Presidential Issues

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EU to lift sanctions on Cuba

USA Today

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union on Thursday agreed to lift its diplomatic sanctions against Cuba, but imposed tough conditions on the communist island to maintain sanction-free relations, officials said. The U.S., which has maintained a decades-long trade embargo against Cuba, criticized the move, saying there were no significant signs the communist island was easing a dictatorship. EU External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner said the bloc felt it had to encourage changes in Cuba after Raul Castro took over as the head of the country's government from his ailing brother Fidel. "There will be very clear language also on what the Cubans still have to do ... releasing prisoners, really working on human rights questions," she told reporters at an EU summit. "There will be a sort of review to see whether indeed something will have happened." The largely symbolic decision takes effect Monday. The diplomatic sanctions, which banned high-level visits to EU nations by Cuban officials, have not been in force since 2005. They were imposed in 2003 following the arrests of dozens of dissidents but suspended two years later.

Obama Leads McCain in Florida, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Poll Shows

Bloomberg.com

June 18 (Bloomberg) -- Democrat Barack Obama is leading Republican John McCain in Florida, Pennsylvania and Ohio, the first time he's had an advantage in all three electoral battleground states, a Quinnipiac University poll found. Obama got a boost in support after securing the Democratic nomination in the final round of primaries June 3 and following the departure of Senator Hillary Clinton from the race, said Peter A. Brown, assistant director for the Hamden, Connecticut, university's polling institute. ``Obama is certainly not out of the woods, but these results are a good indication that he enters the summer slightly ahead in the race to be the next president,'' Brown said in a statement.

Republican Huckabee says don't denigrate Obama

Breitbart.com

Former US presidential contender Mike Huckabee urged his fellow Republicans on Wednesday not to denigrate Democrat Barack Obama, saying they should celebrate the historic moment of a black candidate. "Republicans will make a fundamental if not fatal mistake if they seek to win the election by demonising Barack Obama," Huckabee told a news conference on a visit to Tokyo. The former Arkansas governor said that, having grown up in the segregated South, he never thought he would see an African-American win the nomination of a major party for the US presidency. "I do not want to have anyone misrepresent or miss the opportunity to celebrate what I think is a landmark achievement, not just for Barack Obama, but for the United States of America," he said. The country was able "to get to a point where we did not see his colour but we truly saw his charisma, his message and what he brought to the campaign trail," Huckabee said.

Dems raise stakes on immigration

Politico.Com

Going into November’s elections, House and Senate Democrats are outbidding the White House on spending for immigration enforcement, with a special emphasis on deporting people convicted of major drug offenses and violent crimes. Immigration remains a highly divisive political issue — especially in the House Democratic Caucus. But targeting convicted criminals is seen as safe ground for the party and a pressure point to highlight shortcomings in the current enforcement system.

McCain touts energy conservation and oil exploration

Yahoo News

DALLAS (Reuters) - Republican presidential candidate John McCain will call on Tuesday for energy conservation and the lifting of a ban on oil and natural gas exploration as two ways to help address the nation's "dangerous" dependence on foreign oil. McCain, an Arizona senator who has wrapped up his party's presidential nomination, has made energy independence and fighting climate change key components of his bid for the White House. Rising oil and gasoline prices have put energy concerns at the center of the contest between McCain and presumptive Democratic nominee Barack Obama to succeed President George W. Bush after the November election.

Bullet 333Karin Agness, Founder and President, Network of enlightened Women (NeW)
Bullet 333Barry Asmus, Senior Economist, National Center for Policy Analysis
Bullet 333David Bossie, President, Citizens United
Bullet 333Dan Celia, Host, "Financial Issues Live" Radio Program
Bullet 333Phil Clements, Managing Director, Center for Christian Business Ethics Today, LLC.
Bullet 333Chuck Colson, Prison Fellowship
Bullet 333Ward Connerly, Author/Founder and Chairman, American Civil Rights Institute
Bullet 333Tom DeLay, Former House Majority Leader, United States House of Representatives
Bullet 333William Devlin, National President, Redeem The Vote
Bullet 333James Edwards, Cofounder, Olive, Edwards, & Cooper, LLC
Bullet 333Joseph Farah, CEO, Founder, WorldNetDaily
Bullet 333James Gelfand, Senior Manager of Health Policy, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Bullet 333Lou Giuliano, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer (r, ITT Corporation
Bullet 333Rick Green, President, Torch of Freedom Foundation
Bullet 333Colin Hanna, Colin Hanna, President, Let Freedom Ring
Bullet 333Lowman Henry, Chairman & CEO, Lincoln Institute of Public Opinion Research, Inc.
Bullet 333Dr. Janice Hollis, Bishop, Progressive Believers Ministries
Bullet 333Larry Hunter, President, The Social Security Institute
Bullet 333Bishop Harry R. Jackson, Senior Pastor, Hope Christian Church
Bullet 333Phillip Kim, Assistant Professor of Management and Human Resour, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Business
Bullet 333Gary Marx, Executive Director, Judicial Confirmation Network
Bullet 333Joe Murray, Columnist, The Bulletin
Bullet 333Grover Norquist, President, Americans for Tax Reform (ATR)
Bullet 333Chuck Stetson, Co-founder and Managing Director, PEI Funds
Bullet 333Tony Strickland, Taxpayer Advocate
Bullet 333John Weiser, Board Member, Westminster Theological Seminary , In Medias Res

