TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

OREGON MEASURE 65

• Oregon is not Washington (Jeff Mapes, The Oregonian) Oregon voters just slam-dunked a measure that would adopt a "top two" primary like the one that Washington voters eagerly embraced and that finally went into effect this year.
• Poor timing for open primaries (by The Oregonian Editorial Board) Second, it failed because of dirty union politics. The unions did their best to kill this measure and retain their grip on Democratic candidates. The Oregon Education Association, for example, sent out a false and misleading mailer smearing Measure 65 as a Bill Sizemore initiative.

CAMPAIGN SAMPLER

• State's 11 electoral votes go to McCain (The Leaf Chronicle - Clarksville TN) Exit polls showed that McCain's victory hinged on carrying two out of three independent voters. Independents make up about a third of voters in the state.
• Analysts say it's premature to paint state map blue or red for one big reason: independent voters (Rocky Mountain News) "This still remains a tentative and conditional grant of power by at least a third of the electorate," said political analyst Floyd Ciruli, pointing to the dominant force in Colorado politics: independent voters.
• State Gives Hawaii-Born Obama Overwhelming Vote (KITV Honolulu) Obama easily held his Democratic base, while taking about seven in 10 independent voters, who made up a third of the electorate.
• Across Florida, presidential voters make a shift to the blue (Southwest FL Herald Tribune) Obama scored votes in the important Interstate 4 corridor, an area known for large numbers of independent voters.
• Independents tip the scales for Obama win in New Hampshire (Union Leader) As they did nationally, Democrats in New Hampshire coalesced behind Obama not long after the bitter primary battle. As independent voters flocked to his corner, McCain was left primarily with the hard-core Republican faithful.
• Volunteers help Obama carry Virginia - Network of poll workers, door knockers descends on exurbs (Baltimore Sun)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

INDEPENDENT VOTERS
Have the party without me (Houma Today/The Courier - Houma, LA) None of those things influenced my decision more than two decades ago to shun established political parties and register as an independent voter. I did it because I’m more interested in common-sense, practical solutions to problems facing our community, state and nation than I am about political ideology and partisanship. Anyway, I didn’t want to be a part of two clubs that, for my tastes, are more concerned about their own self interests and payback for friends, campaign contributors and other well-connected people and businesses than they are about the common welfare.

THE LATEST ON OREGON MEASURE 65

• Changes to primary aren't a priority now (Salem Statesman Journal) Don't miss the comments!
• Still confused about the ballot measures? (Kari Chisholm, Editor, BlueOregon) Confused? Undecided? Here's a HINT: The choice comes down to whether you want the parties or the people to have the power... Vote Yes for the People.

CAMPAIGN

• Running a Volunteer Operation With a Do-It-Yourself Attitude (NY Times) The Interstate 4 corridor in Florida, an east-west line unusually rich in independent voters, is where the Democratic stronghold of South Florida meets the state’s mostly Republican north.
• Florida Republican Leader Sees a Tougher Challenge This Year (NY Times) some party officials worry that the negative tone alienates independent voters; on the other hand, it has pushed volunteers to great lengths.
• PRESIDENTIAL POLITICS: Poll gives Obama edge - McCain trails by 4 points among likely Nevada voters (Las Vegas Review Journal)
• We Matter. You Don't! (Boston Globe) Last month, Ohio was the hand-wringing center of attention in lengthy stories in The New Yorker, The Washington Post, and this newspaper. The state hosted two days of NPR's Talk of the Nation, and our state capital was the choice for CNN's focus group of independent voters who were asked to weigh in on the second presidential debate.
• Galesburg expected to choose Obama (Galesburg Register Mail) Ward 2 showed a strong win for Obama although there were 15 independent voters compared to only 10 Democrats and nine Republicans.
• Election 2008’s Real Loser Will Be Karl Rove And Rovian Politics (By JOE GANDELMAN, The Moderate Voice) A common thread evident in talking to and reading polls about independent voters and many Americans is this: they are sick of the kind of political base mobilization politics symbolized by former Bush political maven Karl Rove.

BLOOMBERG/TERM LIMITS
Public to Give Mayor Earful on 3rd Term (NY Times) And don't miss Lenora Fulani speaking about this pivotal moment...

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

OREGON MEASURE 65
http://voteyes65.com/

• Ballot Measure 65: Vote “Yes” (Pioneer Log)
• Ballot Measure 65: Vote “No” (Pioneer Log) the primaries under 65 will simply be an earlier general election, and Nov 4 will just be a round two.
• Guest column: Everyone votes under Measure 65 (News Review Today) Every two years, independents (or non-affiliated) voters help pay for the primary election across Oregon, yet are excluded from voting for the candidates on partisan ballots. If the political parties want to exclude people from the ballot, then the political parties should pay for their private primaries themselves.

