Obama, McCain tout plans for economy before bailout vote
(CNN) -- Sens. Barack Obama and John McCain on Wednesday are pushing their economic plans before heading to Washington to vote on the $700 billion financial rescue plan. Obama, the Democratic presidential nominee, has a rally scheduled in La Crosse, Wisconsin, where he will talk about the economic crisis. Wisconsin is a toss-up state with 10 electoral votes. Obama’s running mate, Sen. Joe Biden, is also expected to travel to Washington for the vote Wednesday evening. McCain, the Republican

Gwen Ifill's Obama Debate Problem
It's not often Michelle Malkin has anything worthwhile to add to discussion, but she makes a valid point about Thursday's vice-presidential debate: As moderator, PBS's Gwen Ifill comes in bearing a pretty substantial conflict of interest. Ifill is the author of an upcoming book, The Breakthrough: Politics and Race in the Age of Obama. Malkin skims the publisher's description and concludes the book is a pure puff job. I don't think that conclusion's warranted -- marketing copy is gushy by nature -- but the

Bailout plan forces McCain, Obama into balancing act
(CNN) -- With the bailout proposal dominating the campaign trail, Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama must balance sending out a message of a bipartisan solution while trying to gain a political advantage. The presidential candidates have revamped their financial messages this week, shifting away from attacks on each other and intensifying their calls for action from Congress. Obama and McCain want their fellow lawmakers to rally behind the proposed $700 billion financial industry bailout, but there is a

Obama, McCain stress urgency of bailout vote
(CNN) -- Sen. John McCain said Wednesday that if the financial rescue bill fails in Congress again, then "the present crisis will turn into a disaster," and Sen. Barack Obama told lawmakers it’s time to "step up to the plate." Both presidential candidates stressed bipartisanship as they called for Congress to act before heading to Washington to vote on the $700 billion financial rescue plan. "We are square in the greatest financial crisis of our lifetimes. And I am plea

Obama leading McCain: Pa. edge holds
In battleground Pennsylvania, Barack Obama is holding his ground, if the results of the newest Franklin and Marshall College poll today are any indication. Among those who say the country is headed in the wrong direction and see their personal situation worse off than last year,Obama holds a commanding lead. Among those who see the country on the right track and their own finances faring well, it's McCain. The Democrat holds an eight-point advantage over the Republican in the poll of regis

Palin down, Obama up: Debate season
Not only has Democrat Barack Obama gained a "significant'' national advantage over Republican John McCain (by a margin of 49-42 percentage points) in the latest survey of the Pew Research Center, but Republican running mate Sarah Palin also has lost the confidence of a lot of voters in the latest survey. Heading in to the first debate of the vice presidential candidates, Palin may be suffering from some of the national exposure she has gained in network news interviews - with the current run of CBS News

Obama Winning In Pennsylvania, Ohio … Florida?
Ho ho, here’s more of those “encouraging polls” you people love so much: Barack Obama is leading in a trio of states often seen as pretty important to these presidential elections. In the bitter land of Pennsylvania, Hopey leads 54-39. In Ohio, it’s 50-42. And in that one place we all love so much, Florida? The Quinnipiac swing-state poll puts Barry ahead 51-43. [Ben Smith/Quinnipiac]

Commentary: Time for Palin to put up or shut up
Editor’s note: Join Roland S. Martin for his weekly sound-off segment on CNN.com Live at 11:10 a.m. ET Wednesday. If you’re passionate about politics, he wants to hear from you. A nationally syndicated columnist, Martin has said he will vote for Barack Obama in November. He is the author of "Listening to the Spirit Within: 50 Perspectives on Faith" and "Speak, Brother! A Black Man’s View of America." Visit his Web site for more information. (CNN) -- Is Alaska Gov. Sar

