World Movies: 'Frost/Nixon'

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The stars of political drama 'Frost/Nixon' talk about the film's retelling of the post-Watergate interviews between David Frost and former president Richard Nixon. (Oct. 22)

Bernanke breathes life into another stimulus bill

By ANDREW TAYLOR, Associated Press Writer Andrew Taylor, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON – With a timely endorsement from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, there's new life to the idea of Congress returning to Washington next month to pass a second round of measures aimed at injecting life into the economy.

The White House said Monday that President Bush was at least willing to consider a second stimulus measure to follow a $168 billion stimulus measure passed in February and a $700 billion Wall Street rescue plan passed 2 1/2 weeks ago.

Democrats say any stimulus bill would include items previously rejected by Bush such as road and bridge construction money and help for state budgets. Another round of tax rebates is possible as well to make the measure big enough to jolt the economy.

Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., predicted Congress would return after Election Day to work on a measure equal to or exceeding February's $168 billion stimulus package, which included $600 tax rebates for most individuals and tax breaks for businesses.

Despite the new momentum, action in November is by no means certain. There's a narrow window between the elections and Thanksgiving, and the results of the elections are likely to affect both sides' willingness to bargain.

Democrats hope Bernanke's endorsement will help bring Bush around, and they predicted that congressional Republicans would warm to the idea as well.

"With the economy likely to be weak for several quarters, and with some risk of a protracted slowdown, consideration of a fiscal package by the Congress at this juncture seems appropriate," Bernanke told the House Budget Committee on Monday. It marked the first time Bernanke had endorsed the need for another round of economic stimulus.

Democrats believe Bernanke's support for the first round of stimulus steps was key to getting the White House behind the idea. But Bush has been strictly opposed to Democratic proposals such as infrastructure projects.

"We're continuing to have conversations with members of Congress, and we're open to ideas that they would put forward ... that would stimulate the economy and help us pull out of this downturn faster," White House press secretary Dana Perino said Monday, shortly after Bernanke endorsed the need for a fresh and "significant" round of government action.

"What we've seen put forward so far by the leaders in Congress, the Democrats, were elements of a package that we did not think would actually stimulate the economy," Perino added.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California and fellow congressional Democrats are pushing a package that could cost as much as $150 billion or more.

As part of that package, Pelosi wants to resurrect a $61 billion House-passed measure that included about $37 billion in public works spending, $6 billion to extend jobless benefits, $15 billion to help states pay their Medicaid bills and $3 billion in food stamp assistance for the poor.

Democrats also are considering a second round of tax rebates to follow the $600-$1,200 checks most individuals and couples got earlier this year. That money, going directly to consumers in hopes they would spend it, could push the price tag much higher.


Copyright © 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

Sarah Palin Strikes Back On SNL

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Tina Fey Takes Off As GOP VP Nominee Takes Saturday Night Live Stage. Courtesy NBC.

NaS Wants Virginia to Vote

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In Virginia, we have to make it happen. Go to http://VA.BarackObama.com for all the voting info you need.

Obama Girl As Sarah Palin on Fox News

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In case you missed it, here's Amber Lee Ettinger AKA Obama Girl playing Sarah Palin on Geraldo Live Saturday night.

Powell Bashes McCain

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"CBS News RAW:" After appearing on "Meet The Press," Colin Powell said Barack Obama "brings a fresh set of eyes," while McCain will simply "execute the Republican...

Poll: Voters souring on McCain, Obama stays steady

By ALAN FRAM and TREVOR TOMPSON, Associated Press Writers

WASHINGTON (AP) — When it comes to the public's image of John McCain, it's as if somebody dialed the electricity down in the past month. For Barack Obama, the juice is still flowing.

People's regard for the Republican presidential nominee has deteriorated across-the-board since September, an Associated Press-Yahoo! News poll showed Friday, with McCain losing ground in how favorably he's seen and in a long list of personal qualities voters seek in White House contenders.

Perceptions of Obama have improved or remained steady. Beyond views of the two rivals' character traits, McCain faces another problem — Obama is more trusted on the economy, the contest's commanding issue, including a 15-percentage-point edge for better grasping how the raging financial crisis is affecting people.

Obama's image has been sturdy even as voters' views of the overall campaign have tumbled downhill since September. The portion of people saying the contest excites them has sunk to 32 percent while those calling it frustrating have grown to 41 percent — and in both cases, six in 10 of those whose feelings have worsened are McCain backers.