CAMPAIGN

• As Americans Vote, the World Holds Its Breath (Utne Reader) Every time Obama talked about restoring America’s standing in the world during those debates, that little CNN widget tracking independent voters’ sentiments spiked.
• The Coming Republican Minority (Marc Ambinder/The Atlantic) while an even larger majority of all voters say the RP should move to the "center to win over moderate and independent voters.

NEW YORK POLITICS/INDEPENDENCE PARTY
GOP gets help from Independence Party (Newsday) Records show New York's Republican Senate Campaign Committee gave $230,000 this month to the Independence Party, the state's largest minor party, for its help in trying to keep the Republicans' last power base in state government. NOTE: Frank MacKay is playing a dangerous game of selling independent votes to the highest bidder.


LAST WORD
Who Are You Voting for - and Why? (Washington Post) Check out this Seesmic interactive post!!

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

OREGON MEASURE 65

• School union confuses me (West Linn Tidings - OR) I’m content not being a member of a political party, but must admit, it’s frustrating following primary campaigns for months, only to be denied a voter’s right to show my support for a candidate.
• We can either beat challenges facing us or let them beat us (Lake Oswego Review) Stephen Griffith, 62, is the Republican candidate for Oregon House District 38 endorsement for Measure 65
• OEA Asked to Retract M65 Claims (KAJO 1270 AM)

CAMPAIGN

• Can One Party Rule? (Washington Post) Should voters choose Mr. McCain over Democrat Barack Obama so as not to empower the Obama-Reid-Pelosi triumvirate that Mr. McCain paints in such ominous shades? Alternatively, as some down-ballot Republicans are urging, should voters stick with GOP senators or members of Congress to keep a President Obama in check?
• Seeking the Gridlock Vote - Running against Reid, Pelosi and What's-His-Name. (Wall Street Journal)
• The Anatomy Of Republican Cataclysm and Democratic Victory (Huffington Post) One reason the country is turning to Senator Obama is that we believe Senator McCain has sold his soul to the know-nothing lowest common denominator Republican/fundamentalist/far right crowd.
• New Hampshire Poll Released by WMUR UNH: Barack Obama 58%, John McCain 33% (Transworld News) Obama has also widened his lead among independent voters in New Hampshire – 54% of political independents say they favor Obama, 26% favor McCain, 4% prefer some other candidate, and 16% are undecided.
• Domino's Pizza Tracker Poll: Independents Not Necessarily Undecided - Poll of 295,000 pizza-eating voters shows Obama over McCain by big margin (MarketWatch)
• Behind The Numbers: The Latest Polls (Marc Ambinder/The Atlantic) Obama's lead among independent voters in the Zogby track is 16 percentage points.

BLOOMBERG/TERM LIMITS
Opponents of term-limits extension vow to fight on (Newsday)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

OREGON MEASURE 65
Our picks for the statehouse (The Forest Grove News-Times) Anyone looking for a good reason to support Ballot Measure 65, a proposal for open primaries, should take a look at this fall’s four match-ups for the Oregon state legislature in western Washington County.

CAMPAIGN

• Poll shows presidential race too close to call (Arizona Central) Working in McCain's favor, the state has 1.1 million registered Republicans, or about 96,000 more Republicans than Democrats. In Obama's favor, the state has about 824,000 independent voters who are are trending 60 percent to 40 percent for Obama over McCain, according to the poll.
• AP Poll: Colo. Hispanics overwhelmingly back Obama (Examiner) Thirty percent of respondents described themselves as strong or moderate Democrats, 29 percent described themselves as strong or moderate Republicans, and the rest said they were not in either party. Obama led among those independents, 54 percent to 37 percent for McCain.
• McCain Support Continues Downward Spiral -- Obama Leads by 19 Among Those Who Have Already Voted (Pew Research) Independents breaking 48 Obama, 31 McCain
• Linguistic Analysis of Obama/McCain Websites Reveals Missed Opportunities (Press Release) Candidates' websites communicate campaign messages in language that speaks to base - potentially ignores independents.
• Unaffiliated voters might be the key in governor, presidential races (Shelby Star - NC)
• Now all polls show Obama ahead in Ohio (Columbus Dispatch/Road to Washington)
• NYC mayor not backing prez candidate (Newsday)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

INDEPENDENT VOTERS AND OTHERS
Inside Politics "VOTING BLOCKS" (News Channel 5 - Nashville) This week's show focuses on the three voting blocks that are becoming very important this election year: The African American vote, the Hispanic vote, and the young vote. Vanderbilt University professor Omar Ali, political columnist Tim Chavez, and Sarah Hornbuckle from the Student Association for Voter Empowerment will be talking about these three groups, how the Presidential candidates are connecting with them, and whether or not they will show up at the polls on election day. [NOTE: You can also hear Dr. Ali on BlogTalkRadio/Hankster show last Monday "The Future of America" #2]

