The American Spectator

Washington Prowler

p> THE CNN ANGLE br> CNN staffers on the floor of the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul were buoyant Sunday afternoon after the mid-afternoon announcement that the Republican convention was being revamped and adjusted in tone because of looming Hurricane Gustav. /p>

One cameraman with the all news network moved his camera and positioned it behind the Louisiana delegation's signage, which from the angle included a shot of the RNC podium, when a colleague asked why he'd moved from his original spot, the CNNer said, "A press guy I know from Obama in Denver suggested it might be a good shot."

Within ten minutes three other remote cameras and seven still photographers were taking shots from the same location.

p> DIRTY TOOLS br> As Obama operatives scour records in Alaska for dirt on Gov. Sarah Palin , they are also seeking embarrassing materials about her husband. And it isn't just the Obama campaign. Several left-wing groups with ties to MoveOn.org have used their network to offer as to $5,000 for damaging employment or personal information about him. /p>

Meanwhile, the Obama campaign has asked the DNC to coordinate surrogates that appear on camera to attack Gov. Palin. "Last Friday, the Democrat women they put all looked old and tired, nothing like what folks were seeing from Palin," says an Obama media adviser. "It was like, 'we don't have any good-looking younger representatives to put up?'"

p> GLOVES OFF

topics:
Barack Obama, Sarah Palin, Energy, Alaska