Negative campaigning and a month of intense public focus on collapsing global economic and financial markets have not been kind to McCain. The new AP-Yahoo! News poll of likely voters, conducted this month by Knowledge Networks, shows more people viewing him favorably than unfavorably by just 5 percentage points, down from a 21-point difference in mid-September.

During the same period, Obama went the other way, increasing a 5-percentage-point net favorable rating to 15 points. Now, Obama is seen favorably by 57 percent and McCain by 52 percent — a close margin that masks the opposite direction the two rivals' ratings are heading.

"He kind of scared me," Leesa Zick, 48, an undecided Republican from Edwardsville, Ill., said of McCain's abrupt and short-lived suspension of his campaign last month during Capitol Hill talks on a financial package. "We need a president who can deal with multiple tasks. It seemed like it overwhelmed him."

For McCain, the poll's good news is that despite a difficult month, his public image is not dramatically worse than Obama's and in several areas remains better. The public still rates him higher than Obama for keeping America safe, working with both political parties, and being decisive, experienced and competent.

"He's more qualified than Obama, definitely, because of his experience and history, " said Richard Tosti, 67, a Republican from Rochester, N.Y.

Zick and Tosti are among about 2,000 people the AP-Yahoo! News poll has been tracking since November. By repeatedly questioning them, the survey has opened a detailed window on how individuals have reacted to the campaign's twists and turns.

Less than three weeks from Election Day, Obama has taken a solid lead over McCain in most national and swing-state polls. The AP-Yahoo! News survey underscores the morale problem McCain faces.

Obama supporters are more than twice as likely to say they're excited about the race and significantly more likely to say they're interested and hopeful. McCain backers, meanwhile, more often say they feel frustrated and helpless. Underscoring a period that has seen the rival candidates trade personal attacks, about a fifth of those backing each say they're angry.

"There's a lot of mudslinging, which I've never been a fan of," said Eric Juhl, 27, a Republican and McCain backer from Abilene, Kan. "And to me, the media seems pretty left-wing oriented. It's kind of frustrating."

A sour public mood is typical late in presidential campaigns as both sides' attacks accumulate, said University of Wisconsin political scientist and polling authority Charles Franklin. This year's disenchantment is probably magnified by worries about how the candidates would bolster the economy, he said.

Even so, Obama has staked out a clear advantage on economic concerns in the AP-Yahoo! News poll. The Illinois senator is trusted more than McCain to improve the economy by 54 percent to 44 percent, and to handle the financial crisis by 53 percent to 46 percent.

Obama also has a 56 percent to 41 percent advantage for understanding how the financial crisis affects people. Unhappily for McCain, six in 10 voters who may still change their minds, about as many independents and even one in 10 McCain backers prefer Obama on that question.

"To me his background indicates he'd be a little more sensitive to the middle class" in addressing economic problems, Peggy Chilton, 72, an independent from Los Angeles who hasn't decided on a candidate, said of Obama.

The numbers don't get better for McCain when it comes to personal traits.

Following debates between the two rivals in which the Arizona senator has appeared angry at times, 46 percent consider him hot-tempered, more than triple the 13 percent who say so about Obama.

"He'd be a little nerve-racking to have in the White House, jumping real fast," Darlene Finley, 48, an Obama-leaning independent from Ossineke, Mich., said of McCain. "When you're talking about war, that's something you don't want to do, jumping real fast."

Since September, McCain has lost ground on nearly every quality tested in the poll, including lower scores for being likable, decisive, honest, competent, intelligent and inspiring.

He's also lost ground for understanding ordinary peoples' problems, caring about "people like you" and improving America's international standing. Growing numbers even see him as supporting big business over the public interest and being influenced by lobbyists — despite repeated vows to do exactly the opposite.

Obama's ratings have stayed level since last month for most qualities tested, though he has shown some improvement in whether he's considered experienced and decisive.

Paralleling McCain's problems are similar ones faced by his running mate, Sarah Palin.

A month ago, more people said the Alaska governor made them more likely to vote for McCain than less likely by 14 percentage points. That gap is now down to 3 points — even as growing numbers say her Democratic counterpart, Joe Biden, makes them more inclined to support Obama.