OREGON MEASURE 65

• Keisling and Paulus Attack Teachers Union Mailer Tying Measure 65 to Sizemore (Willamette Wire) “False, say-anything-to-win, scare tactics have no place in Oregon politics.... We’re trying to open up the political process with Measure 65 so that all voters are treated fairly and equally. Such tactics, especially by Oregon’s largest, most powerful union, illustrate precisely the type of problem that we are trying to solve.”
• OEA: playing guilt by association with Sizemore? (The Oregonian) It sure looks like the Oregon Education Association is using the name of Bill Sizemore - who certainly isn't a favorite of many teachers - to tar all the ballot measures they don't like, including three that aren't actually sponsored by Sizemore.
• The OEA Shows Its True Colors (The Oregonian) Determined to maintain the union stranglehold on Oregon politics, the Oregon Education Association sent out a mailer this week falsely claimed that Measure 65, among others, is one of eight initiatives before Oregon voters this fall bearing Bill Sizemore's brand.
• Keisling calls out OEA on Sizemore mailing (News Radio 1190 KEX)

CAMPAIGN

• Poll: Obama widening lead in Florida (Miami Herald) McCain ''served up red meat for his base, but he starved independents,'' Eldon said. ``McCain has run a base campaign, and it's a race right now that is all about the independent voters.''
• Democrats outnumber Republicans in Neb. county (Fremont Tribune) Republicans still hold a strong advantage statewide. Democrats had 389,728 registered voters as of Tuesday, while Republicans had 556,617. Nearly 194,000 Independent voters are registered in the state.
• Targeted ads key in election battlgrounds (Hollywood Reporter) Speed also had the highest concentration of independent voters in battleground states, with 72%. Other top finishers among independents included CNBC (48%), Travel Channel (44%) and CNN Headline News (33%).
• Powell Endorsement May Sway Undecided Independents (Afro) Michael Fauntroy, an assistant professor of public policy at George Mason University, agrees that Powell’s endorsement will help Obama with independents. “This will help Obama close the case for independent voters, particularly those leaning Republican," Fauntroy said.
• New Jersey Poll Released by Quinnipiac University: Barack Obama 59%, John McCain 36% (Transworld News) Independent voters shift from 47 - 43 percent for McCain to 55 - 38 percent for Obama.
• Ideological Fire Misses the Mark (Washington Post/Behind the Numbers) Back in May, McCain held a nearly 20-point advantage as the one with higher standards among white independent voters - that has now evaporated, with voters in this critical group evenly divided.

BLOOMBERG/TERM LIMITS

• Poll: NYC Voters Oppose Bloomberg’s Third Term (North Country Gazette) independent voters split with 50 percent opposed and 48 percent supporting it; black voters oppose it 62 – 35 percent and Hispanic voters oppose it 53 – 42 percent.
• After term-limit win, NYC mayor faces new fight (Associate Press)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

OREGON MEASURE 65

• Measure 65 debated (John Sowell, News Review Today) It would allow independent voters — those who don’t belong to a political party — the chance to vote in a primary. Plus, it would allow nonaffiliated candidates to run in the primary, rather than waiting until the general election, as is the case now.
• Oregon Ballot Measures 2008: Your Choice is Your Own (Salem-News.com) MEASURE 65: Changes general election nomination processes for major/minor party, independent candidates for most partisan offices. Yes Vote: Candidates from all parties (not just Democrat and Republican) run in a single primary; the top two primary candidates compete in the general election. Open primaries would have an impact on the two party system, giving all voters in primary elections a chance to vote for an individual rather than being restricted to those candidates in their own party. (Note: Washington State just held their first-ever open primary.)
• Measure 65 (Jeff Alworth, BlueOregon) Here's the fascinating thing about this initiative: it has very strong progressive support on both sides.

CAMPAIGN

• Less than 2 weeks to go, polls say Collins, Obama take state (Kennebec Portland Press Herald) Independent voters went for Obama over McCain by 65 percent to 45 percent, the poll found. The margin of error for those figures is higher -- about 8.5 percent -- because the sample size is smaller. Still, Murphy said the margin is significant, because 37 percent of Maine voters are independents.
• The Race Goes to 11 -- Powell Helps with Indies (Washington Post/The Trail) Two in 10 independent voters said they are more inclined to vote for Obama because of Powell's backing; 4 percent said they were nudged the other way.
• Carl Leubsdorf: McCain blew it by steering off course (Dallas Morning News) By going that way, Mr. McCain may have sacrificed his single biggest advantage over his GOP primary rivals – his appeal to independents.
• FOX News Poll: Obama Leads McCain, 49% to 40% (FOXNews.com) Obama's advantage comes mainly from independents, and from the fact that more voters identify themselves as Democrats these days and almost all of them back their party's nominee. Eighty-eight percent of Democrats support Obama, and 83 percent of Republicans back McCain. Independents break 44 percent to 35 percent in Obama's favor.
• Chester County: Pennsylvania’s very own ‘swing state’ (PolitickerPA.com) And in the end, the victor will likely be decided by the county's 48,000 independent voters, who more than make up the difference between Democratic and Republican registrants.
• The Chomsky Sessions: Noam Chomsky on the World (uprisingradio.org) Chomsky suggested voting against McCain and for Obama in battleground states, but without illusions about Obama’s slogans of “change.”
• Florida Focus Group: Independents Break For Obama And Are Anti-Palin (JOE GANDELMAN, The Moderate Voice) What’s striking (and ironic) is that McCain’s political brand has been forged by his stature with independents — and it’s what always made him the strongest Republican to run in this cycle. Conversely, McCain is doing very well with the GOP base in the poll. He’s winning handily among evangelicals, small town/rural voters, and folks in the South.