With Tim Russert’s Death, NBC News Must Replace a Man of Many Roles

Yahoo News

The sudden death of Tim Russert has left the management of NBC News, for the moment at least, at a loss to contemplate how to replace him. Mr. Russert was not only the moderator of “Meet the Press,” television’s most successful political talk show, he was also the chief of NBC’s Washington bureau, responsible for the hiring of staff members and directing its operations. More significantly, he was NBC’s public face on politics, appearing regularly on the network’s full range of programs, including the NBC’s “Nightly News,” and on its cable news channel MSNBC.

Powell tells B.C. crowd he might vote for Obama

The National

VANCOUVER -- Colin Powell, the former Republican secretary of state, says he is not ruling out a vote for Barack Obama, the presumed Democratic nominee for president. While Mr. Powell served in the administrations of two Republican presidents, he suggested yesterday his support for presumed Republican nominee John McCain is not a forgone conclusion. He noted that although both he and Mr. Obama are black, he would not cast a vote for the Illinois senator on the basis of race. "I will vote for the individual I think that brings the best set of tools to the problems of 21st-century America and the 21st-century world regardless of party, regardless of anything else other than the most qualified candidate," Mr. Powell said at a news conference before delivering a speech to about 800 people attending a leadership forum at the Vancouver Convention Centre. "Both of them certainly have the qualifications to be the president of the United States, but both of them cannot be," he said.

New Gang of 14 won’t back McCain

The Hill

At least 14 Republican members of Congress have refused to endorse or publicly support Sen. John McCain for president, and more than a dozen others declined to answer whether they back the Arizona senator. Many of the recalcitrant GOP members declined to detail their reasons for withholding support, but Rep. John Peterson (R-Pa.) expressed major concerns about McCain’s energy policies and Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.) cited the Iraq war.

McCain wants low corporate taxes, regulated CEO pay

Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican White House candidate John McCain will promise on Tuesday to lower corporate tax rates if he wins the U.S. presidency and ease the tax burden on middle-class workers to help revive the faltering economy. The Arizona senator, who has wrapped up his party's presidential nomination, also would propose a simpler, alternative tax system and insist that chief executives' pay and severance packages have shareholder approval. "No matter which of us wins in November, there will be change in Washington. The question is what kind of change?" McCain will tell a conference for small businesses, referring to his Democratic opponent, Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois.

Bullet 333Karin Agness, Founder and President, Network of enlightened Women (NeW)
Bullet 333Barry Asmus, Senior Economist, National Center for Policy Analysis
Bullet 333David Bossie, President, Citizens United
Bullet 333Dan Celia, Host, "Financial Issues Live" Radio Program
Bullet 333Phil Clements, Managing Director, Center for Christian Business Ethics Today, LLC.
Bullet 333Chuck Colson, Prison Fellowship
Bullet 333Ward Connerly, Author/Founder and Chairman, American Civil Rights Institute
Bullet 333Tom DeLay, Former House Majority Leader, United States House of Representatives
Bullet 333William Devlin, National President, Redeem The Vote
Bullet 333James Edwards, Cofounder, Olive, Edwards, & Cooper, LLC
Bullet 333Joseph Farah, CEO, Founder, WorldNetDaily
Bullet 333James Gelfand, Senior Manager of Health Policy, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Bullet 333Lou Giuliano, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer (r, ITT Corporation
Bullet 333Rick Green, President, Torch of Freedom Foundation
Bullet 333Colin Hanna, Colin Hanna, President, Let Freedom Ring
Bullet 333Lowman Henry, Chairman & CEO, Lincoln Institute of Public Opinion Research, Inc.
Bullet 333Dr. Janice Hollis, Bishop, Progressive Believers Ministries
Bullet 333Larry Hunter, President, The Social Security Institute
Bullet 333Bishop Harry R. Jackson, Senior Pastor, Hope Christian Church
Bullet 333Phillip Kim, Assistant Professor of Management and Human Resour, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Business
Bullet 333Gary Marx, Executive Director, Judicial Confirmation Network
Bullet 333Joe Murray, Columnist, The Bulletin
Bullet 333Grover Norquist, President, Americans for Tax Reform (ATR)
Bullet 333Chuck Stetson, Co-founder and Managing Director, PEI Funds
Bullet 333Tony Strickland, Taxpayer Advocate
Bullet 333John Weiser, Board Member, Westminster Theological Seminary , In Medias Res

