Today on the presidential campaign trail

Monday, September 08, 2008

By The Associated Press

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IN THE HEADLINES

Palin: Obama shouldn't 'go there' when talking about earmarks ... Obama talks about the economy in Michigan ... No dustup with Palin in sight as Clinton asserts the election is about issues ... Bush, Cheney say Palin would be a good veep, praise her speech as "superb" ... Biden says Obama administration would make middle class top priority ... Obama drops daughters off for first day of school

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McCain, Palin criticize Obama on earmarks

LEE'S SUMMIT, Mo. (AP) _ John McCain and Sarah Palin criticized Democrat Barack Obama over the amount of money he has requested for his home state of Illinois, even though Alaska under Palin's leadership has asked Washington for 10 times more money per citizen for pet projects.

At a rally in Missouri, the Republican presidential nominee and his running mate accused Obama of requesting nearly $1 billion in earmarks for his state during his time as a senator. The new line of attack came after Obama made his first direct criticism of Palin over the weekend, using the topic of earmarks, which are special projects that lawmakers try to get for their districts and constituents.

"Just the other day our opponent brought up earmarks _ and frankly I was surprised that he would even raise the subject at all," Palin said. "I thought he wouldn't want to go there."

Obama hasn't asked for any earmarks this year. Last year, he asked for $311 million worth, about $25 for every Illinois resident. Alaska asked this year for earmarks totaling $198 million, about $295 for every Alaska citizen.

Palin has cut back on pork project requests, but under her administration, Alaska is still and by far the largest per-capita consumer of federal pet-project spending.

McCain and Palin were presented as a maverick team in a campaign ad released Monday that played up their reputation for taking on entrenched interests. The ad credits Palin with stopping the bridge without mentioning she once appeared to support it.

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Obama visits Michigan to talk about the economy

FLINT, Mich. (AP) _ Democrat Barack Obama said Monday his Republican opponent will continue President Bush's economic policies of the last eight years that have made it harder for middle-class families to get by.

"You don't have to tell the people of Flint or the people of Michigan that our economy is not in good shape," the Illinois senator said at Mott Community College in Flint. "You do need to tell John McCain _ because just a few weeks ago he said the economy was fundamentally sound."

Monday afternoon's visit was his third to the battleground state in nine days. Later Monday, he will stop in the Detroit suburb of Farmington Hills for a "town hall-style" event.

Michigan's 8.5 percent unemployment rate is the highest in the country. Domestic automakers are struggling to stay afloat.

The troubled U.S. economy has become a big factor in the presidential campaign, mostly eclipsing the Iraq war as voters worry about losing their jobs, homes and health insurance coverage.

A Hillary vs. Sarah smackdown? Don't bet on it

KISSIMMEE, Fla. (AP) _ Anyone wanting a Hillary vs. Sarah smackdown might be in for a letdown.

First, Sarah Palin launched her Republican vice presidential campaign with praise for the strides made by Hillary Rodham Clinton in her quest for the Democratic presidential nomination. On Monday, Clinton spoke in kind.

"It is a great accomplishment," Clinton said of Palin's selection as the GOP's first female running mate. Clinton told a rally of 500 that the election will be decided on issues, not the historical significance of the candidates, and Democrat Barack Obama and his running mate Joe Biden bring more to the table than the Republican ticket.

"Women as well as men make their decisions after they weigh the evidence," Clinton said. "As Americans go into that voting booth, what they have to ask themselves is not so much who am I for, as who is for me? And I don't think it's an even close question that we have the ticket that is going to do the best job in restoring the American promise."

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Bush, Cheney give Palin thumbs-up

ROME (AP) _ There's nothing stopping Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin from serving well in the White House, according to the men who now hold the nation's highest offices.

"She's had executive experience, and that's what it takes to be a capable person in here in Washington, D.C. in the executive branch," President Bush said in an interview to air Tuesday on Fox News Channel's "Fox and Friends."

"John McCain made an inspired pick," Bush added. The former two-term Texas governor came to Washington without experience in national office _ the path Palin is trying to follow.

Meanwhile, Vice President Dick Cheney told reporters in Rome on Monday that he "loved" Palin's speech to the Republican National Convention, which he watched "with great interest." Cheney laughed when he recounted her line about the difference between hockey moms and pit bulls being a coat of lipstick.

"I thought her appearance at the convention was superb," Cheney said.

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Biden courts workers, Catholics, Packers fans

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) _ Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin will eventually have to defend "some fairly extreme views" on climate change when she starts granting interviews as Republican presidential hopeful John McCain's running mate, her Democratic rival Joe Biden said Monday.

"Her views on everything from global warming to a host of other things, if they are as presented, they are pretty far out there," Biden said during a town hall-style meeting. "She's going to have to defend those positions."

Palin has expressed doubt over whether human activity has contributed to global warming and has clashed with environmentalists over classifying the polar bear as a threatened species and her defense of Alaska's right to shoot down wolves from the air to boost caribou and moose herds for hunters.

Biden, the Democratic presidential nominee, also pledged help for laid-off paper workers, courted Catholic voters and claimed to be a longtime Green Bay Packers fan.

Obama and McCain are competing for Wisconsin's 10 electoral votes, and polls show a tight race.

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Obama takes daughters to first day of school

CHICAGO (AP) _ Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama held his daughters' hands when he escorted them to their first day of school on Monday.

The girls arrived at the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools in a five-SUV motorcade after a short drive from their South Side home.

It was the first day of classes for 10-year-old Malia, a fifth-grader, and 7-year-old Sasha, in second grade. They'd spent some of their summer on the campaign trail with their dad.

"The fifth grader didn't really want me to go up to the classroom, but I went," Obama said with a smile at an event a few hours later in Flint, Mich. "She's still daddy's girl."

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DAILY TRACK

Republican John McCain has a 5-percentage-point lead over Democrat Barack Obama _ he has 49 percent to Obama's 44 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 has scheduled stops in the Michigan cities of Flint and Farmington Hills.

Joe Biden campaigned in Green Bay, Wis., before heading to Des Moines, Iowa.

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THE REPUBLICANS

John McCain and Sarah Palin campaigned in Lee's Summit, Mo.

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QUOTE OF THE DAY:

"He wins the primary, gets a sidekick who's a woman and, all of the sudden, he's about change." _ Bettina Evans, 49, of Raytown, Mo., speaking about Republican John McCain.

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STAT OF THE DAY:

Four Arizona politicians, including John McCain in 2000, have run for president. All lost.

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Compiled by Ann Sanner.