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McCain woos some Hispanics, others see baggage
2008-05-18 23:29:00
PHOENIX (Reuters) - Arturo Leyva has voted Democratic in the past, like many U.S. Hispanics . This year, the candidate catching his eye happens to be a Republican: John McCain. "He has a lot to offer Hispanics, and I think I may vote for him," Leyva, 45, said at his cellular phone store in central Phoenix. U.S. Hispanic support for the Republican Party, small but growing steadily over the past decade, has ebbed in the past year, following a bruising battle over illegal immigration. Republican lawmakers last June sank a comprehensive immigration bill -- co-sponsored by McCain -- that would have created a path to citizenship for many of the 12 million mostly Hispanic undocumented immigrants in the United States. However, Hispanic voters may see a sympathetic candidate in the Arizona senator, some analysts say. "Hispanic voters have not yet gelled for any candidate yet. In this election it is up for grabs," said Paul Brace, a political science professor at Rice University. "The in...
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New tremor hits China
2008-05-18 23:26:00
BEICHUAN, China (Reuters) - A fresh tremor in southwestern China killed three people on Sunday, injured 1,000 others and sent thousands of people already traumatized by last week's massive earthquake fleeing their homes into the streets. The tremor, the strongest aftershock since the May 12 earthquake, hit Jiangyou city in Sichuan, Xinhua state news agency said, on the eve of three days of national mourning for the dead that now stands officially at 32,500. The fresh tremor, which measured 5.7 in magnitude, brought down a large number of houses, damaged 235 miles of roads and six bridges, rescue authorities said late on Sunday. In the provincial capital, Chengdu, some 125 miles south of the epicenter, thousands fled swaying buildings, Xinhua said. More than six days after the main quake of 7.9 magnitude rattled Sichuan province, authorities are worried by the aftershocks and the build up of water in blocked rivers and have tried to stop people from entering the affected area. ...
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Obama developing a McCain strategy before winning nomination
2008-05-18 23:22:00
Making up for lost time, Barack Obama is dashing full-tilt into the general-election fight against Republican John McCain without waiting for the Democratic marathon to end. He's running down McCain more often than the woman he's nominally still fighting for his own party's nomination. And he's running after white working-class voters, independents, Hispanics, Catholics and Jews - voting blocs that will be important in the November election and with whom he's had mixed successes. Even as Obama tries to fight off Hillary Rodham Clinton in the few remaining primaries, he is campaigning in states that have already held elections and vowing to return to states where he lost to Clinton. His campaign has sent teams into battleground states, set up a program for signing up millions of Democrats over the next six months and is developing ads to use against McCain. History shows that the earlier a candidate nails down the party nomination, the better his chances of winning. Obama did...
More About: Politics , Nomination , Strategy , Today

