Politico

Nagourney and Bumiller mention in passing in tomorrow’s Times that the Republican congressman representing Nebraska’s second district, Lee Terry, has taken out ads to appeal to "Obama-Terry" voters. (The Obama campaign promptly sent the image over.)

I’m not sure if that’s really a bellwether. I haven’t seen a lot of other Republicans putting Obama next to their names, though that could change. And Terry has stuck by an early endorsement of McCain.

But that Nebraska district matters beyond any symbolic meaning. It’s the Omaha district where Obama’s hoping to steal an electoral vote. And the ad is a sign of the broader Democratic strength that runs up and down the ballot, and threatens to reinforce itself. Terry is favored, but faces a real challenge from from an Iraq vet and serious candidate whose prospects are bolstered by Obama’s turnout operation, which is presumably why Terry’s aiming to pick up some of those Obama voters.

Compare that to the district’s mirror image, Maine’s second, where McCain is hoping, similarly, to steal a vote. There, the down-ballot prospects for Republicans are dismal, with a challenger who isn’t being taken seriously by the national GOP. (The Republican’s official portrait is below.) The incumbent Democrat endorsed Obama late, but doesn’t seem to have been putting McCain’s name on his lit.

Not that the congressional race would be expected to drive turnout or preference at presidential level. But it’s a yet another gust of the tailwind Obama has behind him, and the headwind McCain faces.

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Obama spokesman Bill Burton gives little ground to McCain’s outraged response at John Lewis’s evoking George Wallace:

"Sen. Obama does not believe that John McCain or his policy criticism is in any way comparable to George Wallace or his segregationist policies.

But John Lewis was right to condemn some of the hateful rhetoric that John McCain himself personally rebuked just last night, as well as the baseless and profoundly irresponsible charges from his own running mate that the Democratic nominee for president of the United States ‘pals around with terrorists.’

As Barack Obama has said himself, the last thing we need from either party is the kind of angry, divisive rhetoric that tears us apart at a time of crisis when we desperately need to come together. That is the kind of campaign Sen. Obama will continue to run in the weeks ahead."

Burton also sent over several comments from Republicans (after the jump), including former top McCain aide John Weaver, expressing discomfort with McCain’s and Palin’s rhetoric.

Last time McCain voiced outrage at the suggestion, from Obama himself, that he would use race against the Democrat, Obama quickly backed down. But the terrain has changed, and it seems to be a fight Obama is now comfortable having, perhaps in the hopes of amplifying a backlash against McCain.

Continue reading post…

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McCain responds heatedly to the suggestion by congressman and civil rights figure John Lewis — whom he recently cited as a model — that McCain is creating the same kind of toxic atmosphere George Wallace once did:

Congressman John Lewis’ comments represent a character attack against Governor Sarah Palin and me that is shocking and beyond the pale. The notion that legitimate criticism of Senator Obama’s record and positions could be compared to Governor George Wallace, his segregationist policies and the violence he provoked is unacceptable and has no place in this campaign. I am saddened that John Lewis, a man I’ve always admired, would make such a brazen and baseless attack on my character and the character of the thousands of hardworking Americans who come to our events to cheer for the kind of reform that will put America on the right track.

I call on Senator Obama to immediately and personally repudiate these outrageous and divisive comments that are so clearly designed to shut down debate 24 days before the election. Our country must return to the important debate about the path forward for America.

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John Lewis raises the specter of George Wallace.

Acorn attacks break through — to ESPN.

Gail Collins conjures the Lord of the Rings.

Sheldon Adelson’s net worth plummets.

Dickerson says Obama’s not being candid on Ayers, but within the expected margin for deceit.

Gatemouth hates Ayers, but doesn’t think the relationship means much.

That’s Dawn Eden’s SAT scoresheet (with photoshopped grades) not Sarah Palin’s.

And Palin hits Obama on "punished with a baby."

ALSO: New heights in shark-jumping: A Corner blogger suggests Bill Ayers wrote "Dreams for my Father." A kind of grand unified theory of Obama conspiracy. Based on, well, nothing.

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Even as McCain tries to tamp down some of the anger, hostility to Obama runs deep.

The Iowa Independent reports that the invocation, delivered before McCain arrived at his Davenport event today, suggested Obama was the candidate of the non-Christian faiths.

“I would also pray, Lord, that your reputation is involved in all that happens between now and November, because there are millions of people around this world praying to their god—whether it’s Hindu, Buddha, Allah—that his opponent wins, for a variety of reasons," said the minister delivering it. "And Lord, I pray that you will guard your own reputation, because they’re going to think that their God is bigger than you, if that happens. So I pray that you will step forward and honor your own name with all that happens between now and election day."

Also from the Iowa Independent: "A national reporter in front of me is bored and surfing icanhascheezburger.com."

UPDATED with verbatim quote and audio, below.

