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Spitzer's Rise and Fall
2008-03-12 03:24:00
One might call it Shakespearian if there were a shred of nobleness in the story of Eliot Spitzer's fall. There is none. Governor Spitzer, who made his career by specializing in not just the prosecution, but the ruin, of other men, is himself almost certainly ruined. Mr. Spitzer's brief statement yesterday about a "private matter" surely involves what are widely reported to be his activities with an expensive prostitution ring discovered by the U.S. Attorney's office for the Southern District of New York. Those who believe Eliot Spitzer is getting his just desserts may be entitled to that view, but it misses the greater lesson for our politics. Mr. Spitzer coasted into the Governorship on the wings of a reputation as a "tough" public prosecutor. Mr. Spitzer, though, was no emperor. He had not merely arrogated to himself the powers he held and used with such aggression. He was elected. In our system, citizens agree to invest one of their own with the power of public prosecution....
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NY Republicans threaten to impeach Gov. Spitzer
2008-03-12 03:22:00
New York state Republicans threatened on Tuesday to impeach Gov. Eliot Spitzer if he does not quit over a sex scandal that has raised questions over whether he could face criminal charges. The threat added to pressure on Spitzer, a Democrat and former state chief prosecutor who made his name fighting white-collar crime on Wall Street, to step down after a report that he hired a high-priced prostitute. Local media cited sources saying Spitzer, 48 and married with three daughters, may resign as early as Wednesday. "If he does not resign within the next 24 to 48 hours, we will prepare articles of impeachment to remove him," said James Tedisco, leader of the Republicans in the state Assembly. "We need a leader in place that has the support of people on both sides of the aisle," Tedisco said. Democrats hold a majority in the Assembly, and such a move toward ousting the governor would need some Democrats to vote with Republicans to produce the required majority vote. The scandal bro...
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Obama Coasts to Victory in Miss. Primary
2008-03-12 03:16:00
Barack Obama coasted to victory in Miss issippi's Democratic primary Tuesday, latest in a string of racially polarized presidential contests across the Deep South and a final tune-up before next month's high-stakes race with Hillary Rodham Clinton in Pennsylvania. Obama was winning roughly 90 percent of the black vote but only about one-quarter of the white vote, extending a pattern that carried him to victory in earlier primaries in South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia and Louisiana. His triumph was widely expected, and seemed destined to do nothing to shorten a Democratic marathon expected to last at least six more weeks - and possibly far longer - while Republicans and their nominee-in-waiting, Sen. John McCain, turn their attention to the fall campaign. Obama picked up at least six Mississippi delegates to the Democratic National Convention, with 27 more to be awarded. He hoped for a win sizable enough to erase most if not all of Clinton's 11-delegate gain from last week, when ...
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Oil roars to record over $108 on weak dollar
2008-03-11 03:48:00
Oil shot to a record over $108 a barrel on Monday, extending a rally led by investors seeking a hedge against the tumbling dollar and inflation. U.S. crude settled up $2.75 at $107.90 a barrel, off a record $108.21 hit earlier in the session. London Brent crude jumped $1.78 to settle at $104.16 a barrel. Fears of a U.S. recession following the biggest U.S. job losses in five years and strains in the credit market have sunk the dollar and raised expectations the Federal Reserve could cut interest rates again to prop up the economy. Speculators have rushed into commodities to hedge against the weaker dollar as well as prospects that further Fed rate cuts could fuel inflation, helping to lift oil to average over $95 so far this year despite signs the faltering U.S. economy is crimping energy demand. "It's the same thing that has been going on, it's a shark-like feeding frenzy on commodities. A lot of people feel the latest numbers on employment were bearish on the economy," said ...
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Fla. Mail-In Primary Plan Gains Traction
2008-03-11 03:44:00
A consensus began to emerge Sunday that the best way to give Florida's Democrats a voice in electing a candidate for president lies with the U.S. Postal Service. The Democratic National Committee stripped Florida and Michigan of all their convention delegates - a total of 313 - for holding their primaries too early, making both contests meaningless. New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton won both states, but no delegates. Her rival, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, did not appear on Michigan's ballot. But the disqualification of Florida and Michigan has created a headache for the Democratic party due to the unexpected closeness of the race between Obama and Clinton. Officials from both states are trying to figure out how best to resolve the issue before the national convention in August. DNC Chairman Howard Dean said a mail-in primary is "actually a very good process." "Every voter gets a ballot in the mail," the former Vermont governor said on CBS's "Face the Nation.""It's compreh...