Thousands flee China quake area over flood fears
2008-05-17 20:54:00
BEICHUAN, China -- Thousands of Chinese earthquake victims fled areas near the epicenter Saturday, fearful of floods from rivers blocked by landslides rattled loose in this week's powerful temblor. Soldiers carried older people out of Beichuan town _ one of the areas hit hardest by the magnitude 7.9 quake Monday _ while survivors cradled babies on a road jammed with vehicles and people. A policeman told The Associated Press that rescue officials were worried that water from a choked river would inundate the town. "The river was jammed up by a landslide, now that may burst. That is what we are worried about," the policeman said as he hurried by, not giving his name. "I'm very scared. I heard that the water will be crashing down here," said Liang Xiao, one of the people fleeing. "If that happens, there will be over 10 yards of water over our heads." The official Xinhua News Agency said earlier that a lake in Beichuan county "may burst its bank at any time," but did not give det...
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Sen. Kennedy hospitalized with stroke symptoms
2008-05-17 20:42:00
BOSTON (Reuters) - Sen. Edward Kennedy , was hospitalized on Saturday in Boston after suffering symptoms of a stroke at his family vacation home. Kennedy, 76, was rushed from the Kennedy compound at Hyannisport, Massachusetts, to Cape Cod Hospital at 9 a.m. (1300 GMT), before being airlifted to Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, hospital officials said. A Democratic Party aide confirmed that the long-serving Massachusetts senator had stroke-like symptoms. "He is currently under evaluation," Kennedy's office in Washington said in a statement. Kennedy, the youngest brother of assassinated U.S. President John F. Kennedy, felt ill at home and went to Cape Cod Hospital. He was sent to Massachusetts General after consultation with his doctors in Boston. Kennedy's family members had been summoned to Boston, The Boston Globe reported on its Web site, quoting a leading political source. Kennedy is a leading liberal voice in the United States and has actively campaigned for Bara...
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Clinton's female fans wonder what if and when
2008-05-17 20:39:00
NEW YORK (AP) - Philipina Heintzman, 81, drove 80 miles across the South Dakota prairie to experience history in the making: a woman running for president, something she never dreamed as a child that she would live to see. That event, a Hillary Rodham Clinton rally in Bath on Thursday, also marked history unraveling. As Clinton's prospects sink in the Democratic race, Heintzman and many women like her are feeling the poignant letdown of seeing the first woman with a strong chance at the presidency fall short. "It would hurt my feelings a lot because I think she should be No. 1, she should be president," Heintzman said of Clinton's likely loss to Barack Obama. "Give a woman a chance to do something good." From young feminist activists to the grandmothers who embrace Clinton along the rope line at her campaign events, many women who voted in large numbers for the former first lady during the primaries have begun mourning the turn of events. They know their dream of electing a fe...
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Bin Laden marks Israel anniversary with combat vow
2008-05-17 06:08:00
DUBAI (Reuters) - Osama bin Laden vowed in an audio tape to mark Israel 's 60th anniversary to continue to fight the Jewish state and its allies in the West. The al Qaeda leader, who has placed growing emphasis on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, said it was at the heart of the Muslim battle with the West and an inspiration to the 19 bombers who carried out the attacks on U.S. cities on September 11, 2001. "We will continue, God permitting, the fight against the Israelis and their allies ... and will not give up a single inch of Palestine as long as there is one true Muslim on Earth," he said in the message, posted on an Islamist website on Friday. Bin Laden said Israel's anniversary celebrations were a reminder that it did not exist 60 years ago, and had been established on land seized from Palestinians by force. "This is evidence that Palestine is our land, and the Israelis are invaders and occupiers who should be fought," he said in the tape, which was addressed to the West...
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Outside groups plot out fall political campaign
2008-05-17 06:00:00
WASHINGTON (AP) - For all the money and competitive zeal of this year's presidential contest, Democrats and Republicans are having difficulty financing and organizing the independent groups that supplied so much outside muscle in recent presidential campaigns. A few independent groups already are active: Ads portraying Obama as weak on terrorism are circulating over the Internet. And messages from organized groups questioning McCain's commitment to veterans and government reform are posted on their Web sites. But, hindered by tougher regulatory enforcement, a drawn-out primary campaign and cease-and-desist signals from the two front-running candidates, so-called "527" groups - named after a tax code provision - have been slow to coalesce. Members of Obama's finance team earlier this month urged his donors not to finance the 527 groups, and called on them to instead work with his campaign directly. The message has left many donors and group organizers seeking clarity from the c...
More About: Politics , Political , Today , Campaign , Groups

Analysis: Obama reacts fast to Bush on diplomacy
2008-05-17 05:52:00
In President Bush 's hint that Barack Obama wants to appease terrorists, Democrats heard troubling echoes of 2004, when Republicans portrayed John Kerry as irresolute and weak on national security. Determined to end the similarities there, Obama and his allies counterattacked Friday with a multi-pronged response that was as fast and fierce as Kerry's response to the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth ads was slow and uncertain. And while the Democrats' first-day responses focused on Bush's speech this week in Israel, Friday's reactions mainly targeted John McCain, the GOP presidential candidate who seemed largely on the sidelines at first. Obama, appearing unusually feisty and at times sarcastic, led the countercharge himself. Campaigning in South Dakota, he departed from planned remarks to rebuke Bush and McCain, and then called a news conference for a second dose. "I was offended by what is a continuation of a strategy from this White House, now mimicked by Senator McCain, that...
More About: Analysis , Today , Diplomacy

