Debate presents risks for both candidates, but Palin must prove she's up to the job

By David Lightman
McClatchy Newspapers
(MCT)
WASHINGTON _ Sarah Palin faces a huge problem in Thursday night's vice presidential debate: She's in danger of becoming a national punch line.
As a result, the Republican's 90-minute debate with Democratic rival Joe Biden could be her last big chance to convince voters that she's got what it takes to run the country.
"She has a lot to prove," said James Riddlesperger, a professor of political science at Texas Christian University, "and this is a real opportunity for her to do so."
Biden also faces some risks. "He's like the champion getting into the ring with Rocky Balboa. He can't appear to be a bully," said vice presidential scholar Timothy Walch. The longtime Delaware senator also has a history of putting his foot in his mouth, and a gaffe while debating Palin could cost him.
The debate, though, is largely about Palin, the Alaska governor who was barely known in the Lower 48 until John McCain put her on the ticket just before last month's Republican convention.
She was an instant hit, at least with Republicans, charming the GOP convention with her plainspoken, frontier woman ways and her solid conservative credentials.
Since then, however, the nation has seen another Palin: carefully managed, kept under wraps, often scripted and seemingly out of her depth. A poll released Wednesday by the Pew Research Center reported, "opinions about Sarah Palin have become increasingly negative."
The Sept. 27-29 survey found that 51 percent of the public thinks she's not qualified to be president, and 37 percent think she is qualified. Just after the GOP convention, some 52 percent thought she was ready.
Worse, Palin has become the butt of late night jokes.
On "Saturday Night Live," comedian Tina Fey's dead-on impression of Palin has parodied her as a rambling, perky celebrity unfamiliar with the day's biggest issues.
Experts say Palin has done too little to overcome that image. Her interviews last week with CBS' Katie Couric have been widely ridiculed. Conservative columnist Kathleen Parker led the charge. Palin's TV interviews, she wrote, "revealed an attractive, earnest, confident candidate. Who is Clearly Out of Her League."
Parker urged Palin to leave the ticket, imploring: "Do it for your country."
Couric asked Palin what she thought about the $700 billion Wall Street rescue package pending before Congress.
Palin's reply: "But ultimately, what the bailout does is help those who are concerned about the health-care reform that is needed to help shore up our economy, helping the _ oh, it's got to be all about job creation, too, shoring up our economy and putting it back on the right track. So health-care reform and reducing taxes and reining in spending has got to accompany tax reductions and tax relief for Americans. And trade, we've got to see trade as opportunity, not as a competitive, um, scary thing. But one in five jobs being created in the trade sector today, we've got to look at that as more opportunity. All those things under the umbrella of job creation. This bailout is part of that."
Pundit jaws also dropped when Palin _ who got her first passport last year _ talked about foreign policy.
"As (Russian leader Vladimir) Putin rears his head and comes into the airspace of the United States of America, where do they go?" she asked on CBS. "It's Alaska ... It is from Alaska that we send those out to make sure that an eye is being kept on this very powerful nation, Russia, because they are right there, they are right next to our state."
However, Biden, a U.S. senator since 1973, knows that he has to be careful to avoid looking like a Washington know-it-all. "It could be very difficult for him to escape looking condescending," Riddlesperger said.
Biden also is gaffe-prone. Last week he told CBS: "When the stock market crashed, Franklin D. Roosevelt got on the television and didn't just talk about the, you know, the princes of greed. He said, 'Look, here's what happened.' "
The stock market crashed in 1929 and Roosevelt didn't become president until 1933. And when FDR spoke to the nation, it was on radio because television wasn't available yet.
"His critics are going to be looking for something like that," Riddlesperger said.
Palin has been practicing for the debate at McCain's Sedona, Ariz., ranch, with campaign officials standing in for Biden. Biden has been in Wilmington, Del., with Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm playing Palin in their mock debates.
One wrong word or convoluted sentence by either candidate will be replayed over and over by the media and on the Internet, and could become the frame by which the debate is most remembered.
Speaking at a rally Monday in Columbus, Ohio, Palin said she was looking forward to Thursday's debate.
"So I guess it's my turn now," she said. "And I do look forward to Thursday night. I look forward to seeing him, too. I've never met him before, but I've been hearin' about his Senate speeches since I was in, like, second grade. He's sounding pretty doggone confident like he's going to win. ... This is the same Senator Biden who said the other day that the University of Delaware would trounce the Ohio State Buckeyes."
Actually, the two schools don't play each other in football.