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Obama Ridicules Notion of VP Slot
2008-03-11 02:19:00
Democrat Barack Obama ridiculed the idea of being Hillary Rodham Clinton's running mate Monday, saying voters must choose between the two for the top spot on the fall ticket. The Illinois senator used his first public appearance of the week to knock down the notion that he might accept the party's vice presidential nomination. He noted that he has won more states, votes and delegates than Clinton so far. "I don't know how somebody who is in second place is offering the vice presidency to the person who is first place," Obama said, drawing cheers and a long standing ovation from about 1,700 people. Saying he wanted to be "absolutely clear," he added: "I don't want anybody here thinking that somehow, 'Well, you know, maybe I can get both.' Don't think that way. You have to make a choice in this election."

Gun incident near President Bush's ranch
2008-03-03 16:32:00
A Danish journalist came this close to getting shot Saturday by an elderly woman packing a pistol near President Bush's ranch here in what was easily the strangest incident I've ever witnessed covering the White House. It all started so innocently as I sat with a group of Danish journalists just down the street from Bush's ranch during a visit by Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen. The two leaders were having lunch on the ranch, so I was waiting at a nearby historic one-room schoolhouse with White House staff to interview Rasmussen after the meal. Then the prime minister was going to do a brief press conference with the Danish press corps. Terkel Svensson, a writer for the Danish News Agency, could not get wireless Internet access at the schoolhouse to file a story. But Svensson could get his cell phone working so he called his editor in Copenhagen and started wandering across a quiet country road as he chatted away. "I was just so occupied dictating my story that I d...
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President "Whatever"
2008-03-03 16:00:00
Hillary Clinton has been criticized for not knowing the name of Russia's new President . "Meh, um, Menedvadah -- whatever," she said at last week's debate. But her slip actually told a larger truth because, as Mrs. Clinton also put it, "the decisions will be made by Putin." Russians yesterday "elected" 42-year-old lawyer Dmitry Medvedev, but the truth is that Vladimir Putin made sure power would stay in his hands. Mr. Medvedev gets a new office and some powers of appointment. But Mr. Putin will soon become Prime Minister and can count on support from cronies across the government who depend on him for their survival. Mr. Medvedev refused to debate his notional opponents, all pre-approved by the Kremlin; gave no press conference; and spent a single day campaigning. To be sure, Mr. Putin will no longer be President, and he and his inner circle will have to adjust to his new job. Over time, Mr. Medvedev may even be so bold as to have his own ideas and wish to build an independent po...
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Obama and Clinton neck and neck in Ohio, Texas
2008-03-03 15:52:00
Hillary Clinton and rival Barack Obama are running neck-and-neck in Ohio and Texas one day before their crucial Democratic presidential showdowns, according to a Reuters/C-SPAN/Houston Chronicle poll released on Monday. Clinton, fighting to save her presidential bid after 11 straight wins by Obama, desperately needs victories in the big-state battles to keep her candidacy alive and face the Republican candidate in the November election. Obama, an Illinois senator, has a slim advantage on Clinton in both states, although the leads are within the poll's margin of error of just under 4 percentage points. Obama, an Illinois senator, has a slim advantage on Clinton in both states, although the leads are within the poll's margin of error of just under 4 percentage points. Obama leads 47 percent to 44 percent in Texas, as Clinton gained 1 point overnight in the polling conducted by Zogby International. He leads 47 percent to 45 percent in Ohio, a turnaround from Clinton's 1-point ad...
More About: Politics , Democrats , Today

Clinton Launches Ohio Campaign Marathon
2008-03-03 15:43:00
Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton argued Sunday that her campaign is "about solutions," not feelings, as she swept through Ohio on an intense push two days before the state's presidential primary. She told more than 2,000 cheering backers that she wants to solve the economic troubles facing the industrial Midwest. "For some people this election is about how you feel, it's about speeches," Clinton said. "Well, that's not what it's about for me. It's about solutions." The former first lady opened an Ohio campaign marathon, sweeping across the state on a series of appearances lasting until the wee hours of Monday. Her first stop, in suburban Columbus, was aimed at firing up canvassers who were manning phone banks and knocking doors for her. "Ohio is once again the center of attention, for a reason," Clinton said. "It truly does represent America, the hopes and aspirations, the challenges and opportunities, they are all right here in Ohio. It is a picture of America." Clinton ha...