Florida, Michigan cannot save Clinton
2008-05-17 05:49:00
WASHINGTON (AP) - Michigan and Florida alone can't save Hillary Rodham Clinton 's campaign. Interviews with those considering how to handle the two states' banished convention delegates found little interest in the former first lady's best-case scenario. Her position, part of a formidable comeback challenge, is that all the delegates be seated in accordance with their disputed primaries. Even if they were, it wouldn't erase Barack Obama's growing lead in delegates. The Democratic Party's Rules and Bylaws Committee, a 30-member panel charged with interpreting and enforcing party rules, is to meet May 31 to consider how to handle Michigan and Florida's 368 delegates - both pledged delegates and superdelegates. Last year, the panel imposed the harshest punishment it could render against the two states after they scheduled primaries in January, even though they were instructed not to vote until Feb. 5 or later. Michigan and Florida lost all their delegates to the national con...
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Kentucky demographics favor Clinton
2008-05-14 22:11:00
FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - Add a shot of whiskey and a pinch of tobacco and, politically, Kentucky is a lot like neighboring West Virginia - Clinton country. Both states are overwhelmingly white, largely rural and have a greater share of residents below the poverty line and without college degrees than the nation as whole. And, as she did in West Virginia, Hillary Rodham Clinton is expected to rack up a sizable victory in Kentucky's May 20 Democratic primary against front-runner Barack Obama, who is hoping to counter with a win on more favorable turf in Oregon the same day. Clinton's track record gives her a strong advantage in Kentucky. Whites have favored Clinton over Obama by 55 percent to 40 percent, rural voters 51-43, and voters without college degrees 52-44 in exit polls from 26 competitive primaries. Obama is strong among urban dwellers and rural blacks, giving him a fighting chance among voters in Louisville, the state's largest city, but little hope elsewhere, voting tre...
More About: Politics , Today , Demographics

Naral Pro-Choice America Backs Obama
2008-05-14 22:01:00
NEW YORK (AP) - Democrat Barack Obama has won the endorsement of NARAL Pro-Choice America , a leading abortion rights advocacy organization that has supported rival Hillary Rodham Clinton throughout her political career. The organization announced the endorsement of its political action committee on Wednesday. "Pro-choice Americans have been fortunate to have two strong pro-choice candidates in Senator Obama and Senator Clinton, both of whom have inspired millions of new voters to participate in this historic presidential race," NARAL president Nancy Keenan said in a statement. "Today , we are proud to put our organization's grass-roots and political support behind the pro-choice candidate whom we believe will secure the Democratic nomination and advance to the general election. That candidate is Senator Obama." Clinton communications director Howard Wolfson said he was surprised by the group's decision to back Obama. "Senator Clinton's leadership and advocacy on choice issues ...
More About: Health , Abortion

Analysis: Maybe Obama should worry
2008-05-14 21:56:00
WASHINGTON (AP) - Barack Obama is in hot pursuit of general election voters, hoping America won't notice he got his head handed to him in West Virginia. The Illinois senator virtually pretended the primary didn't happen Tuesday, with no election night speech or any public appearance at all after the polls closed and gave Hillary Rodham Clinton a more than 2-1 victory even though her candidacy is likely doomed. At Obama's Chicago headquarters, advisers said there was no reason to worry - West Virginia was demographically suited to Clinton and won't be part of their general election plans. It's also true that Clinton's win is unlikely to slow his march toward the nomination - Obama picked up 30 superdelegates this week, more than the 28 total pledged delegates up for grabs in West Virginia. But maybe the Obama camp should be more worried. The voters who went against Obama Tuesday night - white, rural, older, low-income and without college degrees - don't just live in West Vi...
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Women 'should have abortion on demand'
2008-05-13 20:55:00
Women will be able to terminate their pregnancy without having to obtain the signatures of two doctors in an overhaul of abortion laws. Andrew Lansley, the shadow health secretary, told MPs on Monday he would seek to make it easier for women to have an abortion at an early stage, while lowering the time limit for late procedures. The Government indicated it would not oppose the move meaning it will almost certainly be passed. Next week, the Commons votes on the abortion laws for the first time in nearly two decades, when pro-life MPs will attempt to reduce the limit from 24 weeks to 22 weeks or lower. Last night the Government avoided a major rebellion as just nine Labour backbenchers voted against the Bill, which was given a Second Reading by 340 votes to 262. But ministers will face a sterner test when the measures return next week and Labour MPs have a free vote on some of its most contentious elements. The highly-charged clash will be one of a number of controversial votes...
More About: Women , Health , Crime , Science and Technology , Abortion

