Clinton testy about Obama’s mailings
CINCINNATI — Hillary Rodham Clinton angrily accused her Democratic rival Saturday of deliberately misrepresenting her positions on NAFTA and health care in mass mailings to voters, adding, “Shame on you, Barack Obama.”
Clutching two of Obama’s campaign mailings in her hand for emphasis, the former first lady said, “Enough with the speeches and the big rallies and then using tactics that are right out of Karl Rove’s playbook.”
Obama defended the mailings as accurate and rejected Clinton’s complaint as a political ploy. He said that despite her current criticism of NAFTA, she supported the trade agreement when it passed during her husband’s administration.
“You can’t be for something and take credit for an administration . . . and then when you run for president say that you didn’t really mean what you said way back then. It doesn’t work like that,” he said in Akron.
McCain emphasizes states’ rights
WASHINGTON — Likely Republican presidential nominee John McCain assured GOP governors Saturday that he is a staunch backer of states’ rights, furthering his efforts to reach out to all parts of the party.
“I’m a federalist,” the Arizona senator said, emphasizing a division of power between the federal and state governments. “Only the things that the states can’t do should the federal government do. . . . Governments matter,” he said. “I want to work with you so we can keep more of the money in your state, and that means further tax cuts if necessary.”
However, he said at a Republican Governors Association dinner that some issues remain federal responsibilities, including border security.
Turnout befuddles Nevada
LAS VEGAS — The hectic scramble for Democratic delegates played out at Nevada Democrats’ county conventions Saturday, where a surge of turnout overwhelmed southern Nevada party leaders and forced them to shut down the convention before completing the vote.
About 10,000 people showed up in Las Vegas for the Clark County Convention, the largest of the 17 county meetings held Saturday. That’s roughly 2,000 more than party officials expected.
County conventions are the second step toward divvying up Nevada’s 25 pledged delegates to the Democratic National Convention. No date for the new vote was set immediately.
