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The Morning Grind / Political Hot Topics |
Kerry resists pessimist label; Schwarzenegger offers to lend a hand
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 VIDEO |
 CNN's Jason Carroll gets reaction to the "Fahrenheit 9/11" premiere
 CNN's Dan Lothian on efforts to defuse convention concern over Boston's history of racial tension
 Sen. John McCain tells CNN's Soledad O'Brien he expects more violence in Iraq as the handover approaches
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RELATED |
• Kerry on Bush: 'Divider'
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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Check out the links below to hot political stories around the country this morning.
DON'T CALL ME THAT: Democrat John Kerry yesterday countered Republican attempts to label him a pessimist about the US economy, arguing that criticism of the Bush administration's record of job creation actually reflected optimism that the economy could do better. The Boston Globe: Kerry fights label of economic pessimist
READY FOR HIS CLOSE-UP: Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has dazzled California with a string of legislative victories in his first months in office, has shown that he may well be a political master after all. And now he is letting President Bush know just how much he is -- and is not -- ready to devote his full star power to the national re-election effort. The New York Times: Schwarzenegger, confident and ready for prime time
THE CLINTON EFFECT: Bill Clinton's emphatic return to the spotlight has created short-term opportunities for both parties but is unlikely to affect the long-term dynamics of the presidential race, Republican and Democratic strategists agree. The Los Angeles Times: Clinton effect seen as transitory
PENNSYLVANIA POLL: President Bush and Democrat John Kerry remain locked in a tight contest in Pennsylvania, a key battleground state that Al Gore won by 4.2 percentage points in 2000. Kerry had the backing of 44 percent, Bush 43 percent and independent candidate Ralph Nader 7 percent in the Quinnipiac University poll released Thursday. The Associated Press: Poll: Bush, Kerry locked in tight Pennsylvania race
CALLING ON ALLIES: After months of criticizing President Bush for failing to attract international support for the U.S. mission in Iraq, Sen. John Kerry shifted his tone yesterday, putting NATO nations on notice that the time has come for them to contribute military forces to help secure the country as a new government takes power. The Washington Post: Kerry calls for allies to aid Iraq transition
RED CARPET: Michael Moore brought his movie "Fahrenheit 9/11,'' and his crusade to unseat President Bush, to a movie theater just a couple of miles from the White House on Wednesday night. With full Hollywood trappings -- a red carpet, klieg lights and dozens of photographers -- nearly 800 members of the capital's Democratic leadership turned out for the official premiere of the film, which opened on Wednesday here and in New York. The New York Times: The like-minded line up for a 9/11 film
FELONS GET OUT THE VOTE: A Democratic group crucial to John Kerry's presidential campaign has paid felons -- some convicted of sex offenses, assault and burglary -- to conduct door-to-door voter registration drives in at least three election swing states. America Coming Together, contending that convicted criminals deserve a second chance in society, employs felons as voter canvassers in major metropolitan areas in Missouri, Florida, Ohio and perhaps in other states among the 17 it is targeting in its drive.The Associated Press: Felons paid in voter registration drive
SAME-SEX VOTE: House leaders are likely to hold a test vote on issues related to homosexual marriage to show where House members stand before they push ahead with an actual constitutional amendment. Options under discussion for a House vote, Republican aides said, include legislation that would strip federal courts of their jurisdiction to hear cases regarding the definition of marriage, and a measure that would define marriage in the District of Columbia as being between a man and a woman. The Washington Times: Test vote likely on gay 'marriage'
NADER TICKET: Democrats attempted to put a roadblock in front of independent candidate Ralph Nader's efforts to gain access to the presidential ballot in Arizona, with the filing of a lawsuit by two Arizona residents challenging the validity of the petitions submitted by Nader's campaign. The Washington Post: Democrats sue to block Nader from Arizona ballot
LEGAL LIMIT: Colorado Republican Senate hopeful Pete Coors yesterday criticized the legal drinking age, chiding the federal government for coercing states into raising the age limit from 18 to 21. "We got along fine for years with the 18-year-old drinking age," the former CEO of the Coors Brewing Co. told an audience of about 200 people at a candidates' debate here. "We're criminalizing our young people." The Washington Times: Coors urges lower drinking age
BUSH AND AIDS: President Bush proposed Wednesday that the executive branch assume significant control over the program that has been the backbone of federal assistance for Americans infected with AIDS. The Washington Post: Bush seeks more control over AIDS act
NEED SOME HELP?: Independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader was not content to simply pick his own running mate this week. On Wednesday, he weighed in on Sen. John Kerry's deliberations, suggesting he tap Sen. John Edwards for the Democratic presidential ticket. The Los Angeles Times: Nader urges Kerry to pick Edwards, not that Democrats were asking
Compiled by Heather Riley
