Obama Begins 11-Day Tour on Economic Issues

Economy Establishes Itself as No. 1 Campaign Issue

By JAKE TAPPER

Just as Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama break from the starting gate in their race for the White House, zooming oil prices and unemployment rates are highlighting the economy as the nation's No. 1 campaign issue.

Obama, who has eliminated Sen. Hillary Clinton as his last challenger for the Democratic nomination, today launched an 11-day campaign tour, starting in Raleigh, N.C., with a bareknuckle attack on his Republican rival.

Obama ticked off a litany of economic woes: last week's gas price spike, a jump in unemployment figures, 320,000 U.S. jobs lost since January, along with the rising cost of food, health care and tuition.

He complimented McCain as a war hero who has shown some independence from President Bush on certain issues, but the economy is not one of those issues, Obama said.

"The centerpiece of his economic plan amounts to a full-throated endorsement of George Bush's policies," Obama declared, citing his support of Bush's tax cuts -- cuts that he notes McCain once opposed.

Obama ridiculed as "outrageous" McCain's support for corporate tax relief which he said would give $1.2 billion in tax cuts to Exxon/Mobile, "a company that just recorded the highest profits in history."

And the Democratic presidential candidate highlighted McCain's reluctance to help homeowners threatened by foreclosure, saying, "McCain wants to turn Bush's policy of 'too little, too late' into a policy of 'even less, even later.'"

Obama's own proposals include a second round of rebate checks that would amount to $50 billion "to help those who've been hit hardest by this economic downturn."

From : abcnews

 

Euro 2008: Austria lose with honour to Croatia

By Steve Wilson and agencies
Austria (0) 0 Croatia (1) 1

Predictions of humiliation for Austria proved wide of the mark in their opening game with Croatia in Vienna, though Slaven Bilic's side still emerged with all three points despite an almighty scare.

The mood of pessimism had been such that over 10,000 Austrians had signed a petition to withdraw from the competition, the team having won just twice in their last 16 matches.

Another defeat duly arrived after Luka Modric converted a fourth minute penalty, but one with credit from a spirited performance that deserved more.

Croatia started the match in fine style, dictating play and opening up Austria at will but, missing an out and out goalscorer failed to hammer home their advantage.

Complacency, too, seemed to set it, such was their evident superiority and Austria regrouped and fought their way back in to the match.

The final 15 minutes saw Austria lay siege to the Croatia goal but to no avail. The decisive moment of the match came minutes after Croatia's noisy supporters had taken their seats after the anthems.

Ivica Olic chased a hopeful ball towards the byline where he was clumsily brought down by Rene Aufhauser. Middlesbrough's Emmanuel Pogatetz was booked for protesting against the decision but there was no element of doubt.

Modric converted the spot kick straight down the middle. The goal preceded a period of neat-passing from the Croatians and Olic and Mladen Petric both went close to a second after a dangerous low Darijo Srna free kick, before Petric, unmarked in the area, blasted wide after a deep cross from Vedran Corluka.

Austria looked shell-shocked by the early setback and only late in the half did they build any sort of attacking pressure, their best effort coming when Joachim Standfest steered a header just over the bar.

The home side were more positive after the break, pinning Croatia back for long periods and swinging in some dangerous crosses. But a poor final ball too often let them down.

The introduction of veteran Umit Korkmaz for the last 20 minutes added some bite to the Austrian attack as they built to a rousing finale, but Croatia held out.

From: telegraph

Obama Clinches Nomination; First Black Candidate to Lead a Major Party Ticket

By JEFF ZELENY

Senator Barack Obama claimed the Democratic presidential nomination on Tuesday evening, prevailing through an epic battle with Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton in a primary campaign that inspired millions of voters from every corner of America to demand change in Washington.

A last-minute rush of Democratic superdelegates, as well as the results from the final primaries, in Montana and South Dakota, pushed Mr. Obama over the threshold of winning the 2,118 delegates needed to be nominated at the party’s convention in August. The victory for Mr. Obama, the son of a black Kenyan father and a white Kansan mother, broke racial barriers and represented a remarkable rise for a man who just four years ago served in the Illinois Senate.

“Tonight, we mark the end of one historic journey with the beginning of another — a journey that will bring a new and better day to America,” Mr. Obama told supporters at a rally in St. Paul. “Because of you, tonight I can stand here and say that I will be the Democratic nominee for president of the United States of America.”

In a speech to supporters in New York City, Mrs. Clinton paid tribute to Mr. Obama, but she did not leave the race. In a speech more defiant than conciliatory, she again presented her case that she was the stronger candidate and argued that she had won the popular vote, a notion disputed by the Obama campaign.

