Today’s installment of campaign-related news items that wouldn’t generate a post of their own, but may be of interest to political observers:<\/p>\n
* Rep. Juanita Millender-McDonald (D-Calif.) died yesterday<\/a> of cancer at age 68. The congresswoman, recently re-elected to her seventh term, had asked for a four- to six-week leave of absence from the House last week to deal with her illness. Under state law, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has 14 days to set a date for a special election to fill the seat.<\/p>\n * A report from UK’s Telegraph raised eyebrows over the weekend when the British paper reported<\/a> that “friends of Al Gore have secretly started assembling a campaign team in preparation for the former American vice-president to make a fresh bid for the White House.” It quoted a former Gore campaign aide as saying, “He hasn’t asked them to do this, but nor has he told them not to.” Shortly thereafter, Gore spokesperson Kalee Kreider denied the report<\/a>. Former Gore adviser Michael Feldman added, “Pure fantasy.”<\/p>\n * Hoping to prove there is substance to back up his style, Barack Obama is “unleashing the fine print<\/a>” on his campaign’s policy agenda. USA Today reports, “Now his campaign is 10 weeks old. Enough with the niceties, the generalities, the story of his life. On Friday, the Illinois senator unveiled a plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions. Today, he gives a speech on foreign policy. Next up, education and health care.”<\/p>\n * Despite statewide polls showing him with a very good chance, Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) announced late of Friday that he will not run<\/a> for the Senate in 2008. “This was not an easy decision,” DeFazio continued. “You don’t get a poll that shows you’re ahead of an incumbent senator and generous offers of support from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and just blow it off. It was a long and serious deliberation on my part.” Attention is now likely to turn to Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.), who was waiting for DeFazio to make a decision.<\/p>\n