Barack Obama sets up internet 'war room' to fight slurs

Times Online

A crack team of cybernauts will form a rapid response internet “war room” to track and respond aggressively to online rumours that Barack Obama is unpatriotic and a Muslim. As he gears up for his general election fight against John McCain, Mr Obama and his chief advisers are aware of the danger of such rumours, amid polling data showing that a significant number of Americans believe he is a Muslim or are suspicious about his background. Such doubts were a factor in his poor showing with white, blue-collar voters during his primary battle with Hillary Clinton.

Laura Bush Praises Clinton, Offers Advice to Michelle Obama

ABC News

ABC News' Jonathan Karl Reports: In an ABC News exclusive, First Lady Laura Bush praised former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, saying that knowing the challenges of a presidential campaign first-hand, she "admired Hillary's grit and strength". Speaking from Slovenia, Mrs. Bush said "I know what its like to run those campaigns, to be the candidate and how very difficult it is both emotionally and physically. It's a huge endurance, process of endurance, and so I'll have to say I have a lot of admiration for her endurance and strength."

DeLay: 'Unless Obama Proves Me Wrong, He Is a Marxist'

The Hill

Former House Republican Leader Tom DeLay (Texas) called Barack Obama a "Marxist" on the Mike Gallagher radio show Thursday. Explaining that Obama clinching the Democratic nomination is a good thing for John McCain, DeLay said Obama's "weakness" is that "nobody knows him." "And if McCain does not define him as what he is — hey, I have said publicly, and I will again, that unless he proves me wrong, he is a Marxist," DeLay said. The radio host agreed with DeLay, who is facing money laundering charges, saying Obama is "desperately trying to cover up what seems to be the kind of old school Marxist radical liberal failed ideology." "Absolutely," DeLay said. "No doubt about it."

Rezko found guilty in corruption case

USA Today

CHICAGO (AP) — A prominent fundraiser for Sen. Barack Obama and Gov. Rod Blagojevich was convicted Wednesday of fraud and money laundering after a high-profile federal trial provided an unusually detailed glimpse of the pay-to-play politics that has made Illinois infamous. Antoin "Tony" Rezko showed no emotion as the jury found him guilty of 16 of 24 counts, including scheming to get kickbacks from money management firms seeking state business and a contractor who wanted to build a hospital in northern Illinois. He was acquitted of charges that included attempted extortion.

The force is with Obama, 'Star Wars' creator says

Breitbart.com

George Lucas has created legendary film heroes like Luke Skywalker and Indiana Jones, but the US director says that in real life, his hero is Barack Obama. Lucas was in Japan on Wednesday to promote his latest film, "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," as Obama clinched the Democratic Party's nomination for president. "We have a hero in the making back in the United States today because we have a new candidate for president of the United States, Barack Obama," Lucas said when asked who his childhood heroes were. Obama, "for all of us that have dreams and hope, is a hero," Lucas said. Lucas is the creator of the blockbuster "Star Wars" series, as well as the adventures of the swashbuckling archaeologist Indiana Jones, played by Harrison Ford.

