Hillary pulls ahead, is fined several cows, owes money, is "bridge builder to lunatic right"

The latest tracking poll showed the contest had narrowed slightly, with Obama's lead shrinking slightly and Clinton gaining strength.

• Tied: They are in a statistical tie — Obama, 45.2 percent; Clinton, 43.2 percent — in a poll that has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.8 percentage points. Obama dropped 3 percentage points from the previous day's tracking poll, while Clinton gained 1.5 percentage points.

• Undecided: Pollster John Zogby said the movement in the poll came from a 1.2 percent increase in undecideds and from the fact Clinton had a small increase of support among Hispanics.

The Houston Chronicle, Reuters, C-Span tracking poll is being conducted by Zogby International.

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Is Ohio going to be able to count the votes this time without triggering any conspiracy theories?

Ohio, like the rest of the country, has been working hard to end the Election Day delays and errors that have done so much to undermine confidence in our democracy. Authorities here have spent well over $100 million on new voting machines, none of which the secretary of state regards as reliable.

Obama says he’s the bridge-builder. But I keep hearing right-wing radio types say they’d vote for Hillary Clinton before John McCain. None of them ever say they’d vote for Obama. Should Hillary be highlighting that?

I don’t know if “Bridge-Builder to the Lunatic Right” is the kind of nickname you want at this point in the campaign.

Is there any chance Hillary can pull this out?

It looks hopeless, which was exactly the way it looked in New Hampshire right before she won. So, sure.

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It was just $2,492.63, a pittance, really, alongside million-dollar television buys and direct mail drops.      

But with Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton’s bid for the Democratic presidential nomination enduring a rough patch, Peter Semetis, the owner of a deli and catering business in Lower Manhattan, had been following the news and growing increasingly worried that he was not going to be paid for the assorted breakfast trays, coffee, tea and orange juice he had provided the campaign for an event in mid-December. ...

... The Hotel Ottumwa, a family-owned hotel in Ottumwa, Iowa, played host to  an event attended by former President Bill Clinton on New Year’s Eve for several hundred people and had been trying for almost a month and a half to get paid.

The hotel had initially asked for payment of the $9,125 bill up front but kept being put off. But the owners figured that if any political campaign was good for it, Mrs. Clinton’s would be.

“People were a little more comfortable with Clinton because they’ve got money,” said Kay Whittington, one of the hotel owners.

Last week, the owners heard about an item on the local news about a Des Moines cleaning company, Top Job Services Cleaning, which had been trying unsuccessfully to recoup $7,500 from the Clinton campaign. ...

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Kenyan elders may impose a fine on U.S. presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton, payable in livestock, after a photo of her rival Barack Obama in robes dragged their people into the race for the White House. ...

... Wajir elders resolved to file an official complaint with the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi, dropping earlier plans to hold a protest after Friday prayers.

They said they would also convene a traditional Somali court to investigate the matter. It can impose fines that are payable in cattle, goats or camels.

"We will go ahead with this case whether Senator Clinton or Democratic party leaders turn up or not," said Mohamed Ibrahim, a member of the clan that hosted Obama during his trip. "But this whole thing can be avoided if only an apology is made."