More About: Today , Marathon , Campaign

Obama Says He's Quit Smoking
2008-02-28 19:43:00
Barack Obama said he has successfully quit smoking cigarettes despite the pressures of a closely contested and lengthy presidential campaign. "I've been chewing on this Nicorette, which tastes like you're chewing on ground pepper - but it does help," the Democratic candidate said in an interview that aired Thursday on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show." His wife, Michelle, had used his smoking as leverage when the two were discussing whether he should run for president. She would agree only if Obama agreed to give up smoking. "I had been sneaking three cigarettes, four cigarettes a day for a while, and she said if you're going to do this you've got to stop - precisely because the stress was going to increase, and it'll just get worse," Obama said. "So that's an example of my wife making me a better man once again." The Illinois senator told talk show host Ellen DeGeneres that dancing on her show had helped him win voters. "I just want to say that we were kind of in a slump until ...
More About: Politics , Health , Quit Smoking , Today

A Little Nuke Music
2008-02-28 19:37:00
The New York Philharmonic?s concert in Pyongyang was a tantalizing taste of what might be in America?s relationship with North Korea. It was also a reminder of the missteps and dangerously wrongheaded judgments that have kept the two countries apart and at saber-point for more than a half century. The Philharmonic drew sustained applause and even some tears, playing Gershwin, a beloved Korean folk song and the two countries? national anthems. The concert would have had even more significance if it could have celebrated continuing progress toward shuttering North Korea?s nuclear weapons program. That effort unfortunately has stalled, and the fault ? at least this time ? is undeniably Pyongyang?s. It would take a serious diplomatic push by the Bush administration and the leaders of China, Russia, Japan and South Korea to ensure that it does not fall apart. North Korea agreed last year to disable its Yongbyon nuclear reactor and produce a ?complete and correct? accounting of all its...
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Obama Fights False Links to Islam
2008-02-28 19:30:00
For Barack Obama , it is an ember that he has doused time and again, only to see it flicker anew: links to Islam fanned by false rumors, innuendo and association. Obama and his campaign reacted strongly this week when a photo of him in Kenyan tribal garb began spreading on the Internet. And the praise he received Sunday from Nation of Islam Minister Louis Farrakhan prompted pointed questions - during Tuesday night's presidential debate and also in a private meeting over the weekend with Jewish leaders in Cleveland. During the debate, Obama repeated his denunciation of Farrakhan's views, which have included numerous anti-Semitic comments. And, after being pressed, he rejected Farrakhan's support in the presidential race. The Democratic candidate says repeatedly that he's a Christian who took the oath of office on a family Bible. Yet on the Internet and on talk radio - and in a campaign introduction for John McCain this week - he is often depicted, falsely, as a Muslim with shad...
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Scientists Predict When World Will End
2008-02-27 17:03:00
Scientist have nailed down how and when the Earth will cease to exist. The sun will slowly expand into a red giant, pushing the Earth farther out into space, but not far enough. Our home planet will be snagged by the sun's outer atmosphere, gradually plunging to its doom inside the fiery stellar furnace. "The drag caused by this low-density gas is enough to cause the Earth to drift inwards, and finally to be captured and vaporized by the sun," explains astronomer Robert Smith of the University of Sussex in southern England. Previous projections had all figured that the Earth would avoid falling into the sun, even during our star's red-giant phase. The good news: This won't happen for another 7.6 billion years. The bad news: Life on Earth will end long before then. That may sound like a long time, but in fact life on Earth's been around a lot longer than that ? a total of 3.7 billion years, according to the latest estimates. For those first three billion years, true, we w...
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IRS Investigates Obama's Denomination
2008-02-27 16:19:00
The IRS is investigating the United Church of Christ over a speech Sen. Barack Obama gave at its national meeting last year after he became a candidate for president, the denomination said Tuesday. Obama, an Illinois Democrat, belongs to the 1.2 million-member Protestant group through his Chicago congregation. In a letter the denomination received Monday, the IRS said "reasonable belief exists" that the circumstances surrounding the speech violated restrictions on political activity for tax-exempt organizations. The denomination has denied any wrongdoing. Obama, a member of Trinity United Church of Christ, spoke about faith and public life at the denomination's June 2007 General Synod in Hartford, Conn. The IRS said in the letter that it was concerned about articles posted on the church's Web site and on other sites stating that Obama had addressed nearly 10,000 people at the event. The agency also said Obama volunteers had staffed campaign tables "outside the center to promot...

