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ST. PAUL -- Fox News "opinionater" Bill O'Reilly finally got his man. Barack Obama appears on his show this evening at 9 p.m. after an earlier taped one-on-one session with the self-proclaimed king of pithy comments. Here is a clip of Obama and O'Reilly going to eyeball to eyeball on tonight's show which is sure to raise a lot of eyebrows among the left and the right

ST. PAUL -- Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, accepting the GOP nomination for vice president Wednesday night, sought to silence critics and strike an accord with American voters in one of the most anticipated speeches in the race for the White House. Unknown even to many Republicans a week ago, Palin wrapped a personal profile and philosophical pitch into a 40-minute talk that brought thundering ovations from delegates at the Republican National Convention.

ST. PAUL - The hospitality at the Republican National Convention at the Xcel Energy Center is decidedly chilly, thanks to an air conditioning system that has reporters layering jackets to ward off the Alaskan-type temperatures inside the GOP's convention hall. "We are just getting to ready to have a hockey game just as soon as you folks leave here," said Dale, an usher wearing shorts and completely unaffected by the well below comfortable temperatures in the convention hall.

Welcome to Pennsylvania. Check your assumptions at the door and take nothing for granted -- because this commonwealth is about to become the epicenter of the political universe. "The Democrats can't win the presidency without Pennsylvania's electoral votes," says Charles Franklin, professor of political science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Steve McMahon, an analyst for the Democrats, says that is why Barack Obama's campaign showcased three Pennsylvania favorite sons at its convention. "The fact that all three, Sen. Bob Casey, Rep. Patrick Murphy and Scranton native Joe Biden, are white Catholics with working-class backgrounds" -- a tepid Obama demographic --...

DENVER -- Upon sewing up the Democratic nomination for president, Barack Obama inherited a mixed blessing: Ed Rendell. On one hand, the governor who led the charge for Hillary Clinton's victory over Obama in Pennsylvania is a coveted ally in Keystone State politics and one who is essential to Obama's bid for the White House. On the other, Rendell's propensity for veering off-message already shows signs of rocking Obama's boat.

DENVER -- In anticipation of whether or not the weather will cooperate for Barack Obama's open-air political concert at Invesco Field, The Wall Street Journal did a breakdown of weather patterns that have occurred on tomorrow’s date, Aug. 28. Four years ago on that date, the temperature dipped to 42 degrees. Winds as high as 53 miles per hour have also been clocked on that date. But a repeat of the biblical swarm of locusts that darkened the skies and destroyed the land in Aug. 28, 1875, would make for great television.

Chestnut Hill, West Virginia---West Virginia's registered Democrats, like their cousins in western Pennsylvania and eastern and southern Ohio, are having a hard time fitting anywhere within Barack Obama's vision of the Democratic party. "Obama and his message just do not gel with me," said Mark Lamp as he climbed into his utility truck. Lamp, 47, from neighboring Weirton, is a registered Democrat who voted for Clinton in the May primary. "My first problem with him is taxes, the second is experience," he explained. Lamp has worked in construction all of his life, and the company he works for builds houses...

DENVER - Sen. Joe Biden has no bounce, at least according to the Gallup Daily tracking polls. It's official: Sen. Barack Obama has received no bounce in voter support out of his selection of Sen. Joe Biden to be his vice presidential running mate. Gallup Poll Daily tracking from Aug. 23 to 25 -- the first three-day period falling entirely after Obama's Saturday morning vice presidential announcement -- shows 46 percent of national registered voters backing Sen. John McCain and 44 percent supporting Obama. This is not appreciably different from the previous week's standing for both candidates. This is the...

DENVER -- From the convention hall: All evidence points to a Democratic convention that will have a take-no-prisoners aggressive approach all week, driving home the contrast between John McCain and Barack Obama at every opportunity possible. An official speaking on background said that they were "not going to make the same mistake that we did in '04." Democratic analyst Mark Siegel said, "We begged the Kerry people to make the election a plebiscite on Bush, and make the '04 convention, from beginning to end the Reagan '80 series of questions: Are we better off now than we were four years...