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My story today:

Senator Barack Obama has taken a commanding lead in the race for president not because of any dramatic gesture, but because of a signature political trait: His caution. The nation’s economic crisis triggered Obama’s sharp rise in what had been a tight race. But Obama hasn’t tried to seize the kind of central, national leadership position for which McCain grasped, and fell short. Nor has he been touting - Bill Clinton-style - a highly detailed plan for what he’ll do the moment he takes office. The result is that while virtually all observers agree that he has benefited from the crisis, his allies and critics alike remain a bit hazy on what exactly he’d do if he takes office January 20, 2009. "He’s certainly laid out all the right elements that are needed for an economic recovery, but nobody’s sure at this point which ones will be at the very top of his priority list when he takes office," said Thea Lee, the chief economist for the AFL-CIO. "To my knowledge, he’s said absolutely nothing about what he would do," said Glenn Hubbard, a former chairman of Bush’s Council of Economic Advisors who is now the dean of Columbia Business School. Obama has often thrived in this campaign by talking in foggy terms about his plans, here and abroad. It frustrates critics – and some voters looking for clear indications of how he would lead – but also provides tremendous flexibility for adjusting positions now and in the White House if he wins. In fact, Obama has talked about the economy - only softly. Many of his key plans - for economic stimulus, for attending to the troubled housing market, and for financial regulations - are policy prescriptions he and other Democrats have been discussing about for months or more. Several became urgent - and in some cases passed into law - when the crisis deepened last month. Publicly, though, he’s said little, repeatedly answering a question in the first debate about what priorities would have to be set aside owing to the cost of the bailout with a list of the many programs he’d nonetheless provide. McCain was hardly more specific, though he did finally say he’d seek to freeze almost all federal spending. "Steady leadership is not just about having ideas - it’s about having consistent ideas and working to make them happen," said Obama’s director of economic policy, Jason Furman.

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Obama acknowledged his rival’s attempts yesterday to calm an angry crowd at a morning rally in North Philadelphia, drawing loud boos from the mostly black audience, my colleague Ken Vogel reports.

"I want to acknowledge that Senator McCain tried to tone down the rhetoric yesterday, and I appreciated his reminder that we can disagree while still being respectful of each other. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – Senator McCain has served this country with honor, and he deserves our thanks for that," Obama said, before warning that the Republicans were unlikely to tone down their campaign.

"But when it comes to the economy, and what families here in Pennsylvania are going through, Senator McCain still doesn’t get it. Yesterday, Senator McCain’s campaign manager actually said that Senator McCain wasn’t talking about the market because there’s just not much a candidate for President can say – and they aren’t sure what he’d say each day even if he did talk about it. Last week, in the midst of the most serious economic crisis of our time, his campaign announced that they plan to t’urn the page’ on the discussion about our economy so they can spend the final weeks of this election attacking me instead. They said, and I quote, ‘if we keep talking about the economy, we’re going to lose.’ So the last few days, we’ve seen a barrage of nasty insinuations and attacks, and I’m sure we’ll see much more over the next 24 days," he said, according to his prepared remarks.

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Capping a bad week, Alaska legislators give Palin the courtesy, at least, of a Friday night release for that state’s version of troopergate, with a long report (.pdf) that finds she "abused her power" and violated an Alaska ethics statute in getting a trooper fired, but was within her rights to fire her top cop.

Perhaps equally damning, the report essentially accuses Palin of dishonesty. It also contradicts the best Palin spin, which isn’t about the details but about the big picture: That she and her family were afraid of the fired trooper, who had allegedly abused her sister. The evidence is "inconsistent with such claims of fear," Branchflower writes, adding that the allegation of fear was "not bona fide."

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Obama in Ohio.

Obama discovers his love for the ’90s, and Bill Clinton.

His campaign is getting a bargain on half hour time slots on CBS and NBC.

Obama staffer botches attends a meeting with the wrong Muslim groups.

Crowley: Relax about the anger meme.

Colorado denies that it has purged tens of thousands from voter registration lists.

North Carolina plans to stop using error-ridden Social Security database after the 2008 election.

Texas Absentee voters face postage problems.

Ohions have registered to vote in record numbers, and election day lines will be of record length.

ACORN is not evil, its directors say.

Politico reports that McCain didn’t disclose his ties to Contra group.

William F. Buckley’s son is voting for Obama.

An Family Research Council ad hits Obama on abortion.

Another independent group tosses a thin but lurid sex-offender issue at him.

David Weigel says the Ayers attacks don’t have an online audience.

Dan Balz they’re Rovian and "over the line."

More skirmishing on Palin’s faith.

McCain campaign suggests a Michelle-Dohrn connection, based on their having worked at the same (large) law firm.

And Brownstein says the difference between Obama and McCain on health care is solidarity vs. autonomy.

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CMAG grabs a humorous anti-McCain ad from an Ohio 527.

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