Experts warn that automated killer robots 'threat to humanity'
2008-02-27 15:55:00
Increasingly autonomous, gun-totting robots developed for warfare could easily fall into the hands of terrorists and may one day unleash a robot arms race, a top expert on artificial intelligence told AFP. "They pose a threat to humanity," said University of Sheffield professor Noel Sharkey ahead of a keynote address Wednesday before Britain's Royal United Services Institute. Intelligent machines deployed on battlefields around the world -- from mobile grenade launchers to rocket-firing drones -- can already identify and lock onto targets without human help. There are more than 4,000 US military robots on the ground in Iraq, as well as unmanned aircraft that have clocked hundreds of thousands of flight hours. The first three armed combat robots fitted with large-caliber machine guns deployed to Iraq last summer, manufactured by US arms maker Foster-Miller, proved so successful that 80 more are on order, said Sharkey. But up to now, a human hand has always been required to push...
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McCain distances himself from supporter's comments
2008-02-26 20:03:00
A supporter of John McCain, speaking at an official campaign event in Ohio attended by the Arizona senator, called Barack Obama a ?hack, Chicago-style Daly politician,? and told the crowd ?all is going to be right with the world when the great prophet from Chicago takes the stand, and the world leaders who want to kill us will simply be singing Kumbaya around the table of Barack Obama.? ?At some point in the near future the media, the stooges from the New York Times, CBS (The Clinton Broadcasting System), NBC (The Nobody But Clinton Network), The All Bill Clinton Channel (ABC), and the Clinton News Network at some point is going to peel the bark off Barack Hussein Obama,? said controversial conservative commentator Bill Cunningham, an Ohio native. ?That day will come and then you'll know the truth about his business dealings with Rezko, when he got sweetheart deals in Chicago,? he added, ?and the illegal loans that he received, at some point the media will quit taking sides on th...
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Texas: McCain 52% Huckabee 31%
2008-02-26 16:44:00
John McCain has opened a substantial lead over Mike Huckabee in the Texas Republican Presidential Primary. The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey finds that McCain attracts 52% of the vote while Huckabee earns 31%. Ron Paul is a distant third with 8% while 10% are not sure. That twenty-one point lead is a huge improvement for McCain whose advantage was just nine percentage points last week. The Democratic Primary is heading in the opposite direction. Hillary Clinton began with a large lead and it has been slipping away. McCain is viewed favorably by 72% of Likely Republican Primary Voters, up from 67% a week ago. Huckabee earns positive reviews from 62%. Paul is viewed favorably by 30% and unfavorably by 62%. Eighty-two percent (82%) believe McCain is at least somewhat likely to win the White House if nominated. That figure includes 44% who believe he is Very Likely to win it all in November. A week ago, 39% thought he was Very Likely to win. Twenty-nine percent (29%) sa...
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Romney son considers congressional bid
2008-02-26 16:41:00
There won't be a Mitt on the ballot this fall, but there may be a Romney . Romney's son Josh, a frequent presence on the presidential campaign trail before his dad dropped out of the race, says he is considering running for Congress this year against Jim Matheson, a Democrat representing Utah's Second House district. "I haven't ruled it out," Romney, 32, was quoted as saying in yesterday's Deseret Morning News, a Salt Lake City daily. "I'm pretty young, but I've had good experience on the campaign trail." For the time being, Josh Romney said, the family is taking a little time off from politics. He told the paper they skied together at Deer Valley over the weekend. Reflecting on his father's campaign, he said that the loss to former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee in Iowa was a major blow. "It killed a lot of my dad's momentum, to be honest," he said. "That was really damaging." If Josh Romney were to enter politics, he would follow in the footsteps of not just his fath...
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2 polls say Obama is surging ahead of Clinton in Democratic race
2008-02-26 16:36:00
Two new national polls yesterday indicated Barack Obama is surging ahead of Hillary Clinton in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination. In a New York Times-CBS News poll, 54 percent of Democratic primary voters said they would prefer the party to nominate Barack Obama while 38 percent preferred Hillary Clinton. That was a sharp shift in Obama's favor from a poll in late January, when voters were split evenly, 41 percent each for Obama and Clinton. The poll found similar swings in Obama's favor on other questions. For example, asked how they would vote if the race were between Obama and Republican John McCain, 50 percent said they would support Obama to 38 percent for McCain, while respondents were split evenly, at 46 percent each, when the choice was between McCain and Clinton. Obama gained ground within nearly every sector, the poll found. In a new Associated Press-Ipsos poll also published yesterday, Obama led Clinton by a narrow margin, 46 percent to 43 percent, w...
