Today on the presidential campaign trail

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IN THE HEADLINES

Obama says Bush won't be on ballot but his policies will be because of McCain's positions ... McCain says Ohio man, small businesses won debate over Obama tax plan ... Campaigning in Maine, Palin says Obama refuses to disavow voter registration group ... Officials say activist group ACORN under FBI scrutiny for possible voter registration fraud ... Ohio elections chief asks US Supreme Court to intervene in dispute over voter registration

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Obama renews efforts to link McCain to Bush

LONDONDERRY, N.H. (AP) — Democrat Barack Obama opened the final leg of the presidential campaign by returning to a familiar strategy on Thursday: Linking Republican opponent John McCain to the unpopular incumbent.

Obama said McCain was trying to obscure the issue in their final debate Wednesday when he pointed out that President Bush will not be on the ballot next month.

"I'm not running against George Bush. I'm running against all those policies of George Bush that you support, Sen. McCain," Obama told supporters at a New Hampshire apple farm. "In three debates and over 20 months, John McCain hasn't explained a single thing that he would do differently from George Bush when it comes to the most important economic issues we face today. Not one."

The Illinois senator also continued his push to capture states that have been considered safe Republican territory in recent presidential elections. He bought airtime for campaign ads in West Virginia and planned visits to several traditionally GOP states.

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McCain hails 'Joe the Plumber' as winner of debate

DOWNINGTOWN, Pa. (AP) — Republican John McCain said Thursday that Joe the Plumber, whose questions about Democrat Barack Obama's tax policy became a centerpiece of the final presidential debate, was the real winner of the televised forum.

"Joe's the man!" McCain said at a rally in this Philadelphia suburb as supporters chanted "Joe! Joe! Joe!"

"He won, and small businesses won across America," McCain said. "They won because the American people won't let Sen. Obama raise their taxes in a tough economy. They're not going to let him do it, my friends."

Early in Wednesday's debate, McCain brought up Joe Wurzelbacher, an Ohio plumber who approached Obama at a campaign event last Sunday, to illustrate how the Illinois senator's tax policy would hurt small businesses.

Wurzelbacher told Obama that his tax plan would prevent him from buying the plumbing business he works for. Obama said he plans to raise taxes on people making more than $250,000 a year while cutting taxes for everyone else.

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Palin criticizes Obama over ACORN, view of America

BANGOR, Maine (AP) — Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, campaigning with an eye on winning at least one of Maine's electoral votes, criticized Democrat Barack Obama on Thursday for not disavowing a community activist group that registers voters.

The group ACORN — the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now — has drawn condemnation from the Republican ticket as its workers sign up voters in swing states. Nearly a dozen states and the FBI are looking into allegations of voter registration fraud.

ACORN officials have denied allegations of concerted, widespread fraud but acknowledge that some of the group's registration workers might have turned in duplicate applications or falsified information to pad their pay.

"In this election, it's a choice between a candidate who won't disavow a group committing voter fraud, and a leader who won't tolerate voter fraud," Palin said.

In the debate Wednesday night with Republican John McCain, Obama denied any significant ties to ACORN. Earlier this week, Obama said ACORN was not advising his campaign and that registration problems shouldn't be used as an excuse to keep people from turning out.

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Officials: FBI investigates ACORN for voter fraud

WASHINGTON (AP) — The FBI is investigating whether the community activist group ACORN helped foster voter registration fraud around the nation before the presidential election.

A senior law enforcement official confirmed the investigation to The Associated Press. A second senior law enforcement official says the FBI was looking at results of inquiries in several states, including a raid on ACORN's office in Las Vegas, for any evidence of a coordinated national effort.

Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because Justice Department regulations forbid discussing ongoing investigations particularly so close to an election.

Two spokesmen for ACORN, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, on Thursday said the FBI has not contacted the group.

"ACORN has not been notified that we are the target of an investigation by any authorities — nor should we be," spokesman Kevin Whelan said in a statement. "ACORN members have done a good and patriotic thing by helping bring more than a million of their fellow citizens into our democratic process."

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Ohio elections chief appeals court's voter ruling

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Ohio's elections chief has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene in a dispute over whether the state is required to do more to help counties verify voter eligibility.

Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, a Democrat, filed an appeal with the high court late Wednesday, her spokesman Jeff Ortega announced Thursday.

On Tuesday, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati sided with the Ohio Republican Party and ordered Brunner to set up a system that provides names of newly registered voters whose driver's license numbers or Social Security numbers don't match records in other government databases.

The GOP contended the information for counties would help prevent fraud.

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DAILY TRACK

Democrat Barack Obama has a 6-percentage-point lead over Republican John McCain — 49 percent to 43 percent — among registered voters, according to the latest Gallup Poll daily tracking update.

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THE DEMOCRATS

Barack Obama met with voters in Londonderry, N.H., and was attending the annual Alfred E. Smith dinner in New York City.

Joe Biden had no public schedule.

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THE REPUBLICANS

John McCain held a rally in Downingtown, Pa., before scheduled appearances on CBS' "Late Show with David Letterman" and at the Alfred E. Smith dinner in New York City.

Sarah Palin campaigned in Bangor, Maine, before stopping in Elon, N.C.

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QUOTE OF THE DAY:

"I've been in these positions before where we were favored and the press starts getting carried away, and we end up getting spanked." — Barack Obama, at a breakfast fundraiser at the New York City Metropolitan Club.

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STAT OF THE DAY:

More than 2.1 million people are registered to vote in Oregon, according to the secretary of state's office. Recent totals showed 923,529 registered Democrats, or 43.2 percent, compared with 691,212 Republicans, or 32.3 percent.

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Compiled by Ann Sanner.

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	Elections officials deny illegally purging voters	Associated Press	Wed Oct 8	6
	McCain TV ad raises Obama's links to ex-radical	Associated Press	Fri Oct 10	24
	Palin criticizes Obama over ACORN, view of America	Associated Press	Thu Oct 16	4
	McCain: Obama link to ex-radical is honesty issue	Associated Press	Thu Oct 2	4
	McCain: Obama link to ex-radical is honesty issue	Associated Press	Thu Oct 9	244