Posted by
seobb on Tuesday, March 25, 2008 4:33:51 AM
IN THE HEADLINES
McCain leaves housing crisis options on table
but places limits on government assistance ... Democratic Party
approves moving Puerto Rico primary to June 1 ... Clinton adviser
stands by his comparison of Bill Richardson to Judas
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McCain leaves housing crisis options on table
SANTA
ANA, Calif. (AP) — John McCain wants to leave the door open to a wide
array of proposals to address the turmoil in home financing.
"I
will not play election-year politics with the housing crisis," the
certain Republican presidential nominee said in remarks prepared for
delivery Tuesday to local business leaders south of Los Angeles. "I
will evaluate everything in terms of whether it might be harmful or
helpful to our effort to deal with the crisis we face now."
McCain
seemed to suggest he would be open even to potential solutions that,
perhaps, stray from the Republican party line, saying, "I will consider
any and all proposals based on their cost and benefits" and "I will not
allow dogma to override common sense."
But the small-government advocate and four-term Arizona senator also put restrictions on how far he was willing to go.
"I
have always been committed to the principle that it is not the duty of
government to bail out and reward those who act irresponsibly, whether
they are big banks or small borrowers," McCain said. "Government
assistance to the banking system should be based solely on preventing
systemic risk that would endanger the entire financial system and the
economy."
In the midst of a weeklong western fundraising swing,
the GOP's next standard-bearer was using the event in the Republican
stronghold of Orange County to showcase his grasp of the country's
economic troubles — and counter the notion that he's not up to the task
of leading a nation on the brink of recession.
McCain has
acknowledged in the past that he knows less about economics than he
does about national security and foreign policy, and Democrats have
seized on such remarks to argue that the Republican is a novice on
bread-and-butter issues that voters care about most.
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Puerto Rico moves up primary
WASHINGTON
(AP) — The Democratic Party has approved Puerto Rico's proposal to
scrap its caucus and hold a presidential primary on June 1.
A
primary will give more voters a chance to take part in the nominating
process, said Puerto Rico Democratic Chairman Roberto Prats. He said
caucuses were fine in previous years, when the party nominee was
settled by the time Puerto Rico voted and the only task was to choose
delegates to the national convention.
"Now it's different," Prats
told the Democratic National Committee's rules panel in a conference
call Monday. "This is the first time in decades that Puerto Rico will
be participating in an event of this magnitude."
Democratic Sens.
Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton are locked in a historic fight
for the nomination that could last all the way to the national
convention this summer in Denver. Puerto Rico will have 55 delegates at
stake in its primary, and will award them proportionally.
Only three remaining states, Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Indiana, have more Democratic delegates up for grabs.
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No Carville apology for Judas remark
WASHINGTON
(AP) — Hillary Rodham Clinton adviser James Carville is refusing to
apologize for comparing New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson to Judas.
Carville
made the comparison to The New York Times after Richardson, once a
member of President Clinton's Cabinet, endorsed Hillary Clinton rival
Barack Obama last week for the Democratic presidential nomination.
Carville called it an "act of betrayal," and pointed out that it came
during Holy Week.
"Mr. Richardson's endorsement came right around
the anniversary of the day when Judas sold out (Jesus) for 30 pieces of
silver, so I think the timing is appropriate, if ironic," he said.
Richardson told "Fox News Sunday" that he wouldn't respond by getting "in the gutter like that."
"That's
typical of many of the people around Senator Clinton," Richardson said.
"They think they have a sense of entitlement to the presidency."
Carville told CNN on Monday that Richardson had committed an "egregious act" and he intended to make a sharp response to it.
"I
wanted to use a very strong metaphor to make my point," Carville said.
"I doubt if Governor Richardson and I will be particularly close in the
future."
Clinton spokesman Howard Wolfson told reporters Monday that he didn't agree with Carville's comment.
"If I had said it, I would apologize," Wolfson said. "I did not say it, and if I had I would, but that's up to him."
Richardson served as ambassador to the United Nations and energy secretary during the Clinton administration.
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THE DEMOCRATS
Hillary Rodham Clinton campaigns in Pennsylvania. Barack Obama has no scheduled campaign events.
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THE REPUBLICANS
John McCain campaigns in California.
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QUOTE OF THE DAY:
"I
went to 80 countries, you know. I gave contemporaneous accounts, I
wrote about a lot of this in my book. You know, I think that, a minor
blip, you know, if I said something that, you know, I say a lot of
things — millions of words a day — so if I misspoke, that was just a
misstatement." — Hillary Rodham Clinton, explaining a remark in which
she erroneously said she had come under sniper fire in Bosnia.
___
STAT OF THE DAY:
Fifteen
percent of Pennsylvanians are senior citizens, a larger percentage than
all but two other states. This group has been among Democrat Hillary
Rodham Clinton's most reliable supporters.
Compiled by Ann Sanner and Jerry Estill.rolex replicas, replica watches,