“I want the nearly 18 million Americans who voted for me to be respected,” Mrs. Clinton told supporters. But she paid homage to Mr. Obama’s accomplishments, saying, “It has been an honor to contest the primaries with him, just as it is an honor to call him my friend.”

Mr. Obama and Mrs. Clinton talked early Wednesday morning by telephone. He congratulated her and renewed his offer to "sit down when it makes sense for you," according to a spokesman for Mr. Obama, Robert Gibbs.

Mrs. Clinton responded positively, Mr. Gibbs said, but added: "There are no plans to meet tomorrow."

Mr. Obama’s victory moved the presidential campaign to a new phase as he tangled with Senator John McCain of Arizona in televised addresses Tuesday night over Mr. Obama’s assertion that Mr. McCain would carry on President Bush’s policies. Mr. McCain vigorously rebuffed that criticism in a speech in Kenner, La., in which he distanced himself from the departing president while contrasting his own breadth of experience with Mr. Obama’s record.

“The American people didn’t get to know me yesterday, as they are just getting to know Senator Obama,” Mr. McCain told supporters.

Mr. Obama’s triumph closed a 16-month primary campaign that broke records on several fronts: the number of voters who participated, the amount of money raised and spent and the sheer length of the fight. The campaign, infused by tensions over race and gender, provided unexpected twists to the end as Mr. Obama ultimately prevailed over Mrs. Clinton, who just a year ago appeared headed toward becoming the first female presidential nominee of a major party.

The last two primaries reflected the party’s continuing divisions, as Mrs. Clinton won the South Dakota contest and Mr. Obama won Montana.

The race drew to its final hours with a burst of announcements — delegate by delegate — of Democrats stepping forward to declare their support for Mr. Obama. The Democratic establishment, from former President Jimmy Carter to rank-and-file local officials who make up the party’s superdelegates, rallied behind Mr. Obama as the day wore on.

When the day began, Mr. Obama needed 41 delegates to effectively claim the nomination. By the time the polls closed in Montana and South Dakota, Mr. Obama had secured the delegates he needed to end his duel with Mrs. Clinton, which wound through every state and territory in an unprecedented 57 contests over five months.

Every time a new endorsement was announced at the Obama headquarters in Chicago, campaign workers interrupted with a booming round of applause, followed by popping Champagne corks later in the evening. The aides are members of Mr. Obama’s team — a political start-up — that is responsible for defeating one of the most tried and tested teams in Democratic politics.

While the Democratic race may have ended, a new chapter began in the complicated tensions that have defined the relationship between Mr. Obama and Mrs. Clinton. On a conference call with members of the New York Congressional delegation on Tuesday, Mrs. Clinton was asked whether she would be open to joining a ticket with Mr. Obama. She replied that she would do whatever she could — including a vice-presidential bid — to help Democrats win the White House.

Barack Obama

Biography
Full Name: Barack Hussein Obama Jr.
Party: Democratic
Political Office: U.S. Senator from Illinois, elected 2004; member, Illinois State Senate 1997-2004
Business/Professional Experience: Attorney, law firm of Miner Barnhill & Galland (Chicago, IL), 1993-2004
Date of Birth: August 4, 1961
Place of Birth: Honolulu, Hawaii
Home: Chicago, Ill.
Education: B.A. Columbia University 1983; J.D. Harvard Law, 1991
Spouse: married Michelle Robinson, 1992
Children: daughter Malia, born 1999; daughter Natasha, born 2001
Religion: United Church of Christ
Home: Chicago, Ill.
Campaign Web Site: barackobama.com
Books

By Barack Obama: The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream [2006]; Dreams from my Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance [1995]

About: Hopes and Dreams: The Story of Barack Obama, by Steve Dougherty [2007]

From: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/04/us/politics/04elect.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
and http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/o/barack_obama/index.html

Volcano erupts in Indonesia

Agence France-Presse
JAKARTA - A volcano erupted on Indonesia's Sulawesi island Friday, spewing smoke and sending heat clouds of debris down its slopes, a volcanologist said.

Mount Soputan in North Sulawesi started to erupt this morning at around 9:59 am (0159 GMT), sending heat clouds as far as four kilometers (2.5 miles) and throwing ash two kilometers into the air, Agus Budianto from the volcanology office told AFP.

"The eruption is still going on," he said.

There was no order to evacuate as the nearest village was eight kilometers away on the western side, but people had been warned not to come within six kilometers of the mountain.

Soputan, one of Sulawesi's most active volcanoes, last erupted in 2004 when lava oozed down its southwest slope. No fatalities were recorded.

From : abs-cbnnews