Wall Street Journal - McCain's Climate 'Market' is Obama-lite
2008-05-13 20:46:00
The latest stop on John McCain's policy tour came at an Oregon wind-turbine manufacturer, where the topic was ? what else? ? the Senator's plan to address climate change. This is one of those issues where Mr. McCain indulges his "maverick" tendencies, which usually means taking the liberal line. That was the case yesterday, no matter how frequently he claimed his approach was "market based." In fact, if "the market" is your favored mechanism, Mr. McCain's endorsement of a "cap and trade" system is the worst choice for reducing greenhouse-gas emissions. The Bush Administration has pursued one option, which combines voluntary measures with subsidies for "clean" alternatives. Since 2001 under this approach, U.S. net carbon emissions have fallen by 3% ? that is, by more than all but four countries in cap-and-trade-bound Europe. At the other end of the market spectrum is a straight carbon tax, which would at least distribute costs more efficiently. It would also force politicians to...
More About: Journal , Market , Climate , Wall Street , Editorials

Barr launches Libertarian White House bid
2008-05-13 20:38:00
Former Republican Rep. Bob Barr launched a Libertarian Party presidential bid Monday, saying voters are hungry for an alternative to the status quo who would dramatically cut the federal government. His candidacy throws a wild card into the White House race that many believe could peel away votes from Republican Sen. John McCain given the candidates' similar positions on fiscal policy. Barr, who has hired Ross Perot's former campaign manager, acknowledged that some Republicans have tried to discourage him from running. But he said he's getting in the race to win, not to play spoiler or to make a point. "I've heard from Americans from all walks of life ... they want a choice," he said at a news conference in Washington. "They believe that America has more and better to offer than what the current political situation is serving up to us." Barr first must win the Libertarian nomination at the party's national convention that begins May 22. Party officials consider him a front-...
More About: Politics , White House , Today

Death toll from China quake soars past 12,000
2008-05-13 20:36:00
DUJIANGYAN, China (Reuters) - The number of dead in China's earthquake climbed past 12,000 on Tuesday with the toll expect to soar further after state media said nearly 19,000 people were buried under rubble in one city alone. Rain hampered rescue efforts in the mountainous area around the epicenter of Monday's 7.9-magnitude quake that jolted the southwestern province of Sichuan, the country's worst earthquake in three decades. State media reported scenes of devastation as rescuers gradually filed into villages near the epicenter in Wenchuan, a remote county cut off by landslides about 100 km (60 miles) northwest of the provincial capital, Chengdu. An advance squad of more than 30 People's Liberation Army (PLA) troops arrived at Wenchuan's Yingxiu township and rescued 300 injured residents, Xinhua news agency said. Only 2,000 were found alive in the town of 12,000, according to He Biao, a local official. "They could hear people under the debris calling for help, but no one...
More About: Quake , World News , Today , Death

More than 60 feared dead in India bomb blasts
2008-05-13 20:28:00
JAIPUR, India (Reuters) - More than 60 people were feared killed in bomb blasts in the western Indian city of Jaipur on Tuesday, state television said, citing Rajasthan state Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje. Rohit Singh, a senior official in the state of Rajasthan where the bombs exploded, later told local television that between 50 and 60 people had been killed in six blasts "as per information available with me right now." (Editing by Stephen Weeks)
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Former Democratic leader switches to Obama
2008-05-01 14:32:00
A leader of the Democratic Party under Bill Clinton has switched his allegiance to Barack Obama and is encouraging fellow Democrats to "heal the rift in our party" and unite behind the Illinois senator. Joe Andrew, who was Democratic National Committee chairman from 1999-2001, planned a news conference Thursday in his hometown of Indianapolis to urge other Hoosiers to support Obama in Tuesday's primary, perhaps the most important contest left in the White House race. He also has written a lengthy letter explaining his decision that he plans to send to other superdelegates. "I am convinced that the primary process has devolved to the point that it's now bad for the Democratic Party," Andrew said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. Bill Clinton appointed Andrew chairman of the DNC near the end of his presidency, and Andrew endorsed the former first lady last year on the day she declared her candidacy for the White House. Andrew said in his letter that he is switc...
More About: Politics , Today , Leader

Family In Austrian Incest Case United
2008-04-30 02:53:00
The family of an Austrian man who imprisoned his daughter for 24 years and fathered seven children with her have been united for the first time in what doctors described as an "astonishing" gathering. Josef Fritzl's daughter Elisabeth emerged from the windowless basement where he had locked her up with three of her children and was reunited on Sunday with three other children from whom she had been separated shortly after birth. A seventh baby died in the cellar after it was born. "They met each other on Sunday morning and it is astonishing how easily it worked that the children came together," Berthold Kepplinger, medical director of the Provincial Clinic of Lower Austria, told a news conference on Tuesday. "The children are quite well," Kepplinger said. Around 200 residents of Amstetten, the town where Fritzl constructed his "house of horrors," held a rainy candle-lit vigil in support of the family in the town square. "The outside world seems to think Amstetten is a terrible...
More About: Politics , Family , Crime , World News , United

