Obama took foreign aid: Republicans

Washington, Oct. 6: The Republican National Committee plans to file a fundraising complaint against Democrat Barack Obama’s presidential campaign on Monday, alleging it has accepted donations that exceed federal limits as well as illegal contributions from foreigners.

RNC officials acknowledged yesterday that they do not have a list of foreign donors to Mr Obama’s campaign. Instead, the complaint is based largely on media reports, including one from a conservative website.

The complaint asks the Federal Elections Commission to audit Mr Obama’s campaign fund, RNC chief counsel Sean Cairncross said in a conference call with reporters.

Mr Cairncross said little is known about many of Mr Obama’s donors because the campaign is not required to disclose detailed information about people who give less than $200. The Obama campaign, which is not accepting public funds, has raised more than $468 million.

About half has come from small donors a point of pride for the Obama campaign.

The Obama campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

—AP

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Campaign attacks now get personal

Washington, Oct.6: Verbal attacks between the Obama and McCain camps have started getting personal with just 29 days to go for the poll that will determine who will be the United States 44th President.

Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin on Sunday charged Mr Obama with "palling around with terrorists".

Mr Palin said it is legitimate to raise Mr Obama’s association with William Ayers, a co-founder of the Weather Underground, a Vietnam-era domestic terror group.

Mr Ayers and Mr Obama are acquainted — Mr Ayers is a neighbour of Obama’s in South Side Chicago and hosted a fundraiser for Mr Obama at the beginning of his political career. But they never palled around, the Obama campaign insists. Mr Obama, who has held a statistically significant lead against John McCain in more than a week of Gallup daily tracking polls, said on Sunday that he won’t be distracted by Republicans trying to tear him down.

According to Fox News, Ms Palin’s attack coincided with reports by the Washington Post and New York Times that the McCain campaign was going to get personal by raising questions of Mr Obama’s credibility. —ANI