NEW YORK POLITICS

• New York City Council May Suspend Term Limits on October 23 (Ballot Access News)
• City Council to vote on term limits bill (Newsday)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

CAMPAIGN

• Obama takes 10-point lead on McCain (Reuters) His advantage with independent voters grew to a whopping 27 points from 15 points and his edge with women voters grew to 16 points from 13.
• Poll: Obama opens biggest lead over McCain (NBC News) Obama’s current lead is also fueled by his strength among independent voters (topping McCain 49 to 37 percent), suburban voters (53 to 41), Catholics (50 to 44) and white women (49 to 45).
• Virginians Front and Center (Media General News Service) The videos showcase Republican and Independent voters from Florida, Virginia, Colorado and New Hampshire talking straight to the camera about their reasons for supporting Obama.
• Independent Presidential Candidate Finds Running Mate In Phone Book (Donklephant) Duncan picked up a list of independent voters from next-door Pennsylvania. He proceeded to call voters asking if they wanted to be his VP running mate.
• Could minority women voters, more than Independents, decide this election? (Politics in Color/Latina Lista) a new documentary released by an exciting new organization called Engage Her, reveals that maybe it's not those "Independent" voters who haven't made up their minds that the campaign should be targeting but those registered party voters who fit two criteria: female and minority. NOTE: Why not see this as a critical coalition instead of a rivalry????

OREGON MEASURE 65
'Open primary’ is dangerous (LETTER to Forest Grove News Times) Measure 65 is one of the most dangerous ballot measures in recent memory.

NEW YORK CITY POLITICS

• Poll Finds City Leans No on 3rd Bloomberg Term (NY Times/City Room) In this latest survey, Democrats opposed extending term limits, by 53 percent to 43 percent, as did independent voters, by 50 percent to 48 percent. Republicans supported the idea, 54 percent to 44 percent.
• Tom Golisano Finances Effort to Block Third Term for Bloomberg (Muckety.com) Great map!

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

INDEPENDENT VOTERS
Colin Powell, the Undecided Voter, and the Coin Flip (Beliefnet.com) We're people who feel unrepresented by either party, because our combination of political commitments and our wish-list for changes in government don't match up with the platforms on offer.

OREGON MEASURE 65

• Rick Dancer: Republican (The Register-Guard) supporting measure 65, which would allow independent voters to participate in state primaries
• Open primaries: Two views on Measure 65 (The Oregonian)

CAMPAIGN

• Big turnout for early voting (Steamboat Pilot & Today) Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, said in a news release. “Those margins may be insurmountable barring a reversal that has never been seen before in the modern era in which polling monitors public opinion throughout the campaign. … The key to winning elections in Colorado is independent voters, and Sen. Obama has blown open the race there with his 11-point lead among them.”
• Obama opens 8-point lead over McCain (Reuters) Obama's advantage with independent voters grew from 11 to 15 points, and his edge with women voters grew from 8 to 13 points.
• Borger: A divided GOP hurts McCain (By Gloria Borger, CNN Senior Political Analyst) That's the key indictment, and the key problem, for the GOP. While the political world shifts towards independent voters -- who, by nature, are more about pragmatism than dogma -- the Republican Party remains unable to redefine itself back into a working majority.

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

OPEN PRIMARIES

• Milkovich challenge rejected (KTBS) Milkovich claims independent voters were stopped at some polling places from casting their ballots for democratic candidates.
• Unions pour big bucks into Oregon ballot measure campaigns (The Oregonian) The Oregon Education Assn has contributed $100,000 to the campaign against Measure 65, a proposal for open primary elections.

CAMPAIGN

• Obama has 4-point lead on McCain (Reuters) Obama still enjoyed a 16-point advantage among independent voters, which many analysts expect to be a deciding factor in the November 4 election.
• More than 100,000 cast ballots early in N.C. on first day (Hampton Roads Pilot Online)
• Obama leads among white independents (Politico)
• Obama up 4 points in Florida, new poll shows (Sarasota Herald Tribune) Obama is holding a 53-26 percent edge among independent voters

BLOOMBERG/TERM LIMITS
Bloomberg foes: Turmoil no excuse for 3rd term (Forbes)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

INDEPENDENT VOTERS
COLUMNIST DORREEN YELLOW BIRD: Do American Indians need their own party? (Grand Forks Herald) I smiled to myself when Giago wrote that we should be independent voters, because I always thought I was.