DENVER: When most people think of Joe Biden, they think Senate longevity, confidence, a liberal with a free-wheeling impulse to give you his never-to-be-humble opinion. What they don't think of is a man who could have a great impact in Pennsylvania. The question becomes: Can he make his impact as broad as Hillary Clinton -- another Scranton native -- did in the Pennsylvania primaries? Hillary glowed in Pennsylvania. She made Pennsylvania her second home and it stuck with voters. John Kerry, married to the Heinz ketchup heiress Teresa, did the same thing in his runup to the 2004 election. He...

DENVER -- While all eyes are on Sen. Barack Obama and his freshly minted running mate Sen. Joe Biden -- one week from today (the day after Sen. John McCain announces his running mate), Gov. Tom Ridge will introduce McCain along with unsaid running mate on a southwestern Pennsylvania stage. According to a Republican official, Ridge will be introducing McCain in Washington County next Saturday, which probably means Ridge is out, Mitt Romney remains the favorite, and Team McCain is planning to fight it out with Obama-Biden in the Keystone State. Many analysts and strategists are keeping a keen eye...

U.S. Sen. Barack Obama's presidential campaign paid more than $800,000 to an offshoot of the liberal Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now for services the Democrat's campaign says it mistakenly misrepresented in federal reports. An Obama spokesman said Federal Election Commission reports would be amended to show Citizens Services Inc. -- a subsidiary of ACORN -- worked in "get-out-the-vote" projects, instead of activities such as polling, advance work and staging major events as stated in FEC finance reports filed during the primary.

Pennsylvania's Gov. Ed Rendell told PolitikerPA, a political Web site, that "Early on, I said I would cast my ballot for Sen. Clinton, I'm going to cast my ballot for her, and then the moment I cast my vote, I'm going to continue to enthusiastically support Sen. Obama. It's going to be a good release for all of us." Rendell spokesman Chuck Ardo confirmed to the Tribune-Review via email Rendell's statement with this response: "He (Rendell) will vote for Senator Clinton on the first ballot as part of his commitment as a pledged delegate. He will then support Sen. Obama...

Only Sen. Barack Obama knows who he is going to pick for his vice president. Well, that is probably not exactly true. The two Davids’ (Axelrod and Plouffe) and wife Michelle probably know as well. The Drudge Report is suggesting that Obama's pick might become public as early as Tuesday, Aug. 19. In celebration of that event, Drudge is running a poll for readers to guess who that nominee will be, with Sen. Evan Bayh, Sen. Joe Biden, Sen. Hillary Clinton, Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine, Sen. John Kerry, Georgia Sen. Sam Nunn and a wild card making the Drudge short...

The speculation began first with Hillary, then it was Clark, a strong flirtation with 'change' soul-mate Kaine flipped to an eye towards stability with Indiana's Bayh, but now all of that has shifted over to Biden -- Joe that is -- that outspoken senator from Delaware that hails from the same part of Pennsylvania as Hillary Clinton's family and makes C-SPAN so darn interesting.

According to the pool report, Sen. Barack Obama told a crowd of over 1,300 in California not to worry, "I will win." Speaking at his third California financial barnstorming event yesterday -- a day that brought in a total of $7.8 million -- Obama was welcomed by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. She said he was a leader "that God has blessed us with at this time."

Rumors of a contentious Democrat convention appear to be greatly exaggerated. David Morehouse, a senior campaign adviser to Sen. John Kerry's 2004 presidential campaign, says the threat of revolt is a perception some small constituencies would have you believe, "but these are the same people that would bite off their own nose to spite their face."

MANHEIM -- John McCain's last stop on a three-day swing across Pennsylvania provided clues as to how the Republican plans to beat Barack Obama in a battleground state the Democrat is favored to win.

Ridge said he was proud of how McCain has handled the crisis unfolding in Georgia. ...“He has kept a cool head, taken calls from Georgian president Mikhail Saakashvili -- and really behaved very presidential in his perspective of this crisis,” said Ridge as McCain shook hands with the crowd that gathered around him. “He has been to Georgia several times,” Ridge added. “He doesn’t need to look for it on a map.”

