http://dir.salon.com/topics/walter_shapiro/?source=rss&aim=walter_shapiro en-us Copyright 2007 Salon.com. Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/11/17/ayers/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/11/17/ayers/index.html?source=rss Sarah Palin called him a terrorist, Barack Obama called him an acquaintance. A Salon editor who knew Ayers back when talks to the ex-Weather Underground member turned Republican talking point. By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/11/14/obama_natsecleaders/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/11/14/obama_natsecleaders/index.html?source=rss Will it be Chuck Hagel, or even Hillary Clinton, for secretary of state? Will Bob Gates stay at the Pentagon? Obama's national security team remains mostly top secret. By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/11/11/obama_cabinet/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/11/11/obama_cabinet/index.html?source=rss It's proving difficult to peer inside Obama's still tightly closed Cabinet. But so far his presidential transition has looked deliberate and impressive. By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/11/05/president_elect_obama/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/11/05/president_elect_obama/index.html?source=rss The culmination of a brilliant campaign, Obama's unequivocal defeat of John McCain marks a political and generational transformation. By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/11/04/election_day/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/11/04/election_day/index.html?source=rss As Americans flock to the polls, all eyes are on a handful of key battleground states. By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/11/02/ohio_obama/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/11/02/ohio_obama/index.html?source=rss In bellwether Perry County, the Ku Klux Klan once thrived. Now, Republican truckers and coal miners are backing Barack Obama. By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/31/ohio/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/31/ohio/index.html?source=rss In the state that broke Democratic hearts in 2004, favorable poll numbers and a wave of early voters could point to victory. By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/29/mccain_2000/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/29/mccain_2000/index.html?source=rss The maverick of days past might be deadlocked with Obama now if he hadn't let the Republican right hijack the Straight Talk Express. By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/27/mccain_new_hampshire/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/27/mccain_new_hampshire/index.html?source=rss His Straight Talk Express bolted out of New Hampshire eight years ago. Now the candidate is running on empty. By Mike Madden and Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/23/campaign_myths/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/23/campaign_myths/index.html?source=rss Guess what? The Conventional Wisdom has blown it again in handicapping Obama vs. McCain in the homestretch. By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/21/demographics/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/21/demographics/index.html?source=rss From the youth vote to Sarah Palin's outdated embrace of the rural mystique, Salon's panel of demographers and consumer trend experts talks about how America is changing. By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/20/indiana/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/20/indiana/index.html?source=rss Put off by the McCain-Palin ticket, suburban Republicans are backing Barack Obama -- who might score a rare Democratic win in the Hoosier State. By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/16/debate3/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/16/debate3/index.html?source=rss The Republican senator's final debate performance was marked by oddball characters and marginal attacks, as hopes of his political resurrection appeared to fade. By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/10/13/obama/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/10/13/obama/index.html?source=rss The odds are long for McCain, but this is no time for Democrats to embrace irrational exuberance. Here are four ways McCain might be able to turn it around. By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/08/debate2/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/08/debate2/index.html?source=rss With the economy nose-diving, McCain did not achieve the surge he needed, while Obama looked masterly as the candidate of reassurance. By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/07/low_road/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/07/low_road/index.html?source=rss As the gloves come off in the presidential race, John McCain seems ever more willing to dispense with past claims to personal honor. By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/06/wisconsin/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/06/wisconsin/index.html?source=rss In Wisconsin's blue-collar Paper Valley, the Democrats are banking on an outpouring of volunteers while the Republicans are left with fear itself. By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/03/gop_watchers/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/03/gop_watchers/index.html?source=rss Republican debate watchers praised a "tough" and "witty" performance from the Alaskan governor, but on the whole were surprisingly subdued. By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/02/vp_debate/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/02/vp_debate/index.html?source=rss She was outmatched by Katie Couric, but how will Sarah Palin fare against Joe Biden? The debate comes at a crucial time for the struggling McCain campaign. By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/01/bail_out/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/10/01/bail_out/index.html?source=rss What happens when the messy thing called democracy collides with the financial markets in full panic. By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/09/27/first_debate/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/09/27/first_debate/index.html?source=rss Friday's debate was no decisive showdown. But for undecided voters watching, did Obama look too green or McCain too mean? By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/09/26/debate_flux/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/09/26/debate_flux/index.html?source=rss Leading Republicans say that, short of total gridlock on the economic bailout, a McCain no-show on Friday would be "a huge political mistake." By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/09/25/McCain_debate_move/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/09/25/McCain_debate_move/index.html?source=rss McCain is now unlikely to show up for the first scheduled showdown with Obama. Master stroke or campaign in meltdown? By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/09/22/pennsylvania/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/09/22/pennsylvania/index.html?source=rss This year, the economy trumps social issues in blue-collar Scranton. That should mean advantage, Democrat. But what does it really mean when local voters say they don't "know" Obama? By Walter Shapiro Mon, 17 Nov 2008 03:11:00 PST http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/09/19/election_homestretch/index.html?source=rss http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/09/19/election_homestretch/index.html?source=rss So much about the Obama-McCain contest breaks the mold -- yet the electoral map is looking eerily familiar.