The AP-Yahoo! News poll included 841 likely voters was conducted from Oct. 3-13 and has an overall margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.4 percentage points. Included were interviews with 373 people who initially said they were Democrats, 252 Republicans and 214 independents, for whom the margins of sampling error are plus or minus 5.1, 6.2 and 6.7 percentage points, respectively.

The poll was conducted over the Internet by Knowledge Networks, which initially contacted people using traditional telephone polling methods and followed with online interviews. People chosen for the study who had no Internet access were given it for free.

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AP News Survey Specialist Dennis Junius contributed to this report.

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On the Net:

Polling site: http://news.yahoo.com/polls

DJ Green Lantern - Yes We Can "Barack Obama" (Hosted By Russell Simmons) [Classic Mixtape][Full 1 Hour Audio]

This is absolutely amazing. Its an eye opener and addresses any and everything a young black male should know about the presidential race and the importance of change. Obama is icon, and linking up with the God Father of Hip Hop himself Mr. Russell Simmons just puts his status into outer space. Please, please listen to this mixtape its something everyone should have heard at least once word for word.

Ads for Obama campaign: ‘It's in the game’

Too busy playing video games to watch presidential ads on television? Barack Obama has found you, too, by becoming the first presidential candidate to buy ad space inside a game.

Nine video games from Electronic Arts Inc., ranging from the extremely popular "Madden 09" football game to the street racing "Burnout: Paradise," feature in-game ads from the Obama campaign. The ads — they appear on billboards and other signage — remind players that early voting has begun and plug a campaign Web site.

The idea of embedding advertising temporarily inside a video game is relatively new, having only begun about 18 months ago, and Obama is the first presidential candidate to buy space, company officials said...

The man is a genius, and his campaign manager isn't too far behind. They just continue to preach there message and fight for change. Its a breath of fresh air. And no one ever complains about that.
Via: www.msn.com

What Joe Six Pack Wants

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The first installment of the highly anticipated Candidate Girl debates takes a look at the common man, and the quickest way to get his vote.

Dont Miss Final Presidential Debate Tonight!

Tonight's debate is make or break for John McCain and the Republicans. National Polls show Obama with a fourteen(14) point lead. And more support when it comes to who is trusted to resolve the Economic Crisis. McCain better have his Poly Grip and dentures in tight, cause Obama is going in for the kill tonight.

Vote for Change!!!

GET STARTED

Thought of the Day

Im black so I definitely take offense to the shirt, but isn't it even crazier that you get all these dope Obama shirt's for sale from top and underground designers. And all the McCain shirt's are cheap and cheesy. Its easy to be racist! Try a little harder McCain supporter's and its "Nigga please" or you can hit them with the loud and drawn out verison "N-E-G-R-O please," but we don't even talk like that.

Seymour Chwast x Freshjive “McBush” T-shirt

Few have reached the heights of Seymour Chwast in the graphic design realm. Co-founder of Push Pin Studios with Milton Glaser and Edward Sorel, Chwast has created a special t-shirt for Freshjive titled “McBush” which plays into the current presidential race. Chwast’s rise started in the 1950s as the artist brought forth a style which emphasized “a playful expressive approach to type and layout based on revivalism… a radical alternative to the Swiss formalism at the time.” Furthermore, his sense of concept and design meshed with his humor-based approach would work well together as Push Pin Studio sought to re-vitalize the relationship of illustration and design. Chwast’s success have been widely documented in numerous publications with the artist taking an active stance in expressing his political and social views via his iconic style. This t-shirt available now, is the first of a few designs from Chwast for Freshjive’s “World Problems” collection of t-shirts. Proceeds from this shirt will be donated to the Barack Obama campaign.

Via: www.hypebeast.com

AP Photos: This Week on the Campaign Trail

Thank ya crushonobamagirl.com

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These guys made us a shirt and sent us a box. And we made them this video. You can buy your own version at http://www.crushonobamagirl...

Obama, Biden Get Boost From Clintons

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Vice presidential candidate Joe Biden stumped in his northeastern Pennsylvania hometown Sunday alongside New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and former President Bill Clinton. (Oct. 12)

Presidential Race Analysis

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Bob Schieffer spoke with both Democratic and Republican figures regarding the current status of the presidential race and concern that anger at GOP campaign rallies is racially charged.

Don't Forget to Vote on November 4!

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Message from Alicia

John Brown - Sarah Palin (I Wanna Lay Pipe)

Mad corny, but so are the Republican Candidate's, so it fits nice. Hallelujah Holla Back Lol!