A longtime Western Pennsylvania politician once said, “You run with the top of the ticket when you can, and run away from it when you have to.” Which explains U.S. Rep. Jason Altmire’s short answer as to whether he will campaign in his district with Barack Obama: He’ll “consider it.” Altmire -– a previous skeptic of offshore drilling who now supports it, pitting him against House Speaker Nancy Pelosi -– said it will depend on when the presumptive nominee comes to town and if their schedules mesh. “I am not going to avoid it,” he added.

According to the Indy Star, Barack Obama has not asked Sen. Evan Bayh to be his running mate. At least not yet. The Star is reporting that the length of Obama's visit to Indiana -- he arrives around 6:30 p.m. this evening and does not leave until 3:30 p.m. Wednesday -- has fueled rumors that Bayh will be Obama's choice. Add to the fact that his wife, twin sons and father, the former Sen. Birch Bayh, will be joining him on this trip, and Bayh watch is on every political radar screen. The first rule of picking a vice-presidential running...

The Heartland supersized Sen. John McCain last night at a ginormous motorcycle rally in Sturgis, S.D. While no one shouted "Free Bird" to McCain while he was speaking -- a pop culture homage to Lynyrd Skynyrd whose 2008 version of the band is playing at the rally -- the Republican presumptive nominee did call attention to the larger than normal size of his crowd: "As you may know, not long ago, a couple hundred thousand Berliners made a lot of noise for my opponent. I'll take the roar of 50,000 Harleys any day."

An old political adage says, "He who sets the debate wins the election." If the presidential election was held tomorrow, it would be hello President Barack Obama because, so far, John McCain is handing him a victory. McCain is better than the campaign he has run so far. Most people admit that McCain is an inspirational figure -- even Obama has admitted that -- so why isn't McCain telling voters where he wants to lead them?

Vote Both the passionate group devoted to nudging Barack Obama to pick one-time fierce rival Hillary Clinton as his vice presidential running mate is over. Organizers Adam Parkhomenko and Sam Arora said they were ending their effort since all indications are Hillary would not be Obama’s number two. "Because it seems that Senator Obama has made his decision to offer the slot on the ticket to another candidate, we believe that continuing to ask him to pick Hillary is no longer helpful to our party's chances of winning in November," they posted on their website. The writing on the wall...

In case you One of these things is not like the otherdidn't know this, the presumptive Democratic nominee Sen. Barack Obama, is black. Which makes him just like the old Sesame Street comparison ditty, "one of these things is not like the other." He is unlike any other presumptive nominee that we have ever had in American history. If you are not convinced, just line him up next to every presumptive nominee for any major party in American electoral elections, he is still black and they are all still white.

Sen. John McCain's presidential campaign released its latest television ad today entitled "Celeb." The ad takes a swipe at the perception that Sen. Barack Obama is "the biggest celebrity in the world" because of his much covered Middle-East/European tour last week. The ad opens with a huge crowd screaming "O-Bama! O-Bama!" then flashes images of Britney Spears, Paris Hilton and Obama -- not together and by the way not very subliminal lining him up with the Britney and Paris celebrity train wrecks) -- hitting the screen with the announcer proclaiming that "Barack Obama is the biggest celebrity in the world."...

Has Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine's chances of landing the coveted spot as Obama's Veep risen? According to stories at both The Politico and the Washington Post Kaine has risen to the level of serious contender, along with Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh and Delaware Sen. Joe Biden. The WaPo story has close Kaine associates acknowledging that Kaine has told them that he has had "very serious" conversations with Obama about joining the ticket.

The Sen. Barack Obama campaign held a conference call this morning on one of the key battleground states in this race: Pennsylvania. Team O, led by Gov. Ed Rendell, stressed the importance of registering and winning over the one-million-plus, un-registered voters spread out over the Keystone State.

It's complicated. Pennsylvania is a "purple" state that must go Democrat blue instead of Republican red for Barack Obama to win the November election. John McCain does not need Pennsylvania to win the White House, but Obama sure does.

The Sen. John McCain campaign launched a new Web video titled "Obama Love" that takes a swipe at the perceived media bias towards Barack Obama. According to the campaign e-mail, the video "highlights the media's love affair with Barack Obama -- or as MSNBC's Chris Matthews says, that thrill going up my leg." Played to the tune of Frankie Valli's "Can't take my eyes off of you" -- one of Valli's most popular songs. Perhaps, it will turn out to be a hit for McCain as well.

