Wednesday, August 27th, 2008

Following Democrat Barack Obama’s announcement that he had chosen Joe Biden as his running mate, Republican candidate John McCain released an ad attacking Obama for not choosing former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton (video below). The ad uses Sen. Clinton’s own words to attack Sen. Obama. McCain is attempting to attract former Clinton supporters unhappy with the outcome of the Democratic primaries. Many Clinton supporters are worried that Obama lacks the experience necessary to be president, even holding an opposition event in Denver to unite McCain and Clinton supporters against Obama.

Hillary Clinton spoke last night at the Democratic National Convention (video below). She addressed the crowd calling for party unity behind Democrat Barack Obama saying, “Whether you voted for me, or voted for Barack, the time is now to unite as a single party with a single purpose.”

Gallup is reporting that Clinton has a high approval rating among Democrats at 80 percent. “While some Clinton supporters have yet to fall in line and support Obama for president, for the most part they have a positive opinion of Obama (as well as a largely negative view of McCain). So it is still not out of the question that they will come home by Election Day. But it is important to note that unifying the party is not a challenge unique to the Democratic Party, as many Republican supporters who are not enthusiastic about McCain have yet to return to the GOP fold.”

College professors and other educators gave over 2.3 million in June and July to the Obama campaign, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics.

“Nine of Obama’s top 25 contributors—based on contributions from employees and their families—are universities: University of California, Harvard, Columbia, Stanford, University of Michigan, Georgetown, University of Chicago, University of Washington and University of Pennsylvania” read OpenSecrets.org, the CRP web site.

Educators have donated $9,904,359 to Obama in the 2008 election cycle, according to Federal Election Commission data released Aug 20. For a full chart of donations click here.

The McCain campaign has raised $1,166,684 from educators, according to FEC data presented on OpenSecrets.org

The Obama campaign sent a press release this morning saying that Sen. Barack Obama and running mate Sen. Joe Biden would visit Pennsylvania after the DNC.

The full release:

*** MEDIA ADVISORY***

OBAMA/BIDEN CAMPAIGN ANNOUNCES “ON THE ROAD TO CHANGE” BATTLEGROUND
STATE BUS TOUR

Tour Through PA, OH, and MI will be First Joint Bus Tour For Democratic
Nominees

Chicago, IL - Today, the Obama campaign announced that United States
Senators Barack Obama and Joe Biden will kick off a battleground state
tour dubbed “On the Road to Change” following the Democratic National
Convention. Senator Obama, Senator Joe Biden, Michelle Obama and Dr.
Jill Biden will depart Denver Friday for Pennsylvania, the first stop on
the bus tour. The “On the Road to Change” tour will make stops in
Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan, and will mark Obama and Biden’s first
campaign tour as the Democratic nominees.  Obama and Biden will meet
with voters to discuss America’s economic challenges and the Obama/Biden
blueprint for change.

Additional details will be announced as soon as they become available.

###

Are you following the DNC this week? Do you think Denver is a little too far away for you to get political? Kick off your holiday weekend this Friday at Tritone and watch The Shondes tackle some of the issues everyone’s talking about!

The Brooklyn quartet has been receiving a lot of hype since their record “The Red Sea” was released earlier this year. Check out what the media is saying about The Shondes:

“…a band bent on putting politics back in punk. Just a year out from their union in college, the foursome caught the crest of a foamy blogger-hype wave without so much as a single pressed.“ – SPIN

“Are The Shondes the next Sleater-Kinney?” – VH1 Best Week Ever Blog

“Seamlessly fusing art and politics.” – Punk Planet

“…an album rich in saw-tooth guitars, pummeling rhythms and an undeniably anthemic spirit. It’s haunting and it’s eerie, yet it’s rousing. The Shondes are a twisted carnival film noir come true.” – CMJ

Look out for a follow-up post filled with photos and video from the show. Hope to see you there!

The Shondes-Tritone (1508 South Street)-Aug. 29-10 pm-$7-21+

***Photo courtesy Fanatic Promotion