Obama Flips 'Elitist' Tag Onto McCain

Obama added middle-class whites in winning coalition, author writes

(NEWSER) - New York celebrated Tuesday night, cheers ringing through Manhattan. “The last time a stranger hugged me on the street was September 11, 2001,” author Jay McInerney writes in the Independent, hailing the broadened coalition that made Barack Obama’s victory possible. “This moment feels like the obverse of that. … After 8 long, dark years, we feel that history is with us again.” More»

The '08 version redrew the political map and ruptured the financing system, and more

(NEWSER) - We can't be sure what kind of change the next president will bring, but we do know that presidential campaigns themselves will never be the same, writes Gerald F. Seib in the Wall Street Journal. Among this year’s innovations:

• The campaigns have redrawn the political map, making previously locked states competitive, like Virginia, and placing increasing emphasis on the Mountain West.

Senator digs into territory Bush largely carried in 2004

(NEWSER) - John McCain’s campaign map for the next few days puts him on the defensive, touring mostly states that President Bush won in 2004, Politico reports. Tomorrow’s schedule puts him in Florida, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Indiana, New Mexico, Nevada, and Arizona, all Bush states except the Keystone State. Meanwhile, Barack Obama is also sticking to red states, breaking out of traditional Democratic ground. More»

Obama leads, but both teams are playing hardball

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama has led in the last 11 Ohio polls, but the battle for the all-important state is intensifying as Republicans make a last-minute get-out-the-vote sweep. Early voting has leaned Obama’s way, but Republicans—who don't see a clear path to the White House without victory here—say that means little. Salon and the Wall Street Journal look at the battle for Ohio. More»

Financial crisis hits US wealthiest hard, reduces inequalities

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama and John McCain have sparred over the country’s income gap, but that gap is shrinking rapidly, Robert Frank writes in the Wall Street Journal. Financial crises always knock the rich down a peg, and this one is no different. One economist predicts the top 1%’s share of all income will fall to 18-19% during the next year, down from 23-24% last year. More»