OPEN PRIMARIES

• Milkovich bound for court Friday (Shreveport Times) At issue will be the lawsuit he filed Monday alleging independent voters were barred from voting in the Democratic primary held Oct. 4.
• Kurita's suit to restore win fails-Ruling rejects her as Dems' nominee (The Tennessean) The fight has brought new attention to the state's open primary system, which permits voters to cast a ballot in either party's primaries, and brought criticism on the Democratic Party for removing her nomination.
• Open Primaries: No Better the Second Time Around (Marc Abrams, Blue Oregon) Open primaries serve to increase the power of the moderate, muddled middle. They allow the GOP in Portland to swarm to the Democratic primary and nominate a bland moderate so that liberals lose clout in the legislature, and allow Democrats in some GOP seats to do the reverse. Now Phil, a card carrying DLC member, may like that. I don’t.
• Oregon Democratic, Republican parties oppose Measure 65 (The Oregonian) It's no surprise why party leaders are lined up against Measure 65. By definition, parties are partisan organizations, and Measure 65 is an assault on the partisan nature of elections.
• Third parties oppose state open primary measure (Coos Bay World Link) Nearly every political party in Oregon — the Independent and Working Families parties have taken no official stance — has panned Measure 65, which they worry could threaten their existence.

CAMPAIGN

• Poll: Obama now leads McCain 50% to 41% (Los Angeles Times) Obama improved sharply over the last month among independent voters, a much-desired bloc. McCain carried them by a 15-point margin in September; in this poll, Obama led by 5 points.
• LA Times/Bloomberg Poll (pdf) LA Times release with cross tabs
• Poll: Obama gaining among independents (Rocky Mountain News) "The key to winning elections in Colorado is independent voters and Senator Obama has blown open the race there with his 11-point lead among them," Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, said Tuesday.
• More polls show Obama building lead (Boston Globe/Political Intelligence) Obama now leads 51 percent to 33 percent, when McCain had led 49 percent to 39 percent a week ago.
• Gallup Rasmussen Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby Polls: Obama Maintains Steady Lead Over McCain (Joe Gandelman, The Moderate Voice)
• Obama's Leads in 4 Key States Show Tough Road for McCain (Wall Street Journal)
• Independent voters breaking to Obama (Sun Sentinel/Juice) ``Do we want more of George Bush or a change? That’s what I’m voting for: change.’’

BLOOMBERG/TERM LIMITS

• WWTGD? (Or: What will Tom Golisano do?) (NY Daily News/Daily Politics) Former Independence Party Gov candidate may oppose eliminating term limits by council declaration...
• Term-limit foes seek aid - Wanted: law firm to back possible suit to force a voter referendum (metro new york)
• Testy Bloomberg denies twisting arms on term limits (DAILY NEWS CITY HALL BUREAU)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

OREGON OPEN PRIMARIES

• Grass roots not evident in initiatives-Process has been taken over by big money and single-minded interests (The West Linn Tidings)
• Primary change is the only initiative to back-Measure 65 is worth support of voters (The Lake Oswego Review)

CAMPAIGN

• Vermonters cross river for Obama (Brattleboro Reformer) With McCain's popularity among independent voters in the battleground state, many Republicans on the border are looking to help swing New Hampshire back toward the GOP.
• Parties seeking out new registered voters (The Arizona Republic) independent voters showed the biggest gains with nearly 80,000 choosing not to affiliate with a political party.
• How desperate is McCain? Matt Welch says only a domestic act of terrorism could boost McCain out of second-place status. Kareem Crayton says McCain squandered several chances to close the door on Barack Obama.(LA Times)
• Once you’ve gone ugly, it’s tough to turn back (Andy Stone, The Aspen Times) John McCain and Sarah Palin are going flat-out crazy negative, without regard for either truth or consequences. They’re whipping some of their supporters into a frenzy of hatred, apparently in the hope that the frenzy will somehow spill over and convince those treasured, uncommitted “independent” voters.
• County independents: 'Not much new' (THE PRESS DEMOCRAT) Tuesday's debate between Sens. Barack Obama and John McCain didn't appear to sway Sonoma County's independent voters as much as it reinforced what they already believed.
• Schenectady: Democrats getting bulk of area's new registrations (Gazette Reporter) So far, among the new registered voters, 3,035 Democrats have registered, 1,135 Republicans have registered; 541 have registered as Independence Party members, 80 have signed up as Conservative Party members, 58 have registered as members of the Working Families Party and 1,683 registered without any party affiliation.

THIRD PARTIES

• Nader launches 22 field offices (Third Party Watch)
• Third Party debate offers new choices (Middle Tennessee State University/The Sidelines)
• MN-Sen: Trying to Handicap This Race (Swing State Project) Not many third-party challengers come out of the starting gates with 18-19%. Most Independence Party candidates in recent years are left-of-center and very well-spoken eggheads either on an ego trip or a journey of personal discovery through their candidacies.

