Today on the presidential campaign trail

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Today on the presidential campaign trail

Monday 21 July 2008
By: The Associated Press

IN THE HEADLINES

Iraq welcomes Obama with common goal: hope of US troops pullout by 2010 ... McCain ad blames Obama for high gas prices, cites opposition to drilling ... GOP counting on convention planning, venue to lift McCain's prospects in November ... Obama cuts back on spending in June as he builds up cash reserves ... League of Conservation Voters latest environmental group to endorse Obama

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Iraq sees hope of US troop withdrawal by 2010

BAGHDAD (AP) _ Iraq's government welcomed Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama on Monday with word that it apparently shares his hope that U.S. combat forces could leave by 2010.

The statement by Iraq's government spokesman, Ali al-Dabbagh, followed talks between Obama and Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki _ who has struggled for days to clarify Iraq's position on a possible timetable for a U.S. troop pullout.

Al-Dabbagh said the government did not endorse a fixed date, but hoped American combat units could be out of Iraq sometime in 2010. That timeframe falls within the 16-month withdrawal plan proposed by Obama, who arrived in Iraq earlier in the day as part of a congressional fact-finding team.

"We are hoping that in 2010 that combat troops will withdraw from Iraq," al-Dabbagh told reporters, noting that any withdrawal plan was subject to change if the level of violence kicks up again.

As he departed from talks with al-Maliki and President Jalal Talabani in Baghdad's heavily protected Green Zone, Obama said, "We had a very constructive discussion." Obama also plans meetings with U.S. military commanders who will outline recent progress in the war he has opposed from the start.

This was the third stop on a foreign tour designed to gather information while burnishing the Democratic contender's foreign policy credentials. National security issues are the one issue area in which Obama trails Republican John McCain in the polls.

The Illinois senator _ traveling with Sens. Jack Reed, D-R.I., and Chuck Hagel, R-Neb. _ arrived first in the southern city of Basra, the U.S. Embassy said.

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McCain ad blames Obama for rising gas prices

WASHINGTON (AP) _ Republican John McCain on Monday launched a new television ad that blames Democratic rival Barack Obama for rising gasoline prices.

The ad, airing on national cable and in 11 battleground states, argues that the cost of fuel is rising because of opposition to oil drilling in the United States.

The announcer in the ad says, "Gas prices _ $4, $5, no end in sight, because some in Washington are still saying no to drilling in America. No to independence from foreign oil. Who can you thank for rising prices at the pump?"

A photograph of Obama appears on the stage as a voiceover of a crowd chants: "Obama, Obama, Obama!"

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Republicans hoping for a grand old party in Minn.

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) _ Republicans are counting on a glitch-free convention to help lift the party's sagging morale and boost John McCain's presidential prospects when they assemble in this picturesque city on the Mississippi River in six weeks.

Organizers began construction Monday at the Xcel Energy Center, home to the Minnesota Wild NHL hockey franchise, to host 4,600 delegates and alternates and thousands more guests and media Sept. 1-4. Dozens of construction workers began unscrewing seats and unloading equipment from trucks, making room for the stage where McCain will deliver his acceptance speech. The Republican Party will have exclusive access to the arena through the convention.

The GOP sessions get under way just four days after Democrats conclude their own convention in Denver; never before have the two parties' events been scheduled so late in the summer, and so close together.

McCain strategists believe the timing could work to their advantage, potentially blunting the post-Denver "bounce" Obama should receive as a newly minted nominee. And even though Obama now leads McCain by double digits in most Minnesota polls, his strategists hope a successful convention could help the Arizona senator's chances of winning the state.

Crews will be laying down six miles of telephone and Internet cable and installing 4,500 data and analog lines. Close-to-the-action broadcast sets for television networks and tables for print journalists will take the place of 3,000 existing seats and another 475,000 square feet of media workspace occupy an adjacent building. Several suites will be turned into hospitality rooms for donors, convention sponsors and prominent Republicans.

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Obama spends less in June, saves resources

WASHINGTON (AP) _ Barack Obama reversed a two month trend in June by raising more money and spending less, a tangible result of clinching the Democratic nomination.

Obama continued to raise money for the primary stage of the election, a noteworthy showing that means he has not even tried to tap most of his 1.7 million donors for general election cash.

The Illinois senator reported raising $52 million in June, more than twice the nearly $21.5 million raised by Republican rival John McCain during the month. Obama had $72 million cash on hand to McCain's $27 million, according to their reports with the Federal Election Commission.

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, who suspended her White House bid on June 7, faced a starkly different financial picture. She lent herself an additional $1 million in June to pay off vendors, increasing her total loan to the campaign to $13.2 million. She reported owing vendors $12 million. She raised $2.7 million from donors in June.

Obama reported $25.6 million in spending in June, his lowest monthly operating costs of the year. McCain disbursed $27 million in the month, including $1.2 million to a special accounting fund for the fall campaign.

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League of Conservation Voters to endorse Obama

WASHINGTON (AP) _ In an election all about change, environmental groups are doing the usual _ endorsing the Democratic presidential candidate.

The League of Conservation Voters will become the latest green group to back Democrat Barack Obama in six separate events across the country Monday.

Its pick shouldn't be a surprise. Its scorecard of votes on environmental issues for the first session of the current Congress gave Obama a score of 67 and Republican John McCain a zero. The Arizona senator did not show up for any of the votes the group scored.

The league has endorsed presidential candidates since the early 1980s, but not once has it selected a Republican.

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DAILY TRACK

Democrat Barack Obama holds a 6-point lead nationally over Republican John McCain _ 47 percent to 41 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 visits Iraq.

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THE REPUBLICANS

John McCain campaigns in Maine.

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QUOTE OF THE DAY:

"Well, I hope that the people will have a better focus on the fact that we have succeeded in our strategy in Iraq, we are winning the war and Sen. Obama was wrong." _ Republican John McCain, speaking on CBS' "The Early Show" about Democratic rival Barack Obama's trip to the Middle East.

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STAT OF THE DAY:

Democrat Barack Obama has raised $349.8 million during his presidential run to Republican John McCain's $144 million.

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Compiled by Ann Sanner.