By: Greg Mitchell The Obama lead in editorial endorsements this year turned into a landslide, even a rout today, as dozens of additiional papers backed him, compared to the relative handful for McCain.
Two more major papers that had backed Bush in 2004--the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and Providence Journal--came out for Obama, joining at least 35 others who had done the same thing already.
In another embarrassment for McCain, the Indianapolis Star, which also supported Bush in 2004, revealed that it would not endorse this year. At least two other Bush 2004 papers, the Ann Arbor (Mich.) News and the Fredericksburg Free-Lance Star, took the same route.
Another paper just now backing Obama: The Times-Picayune of New Orleans, which made no endorsement in 2004. He also earned the nod from the Financial Times and the Star-Ledger of Newark, N.J.
Obama still leads by almost 3-1 in all editorial endorsements. Updated with the latest from today his lead stands at 180 to 75.
Due to the volume of endorsements this weekend, E&P will not be updating its ongoing complete tally of editorial endorsements for president, which has proven so popular, until Monday. But in this space we will be highlighting and listing some of the picks that arrived this weekend (some posted online Friday). So return often for updates.
Check out our running list, updated Friday,
here. It will be fully updated Monday.
Perhaps most tellingly, the Democrat has now gained at least 35 papers that endorsed George Bush in 2004. That year, Bush and Kerry split the 418 endorsements almost straight down the middle.
In a pointed move late Saturday, Alaska's biggest paper, the Anchorage Daily News, endorsed Obama (see separate story). The Minneapolis Star Tribune endorsed Obama online late Saturday (while also backing the Republican incumbent for U.S. Senate, Norm Coleman, over Al Franken). The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel also threw its weight to Obama, as did the Des Moines Register and the Bergen Record in New Jersey.
The Hartford Courant endorsed Obama this weekend, making it the newspaper?s second endorsement of a Democratic presidential candidate in its 244-year history.
The St. Petersburg Times in key swing state Florida also endorsed Obama in an online posting (see excerpt below). So did the Charlotte Observer in another key state, North Carolina. Both of those papers went for Kerry in 2004. Ditto for another new Obama backer, the Louisville Courier-Journal.
The Baltimore Sun joined its Tribune brothers and sisters in backing Obama, calling (like so many others before it) Sarah Palin utterly unqualified for higher office. The Star Tribune also highlighted that problem: "Sen. John McCain distinguished himself as an American hero who served his country with honor, but he made a grievous error in his choice of running mate, the newspaper said.
"McCain is well aware that the No. 1 qualification of a vice president should be readiness for the top job. Palin does not have the depth of experience to assure Americans she would be ready to run the country."
In another battleground state, the York Daily Record and the Erie Time in Pennsylvania switched to Obama after backing Bush in 2004. Other switchers from the GOP to the Democratic side today: The Poughkeepsie (N.Y.) Journal, The Pantagraph in Bloomington, Ill., The Columbus (Ga.) Ledger-Enquirer, The Florence (Ala.) Times Daily and Lakeland (Fla.) Ledger.
MORE FOR OBAMA: The Quad-City (Iowa) Times, Florida Today in Melbourne, Shreveport (La.) Times, Pensacola (Fla.) News-Journal, Berkshire Eagle in Massachusetts and the Billings (Mont.) Gazette endorsed Obama today. So did several papers in New York: the Rochester (NY) Democrat & Chronicle, Syracuse Post-Standard, Albany Times-Union, and Glens Falls Post-Star. Two in Connecticut: The Day in New London and the Norwich Bulletin. And three dailies in Vermont, in Brattleboro, Randolph and Bennington.
More for him: the Harrisburg (Pa.) Patriot-News, Macon (Ga.) Telegraph, The Times of Trenton (N.J.), Portsmouth (N.H.) Herald, Lansing (Mich.) State-Journal, Reno (Nev.) Gazette-Journal, Muncie (Ind.) Star-Press, the Times-Leader of Wilkes Barre, Pa., The Bay City News and Saginaw News in Michigan, the LaCrosse (Wisc.) Tribune, Billings (Mont.) Gazette, The Gloucester County (N.J.) Times, Wenatchee (Wash.) World, San Angelo (TX) Standard-Times, Kenne (N.H.) Sentinel.
MORE FOR McCAIN: The Cincinnati Enquirer in yet another key state, Ohio, came out for McCain. It had backed Bush in 2004. McCain also got the nod from the Richmond Times-Dispatch in battleground Virginia, and The Oklahoman in Oklahoma City. McCain's home state paper in Phoenix, the Arizona Republic, endorsed him, saying that it knew him best. The Eagle-Tribune of Lawrence, Mass., also picked McCain as did the Omaha World-Herald.
So did the the Lancaster (Pa.) New Era, North County (Ca.) TImes, Grand Rapids Press in Michigan and Galveston (Tex.) Daily News, Knoxville (Tenn.) News-Sentinel, The Desert Sun (Palm Springs, Ca.), The Lincoln (Neb.) Journal-Star, Bristol (Va.) Herald, Centralia (Wash.) Chronicle, The Argus Leader in Sioux Falls, S.D., Claremont (N.H.) Eagle Times, Sioux City (Iowa) Journal, Lynchburg News & Advance, Waynesboro News-Virginian, four dailies in West Virginia (in Weirton, Elkins, Charleston and Parkersburg), Rappahannock (Va.) News, Hudson (Wisc.) Star-Observer.
For more coverage on the media and the campaign, go to our new blog:
The E&P Pub
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here