NEW YORK POLITICS/INDEPENDENCE PARTY/Mayor Bloomberg and Term Limits

• New steam for Mike Bloomberg's 3rd-Term Express (DAILY NEWS CITY HALL BUREAU) Lauder, who last week agreed to a one-time extension tailored for Bloomberg, was back on the fence this week because the bill called for a permanent change.
• De Blasio Goes Billionaire Shopping (NY Daily News/Daily Politics) That means the city Indys - including Lenora Fulani, who had been thinking of a run for mayor herself - and not the state, will get the final word in '09. [this links to The Hankster]
• On his terms-New York Mayor Bloomberg's attempts to let city council change term limits an insult to voters.(Houston Chronicle)
• Bloomberg's plan to extend term limits is the apogee of arrogance (Harvard Law Record)
• End term limits and their arbitrary paternalism (Harvard Law Record)
• Voters must have final say on term limits (Oakland County MI Daily Tribune)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

MEASURE 65 OPEN PRIMARY

• One measure can change state voting (The Advocate, Mt. Hood Community College) “In Oregon, we have a closed primary system and you have to be a member of a party. (This way) independent voters can be a part of it,” said Campbell.
• Business associations look at ballot measures - Oregon’s four largest business organizations explain their stands on Measures 57, 59, 61, 65 (Daily Journal of Commerce) And Steve Holwerda, board chair of the Portland Business Alliance, solidified the group’s views on Measure 65, which would create an open primary for state elections. The business associations favor the measure because, as Holwerda put it, “good government makes for good business.” “It’s a much-needed reform to the state’s increasingly partisan atmosphere,” he added.

NEW YORK POLITICS/INDEPENDENCE PARTY
Bloomberg Could Be Independent or Independence Candidate (NY Times/City Room) “The disappointment comes from the fact that the mayor has wound up in an alliance with the state chairman,” Ms. Salit said. “And he has spent the bulk of his time trying to disenfranchise the Independence Party membership in New York City.”

BOOK REVIEW
What’s Left of the Old Right (American Conservative) Reclaiming the American Right: The Lost Legacy of the Conservative Movement, Justin Raimondo: The Right became home to ever more ex-Communists, Trotskyites, social democrats, and a myriad of pro-war liberals. Neoconservatism rose in intellectual influence.

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

INDEPENDENT VOTERS
Independent Pennsylvanians invites activists to attend press conference (Austin Cassidy's Independent Political Report)

TERM LIMITS/BLOOMBERG

• Fulani on term limits (NY Daily News/Daily Politics) “Mr. Bloomberg has the right to change his mind on this issue. I happen to be a supporter of democracy reform and the people making those decisions. So I think he’s going to have to respond to the people of this city,” she said.
• Bloomberg once called change to term limits a 'disgrace' (Newsday)
• Bloomberg wants 3rd term as New York mayor (Seattle Times)
• Proponent of Limits Reverses His Stand (NY Times)
• Elsewhere: Bloomberg's Gamble, Hope on Capitol Hill (NY Observer) Dan Jacoby supports Bloomberg and opposes term limits, but he opposes Bloomberg overturning them the most. Lenora Fulani, who helped Bloomberg get elected, feels more or less the same way.
• The Real Bloomberg Story (Talk Talk independentvoting.org) Newman: That's right. Now, what is that story? It's the story of how 59,000 votes on the Independence Party line in 2001 made him mayor of New York City. Salit: It's the story of how he had to turn to the independents to give him his margin of victory.

OPEN PRIMARIES/MEASURE 65

• Measure 65 seeks to open primaries (John Sowell, News Review Today)
• Measure 65 forum (Bend Bulletin) Tonight at 7pm in Redmond

CAMPAIGN

• New poll shows Obama ahead in Ohio, Florida and Pennsylvania (Cleveland Plain Dealer) Independent voters go 46 percent for Obama and 42 percent for McCain, compared to 47 - 43 percent for McCain September 11.
• Stephanopoulos: Independent Voters Hold White House Key (ABC News/Political Radar)

THIRD PARTIES
Third-party presidential candidates to debate at Vanderbilt on Oct. 6 (Vanderbilt myVU)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

OPEN PRIMARY

• Just one initiative worthy of support (The Gresham Outlook/Clackamas Review) And that particular measure — the open primary initiative — happens to be the one worthy of voter support.
• 2008 shaping up to be important election year (Statesman Journal) Measure 65, the only ballot initiative not advanced by Mannix or Sizemore, would advance the top two finishers in a primary to the general election regardless of party affiliation.