Obama says rivals Clinton, McCain pandering on gas tax
2008-04-30 02:49:00
Democrat Barack Obama dismissed his rivals' calls for national gas tax holiday as a political ploy that won't help struggling consumers. Hillary Rodham Clinton said his stance shows he's out of touch with the economic realities faced by ordinary citizens. Clinton and certain Republican presidential nominee John McCain are calling for a holiday on collecting the federal gas tax "to get them through an election," Obama said at a campaign rally before more than 2,000 cheering backers a week before crucial primaries in Indiana and North Carolina. "The easiest thing in the world for a politician to do is tell you exactly what you want to hear." Clinton, who toured the Miller Veneers wood manufacturing company in Indianapolis, said "there are a lot of people in Indiana who would really benefit from a gas tax holiday. "That might not mean much to my opponent, but I think it means a lot to people who are struggling here, people who commute a long way to work, farmers and truckers," Cl...
More About: Politics , Health , Today

McCain pushes choice as health care fix
2008-04-30 02:45:00
Republican presidential candidate John McCain called on Tuesday for greater competition for health care coverage for Americans, saying more choices for insurance will drive down costs and improve the system. On a campaign swing to highlight his health care proposals, the Arizona senator said he wanted to put individuals in charge of their health care, foster competition in insurance markets and reduce the prevalence of employer-based plans. "Americans need new choices beyond those offered in employment-based coverage. Americans want a system built so that wherever you go and wherever you work, your health plan goes with you," McCain said at a Tampa cancer research hospital. At the heart of McCain's plan is a tax credit of $2,500 for individuals and $5,000 for families that could be used to leave an employer-based plan and purchase cheaper, more suitable insurance on the open market -- creating competition that would lower the price. "Insurance companies could no longer take you...
More About: Health , Health Care , Today , Care , Choice

Obama says he's outraged by former pastor's comments
2008-04-30 02:39:00
Barack Obama angrily denounced his former pastor for "divisive and destructive" remarks on race, seeking to divorce himself from the incendiary speaker and a fury that threatens to engulf his front-running Democratic presidential campaign. Obama is trying to tamp down the uproar over the Rev. Jeremiah Wright at a tough time in his campaign. The Illinois senator is coming off a loss in Pennsylvania to rival Hillary Rodham Clinton and trying to win over white working-class voters in Indiana and North Carolina in next Tuesday's primaries. "I am outraged by the comments that were made and saddened over the spectacle that we saw yesterday," Obama told reporters at a news conference Tuesday. His strong words come just six weeks after Obama delivered a sweeping speech on race in which he sharply condemned Wright's remarks but did not leave the church or repudiate the minister himself, who he said was like a family member. After weeks of staying out of the public eye while critics lamb...
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Buffett says recession may be worse than feared
2008-04-28 23:58:00
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Warren Buffett , the world's richest person, said on Monday the U.S. economy is in a recession that will be more severe than most people expect. Buffett made his comments on CNBC television after his Berkshire Hathaway Inc (BRKa.N: Quote, Profile, Research) (BRKb.N: Quote, Profile, Research) agreed to invest $6.5 billion in the takeover of chewing gum maker Wm Wrigley Jr Co (WWY.N: Quote, Profile, Research) by Mars Inc in a $23 billion transaction. "This is not a field of specialty for me, but my general feeling is that the recession will be longer and deeper than most people think," Buffett said. "This will not be short and shallow. "I think consumers are feeling gas and food prices," he added, "and not feeling they've got a lot of money for other things." He was not immediately available for further comment. Known for his frugality, the 77-year-old Buffett has lived in the same 10-room Omaha, Nebraska, house for a half-century, despite being worth an esti...
More About: Business , World News , Today , Recession

