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 McCain pushes for town hall meetings
NEW YORK (AP) -- Two political rivals on a stage, unfiltered questions from undeclared voters, thoughtful answers, no sound bites. Democracy at its best or risky politics?
Republican presidential candidate John McCain and an audience of potential questioners took over New York's Federal Hall Thursday night to illustrate his political gambit
-- an invitation to Democratic rival Barack Obama to join him in 10 summer town hall appearances.
"This town hall meeting probably would have been a little more interesting tonight if Senator Obama had accepted my request," he said, opening the 50-minute program, which aired on the Fox News Channel.
The theater of the moment aside, McCain's camp is betting that by making the entreaty to Obama the veteran senator from Arizona would gain an edge. The Obama camp appears in no hurry to give it to him.
"I think that it's not realistic to do all 10 given all the campaigning that I have to do since we just finished our primary election," Obama told reporters on Tuesday, adding that he would likely propose a "mix of formats."
McCain has suggested the questioners for the meetings be selected by an independent polling agency. That was not the case at Federal Hall, where the audience of about 200 included McCain supporters such as Sens. Joseph Lieberman, an independent from Connecticut, and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. Others were culled from McCain e-mail lists and from independent voter groups.
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McCain, free trade advocate, plans speech in Canada
NEW YORK (AP) -- John McCain is bullish on free trade. The country isn't. Yet McCain doesn't miss many opportunities to reproach Democratic presidential rival Barack Obama's emerging opposition to international trade deals.
McCain is such an avowed free trader that he is scheduled to address the Economic Club of Canada next week in Ottawa to assert his support for the North American Free Trade Agreement.
Such an appearance helps McCain burnish his foreign policy credentials. But trade can also carry great risks, especially in election battlegrounds such as Ohio and Pennsylvania where many voters blame trade deals for job losses.
Canadian officials are watching the election attentively, too. Obama, who four years ago declared NAFTA had been beneficial, recently talked about reopening NAFTA to strengthen enforcement of labor and environmental standards. McCain has been thumping Obama on that, arguing that such a step not only would hurt trade, but undermine the credibility of the United States abroad.
"You know what message that sends? That no agreement is sacred to him," McCain told reporters Thursday in Boston.
McCain's trip to Canada was announced Wednesday by the Economic Club of Canada.
An AP-Yahoo News poll conducted mostly in April found that most Americans have a negative view of trade agreements.
Of those polled, 64 percent said that increasing trade between the United States and other countries has hurt the economy, while just 22 percent said it has helped. Moreover, 54 percent opposed the federal government negotiating new agreements with other countries, as opposed to 43 percent who favored more agreements, though Republicans tended to be evenly split on the question.
McCain clearly recognizes the public antipathy, particularly in some Midwestern states where the economy is reeling.
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Ron Paul says campaign to 'shift gears'
HOUSTON (AP) -- GOP presidential candidate Ron Paul has formally ended his campaign but will keep spreading his message by working to help elect libertarian-leaning Republicans to public office around the country.
"The campaign is going to shift gears. It's going to accelerate. It's going to get much bigger," Paul told The Associated Press in an interview before a rally where he was making the announcement. "To me, it's a technical change."
Paul formally announced the move -- his new "Campaign for Liberty"
-- in a speech to supporters attending the Texas Republican Party state convention. He said he expected many at his Thursday night rally and other supporters from around the nation to attend an alternative mini-convention he will host Sept. 2 in Minnesota to coincide with the Republican National Convention in St. Paul.
"Freedom is very popular. Not only is freedom popular, freedom works," Paul told supporters.
Hundreds of people rushed into a Houston hotel ballroom to hear Paul speak. They listened to a guitar player perform peace and freedom songs and gave loud cheers when Paul said the U.S. needs to bring home the troops from the Middle East. They also broke into applause when he spoke out for following the law and the Constitution.
He repeated his stances on other major issues, speaking against the United Nations and the income tax.
"Get more people," he urged. "They're paying attention, and it's across the political spectrum."
Paul says his political message won't change and he'll continue to speak out, just as he has since he first ran for Congress from Texas.
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THE DEMOCRATS
Barack Obama meets with older voters in Columbus, Ohio.
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THE REPUBLICANS
John McCain holds a town hall-style meeting in New Jersey.
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QUOTE OF THE DAY:
"The Obama campaign isn't going to let dishonest smears spread across the Internet unanswered."
-- Barack Obama campaign spokesman Tommy Vietor.
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STAT OF THE DAY:
The last Republican presidential candidate to carry New Jersey in a general election was George H.W. Bush in 1988. Bush beat Democrat Michael Dukakis, 56 percent to 43 percent.
[Associated
Press]
Compiled by Ann Sanner and Ronald Powers.
Copyright 2008 The Associated
Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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