Yes, banks are insured, but you should know the rules

By Gail MarksJarvis
Chicago Tribune
(MCT)
Financial adviser Lynn Daly from Roseville, Minn., is struggling to get some of her oldest clients to trust anything now that today's news is conjuring up memories of the Great Depression.
She e-mailed me to ask me to remind people that "the FDIC was created in 1933 in response to the thousands of bank failures that occurred in the 1920s and early 1930s, and since the start no depositor has lost a single cent of insured funds as a result of a failure."
Indeed, no one has lost money in banks if they have paid attention to the rules_such as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. insures up to $100,000 in a person's name. But the challenge for people now is to keep up with all the rules for various institutions. Some of the questions I have received highlight people's concerns:
Q. I have a money-market account at a bank. Is it insured or part of the temporary new money-market bailout?
A. There are two different types of investments that sound alike but are not. There are money-market accounts, which are like savings accounts at banks. The FDIC insures them up to $100,000 per person on the account. Find out more at www.fdic.gov/edie. But don't confuse this account with a money market fund, which is a mutual fund. The government does not normally insure mutual funds. The only exception is money market mutual funds. Money in them on Sept. 19 is insured for at least three months, and perhaps up to a year. See chicagotribune.com/safemoney for details.
Q. Is my money safe in a credit union?
A. Like banks, credit unions have insurance that covers investors if the institution has financial trouble and fails. But the insurance varies. The safest comes from the National Credit Union Administration. It's just like the FDIC, with the U.S. government behind it, making sure your money is covered up to $100,000 a person on an account. To check to see what is covered, go to webapps.ncua.gov/ins/aaFront/F02.asp. If you don't see NCUA at your credit union, it probably means the institution is regulated at the state level with private insurance. That's also insurance, but having the U.S. government as the insurer is the safest form you can have.
Q. If the FDIC takes over a bank, will I be able to get to my safe-deposit box?
A. Yes. When the FDIC steps in, the goal is to hold onto customers while the FDIC sells the institution to another bank. Sometimes the FDIC will step into a failing bank on a Friday and close a bank over the weekend. But by Monday, the bank doors open and a customer can use the bank like always. Meanwhile, over the weekend people can still write checks and obtain money from an ATM.
Q. Does the government insure my GNMA fund?
A. No. The government does not insure any mutual fund except for money market funds. Government National Mortgage Association loans are guaranteed by the government but that's different than insuring the funds themselves. The funds, like all bond funds, can be volatile, moving up and down based on factors like interest rate changes. That means you can lose money in them.
Q. Is my teachers' pension safe?
A. The money you have earned so far is safe. But as stocks lose value, the government might have to add money and raise taxes. You might not receive new increases in your pension.
___
(Gail MarksJarvis is a personal finance columnist for the Chicago Tribune and author of "Saving for Retirement without Living Like a Pauper or Winning the Lottery." Contact her at gmarksjarvis@tribune.com.)
___
(c) 2008, Chicago Tribune.
Visit the Chicago Tribune on the Internet at http://www.chicagotribune.com/
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.

Obama opens small margin over McCain, poll finds

By Steven Thomma
McClatchy Newspapers
(MCT)
WASHINGTON _ Barack Obama leads John McCain nationally by a margin of 46 percent to 42 percent, opening his biggest edge since the campaign entered the fall stretch after the two major party conventions, according to a new Ipsos-McClatchy poll.
Obama's four-point lead marks steady if small gains the Illinois Democrat has made in the poll since Labor Day. Over four weekly surveys, he has gone from being down by one point to tied, up by one point and now up by four.
One key reason for his gain over the past week could be Friday's kickoff debate between the two major party candidates. A separate Ipsos-McClatchy online poll of undecided voters, taken Monday, found that a majority thought that Obama did better in the 90-minute face-off by a margin of nearly 3-2. The online survey isn't a random sample of the population and has no statistical margin of error; its value is that it's illustrative of public attitudes, much like a focus group, although it's not scientific.
Despite Obama's gains, the race remains close, and neither candidate has won over a majority of registered voters.
The telephone survey of registered voters found 46 percent supporting Obama, 42 percent for McCain, 2 percent for independent candidate Ralph Nader and 1 percent for Libertarian candidate Bob Barr. Another 9 percent were undecided.
Nearly one in 10 voters with a candidate preference say they could still change their minds, underscoring the stakes for the vice presidential debate on Thursday night and the two remaining presidential debates on Oct. 7 and Oct 15. Each will be televised nationally at 9 p.m. EDT.
Despite the turmoil on Wall Street and the nation and the collapse of several major banks, a solid majority of registered voters expressed confidence in the security of their bank accounts.
The poll found 70 percent confident in the security of their checking accounts or money market accounts and 27 percent not confident. Similarly, it found 72 percent confident in the safety of their savings accounts.
A smaller but still solid majority of 60 percent said they were confident in the ability of the federal government to cover the costs of federal deposit insurance in the case of bank failures.
Better than one out of three, 36 percent, said they didn't have confidence in the federal government's bank insurance, despite the fact that no American has ever lost money in an account insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

(c) 2008, McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
Visit the McClatchy Washington Bureau on the World Wide Web at www.mcclatchydc.com.

