Newspaper Endorsements

Because I have been out most of the day, I decided to just look over at Editor & Publisher for some new additions. They made it easier for me by putting arrows before their new additions. I have added all papers to my links blog I hadn't had before or since 2004 (except for some weekly papers).

Here we go:

The choice is clear according to the Daily Astorian in its support of Barack Obama:

This is the most important vote you will cast this year, or perhaps in your lifetime. America is in jeopardy because of a presidency that ranks among the worst in American history. George W. Bush has put the nation's security in peril by overextending our armed forces and diminishing the nation's moral standing in the world, creating profligate fiscal policy involving tax breaks and a war whose costs are approaching those of World War II in inflation-adjusted dollars, transgressing constitutional limits that his political party has held dear and putting the needs of ordinary Americans toward the bottom of the list, as first exemplified by the tardy response to the disaster left by Hurricane Katrina.

Not to choose between the major party candidates Barack Obama and John McCain is not a choice. The difference between their policies are real and substantial.

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The Hamilton Journal-News believes Obama is the leader we need in these tough times:

The overarching question surrounding the 2008 presidential election is whether this nation can lift itself from the financial and political morass that threatens its prosperity, its security and its very future. To be successful, this country needs a strong leader who can pave a new course that improves the lives of Americans and others around the globe.

We believe that U.S. Sen. Barack Obama can be that leader.

The election of Obama on Nov. 4 does not guarantee that he will be able to deliver immediately on the ambitious agenda of change that he has been discussing and developing with Americans for the past 20 months. Nor will his selection solve the world's economic crisis. But electing Obama next month does declare to the entire world that a new, positive and optimistic course has been set for America, with attainable and desirable goals that will lift up the 305 million people who call this country home.

The Middletown Journal has the identical editorial.
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The Michigan Chronicle has endorsed Barack Obama:

There are two candidates in the race for president of the United States. The Democratic nominee, Sen. Barack Obama, and the Republican flag bearer, Sen. John McCain, both love this nation and want to see it move away from the current economic abyss it finds itself in.

Throughout this campaign season we have seen both candidates passionately display their love for this country and how they intend to transform it. From two parties we hear the need to change Washington , the seat of power.

No matter how high the passions of the candidates run on the campaign trail, only one of them will become president in January. Only one of them will be elected and charged with the enormous responsibility of restoring this nation on so many fronts. The next president will have to make extremely tough decisions for a nation that is almost on an economic brink.

That is why sound judgment, in our view, is important at this point to get the nation back on track. At a time when Wall Street has the world shaking and families left to wonder what is going to happen next, America needs a leader who will stand up for families and assure them that working together we can regain solid footing.

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The Daily Herald endorsed Obama:

n almost every political campaign, as the candidates go before the voters, they describe the election as one of the most important in history. Usually, that overused description is little more than hyperbole, flattering rhetoric meant to engage the voters.

This election, it is actually true.

This year, our foreign policy is in disarray, our country is polarized, our politics is unduly partisan and out of touch, and our economy is on the brink of the worst financial calamity since the Great Depression.

To respond to those challenges, the nation needs a confident change in direction. We believe Sen. Barack Obama is best suited by temperament, judgment and vision to bring about that change, and we strongly endorse Illinois' favorite son for the presidency.

We don't oppose Sen. John McCain of Arizona. We endorsed him in the Republican primary, and we believe he is a true war hero who possesses many good attributes.

But Obama has the potential to offer more. He can be, as we said in January, a transcendent figure on the landscape of history.

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A few days ago the Aurora Sentinel opined Obama was the one for needed change:

Both senators John McCain and Barack Obama can proudly point to times where they’ve disagreed with Bush on crucial mistakes: McCain on issues of torture and war strategy; Obama on healthcare and regulation.

Now, Americans must choose a candidate that can best restore our economy, our reputation, our infrastructure and our security and move the country beyond what the current administration has done. That candidate is Barack Obama.

In instance after instance, policy for policy, Obama has offered Americans plans for the economy, healthcare, energy, security at home and abroad and for the future that are a stark departure from where we are now.

While McCain has offered a few departures from the Bush era, they are too few and too close to what has brought America to the deeply troubled place it is now.

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The Aspen Daily News says it's been a long eight years and it's time for change in the person of Barack Obama:

It's been a long eight years.

As if finding ourselves embroiled in wars in Afghanistan and Iraq - and another against terror - were not enough, we have endured countless attacks on civil liberties, stood by as the executive branch repeatedly abused its power, and been clobbered by a financial crisis reminiscent of the Great Depression. President Bush's leadership has been so dismal that it isn't only Americans who have lost some faith in the red, white and blue. The United States has lost the respect of the world. And it all began when Bush launched his preemptive war.

But in 15 days, voters can change all that by electing the presidential candidate who opposed the war in Iraq all along. Barack Obama possesses both the style and the substance to guide this nation out of one of its darkest chapters.

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The Inland Daily Bulletin says the nation needs Obama:

The economic meltdown of the past few weeks has made it clear that our nation is in crisis.
The United States is more than $10 trillion in debt. Washington has agreed to a hugely expensive credit-market recovery plan - many call it simply a Wall Street bailout - because our leaders didn't see any other choice. More people are losing homes to foreclosure every day. We're fighting two wars at once, further draining our resources.

We're in a crisis of confidence in this country. We need a new direction, because where we've been headed is not good. What people need most right now is hope.

That's why Sen. Barack Obama is the best choice for the next president of the United States.

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The Ft. Dodge Messenger says McCain has earned the country's trust:

Character, as judged by a candidate's record, counts when voters are called upon to fill the most important office in the land, that of president of the United States.

We believe Sen. John McCain's character is just what our nation needs - and we endorse him for president.

McCain's record says much more about his character than do his comments on the campaign trail, though they provide a clear blueprint for leadership. Here, in brief, are the salient points about McCain:

His record as a Navy aviator during the Vietnam War is more than a stirring story of patriotism and selflessness. McCain's behavior as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam demonstrated that, at his core, he puts duty, honor and country above all else.

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The Chambersburg Public Opinion says in these troubled times, this country needs McCain:

John McCain is steadfastly against excessive government spending and has not added a single earmark to a bill in his entire career. This is in stark contrast to Barack Obama who has requested over $740 million in earmarks, which is over a million dollars for his every workday in Congress.

Common sense dictates that in going forward our elected politicians are going to have to cast aside all of their past habits of corruption, partisanship and pork-barrel spending in order to effectively work in the best interest of the American people and turn the economy around.

Only a leader with the courage to publicly call out the offenders in both parties can bring this change about. McCain has vowed to do this. Obama has not spoken on the subject. Obama has never in his short career stood up against his party. McCain has done so on a regular basis beginning with his freshman year in the House. McCain is the President we need to guide our recovery.

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The Lewistown Sentinel finds McCain is the better choice for the nation's economy:

McCain, as we have seen, attempted to forestall the crisis in 2005 and 2006. Obama and other liberals blocked him. In effect, they deserve a major share of the blame for the crisis.

By reining in irresponsible financial institutions, cutting the size of government, and providing relief for all taxpayers, McCain will provide a shot in the arm for the economy.

Though there are many reasons to vote for McCain, that one alone ought to be enough. We urge thoughtful, concerned area residents to vote for McCain for president, in an attempt to get the economy moving again.

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