Tonight ABC aired their interview with Sen. Barack Obama with correspondent Terry Moran conducting; here is a clip of the segment that ran on ABC's World News Tonight: Moran: If you had to do it over again, knowing what you know now, would you support the surge? Obama: No. Because, keep in mind that -- Moran: You wouldn't?

The New York Times really has a peculiar relationship with Sen. John McCain. They began the year by endorsing him for the Republican nomination but the love didn't last long -- weeks later they headlined with a controversial story saying that McCain had engaged in an extra-martial affair with a lobbyist. What made that story worse is that they led it with the premise that McCain had an inappropriate affair with lobbyist Vicki Iseman nine years ago but they failed to back that up in the story. The story was loaded with innuendo, unnamed sources and a resurrection of the...

Carrie James regional press secretary over at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) sent a reminder to reporters that their little cash fund is flush with more than six times the amount of cash on hand that the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) has.

“The Appalachian voting bloc will be critical in the … 2008 presidential election,” former Democratic National Committee executive director Mark Siegel says. Yet his broad statement comes with its own geopolitical caveat: location. “It all depends on what part of Appalachia you are talking about,” says Siegel. “If they live in Pennsylvania and Ohio, then, yes, without a doubt they are the key voters. If they live in West Virginia, then no, because for the Democrats that is not a state that is in play.” Appalachia is not a single state but a region that has its own unique frame...

Oops, he said it again, Sen. John McCain that is, when referencing the "Czech Republic." McCain called the eastern European country Czechoslovakia today in New Mexico, as reported by Ben Smith at Politico, after blundering that same reference earlier. Perhaps McCain should stick to the script of the Bill Murray pop culture movie "Stripes" and just call it Wisconsin.

As Sen. Barack Obama beefs up his national security and foreign policy creds with a speech today on Iraq and Afghanistan -- his campaign Web site purged his former views critical of the surge in Iraq. The Daily News is reporting that Obama's campaign scrubbed his presidential Web site over the weekend to remove criticism of the U.S. troop 'surge' in Iraq. The Daily News reports that the "presumed Democratic nominee replaced his Iraq issue Web page, which had described the surge as a 'problem' that had barely reduced violence." Obama's old plan stated that the 'surge is not working.'...

Last time I checked the calendar, it was still not 6/6/6 -- which means we're more than a month shy of the apocalypse. Yet when you see the political left and right coalesce on anything having to do with the White House, you're left to wonder: What could cause such an event of biblical proportions? Two words: Tony Snow. Snow is the Bush administration's new press secretary. So let the gravitas flow freely: Apparently one man is seen as worthy -- and, get this, from both sides of the aisle.

Drawing the sharpest distinctions yet between himself and the man he hopes to replace, Sen. John McCain said Tuesday his presidency would focus on climate change issues, reducing federal spending, closing the Guantanamo Bay detention center and eliminating torture by the U.S. government. In a meeting with the Tribune-Review's editorial board, McCain, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, said "spending got out of control" under the Bush administration. He blamed Congress for pushing spending and the administration for failing to halt it.

Sen. Barack Obama did patriotism yesterday, today it is faith and by the end of the day both speeches will have been done in back-to-back states that swing: Missouri and Ohio. The Obama campaign said the Illinois senator plans to go to Zanesville, located in eastern Ohio, to visit a church program that provides food and clothing assistance to those in need.

DURAGI, Afghanistan -- Early morning, and 14 U.S. soldiers stand in a semi-circle for a mission briefing. Four Humvees, engines running, rumble beside them. "We're going to Warshallah today," Army Capt. Sam Karr, 28, of Manhattan, Kan., tells his platoon. "I guess it has, like, 200 bad guys in it. That's nothing, dudes -- we've got 14, so we're good."

By all accounts, Barack Obama should win this election. He and his brand control the image, the message and, to a large extent, the media of this election cycle. Yes, the media. He has enough money to buy ads every day from now to election day, glossy magazines cannot wait to put his image on their covers, Hollywood types are so smitten that they wear his image on their clothing and YouTube is bursting at the seams with homages to him. It is definitely his to win -- or to lose. It all hinges on two things: likability and character.