CAMPAIGN

• Poll: Obama Gains Ground in Swing States (TIME) Likely independent voters are proving key in Michigan, where they choose McCain by just 48% to 47%. Independents in West Virginia are leaning toward McCain 2-to-1, but Obama has them by anywhere from six to 13 points in Colorado, Pennsylvania and Montana.
• Financial Crisis Has Little Sway in Presidential Poll (Wall Street Journal) The survey finds that Sen. Obama has lost ground with the independent voters who will be crucial to the outcome of the election.
• Economic Fears Give Obama Clear Lead Over McCain in Poll (Washington Post) Independents, key swing voters, now break for Obama, 53 percent to 39 percent, reversing a small lead for McCain after the Republican convention.

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

MEASURE 65
Secretary Of State Race: Dancer is Alone in Supporting Open Primary (Willamette Week) Democrat Kate Brown, Republican Rick Dancer and Seth Woolley of the Pacific Green Party are battling to replace term-limited incumbent Bill Bradbury.

CAMPAIGN

• Democrats Lead Republicans In Adding Voters (The Tampa Tribune) Those numbers show 287,770 new Democratic voter registrations since January, after purging the names of previous voters who died, moved away or became otherwise ineligible to vote. That compares with net gains of 112,290 for Republicans and 89,859 independent voters, they say.
• Sioux City Journal poll: Obama takes big lead in Iowa (Sioux City Journal-Lee Enterprises) Of the independents polled, 55 percent support Obama and 37 percent support McCain.
• McCain Holds Slight Lead In Latest NH Poll (WMUR) McCain has taken the lead among independent voters, with 41 percent of independents saying they support McCain, compared to 35 percent supporting Obama.
• Which convention drew independents? (Hot Air)
• Obama leads McCain; Senate race tied - The poll had the Democrat leading John McCain 52-44, while Norm Coleman had a 48-47 edge on Al Franken in the Senate race. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

INDEPENDENT VOTERS
Report: State electorate is largely discontented (Glendale News Press) While the share of Democratic and Republican voters dropped from 87.1% in 1992 to 76.3% in 2008, independent voters who declined to state a party affiliation rose from 1.3 million in 1992 to 3 million this year.

MEASURE 65

• Measure 65 debate to offer big names (Statesman Journal) The luncheon will start at 11:30 a.m. Sept. 26 at Mission Mill Museum, 1313 Mill St. SE, Salem
• A prescription for electoral chaos (by Dan Meek, The Oregonian) Under the measure, any resident can register as, say, a Democrat (up to the 70th day before the primary election) and immediately file as a candidate, with "Registered: Democratic" next to his name on the ballot. That person might be a Nazi, a Communist, a convicted child molester, you name it. Any political party can have its identity stolen in this way by complete strangers who suddenly take the party's name on the primary ballot. [Yikes, Dan -- hide the children, shutter the windows, the boogeyman is here!]
• Top-two primary voting worked well (Daily Astorian)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

REFORM

• Open the Debates! (Diary Entry by David Barboza, OpEdNews) Americans should denounce our debate inclusion criteria for what they are: a partisan sham.
• Voter is restricted in primary contest: Open primaries needed (Tulsa Beacon LETTER)
• OSU political expert to talk about election (Corvallis Gazette-Times) Bill Lunch says “If [Measure 65] passes it will not make the system less polarized, but more so,” he said. He said he’ll spend more time explaining Measure 65 than any of the other measures.
• Don't cross over when you vote: Stay on one side of the ballot from top to bottom (Pacific Daily News) Guam voters face voided ballots if they vote across party lines in primary
• Child's play (Press Democrat Santa Rosa CA) this year's performance [by the State Legislature] is one more good reason to support Proposition 11, which would strip state legislators of the ability to draw their own districts. The next good step would be restoring the open primary, so legislators truly could be held accountable at the polls.
• A brand new system: It's popular and it works - WA Top Two (Tri-City Herald/Mid-Columbia news) Herald reporter Chris Mulick said that the survey of 500 voters, conducted Aug. 22 through Aug. 24, indicated 71 percent preferred the top two while just 20 percent preferred the pick-a-party primary.
• Editorial: Open Primary offers opportunity for meaningful votes (Post Bulletin Rochester MN) because Minnesota has an open primary, you don't have to be a member of a political party to participate.

