Mitt Romney, the former Bay State guv now running third in the gop presidential sweepstakes, doesn't use a BlackBerry or even carry a cellphone. But that's not to say he's not a techie geek. In fact, he's proving to be just the kind of wonk that would make Microsoft's Bill Gates giddy at an issues lunch. Here's the deal: Romney is the first-ever presidential candidate to haul out a PowerPoint presentation at campaign events. He did it recently while addressing the Detroit Economic Club, and the audience went nuts for it. "It was amazing," an auto exec tells us. "I mean he didn't just make claims. He had the graphs to back him up!"
If you're wondering why, despite his denials, Al Gore remains the most talked about nonpresidential candidate, it's this: His friends think he's done so well in the private world that he could bankroll the start of his own 2008 bid. "If Al Gore wants to run, he will come with all the means necessary," says longtime ally Donna Brazile. "Al Gore is someone who can pull it off at half time," she said. But he's got competing interests for his wallet: Friends say he also wants to expand his global climate change campaign.
It doesn't look as if we'll be seeing Sen. Barack Obama, among the leanest Democrats running for the presidency, hanging out at McDonald's. That's because he's big on exercise and healthy eating. "He exercises every day," says an insider. Obama's a runner and a regular on the treadmill. The youthful lawmaker even ran for an hour before announcing his candidacy back in Illinois. Among his snacks: trail mix.
AP - A suicide truck bomber sent a deadly storm of metal, stone and jagged plaster through worshippers leaving a Sunni mosque Saturday, killing at least 39 in a possible sign of escalating internal Sunni battles between insurgents and those who oppose them.
AP - Vice President Dick Cheney's plane landed at a military air base in Singapore on Sunday for a scheduled refueling stop after experiencing a minor mechanical problem.
AP - Dozens of Israeli jeeps and armored vehicles raided the West Bank city of Nablus Sunday and placed tens of thousands of Palestinians under curfew.
Possible tornadoes touched down Saturday in Arkansas, Mississippi and Louisiana. In Dumas, Arkansas, several buildings were destroyed and at least a dozen people were hurt, some seriously, authorities say. Severe storms with tornado threats continued moving eastward at about 60 mph, the National Weather Service said.
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