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Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. visits the Bayloff Stamped Products facility for a town hall style meeting in Belleville, Mich., Thursday, July 10, 2008. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio) |
Today on the presidential campaign trail
IN THE HEADLINES
McCain distances himself from economic adviser who called Americans 'whiners' ... McCain raises $22 million in June; campaign and GOP have $95 million on hand ... Obama, McCain pursue different paths to female voters ... McCain says government can't allow mortgage giants
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McCain disagrees with adviser's 'whiners' remark
BELLEVILLE, Mich. (AP) -- Republican John McCain distanced himself from an economic adviser who dubbed the United States "a nation of whiners" in a "mental recession" as Democrat Barack Obama turned the remarks against his rival.
"I strongly disagree" with Phil Gramm's remarks, McCain told reporters in Belleville, Mich. "Phil Gramm does not speak for me. I speak for me."
The Arizona senator said a person who just lost a job "isn't suffering from a mental recession."
"America is in great difficulty. And we are experiencing enormous economic challenges as well as others," McCain said, seeking to stem the fallout of Gramm's comments.
Gramm, a former Texas senator who is a vice chairman of the Swiss bank UBS, made the remarks in an interview with The Washington Times. Gramm has a doctorate in economics.
In Virginia, Obama seized on the comments as he tried to paint McCain as out of touch: "America already has one Dr. Phil. We don't need another one when it comes to the economy."
He drew cheers and laughter with that comment, a reference to television psychologist "Dr. Phil" McGraw.
The economy is the top issue for voters, and each candidate is seeking to portray the other as out of touch with the country's struggles and himself as the leader able to pull the nation out of tenuous times.
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McCain has best fundraising in June
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Republican presidential candidate John McCain raised more than $22 million in June, his best fundraising performance of the year. He ended the month with nearly $27 million cash on hand.
McCain campaign manager Rick Davis said Thursday that McCain and the national Republican Party together entered July with about $95 million in the bank. The Republican National Committee, which has been raising money jointly with McCain, collected nearly $26 million in June and had nearly $69 million on hand, officials said.
The campaign's fundraising has given McCain the ability to spend more on television advertising than Democratic rival Barack Obama in key battleground states. Davis said about half of its income had been spent on television advertising.
Obama has not revealed his June fundraising.
McCain has agreed to take public financing in the fall, limiting him to about $84 million in total spending. That means he will have to rely on the Republican Party to spend more to help his bid.
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For Obama, McCain, varied paths on women's issues
NEW YORK (AP) -- It's women's week on the presidential campaign trail, judging from the attention Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain are lavishing on these voters and the issues that are important to them.
Obama, campaigning here Thursday with former rival Hillary Rodham Clinton, criticized McCain's opposition to an equal-pay Senate bill, his support for conservative-leaning Supreme Court justices and his abortion-rights objections.
"I will never back down in defending a woman's right to choose," Obama said at a "Women for Obama" breakfast fundraiser.
McCain planned a similar day Friday when he will meet with female business owners in Minnesota and hold a women-oriented town-hall meeting in Wisconsin. Asked about women in an interview this week, McCain said he wants to "make sure that any barriers to their advancement are eliminated."
Obama makes similar remarks, but the two differ sharply on their approach to several key issues. Obama would require employers to expand family and medical leave, for example, while McCain said Thursday it should "be subject to negotiations between management and labor."
Women have leaned Democratic in recent elections, while men have tilted Republican. The width of the "gender gap" can determine which party wins the White House.
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McCain: Mortgage giants can't be allowed to fail
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Republican John McCain said Thursday the government cannot let mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac go under.
The two government-sponsored companies have been operating under a cloud of uncertainty in recent weeks, and their shares have plunged to levels not seen since the early 1990s.
McCain said while campaigning in Michigan that Fannie and Freddie "have been responsible for millions of Americans to be able to own their own homes, and they will not fail, we will not allow them to fail."
Concerns surfaced this week that an accounting rule change would force the two companies to raise as much as $75 billion in new capital. While those concerns subsided amid reassurances from the companies' chief government regulator, fears remain that housing troubles will continue to worsen. Analysts say that could possibly force the mortgage giants to raise capital by issuing additional stock, which would dilute their value for current shareholders.
Jason Furman, economic adviser to Democrat Barack Obama, said the challenges facing the mortgage giants are part of the broader weakness in the economy.
"Obama believes we must maintain the flow of capital for mortgages and protect homeowners from foreclosure," Furman said.
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AFL-CIO mobilizing veterans to oppose McCain
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The AFL-CIO is mobilizing union members who are military veterans to work against Republican John McCain and other office seekers it opposes, officials said Thursday.
John Sweeney, president of the labor federation, announced the creation of a Union Veterans Council on Thursday. The union, which endorsed Democrat Barack Obama for president last month, plans to form state councils of union veterans in key election battlegrounds, including Wisconsin, Minnesota, Colorado, Ohio and West Virginia. Later, it plans to organize in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Virginia.
The new council will include close to a dozen state affiliates and will also coordinate other veterans groups "to raise the profile of veterans issues and lead the way in securing an economy that works for all," he said.
"With the formation of the Union Veterans Council, veterans will be front and center in the effort to put our country back on track," Sweeney said.
Key issues will include money for the Veterans Affairs Department, health and education benefits for veterans, and job growth, he said.
The union also launched an ad that will air Thursday featuring a Vietnam combat veteran criticizing McCain's stance on the war in Iraq and on veterans issues. The ad will air for three weeks on national cable and in Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Wisconsin, union officials said.
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DAILY TRACK
Democrat Barack Obama has a slight edge nationally over Republican John McCain -- 46 percent to 43 percent -- among registered voters in the presidential race, according to the latest Gallup Poll Daily tracking update.
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THE DEMOCRATS
Barack Obama attended a breakfast fundraiser for women with Hillary Rodham Clinton in New York. He then discussed the economy with voters in Fairfax, Va.
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THE REPUBLICANS
John McCain met with workers and undecided voters in Belleville, Mich.
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QUOTE OF THE DAY:
"Let's be clear. This economic downturn is not in your head." -- Democrat Barack Obama.
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STAT OF THE DAY:
A recent AP-
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Compiled by Ann Sanner.
© Copyright 2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
