SPORTS
‘Invasion of Georgia’ a ‘3 a.m. moment’
Ben Smith
When the North Caucasus slid into war Thursday night, it presented John McCain and Barack Obama with a true “3 a.m. moment,” and their responses to the crisis suggested dramatic differences in how each candidate, as president, would lead America in moments of international crisis. While Obama offered a response largely in line with statements issued by democratically elected world leaders, including President Bush, first calling on both sides to negotiate, John McCain took a remarkably — and uniquely — more aggressive stance, siding clearly with Georgia’s pro-Western leaders and placing the blame for the conflict entirely on Russia. The abrupt crisis in an obscure hotspot had the features of the real foreign policy situations presidents face — not the clean hypotheticals of candidates’ white papers and debating points. ...MORE
Russia orders halt to war in Georgia
By Michael Stott and Margarita Antidze
MOSCOW/TBILISI (Reuters) - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev ordered a halt to military operations in Georgia on Tuesday, after five days of fighting and just before French President Nicolas Sarkozy was to hold peace talks in Moscow. A Kremlin spokesman confirmed Russian news agency reports that Medvedev had issued instructions...MORE
Ben Smith
When the North Caucasus slid into war Thursday night, it presented John McCain and Barack Obama with a true “3 a.m. moment,” and their responses to the crisis suggested dramatic differences in how each candidate, as president, would lead America in moments of international crisis. While Obama offered a response largely in line with statements issued by democratically elected world leaders, including President Bush, first calling on both sides to negotiate, John McCain took a remarkably — and uniquely — more aggressive stance, siding clearly with Georgia’s pro-Western leaders and placing the blame for the conflict entirely on Russia. The abrupt crisis in an obscure hotspot had the features of the real foreign policy situations presidents face — not the clean hypotheticals of candidates’ white papers and debating points. ...MORE
Russia orders halt to war in Georgia
By Michael Stott and Margarita Antidze
MOSCOW/TBILISI (Reuters) - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev ordered a halt to military operations in Georgia on Tuesday, after five days of fighting and just before French President Nicolas Sarkozy was to hold peace talks in Moscow. A Kremlin spokesman confirmed Russian news agency reports that Medvedev had issued instructions...MORE
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- Columbus, Ohio
A Georgian man stands among ruins in front of his damaged home in Gori
. Dozens of Russian warplanes staged new raids in Georgia which in turn pounded the Russian-controlled capital of breakaway South Ossetia, the two sides said, as European leaders intensified efforts to head off all-out war. (AFP/Dimitar Dilkoff)GOP's Pawlenty praises Obama's positive message
By FREDERIC J. FROMMER, Associated Press WriterARLINGTON, Va.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, often mentioned as a possible running mate for Republican presidential candidate John McCain, said Wednesday GOP candidates would do well to adopt a positive tone like that of McCain's Democratic rival Barack Obama. "Say what you will about Barack Obama," the Minnesota Republican told a conservative group, "people gravitate when you have something positive to say." He added that McCain has been positive as well. "People want to follow hopeful, optimistic, civil, decent leaders," Pawlenty said in a speech to GOPAC, which helps recruit Republican candidates. "They don't want to follow some negative, scornful person." Ronald Reagan still offers important lessons for today's Republican Party, Pawlenty said, because the former president was civil, optimistic, pragmatic and a good communicator. "He actually had some ideas," Pawlenty said, adding that the Republican idea factory has seemed "a little stagnant in recent years." Pawlenty, 47, said he came of age during President Reagan's tenure in the 1980s, but acknowledged the Republican icon is ancient history to young people. "If you're under 40, that was a long time ago, man," he said to laughter. The party needs to update its message to appeal to voters who want new ideas and government results and to counter the perception that Republicans are "not for the working person," Pawlenty said. He advocated policies like better training and performance pay for teachers, online college education opportunities, and reworking health insurance to reward providers that show good results and save money. Pawlenty shied away from talking about joining McCain on the ticket. ....MORE
'Blood oil' dripping from Nigeria
BBC News
Under cover of night dozens of barges queue up to dock at a jetty in a creek somewhere in Nigeria's oil-rich Niger Delta. Their holds are filled with stolen oil running from valves illegally installed into a pipeline. ...MORE