Jay-Z Supports Obama With Upcoming Free Shows
Filed under: Hip-Hop News, Tours and Concerts, Campaign 2008 Jay-Z, an avid Barack Obama supporter, will play two free concerts this weekend to promote the Democratic presidential nominee's campaign and voter registration. The first show will take place at the Cobo Arena in Detroit on Saturday. Then, in true Hova fashion, the rap star will travel from Detroit to Miami for the second show, which will take place at the Bayfront Park Amphitheatre on Sunday. Voter registration for the upcoming election ends M

Obama: Accountability must accompany rescue plan
AP - Democrat Barack Obama promised Wednesday that if he is elected president "American taxpayers will never again have to put their money on the line to pay for the greed and irresponsibility of Wall Street." The Illinois senator said increased accountability for Wall Street and Washington must go along with the proposed $700 billion financial industry bailout bill he plans to support on Capitol Hill Wednesday. "When I am president, financial institutions will do their part and pay their share, and Ameri

Sarah Palin’s Ennoia On Joe Biden
“I’M looking forward to meeting Joe Biden. I’ve been looking forward to meeting him since the second grade” - VP CANDIDATE Sarah Palin. Jay considers the words: ennoia (en-NOY-a), the figure of faint praise. From the Greek, meaning “hidden intention.” Oh, that saucy Sarah Palin! With a smile like a dog’s before it bites you, she delivers her lines with an energy we haven’t seen politicians exhibit in some time. We’re happy to see Governor Palin’s comfort with one of the fine

Katie Couric Asks Sarah Palin Which Newspapers She Reads
Katie Couric was allowed to travel and interview Sarah Palin for several days. Barack Hussein Obama only allowed conservative talk show host Bill O’Reilly to interview him for 30 minutes, and Obama never gave a direct answer because he refuses to commit to any position he can’t changed his mind on later. It comes as no surprise that Katie finally found something the liberal democrats can call a weakness, and it is. Katie asked Sarah which reading material she has read to keep her informed about

VP moderator, Gwen Ifill, is biased and doesn’t care if you know it
The moderator of tomorrow’s much-hyped showdown between Senator Joe Biden (D) and Gov. Sarah Palin (R) is putting out a book that promises to “shed new light” on Sen. Barack Obama. The book’s release date is being timed to coincide with the election of this country’s new leader on Nov. 4. Gwen Ifill is confident that Mr. Obama has the election in the bag. But should the moderator of such an important debate show such blatant bias towards one party? Couldn’t she wait u

McCain calls revamped bailout bill an improvement
AP - Republican presidential candidate John McCain said Wednesday the resurrected financial bailout bill isn’t perfect but warned that the nation’s financial crisis will become a full-fledged disaster if the plan fails. In an economic speech Wednesday at the Truman Library and Museum, McCain said the original proposal that failed in the House was flawed because it did not contain taxpayer protections, limitations on executive compensation and sufficient protections for people’s bank accou

Elisabeth Is Booed, Told Off By Barbara
This, ladies and gentlemen, is why I watch The View morning after morning in hopes of witnessing something amazing. Elisabeth Hasselbeck, the moron who gives Republicans everywhere a bad name, had a minor meltdown during the show's first segment today. She was so beyond help that not even Barbara Walters came to her rescue. The topic, of course, was the idiocy of Sarah Palin, which turned into another session of Elisabeth spouting off nonsensical remarks to defend her beloved McCain/Palin ticket. After

Dom wants more than reality
NZ Idol presenter Dominic Bowden is back on Kiwi soil for some TV work but he hasn't given up his American dream.

The Spectacularly Ordinary Sarah Palin
She is so absolutely, remarkably, spectacularly ordinary. I think the magic of Sarah Palin speaks to a belief that so many of us share: the sense that we personally know five people in our immediate circle who would make a better president than the menagerie of candidates the major parties routinely offer. Sarah Palin has erupted from this collective American Dream — the idea that, given nothing but classic American values like hard work, integrity, and tough-minded optimism you can actually do what happe