Sen. Barack Obama began a panel discussion at Carnegie Mellon University this morning with a bunch of really smart panelists from MIT, General Motors, AOL and the SEIU. Today marks Obama's first visit to the Steel City since April 21, the eve of the Pennsylvania primary; Obama won the city of Pittsburgh proper in the spring primary, but not the state.

Who knew that newbie Democrat congressman Jason Altmire (4th District) and Republican congressman Tim Murphy (18th District) would ever "town hall" together? The reason there are no answers is because there were none to be found. Today Murphy and Altmire sent out a news release announcing that they would host two joint town hall meetings together:

Last Friday, Newsweek released a poll that had Sen. Barack Obama up 15 points over Sen. John McCain. Today, the LA Times along with Bloomberg released their poll showing Obama up, you guessed it, 15 points over the presumptive Republican nominee. The LA Times/Bloomberg polling data shows in a four-way race that Obama is over McCain 48 percent to 33 percent with independent candidates Bob Barr and Ralph Nader holding a combination of 7 percentage points and the rest are undecided. In a two-way race, Obama's lead narrows only slightly to 12 percentage points. University of Virginia political science professor...

Move-On.org is taking a firm stand on a campaign promise that Barack Obama made that said he would filibuster any wiretapping bill that had retroactive immunity for telecommunications companies that let the feds listen in on. MoveOn says in the letter “We need him to honor that promise.” The posting urges supporters to tell Obama how they feel by calling his presidential campaign to let him know that “you’re counting on him to keep his word.” Last Friday Obama announced his support for the intelligence surveillance law that is highly unpopular with most left activists; the money, momentum and votes...

Shades of Dukakis, Obama up 15 THE PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW BY: Salena Zito In May of 1988 after all of the Democratic primaries ended presumptive nominee Michael Dukakis enjoyed a 54 to 38 percent lead over then Ronald Reagan wing man George H.W. Bush. H.W. went on to win in that November handily This evening a new Newsweek poll shows Obama having a giant lead, from 51 percent to 36 percent, over McCain among registered voters across the country. Obama got his bounce, Dukakis style.

Hey, swing state Florida, I will not offshore drill The Sen. Barack Obama press machine issued this statement that Obama will deliver at his media avail this afternoon, in which he pledges (where have we heard that word before?) to keep the federal moratorium against offshore drilling in place: "When I am president, I will keep the moratorium in place and prevent oil companies from drilling off Florida's coasts," the statement reads. "That's how we can protect our coasts and still make the investments that will reduce our dependence on foreign oil and bring down gas prices for good."

Bill and Jill Bill Burton, communications director extraordinaire for the Obama campaign reached out and touched someone today on the McCain campaign: his counterpart, Jill Hazelbaker. Here is the content of the email he sent out to reporters before the McCain conference call: “Jill – hope you’re well. We’d like to add our campaign counsel, Bob Bauer to your conference call with Trevor Potter so that we can arbitrate some of the disagreements that the two of them have over the meeting they recently had. If you can please shoot me the dial-in, Bob is available to join for the...

Congressman Altmire hearts McCain PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW By Salena Zito Rep. Jason Altmire, whose congressional district went overwhelmingly for Sen. Hillary Clinton in the six-week primary that was Pennsylvania, kind of likes Republican presumptive nominee Sen. John McCain’s proposal to invest in nuclear energy and clean coal. Here is the statement that he released today on McCain’s proposal to construct 45 nuclear reactors by 2030 and spend $2 billion a year in federal funding on clean coal. “I have always been a strong supporter of nuclear energy and clean coal technology, and I welcome Senator McCain’s announcement today that he is...

Obama gets his bounce Posted June 18, 2008 8 :57 AM The Quinnipiac University poll released this morning shows Sen. Barack Obama ahead of Sen. John McCain in three critical battleground states: Pennsylvania -- Obama 52 percent, McCain 40 percent Ohio -- Obama 48 percent, McCain 42 percent Florida -- Obama 47 percent, McCain 43 percent These numbers finally give Obama the bounce that he and his team were looking for since Sen. Hillary Clinton left the race. Historically, Florida, Ohio and Pennsylvania have been "must win" states for the competing candidates in the general election -- the poll today...