Politirazzi

By Kim

Tensions rise at the Asylum as vice presidential hopefuls Gov. Bobby Jindal, Gov. Charlie Crist and Mitt Romney fight to look the least Democratic while eating calamari. “Your sweatshirt is a nice shade of green, senator,” remarks Romney, “Brooks Brothers?” McCain lets out a sigh at Mitt’s unabashed pandering that makes even him cringe.

“So, Bobby,” McCain turns to his left, “I can’t believe they had steak on the kids' menu!” Jindal rolls his eyes and turns up his iPod. Forty years of a generation gap will not be filled so easily.

McCain looks awkwardly around and meets the gaze of Crist. He holds out his plate and asks, “Charlie, can you serve me Florida?”

HILLARY would loan more to campaign

Sen. Hillary Clinton is “willing” to lend her presidential campaign more money if necessary, her campaign chairman said yesterday on “Meet the Press.” When asked whether the Clinton camp would repay all the debts, Terry McAuliffe answered, “We plan on it.” To date, the former first lady has lent about $11 million to her cause, with the campaign $20 million in debt, according to CNN.

JENNA married by Obama supporter

President Bush’s daughter, Jenna, wed longtime boyfriend Henry Hager this past weekend with an endorser of Sen. Barack Obama officiating, the Huffington Post reports. The Rev. Kirbyjon Caldwell, adviser to President Bush and pastor of the Windsor Village United Methodist Church, had endorsed Obama in January, saying the Illinois lawmaker “would do a wonderful job to bring people together,” according to the Associated Press.

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JOHN calls Obama insensitive to poor

GOP presidential candidate Sen. John McCain yesterday in Coral Gables, Fla., called Democratic rival Sen. Barack Obama insensitive to poor people and out of touch on economic issues. The GOP nominee-in-waiting rapped his Democratic rival for opposing his idea to suspend the tax on fuel during the summer, a proposal that McCain believes will particularly help low-income people who usually have older cars that guzzle more gas. (AP)

ELIZABETH slams media’s ‘CliffsNotes’

Elizabeth Edwards, wife to former Democratic candidate John, spoke out against mainstream media yesterday in a New York Times op-ed, saying reporters’ coverage of the presidential race can be likened to CliffsNotes. “Well, the rancor of the campaign was covered. ... The information about the candidates’ priorities, policies and principles — information that voters will need to choose the next president — too often did not make the cut,” Edwards wrote.

KARL offers up advice to Obama

Karl Rove, former White House chief counsel to President Bush, offered up words of wisdom to Obama on the campaign trail in this week’s edition of Newsweek, saying the communities the Illinois senator lost in Pennsylvania could lead a Republican to be elected in the fall. Among Rove’s six suggestions are: Come up with a fresh speech topic and concentrate your Senate responsibilities to solidify your position on an issue.

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JOHN pleads to GOP to drop N.C. ad

An ad slated to hit North Carolinian televisions is targeting Democratic candidates for the governor seat and evoking Sen. Barack Obama and the controversial Rev. Jeremiah Wright. Well, Sen. John McCain won’t have it. The Republican candidate wrote a letter to the state GOP, requesting that the ad be pulled. It “degrades our civics and distracts us from the very real differences we have with the Demo-crats,” he wrote.

Here's the ad:

HILLARY grabs a superdelegate vote

A Tennessee politician and superdelegate announced yesterday he supports Sen. Hillary Clinton for president, according to CNN. Rep. John Tanner — one of 700 superdelegates whose prized votes are likely to decide the Democratic contest — said, “Hillary is a smart, pragmatic leader who understands the grave situation our country faces with a $9 trillion debt, much of which is borrowed from foreign countries.”

Pa. students play hooky, meet BARACK

Two Scranton, Pa., students were suspended this week for skipping class and meeting Obama. Colin Saltry and Joey Daniel, both high school seniors, cut their gym class to catch Obama at a local diner. The Democratic hopeful even signed excuse slips for the boys’ teachers, according to The Hill.com, but to no avail. They received one-day suspensions.

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BARACK: Mac would be better than Bush

Sen. Barack Obama yesterday put aside past comments likening Sen. John McCain to President Bush, according to the Associated Press. “You have a real choice in this election. Either Democrat would be better than John McCain,” Obama said in Reading, Pa. “And all three of us would be better than George Bush.”

HILLARY calls out Obama as negative

Sen. Hillary Clinton yesterday in Bethlehem, Pa., implied Obama’s campaign tactics are increasingly negative, a New York Times blog reports. “It’s no wonder my opponent has been so negative these last few days of this campaign,” Clinton said. “I think you saw the difference between us. ... While my opponent does one thing and his campaign does another, you can count on me to tell you where I stand.”

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JOHN faces funding lawsuit from DNC

The Democratic National Committee plans to file a lawsuit today urging the Federal Election Commission to probe whether Sen. John McCain violated election laws by withdrawing from a funds-matching program. The suit, to be filed in the U.S. District Court in Washington, contends McCain needed permission from the FEC to pull out from the program and that the Arizona senator is breaking the law “every day” by exceeding spending limits set by the program, according to TheHill.com.

HILLARY passing out ‘bitter’ stickers

Hitting North Carolina are “I’m not bitter!” stickers, which appear to have been handed out at events led by former President Bill Clinton, according to MSNBC. The stickers, a reference to Sen. Barack Obama’s controversial comments about small-town Americans, were thought up by a Clinton campaign volunteer, said the North Carolina campaign, which yesterday took responsibility for them.

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