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Nader's Triumph
2008-02-26 16:33:00
It's February of an election year, so naturally Ralph Nader has announced that he plans to run for President. Mr. Nader wants to make it three elections in a row because, he says, all of the remaining major party candidates are too close to corporate interests and don't want to repeal "the notorious Taft-Hartley Act," among other epic failings he mentioned Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press." Democrats reacted with restrained hostility, since so many of them still blame Mr. Nader for stealing enough votes from Al Gore in 2000 to throw Florida to George W. Bush. Nationwide, however, the left-wing gadfly won only 2.7% of the vote that year, and in 2004 his share slipped to 0.3%, which is likely to exceed whatever he wins this year. In 2000, Saint Ralph ran as the Green Party candidate, but this year that singular honor seems destined for the memorably modest former Georgia Congresswoman, Cynthia McKinney. This means he'll have to scramble to get on the ballot in many states, where ...
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Barack Obama Prefers Cooperation Abroad
2008-02-26 15:22:00
WASHINGTON (AP) - Based on his Senate history, Barack Obama as president would likely push to expand human rights and reduce poverty abroad using cooperation rather than confrontation. If foreign events permit. Aside from his vigorous opposition to the Iraq war, Obama spent more of his time on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on speeches and inspirational trips than on investigations and aggressive oversight. He was a junior senator with an agreeable manner who was just beginning to cut his teeth on foreign policy issues when he decided to run for president. Since he took office in 2005, much of Obama's work attracted little, if any, attention because of the nation's focus on the Iraq war. Obama pushed through legislation that condemned violence by the Zimbabwe government, for example. He helped raise awareness about Darfur and called on the administration to do more to reduce global poverty. In 2005, he traveled with Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind., to Russian nuclear sites. ...
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Sen. Christopher Dodd to Endorse Obama
2008-02-26 15:18:00
Democratic Sen. Christopher Dodd of Connecticut plans to endorse former presidential rival Barack Obama . Dodd will endorse his colleague, a senator from Illinois, in Cleveland on Tuesday, according to a Democratic official close to Dodd who requested anonymity because no formal announcement had been made. Dodd's support, coupled with his liberal credentials, could provide a boost for Obama as major contests near in big states such as Ohio and Texas on March 4. Obama has won some key Democratic endorsements in recent weeks, including Massachusetts Sen. Edward Kennedy, a close friend of Dodd. Obama and rival Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton had been vying for Dodd's support since he exited the presidential race after a poor showing in the Iowa caucus last month. Dodd, who won his Senate seat in 1980 and chaired the Democratic National Committee from 1995-1996, has long-standing ties to the Clintons. Dodd is a "superdelegate," one of nearly 800 Democratic officeholders and party offic...
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Democrats Seek FEC Probe of McCain
2008-02-25 18:47:00
The national Democratic party wants campaign finance regulators to investigate whether Sen. John McCain would violate money-in-politics laws by withdrawing from the primary election's public finance system. McCain, who had been entitled to $5.8 million in federal funds for the primary, has decided to bypass the system so he can avoid spending limits between now and the GOP's national convention in September. Federal Election Commission Chairman David Mason notified McCain last week that he can only withdraw from public financing if he answers questions about a campaign loan and obtains approval from four members of the six-member commission. Such approval is doubtful in the short term because the commission has four vacancies and cannot convene a quorum. "John McCain poses as a reformer but seems to think reforms apply to everyone but him," Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean said Sunday. he DNC said it plans to formally seek an FEC investigation Monday. Part o...
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Obama Photo Resurrects Rumous about His Muslim Ties
2008-02-25 18:30:00
A photograph circulating in the Internet of Democratic Sen. Barack Obama dressed in traditional local garments during a visit to Kenya in 2006 is causing a dustup in the presidential campaign over what constitutes a smear. The photograph portrays Obama wearing a white turban and a wraparound white robe presented to him by elders in Wajir, in northeastern Kenya. Obama's estranged late father was Kenyan and Obama visited the country in 2006, attracting thousands of well-wishers. The gossip and news Web site The Drudge Report posted the photograph Monday and said it was being circulated by "Clinton staffers" and quoted an e-mail from an unidentified campaign aide. Obama campaign manager David Plouffe immediately accused Clinton's campaign of "the most shameful, offensive fear-mongering we've seen from either party in this election." Obama's foreign policy adviser, Susan Rice, said the circulation of the photograph was divisive and suggests "that the customs and cultures of othe...