CAMPAIGN

• Obama, McCain vie for ‘reformist’ mantle (Kansas City Star) With the back-to-back conventions over, the fall race for the presidency took off Friday in states teeming with the independent voters each needs to win the White House.
• Zogby: McCain-Palin Got 'Small Bounce' After Minn. (By: Newsmax)
• Are Evangelicals Really Sold on Palin? (Time) But with fewer than 60 days until Election Day (and a month before the start of early voting in many states), the McCain campaign's continued courting of the more traditional base spells trouble for any efforts to expand his appeal to independent voters and less conservative Evangelicals.
• Historic White House race enters final stretch (AP/Houston Chronicle)
• Debate schedule (SF Gate)
• Keep the change (Trenton Times Editorial) McCain's call for an end to the "constant partisan rancor" was ludicrous. Unless, of course, he was speaking directly to his running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, and the former foes he'd assembled the night before to mock, deride and dismiss the Democratic ticket on his behalf.
• EDITORIAL: Stealing Obama's rhetoric (Washington Times/AP) In the blink of an eye, the party of national security, limited government and family values has become the party of "reform."
• E. J. Dionne Jr. Straight talker's convention was full of derision-It's sort of hard to come away from that thinking "nonpartisanship." (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
• An Apostle of Alaska - We know the outlines—the moose-hunting mom who juggles BlackBerrys and kids. But what does she believe? The real Sarah Palin. (NEWSWEEK)
• Will they ever get it right? (Conservative Republican Discussion forums by Dacabeti, Christian Conservative Pitbull) I am so tired of hearing about Obama being the first black Presidential Candidate. Or Hillary being the first women to get serious consideration.

NEW YORK POLITICS

• Queens Councilmembers Liu, Comrie support overturning term limits (Queens Times Ledger) HINT: This is not a good thing! Do New York City politicians REALLY think they can get away with this because Bloomberg is leaving office? Yes, they really do. Apparently they didn't take the black and independent alliance seriously! - NH
• POLITICS & POWER: LI McCain backer gets his due (Rick Brand, NY Newsday) Boyle's immediate job will be to help McCain lock up the backing of the national Independence Party that state and Suffolk party leader Frank MacKay originally organized for New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg's now-scotched presidential bid. HINT: Who will be the highest bidder for the corrupted state Independence Party of New York??? Democrats -- ponie up or you might be out of luck in upstate New York!!! - NH

Oregon Top Two Primary Measure 65/ Recent Washington Primary Results

ROUND UP ON OREGON OPEN PRIMARY REFERENDUM

• Bradbury announces his bid for governor in 2010 (Politicker OR)
• Bradbury likely to run for governor in 2010 (Jeff Mapes, The Oregonian) Dem Bradbury (who is being criticized by Repubs) said he will work with a group that is trying to encourage other states to adopt Oregon's vote-by-mail system.
• Why have primary elections? (West Seattle Herald) The real question is why we have these elections. One obvious reason was to wrest and keep control out of political party hands.
• In Our View: Top two primary is a huge success (The Columbian) The warning about Washington state’s top two primary echoed off the Cascades with near-hysterical alarm: “We could end up in the general election with two candidates from the same party! Oh, my gosh!”.... It is not the parties’ sacred nominating process; it is the people’s semifinals leading up to the November finals.
• Top-two primary (LETTERS to Seattle Times)
• The morning after the Washington primary (Jeff Mapes, The Oregonian) it's more likely that you would see two candidates of the same party advancing not in a swing district, but in a heavily Democratic or Republican district.
• Top-two primary: So much for THAT argument (Kari Chisholm, Blue Oregon)
• All Working to Plan in the 27th Legislative District (Tacoma News Tribune/Political Buzz) Opponents of the Top Two primary predicted all sorts of funny business if a system was created that let two candidates from the same party to advance to the general election. But the only race in the state where something out of the ordinary is taking place is in Tacoma's 27th.
• Editorial: ‘Top two’ primary is fairest of them all (Corvallis Gazette Times)

TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS

INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• Independents to intervene in Idaho primary lawsuit (The Olympian) [This AP article by John Miller also appeared in the Magic Valley Times News]
• Should we Bring Back the Fairness Doctrine? (Political Lore.com) Independents say leave the internet alone!

REFORM

• EDITORIAL: Voters Won in State's First ‘Top Two' Primary (Kitsap Sun) On Tuesday, voters in Kitsap and other counties participated in the state's first "top two" primary election. It marked a return to a much-beloved (by voters) and much-despised (by parties) primary election in which voters could pick candidates freely in each race, regardless of their political party.
• Voting for the person, not the party (The Oregonian) Party leaders abhor this idea, but Washington state voters clearly love it. They voted overwhelmingly to adopt the system, and in Tuesday's otherwise ho-hum primary they turned out by the biggest percentage since 1972 when the electorate was enflamed over the Vietnam War.
• Open Primaries in Oregon? An Initiative for Open Primaries Will Be on the November Ballot (Associated Content) Sources: Brad Cain, "Oregon voters to tackle open primary issue", KATU; Oregon Open Primary Supporters, Oneballot.com; "Editorial: It's time to approve an open primary", The Gazette Times; Dave Mazza, "Independent's Way", The Willamette Week

CAMPAIGN
Obama Suffers Big Mac Attack (Black Voices/Blogs) Independent Voters prefer Obama 47 percent to 36 percent.

THIRD PARTY NEWS
Ron Paul 2008: Quest for the Vice Presidency (Reason Magazine) VA Ind. Green Party chair: I've been talking with all three of the major minors, and what I've suggested is that they call new conventions to nominate this ticket. Mike Bloomberg-Ron Paul in 2008??