Former Rep. Tony Hall (D-Ohio) is backing Barack Obama in a radio ad that will air on Christian radio stations in the Buckeye State.
In the ad for the Matthew 25 political action committee, Hall talks about his support for Obama and links the group's cause of providing for the poor to the effect of the weakened economy, reports the Dayton Daily News.
The ad will begin running Monday in Dayton, which Hall represented in Congress. He served in the House from 1979 until 2002, when he became the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations' food and agriculture agencies.
President Bush this morning urged congressional leaders not to add "unrelated provisions" to the financial rescue bill that he and lawmakers worked to hammer out over the weekend.
"Obviously, there will be differences over some details, and we will have to work through them.
A new ad by John McCain's campaign tries to tie Barack Obama to Chicago politicians enmeshed in ethics controversies.
The ad features a clip of Obama saying that he hails from Chicago, followed by photos of Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D), Chicago Mayor Richard Daley (D) and convicted felon and fundraiser Antoin Rezko.
"Barack Obama, born of the corrupt Chicago political machine," a narrator intones.
McCain's campaign said the ad will run nationally, but it didn't say how much it would spend to air it and whether it would run on broadcast or cable channels.
Obama's campaign has called the spot "false" and highlighted a report that McCain's campaign manager, Rick Davis, was paid to lobby on behalf of embattled mortgage companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
"It's no coincidence that on the very day newspapers reported that John McCain's campaign manager was paid $2 million to lobby against tighter regulation of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the McCain campaign would launch this false, gratuitous attack," said Obama spokesman Bill Burton in a statement. "Barack Obama was elected to the Illinois Senate as an independent Democrat. He took on the Chicago Democratic organization in a primary to win a seat in the US Senate. And in both Illinois and Washington, he has challenged the Old Guard for landmark ethics reforms."
Read the ad's transcript and watch the ad below.
Script For "Chicago Machine" (TV :30)
ANNCR: Barack Obama.
Born of the corrupt Chicago political machine.
BARACK OBAMA: In terms of my toughness, look first of all, I come from Chicago.
ANNCR: His economic adviser, William Daley. Lobbyist. Mayor's brother.
His money man, Tony Rezko. Client. Patron. Convicted Felon.
His "political godfather." Emil Jones. Under ethical cloud.
His governor, Rod Blagojevich. A legacy of federal and state investigations.
With friends like that, Obama is not ready to lead.
JOHN MCCAIN: I'm John McCain and I approve this message.
Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) called Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) "disabled" in a recent interview with a New York CBS TV affiliate, WCBSTV.
"You've got to be kind to the disabled," Rangel said when asked about Palin's popularity.
Rangel went on to say that Palin is politically disabled because she lacks foreign policy experience.
"There's no question about it politically. It's a nightmare to think that a person's foreign policy is based on their ability to look at Russia from where they live," Rangel said when WCBSTV's reporter asked him to explain the "disabled" comment.
Rangel later issued a statement that "disabled" was not the word he meant to use, and that the comment was in no way a reference to Palin's son Trig, who has Down syndrome.
Former Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore (R) suspended his communications director without pay today, his Senate campaign announced, after she used a false name to try to join his opponent's e-mail press release list, presumably to keep tabs on her opposition.
Communications Director Ana Gamonal tried to join former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner's (D) press list from her home computer using a personal e-mail account, she said in a statement, apologizing for the decision.
"Without the knowledge or consent from the Jim Gilmore for Senate Campaign, I sent an email message from my home email account using a name other than my own requesting the Mark Warner for Senate campaign add me to their press list. I apologize for my lack of judgment, and I also apologize to both former Gov. Warner and Gov. Gilmore for my inappropriate email," Gamonal said.
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Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair appeared on Comedy Central's "The Daily Show" last night, telling host Jon Stewart that he likes President Bush personally.
"I like him," Blair said of Bush.
Bush has a job approval rating of 32 percent among U.S. citizens, but as far as personal feelings go, Blair said Bush's likability depends on whether one agrees with him on national security issues.
"It depends whether you agree with him or not on the security threat, which I happen to do, but if you don't then obviously you are less inclined to like him," Blair said.
Blair went on to explain his views on the invasion of Iraq, telling the audience he came to his support for it of his own accord and that that he did not take the decision lightly.
"I don't disrespect people who take a different point of view, but it's what I believed then and what I believe now," Blair said.
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) said that Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.) is a "socialist" during a broadside on the Democratic veep nominee over taxes.
Gingrich, on Fox News on Thursday, ridiculed Biden's suggestion that it would be patriotic for wealthier Americans to pay more taxes. In criticizing Biden, Gingrich referred to Biden's ties to former British Labour Party leader Neil Kinnock, whose speeches Biden had plagiarized during his first campaign for president in 1987.
"Well, first of all, every once in a while when you listen to Joe Biden, you know why he used to like Neil Kinnock's speeches, because in his heart, Joe Biden is a good English socialist," Gingrich said.
Gingrich, in the exchange with Fox News host Alan Colmes's, added: "I'm just saying that I think for Biden to decide that his desire to rip off people and take their money should not be disguised as their patriotism when, in fact, it's about his desire for bigger government."
Gingrich, who was touting his new book calling for more domestic offshore oil drilling while on Fox News, also criticized Barack Obama for receiving more donations from troubled companies Fannie Mae and Lehman Brothers than most senators.
"He clearly is tied into crony capitalism," Gingrich said.
Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.) said that the current financial crisis has the potential to be worse than the Great Depression, the Associated Press reports.
Hagel, in comments made Friday after a Senate Banking Committee meeting, said that the government needed to act to stem the mess on Wall Street or risk an international economic downturn. Without effective government action, the crisis could become worse than the Depression of the 1930s due to the interconnectedness of modern economies, Hagel said according to the Omaha World-Herald.
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