Bullet 333Karin Agness, Founder and President, Network of enlightened Women (NeW)
Bullet 333Barry Asmus, Senior Economist, National Center for Policy Analysis
Bullet 333Phil Clements, Managing Director, Center for Christian Business Ethics Today, LLC.
Bullet 333Chuck Colson, Prison Fellowship
Bullet 333Jeffrey Conway, Former CFO, Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse
Bullet 333Tom DeLay, Former House Majority Leader, United States House of Representatives
Bullet 333William Devlin, National President, Redeem The Vote
Bullet 333Chuck Donovan, Senior Research Fellow-DeVos Center for Religion a, The Heritage Foundation
Bullet 333William Edgar, Professor of Apologetics, Coordinator of the Apolo, Westminster Theological Seminary
Bullet 333Ron Ferner, Dean of the School of Business and Leadership, Philadelphia Biblical University
Bullet 333Lou Giuliano, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer (r, ITT Corporation
Bullet 333Mike Gottfried, Founder, Team Focus
Bullet 333Rick Green, President, Torch of Freedom Foundation
Bullet 333Wayne Grudem, Research Professor of Theology and Biblical Studie, Phoenix Seminary
Bullet 333Colin Hanna, Colin Hanna, President, Let Freedom Ring
Bullet 333Dr. Janice Hollis, Bishop, Progressive Believers Ministries
Bullet 333Bishop Harry R. Jackson, Senior Pastor, Hope Christian Church
Bullet 333Julius Kim, Westminster Seminary California
Bullet 333Phillip Kim, Assistant Professor of Management and Human Resour, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Business
Bullet 333Peter Lillback, President, Westminster Theological Seminary
Bullet 333Jennifer Marshall, Director of Domestic Policy Studies, The Heritage Foundation
Bullet 333Gary Marx, Executive Director, Judicial Confirmation Network
Bullet 333Alex McFarland, President, Southern Evangelical Seminary
Bullet 333Fran McGowen, Founder and President , CarSense
Bullet 333David "Mac" Mcquiston, President/CEO, CEO Forum, Inc.
Bullet 333Ryan Messmore, William E. Simon fellow in Religion and a Free Soc, The Heritage Foundation
Bullet 333Joe Murray, Columnist, The Bulletin
Bullet 333Grover Norquist, President, Americans for Tax Reform (ATR)
Bullet 333K. Scott Oliphint, Professor of Apologetics and Systematic Theology, Westminster Theological Seminary
Bullet 333Andrew Peterson, Reformed Theological Seminary, Virtual Campus
Bullet 333Vern Poythress, Westminster Theological Seminary
Bullet 333Gale Radebaugh, Vice President, Pharmaceutical Sciences (Ret.), Pfizer Research
Bullet 333Phil Ryken, President-Elect , Wheaton College
Bullet 333Chuck Stetson, Co-founder and Managing Director, PEI Funds
Bullet 333John Weiser, Board Member, Westminster Theological Seminary , In Medias Res
Bullet 333David Wheaton, Author, Speaker, Radio Talk Show Host, TheChristianWorldview.com

McCain criticizes Obama again about Iran

My Way News

WASHINGTON (AP) - Republican John McCain raised the specter of a nuclear Iran in a speech to a pro-Israel group, once again chastising Democrat Barack Obama for his willingness to meet with leaders of Iran and other U.S. foes. McCain has criticized Obama for saying in a debate last year that he would meet leaders of Iran and other U.S. foes without preconditions. The Arizona senator argues Obama is naive and inexperienced to think that such a meeting would yield progress. "It's hard to see what such a summit with President (Mahmoud) Ahmadinejad would actually gain, except an earful of anti-Semitic rants, and a worldwide audience for a man who denies one Holocaust and talks before frenzied crowds about starting another," McCain told the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.

Obama quits Chicago church after long controversy

Breitbart.com

ABERDEEN, S.D. (AP) - Barack Obama said Saturday he has resigned his 20-year membership in the Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago "with some sadness" in the aftermath of inflammatory remarks by his longtime pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, and more recent fiery remarks at the church by a visiting priest. "This is not a decision I come to lightly ... and it is one I make with some sadness," Obama said at a news conference after campaign officials released a letter of resignation he sent to the church on Friday. "I'm not denouncing the church and I'm not interested in people who want me to denounce the church," he said, adding that the new pastor at Trinity and "the church have been suffering from the attention my campaign has focused on them." Obama said he and his wife have been discussing the issue since Wright's appearance at the National Press Club in Washington last month, which reignited the furor over remarks Wright had made in various sermons at the church. "I suspect we'll find another church home for our family," Obama said. "It's clear that now that I'm a candidate for president, every time something is said in the church by anyone associated with Trinity, including guest pastors, the remarks will imputed to me even if they totally conflict with my long-held views, statements and principles," he said.

McClellan not sure about McCain, intrigued by Obama

Politico.com

Scott McClellan, making the media rounds to promote his book and push back against the ferocious counter-attack by Bush loyalists, declined to come out tonight for John McCain and said he liked what he had heard from Barack Obama. "I haven't made a decision," McClellan told Katie Couric on CBS's "Evening News," when asked if he was backing the Arizona senator. McClellan paid homage to McCain, saying that the Republican nominee had "governed from the center, and that's where I am." But without prompting, he said he was "intrigued by Sen. Obama's message." "It's a message that is very similar to the one that Gov. Bush ran on in 2000," McClellan said.

MORE HOLY MESS FOR OBAMA

New York Post

May 30, 2008 -- A Chicago pastor and spiritual adviser of Barack Obama mocked Hillary Rodham Clinton from the pulpit of the Illinois senator's church - saying her famous tearing-up moment was fueled by self-pitying feelings of "I'm white! I'm entitled! There's a black man stealing my show." The Rev. Michael Pfleger, a longtime Obama ally and political supporter, made the shocking remarks from the pulpit of Trinity United Church of Christ Sunday. That's the former base of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Obama's ex-pastor, whose statements blasting the United States and calling AIDS a government plot have caused headaches for the candidate.

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