The Des Moines Register's editorial board is
endorsing Republican senator John McCain and Democratic
senator Hillary Clinton ahead of the state's January 3
presidential caucuses, contending they top the field
in competence and readiness to lead in a time of
dissension at home and distrust and peril abroad.
Weighing in on a
tight Democratic race, the statewide paper's board said
in its endorsement Saturday night that Democratic challenger
Barack Obama ''inspired our imaginations. But it was
Clinton who inspired our confidence.''
McCain, an
opponent of ethanol and crop subsidies important to Iowa,
has not mounted a serious challenge in the state's
close GOP contest, pinning his hopes on New
Hampshire's January 8 leadoff primary and elsewhere. But
the board cited his deep knowledge of national security and
foreign policy issues, and his honesty.
''The force of
John McCain's moral authority could go a long way toward
restoring Americans' trust in government and inspiring new
generations to believe in the goodness and greatness
of America,'' the board wrote on the paper's website.
The editorial
board of The Boston Globe, closely watched in
the New Hampshire campaign, came out in favor of Obama
and McCain in its endorsements Saturday.
The
Globe's board said Obama fulfills America's
need for ''a president with an intuitive sense of the wider
world'' and said McCain ''has done more than his share to
transcend partisanship and promote an honest
discussion of the problems facing the United States.''
It said Obama's
diverse and international life experience helped the
Illinois senator develop a unique perspective of the world.
''The most
sobering challenges that face this country -- terrorism,
climate change, disease pandemics -- are global,'' the board
said in early excerpts of its endorsement. ''America
needs a president with an intuitive sense of the wider
world, with all its perils and opportunities. Barack
Obama has this understanding at his core.''
McCain was
praised by both newspapers as a straight talker who could
help a polarized nation. The Globe's board said
the Arizona senator could be an antidote to the ''toxic
political approach'' of the last two presidential
elections. McCain also picked up the New Hampshire
Union Leader's endorsement, making him the
pick for two of the most widely read papers in New
Hampshire.
The
Register endorsed Democrat John Edwards in 2004
and, in the 2000 GOP race, backed George W. Bush over
McCain.
''He doesn't
parse words,'' The Register's board said
Saturday of McCain. ''And on tough calls, he usually lands
on the side of goodness -- of compassion for illegal
immigrants, of concern for the environment for future
generations.''
The board
criticized Edwards this time, saying the positive campaign
he ran in 2004 has seldom been seen. ''His harsh
anti-corporate rhetoric would make it difficult to
work with the business community to forge change,'' it
said.
Clinton has been
tested by rough politics and personal trials, the paper
said, and has responded with strength and resilience. ''We
believe as president she'll do what she's always done
in her life: Throw herself into the job and work hard.
We believe Hillary Rodham Clinton can do great things
for our country.'' (AP)