaska's
public records laws said Mitchell's legal argument holds water." ... "Larry
Persily, a former Empire editor who recently finished working for Gov.
Palin in Washington D.C., said he would bet his Alaska Permanent Fund dividend
that a judge would agree with him that Gov. Palin has no claims to the
deliberative process privilege once her administration's e-mail discussions
include her husband." ... ""The dike has got a hole in it, it's over,"
Persily said. " -By Alan Suderman
-JuneauEmpire.com
20080910
Sarah
Palin - Money
- Politics
- Children
- Travel
-  Meals
- Alaska
- 2008
Election
"Palin
expensed her children's air travel to the state."
... "Since [2008 Election Republican Vice Presidential Candidate and Alaska
Governor] Gov. Sarah Palin took office nearly two years ago, the state
of Alaska has routinely bought commercial airline tickets for her daughters
when they travel with her, a practice that raises questions about the governor's
claim to being a fiscal conservative." ... "Travel records from the governor's
office show that the state has spent at least $31,800 on dozens of airline
tickets for the family, and more for meals and hotels." ... "Records show
the family has traveled with Palin for events such as the Alaska Federation
of Natives convention in Fairbanks [Alaska] last fall and to shoot official
first family photos in Juneau [Alaska's capital], to draw raffle tickets
at an event in Anchorage [Alaska] and to tour a teen center spearheaded
by the Juneau Christian Center. " -By Kyle Hopkins
-ADN.com via -McClatchyDC.com
20080909
Sarah
Palin - Money
- Politics
- Travel
- Food
- Family
-  Sports
-  Entertainment
-Alaska
-  New
York - 2008
Election
"Palin
Billed State for Nights Spent at Home: Taxpayers
Also Funded Family's Travel." ... "[2008 Election Republican Vice Presidential
Candidate and Governor of] Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has billed taxpayers
for 312 nights spent in her own home during her first 19 months in office,
charging a "per diem" allowance intended to cover meals and incidental
expenses while traveling on state business." ... "The governor also has
charged the state for travel expenses to take her children on official
out-of-town missions. And her husband, Todd, has billed the state for expenses
and a daily allowance for trips he makes on official business for his wife."
... "Palin, who earns $125,000 a year, claimed and received $16,951 as
her allowance, which officials say was permitted because her official "duty
station" is Juneau, according to an analysis of her travel documents by
The Washington Post." ... "The governor's daughters and husband charged
the state $43,490 to travel, and many of the trips were between their house
in Wasilla and Juneau, the capital city 600 miles away, the documents show."
... "She wrote some form of "Lodging -- own residence" or "Lodging -- Wasilla
residence" more than 30 times at the same time she took a per diem, according
to the reports. In two dozen undated amendments to the reports, the governor
deleted the reference to staying in her home but still charged the per
diem." ... "Palin charged the state a per diem for working on Nov. 22,
2007 -- Thanksgiving Day. The reason given, according to the expense report,
was the Great Alaska Shootout, an annual NCAA college basketball tournament
held in Anchorage." ... "In separate filings, the state was billed about
$25,000 for Palin's daughters' expenses and $19,000 for her husband's."
... "One event was in New York City in October 2007, when Bristol accompanied
the governor to Newsweek's third annual Women and Leadership Conference,
toured the New York Stock Exchange and met local officials and business
executives. The state paid for three nights in a $707-a-day hotel room."
... "The family also charged for flights around the state, including trips
to Alaska events such as the start of the Iditarod dog-sled race and the
Iron Dog snowmobile race, a contest that Todd Palin won." (1, 2,
3)
-By James V. Grimaldi and Karl Vick with contribution
by Alice Crites -WashingtonPost
20080831
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
20080829
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
20080828
 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
20080821
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
20080820
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
20080819
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
20080818
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
20080812
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
20080810
 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
20080808
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
20080806
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
 WATCH:
McCain Oil Industry Lobbyists Puppet Masters ad
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