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Insurance Fears Lead Many to Shun DNA Tests
2008-02-24 17:14:00
Victoria Grove wanted to find out if she was destined to develop the form of emphysema that ran in her family, but she did not want to ask her doctor for the DNA test that would tell her. She worried that she might not be able to get health insurance, or even a job, if a genetic predisposition showed up in her medical records, especially since treatment for the condition, alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, could cost over $100,000 a year. Instead, Ms. Grove sought out a service that sent a test kit to her home and returned the results directly to her. Nor did she tell her doctor when the test revealed that she was virtually certain to get it. Knowing that she could sustain permanent lung damage without immediate treatment for her bouts of pneumonia, she made sure to visit her clinic at the first sign of infection. But then came the day when the nurse who listened to her lungs decided she just had a cold. Ms. Grove begged for a chest X-ray. The nurse did not think it was necessary. ...
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Is Hillary Clinton suffering buyer's remorse over Bill?...
2008-02-24 17:06:00
Is Hillary Clinton now regretting having husband stump for her? According to this CNN piece she's offering apologies for campaign remarks that he made that might have offended African Americans. However sincere it may be it might be a little too late ... In remarks to the annual State of the Black Union forum Saturday, Sen. Hillary Clinton strongly defended her husband's record on civil rights, and offered regrets some of the former president's comments earlier this campaign season appeared to have offended many African-Americans. Clinton was asked about remarks her husband made while on the trail for his wife in South Carolina last month, including his reference to Jesse Jackson having won primaries in the state during the 1980s. Critics complained about the remarks, seeing it as a suggestion that Obama's success in that state would largely be based on his race. In her answer, Clinton said many of the attendees to the forum know her husband personally and "know his heart...
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Veep Pool Swimming With Governors
2008-02-24 16:32:00
The Republican and Democratic nominees are certain to come from the Senate. Thus, the nation's governors seem a ready pool of would-be vice presidential candidates who could provide management experience lacking at the top of each ticket. "Seven governors have become president of the United States, and four have become vice president," said Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, the chairman of the National Governors Association opening its winter meeting with such bits of history. The Republican didn't, of course, mention that he's among the many governors who might have the chance to try to increase those numbers. He, like the others, tends to eschew such talk. Still, names of more than a dozen governors have been floated as potential running mates on the Republican and Democratic tickets. Arizona Sen. John McCain is assured the Republican nomination, while Democratic Sens. Barack Obama of Illinois and Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York are continuing to battle for the Democratic nod...
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Former Paxson Exec Denies Meeting McCain
2008-02-24 16:27:00
A former Paxson Communications president said Saturday he never met with John McCain about the Arizona senator writing letters to the Federal Communications Commission regarding the regulatory delay of a Pittsburgh TV station sale. Dean Goodman, who was in charge of the company's lobbying efforts in 1999, told The Associated Press he also doubts that chief executive Lowell W. "Bud" Paxson met with McCain over the issue, and said he doesn't recall such a meeting. McCain's presidential campaign said the Arizona senator and then-chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee did not meet with Paxson or his lobbyist, Vicki Iseman, before sending the letters, which have drawn controversy in recent days. But Paxson told The Washington Post in a story published Saturday that he and "probably" Iseman met with McCain on the matter several weeks before the senator sent the letters. Goodman, who left the company a year and a half ago, took issue with that account in a telephone interview from...
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Nader Announces Run for President
2008-02-24 16:23:00
Ralph Nader said Sunday he will run for president as a third-party candidate, criticizing the top White House contenders as too close to big business and pledging to repeat a bid that will "shift the power from the few to the many." Nader, 73, said most people are disenchanted with the Democratic and Republican parties due to a prolonged Iraq war and a shaky economy. The consumer advocate also blamed tax and other corporate-friendly policies under the Bush administration that he said have left many lower- and middle-class people in debt. "You take that framework of people feeling locked out, shut out, marginalized and disrespected," he said. "You go from Iraq, to Palestine to Israel, from Enron to Wall Street, from Katrina to the bumbling of the Bush administration, to the complicity of the Democrats in not stopping him on the war, stopping him on the tax cuts." "In that context, I have decided to run for president," Nader told NBC's "Meet the Press." Nader also criticized Repu...
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