Dow Closes Up Tues

The Dow closed up 485 points Tuesday, an increase of 4.68%. Tuesday's closed marked one of the biggest single day climbs in history.

Investors are said to be optimistic that the government will pass a bailout bill shortly.

Congress is expected to reexamine the controversial $700 billion bailout bill later this week.

The Dow closed down nearly 778 points down Monday, the equivalent of $1.2 trillion in market value and a 7% drop. Monday marked the worst single day point loss ever – even topping the 648 points loss on September 17, 2001 – the first day of trading after the September 11 attacks.


Stocks took a nose dive Monday after speculation began to spread that the House of Representatives would vote down the controversial bailout plan – which they did – 228-to-205 – just after 2 pm et Monday.

Breaking News: House Rejects Bailout Plan

The Dow is down about 500 points following a 228-to-205 vote in the House of Representatives that rejected the 700 billion bailout plan. The Senate is scheduled to vote on the bill Wednesday.

Congress to Vote on Bailout Monday

By Kevin G. Hall
McClatchy Newspapers

WASHINGTON After a tumultuous week of round-the-clock negotiations, Congress prepared for a difficult vote Monday on a sweeping $700 billion Wall Street rescue plan to stave off a possible global financial meltdown. Racing a self-imposed 6 p.m. EDT deadline Sunday night ahead of the opening of Asian financial markets, bleary-eyed Democrats in control of Congress released the text of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008. The plan had GOP support in the Senate, but substantially less Republican support in the House of Representatives. Democratic and Republican leaders worked through the night this weekend to modify a plan put forth by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson to remove distressed mortgages and similar toxic assets off the books of banks and other financial firms. Paulson had warned that credit markets are on the verge of seizing up, with grave consequences for consumer lending of all sorts. "I am confident this legislation gives us the flexibility to unclog our financial markets increase the ability of our financial institutions to deliver the credit that will help create jobs," Paulson said in a statement that praised lawmakers for their tough decision. "We are taking the steps needed to be ready to begin implementing this legislation as soon as it is signed." President Bush said in a statement Sunday night, "this plan sends a strong signal to markets around the world that the United States is serious about restoring confidence and stability to our financial system." In detailing legislation that grew to more than 100 pages from its original three, lawmakers Sunday afternoon chose their words carefully to let angry American voters know they'd been heard. "It's very clear that Americans have some reason to be concerned, even angry about where we find ourselves. We know there has been greed on Wall Street," said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.. But the cost of doing nothing was greater than what is being proposed, he said.

"Inaction would paralyze our economy, even now it is difficult for people to get a car loan," Reid said, adding that "the market is frozen in terms of buying homes in many parts of our country."

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., sought to assure Americans that their tax dollars weren't rescuing the well heeled on Wall Street. "People have to know this is not a bailout of Wall Street, it's a buy-in," said Pelosi in a Sunday afternoon news conference that touted taxpayer protections and an effort to limit the compensation of some Wall Street executives who might partake in the rescue effort.. One of the lead GOP negotiators, Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., said he was confident the measure would attract enough members of his party in both chambers of Congress to win passage later in the week. "I think everybody got what they needed to have," he said.

Members of both parties supported measures to prevent so-called golden parachutes when a Wall Street executive departs. If a company has had government intervention, the five highest-ranking officials in that company will be denied bonus and incentive pay. And if a company sells as a whole $300 million or more in bad assets, there will be similar restrictions. Additionally, companies taken over by the government or receiving significant support will have to give Treasury preferred stock that could be sold later when the company recovers, to the benefit of U.S. taxpayers.

ON THE WEB
The documents: http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/financialsvcs _ dem/press092808.shtml
(McClatchy Newspapers correspondents David Lightman and Lisa Zagaroli in Washington contributed to this report.)
(c) 2008, McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. Visit the McClatchy Washington Bureau on the World Wide Web at www.mcclatchydc.com.

Cops: St James Teen Had "Hit List:

Suffolk County Police have arrested an 18-year-old St. James resident who sent instant messages to a 12-year-old girl threatening to kill several mutual acquaintances.

Officers from the Sixth Precinct Crime Section received a report from officials at a local school stating that there was a “hit list” against several of their students and recent graduates. This list was obtained by a 12-year-old student who gave it to a school administrator. After completing an investigation, police arrested Christopher Inserra, 18, of 2 Whisper Hill, St. James.

Officers determined that the 12-year-old girl was engaged in an instant messaging session with Inserra via the Internet. The two had met the previous year at school and continued an Internet friendship. During the most recent conversation, Inserra made threats against the lives of specific students that he felt were mean to him in the past. He also engaged in conversations with the 12-year-old about a possible suicide pact.

Inserra was charged with Endangering the Welfare of a Child, a Class A misdemeanor. He was released on bail and will be arraigned at First District Court in Central Islip at a later date.

Police have not indicated if the accused or alleged victims are students of the Smithtown Central School District.