Obama says will back Petraeus for new military job
2008-04-27 22:24:00
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama , who has called for withdrawing U.S. combat troops from Iraq, said on Sunday he will vote to confirm the top commander there for a new job as head of the military's Central Command. President George W. Bush has nominated Gen. David Petraeus , who led the buildup of troops in Iraq, to be in charge of operations across the Middle East and Central Asia. If confirmed by the Senate, Petraeus will still be in that job when the next president replaces Bush at the White House in January 2009. Obama hopes that person is him. "Yes," Obama told "Fox News Sunday" when asked if, as a senator from Illinois, he would approve Petraeus. "I think Petraeus has done a good tactical job in Iraq." Obama has said he would start pulling out more troops as soon as he became president. "My hope is that Petraeus would reflect that wider view of our strategic interest," he said on "Fox News Sunday." "I will listen to General Petraeus giv...
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Karzai Escapes Assassination Bid
2008-04-27 20:02:00
KABUL (Reuters) - Afghan President Hamid Karzai escaped unhurt on Sunday from an assassination attempt by Taliban fighters who fired guns and rockets at an official celebration near the presidential palace in Kabul. Karzai, government ministers, former warlords, diplomats and the military top brass ducked for cover after gunfire sounded at the event to mark the 16th anniversary of the fall of the Afghan communist government to the mujahideen. Karzai later addressed the nation on state television. "Today, the enemies of Afghanistan, the enemies of Afghanistan's security and progress tried to disrupt the ceremony and cause disorder and terror," he said. "Afghanistan's military forces surrounded them quickly and arrested some of the suspects." Three people were killed -- a parliamentarian, the head of a minority group and a 10-year-old child -- and 10 were wounded, officials said. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack and said three of its fighters were killed. Brit...
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Rifts Mend, Unless Identity Politics Is a Different Stripe
2008-04-27 19:56:00
SENATOR Hillary Rodham Clinton?s victory last week in the Pennsylvania presidential primary bought Mrs. Clinton time, but it?s what might fill the time that troubles Democrats: an increasingly sharp dialogue between core Democratic constituencies ? blacks and a wide swath of women. Will either of those constituencies leave their grievances at home come November? Will large numbers stay home altogether if their history-making candidate loses the nomination? The reassurances, and the warnings, are flying. Howard Dean, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi have all promised a resolution shortly after the last of the primaries in June, and have urged superdelegates to fall in line behind one candidate or the other. But even as Mr. Dean and others lament the downward tone of the campaign, they say that with the convention in Denver in August, the healing will begin. They dismiss the intramural tensions wrought b...
More About: Politics , World News , Today , Identity , Identity Politics

Obama: "I've been taking some hits"
2008-04-27 19:51:00
(CNN) ? Sen. Barack Obama used a question during a campaign event Saturday to explain his unusual approach to politics. ?How do we get rid of that huge divisiveness in this country?,? a voter asked Obama in Anderson, Indiana. ?The president sets the tone,? the Illinois senator said before explaining the bipartisan approach he?d take if elected to the White House. ?But, I?m also going to try to show this during the course of the campaign,? he added. ?Sometimes you take some hits. Even during this campaign, I?ve been taking some hits.?
More About: Today , Hits , Taking

Democrats' last chance to change White House race
2008-04-27 19:35:00
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The next Democratic showdowns on May 6 give Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton one more chance to change the course of their grueling presidential fight before party insiders take over in June to try to settle it. A sweep of the two states by either candidate could dramatically shift a Democratic race that has been filled with potentially decisive moments that ultimately decided nothing. For Obama, the front-runner who has missed potential knockout punches before, a sweep would dash Clinton's hopes of catching him in delegates and negate her arguments she would be the best Democrat to face Republican John McCain in November. Clinton needs a sweep to build momentum and sow fresh doubts among superdelegates about Obama's ability to construct a winning voter coalition. An inconclusive split likely keeps her in the race but dilutes her arguments on electability and dims her chances of catching Obama in delegates or votes. Watching the results closely will be n...
More About: House , Democrats , White House , Change , Chance

Foul Play Act
2008-04-27 00:38:00
Every now and then ? once or twice a year ? Congress attempts to do the work that its constituents sent the Members to do. But most days are like Wednesday, when Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid could find nothing more pressing than to force an awkward vote on Republicans in an election year. The vehicle was the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which passed the House last summer but which President Bush has threatened to veto. Ms. Ledbetter worked at Goodyear Tire & Rubber for 20 years before retiring a decade ago. Only after she took her pension ? and her old boss had died ? did she sue her former employer for pay discrimination. Last May, the Supreme Court sensibly ruled that the statute of limitations on these cases means what it was intended to mean. To wit: A claim that is not filed in a timely fashion (within 180 days in most pay-discrimination suits) should be thrown out. Ms. Ledbetter took the novel view that decisions made decades ago by her now-deceased former boss affecte...
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