What's new: Rove accuses Obama of being arrogant
Some of the campaign and political news making headlines this morning:
• Karl Rove, writing on the opinion page of The Wall Street Journal -- Obama is arrogant: President Bush's former top political adviser continues to make the case that Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama is overly arrogant. "Many candidates have measured the Oval Office drapes prematurely," Rove writes. "But Barack Obama is the first to redesign the presidential seal before the election. ... This was an attempt by Sen. Obama to make himself appear more presidential. But most people saw in the seal something else -– chutzpah –- and he's stopped using it. Such arrogance –- even self-centeredness –- have featured often in the Obama campaign. ... (Republican contender John) McCain will be helped if he uses Mr. Obama's actions to paint his opponent as someone driven by an all-powerful instinct to look out only for himself. In a contest over who is willing to put principle above personal ambition and self-interest, John McCain, a war hero and a former POW, wins hands down. That may not be the most important issue to voters in electing a president, but it's something they will rightly take into account."
• The Washington Post -- Working with McCain has been "lucrative" for top adviser: "In the eight years since (Rick) Davis first managed a McCain campaign, his relationship with the senator has been a lucrative commodity. He and his lobbying firm, Davis Manafort, have earned handsome fees representing clients who need McCain's help in the Senate. He also has made money from a panoply of McCain-related entities, some of which have operated from the upscale riverfront office space that houses his lobbying shop. In all, Davis, his firm and a company he helped start have earned at least $2.2 million in part through their close association with McCain, his campaign and his causes, according to a review of federal campaign, tax and lobbyist disclosure records. Their relationship is typical of the symbiotic ties that have come to define the culture of the nation's capital."
• The New York Times -- High-power lawyer is helping Obama and Clinton come together: "With the help of one of Washington's best-connected lawyers, Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton are negotiating a thicket of complicated issues, like how to repay Mrs. Clinton's campaign debt and her role at the Democratic convention. The talks come as they try to leave behind their intense rivalry and work out a plan to cooperate this fall. At Mrs. Clinton's request, the lawyer, Robert B. Barnett, who has brokered multimillion-dollar book deals for clients including Mr. Obama, Mrs. Clinton and Bill Clinton, is working to hash out questions large and small as the two camps work toward a political merger. Perhaps the thorniest question -- what to do about Bill Clinton, who friends say continues to refight the bitter primary fight -- has yet to be raised by either side, advisers said."
• Chicago Tribune -- Obama says he and Clinton have buried the hatchet: "At least in public, Sen. Barack Obama says all the attacks and nasty remarks from a grueling and often contentious 16-month primary campaign have been forgotten. 'I want her campaigning as much as she can,' the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee said Wednesday in Chicago, when asked about his former rival, Sen. Hillary Clinton."
• The Politico -- McCain hasn't been campaigning on weekends: "Since effectively capturing the Republican nomination when Mitt Romney dropped out of the race on February 7, John McCain has held just one public campaign event on a weekend. Instead, after workweeks full of fundraisers, town hall meetings and interviews, McCain has been, in campaign parlance, 'down' on nearly every Saturday or Sunday for 20 weeks, largely sequestered away from the news media. He's usually spending time with family, friends and campaign advisers at residences in Arlington, Va., Phoenix or vacation homes near Sedona, Arizona, and San Diego." While the Republican has largely been off the trail, by the end of this week Democrat Barack Obama will have made seven weekend appearances this month alone.
• The Los Angeles Times' Top of the Ticket blog -- It seems Obama and Scarlett may not have much contact after all: Actress Scarlett Johansson is a supporter of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama and has said they've been in frequent contact via e-mails. Not so, says Obama. This week, "Obama was chatting with the guys on his campaign plane when he referred to his personal assistant, Reggie Love. 'She sent one e-mail to Reggie, who forwarded it to me,' Obama said matter-of-factly. "I write saying, Thank you, Scarlett, for doing what you do. And suddenly we have this e-mail relationship.' "
• The Washington Post -- McCain's Web presence "lags far behind Obama's:" "Less than five months before Election Day, with polls showing the presumptive Democratic nominee holding a slight edge over his Republican counterpart, there's one place where Obama unequivocally trumps McCain: the Web. And what's most telling about the online drubbing is its spontaneous, grass-roots nature -- the way Obama's Internet portrait is drawn and refreshed every day by enthusiastic supporters, whose blogging, YouTubing and networking aren't controlled or limited by any campaign."
• Times Online -- Cindy McCain says Princess Diana is an inspiration: "The woman who wants to be the next Republican First Lady pledged (Wednesday) to expand her humanitarian work if she makes it into the White House, taking inspiration from the late Diana, Princess of Wales. Speaking ahead of a political fundraiser in London (Wednesday night), Cindy McCain said that she felt 'very honored' to serve on the boad of the Halo Trust, the Anglo-American anti-landmine charity endorsed by Diana and which organized her controversial walk through an Angolan minefield in 1997, the year of her death.
Speaking to The Times, Mrs McCain said of Diana: 'She was (a) great inspiration to me and to the British people as well. She was a remarkable person and had a loving heart.' "
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