Barack Obama, 2012 Presidential Election | featured news

An elected county judge in Texas is warning that the nation could descend into civil war if President Barack Obama is re-elected, and is calling for a trained, well-equipped force to battle the United Nations troops he says Obama would bring in. The comments by Lubbock County Judge Tom Head, who oversees emergency planning efforts, were broadcast by CNN affiliate KJTV. He made similar remarks on radio station FOX Talk 950.

Coverage of Barack Obama and Mitt Romney, especially on cable TV and leading news websites, is increasingly driven by the campaigns themselves, resulting in one of the most negative elections this country has seen in decades. That's the conclusion of a new study by the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism, which looked at more than 800 news stories produced by top newspapers, websites, and television and radio shows during the general election campaign.

President Obama has a new television ad featuring a testimonial from Democratic predecessor Bill Clinton. In the spot -- which is running in eight swing states -- Clinton casts the Obama-Mitt Romney race as "a clear choice" between two different economic plans.

President Obama leads Mitt Romney in Ohio while the two candidates are neck-and-neck in Florida and Wisconsin, according to a new poll of the three swing states. The polling by Quinnipiac University/New York Times/CBS News shows the race tightening in Florida and Wisconsin. Romney is getting a small boost in these states from his selection of Rep. Paul Ryan, who hails from Wisconsin.

President Obama's campaign is claiming another first: Donations by text message. The campaign said today that Obama supporters with smartphones can contribute up to $50 by texting "GIVE" to the number 62262.

Many who were inspired by Barack Obama's message of hope and change in 2008 have had to adopt more pragmatic expectations in working for his reelection. Margaret McConnell chokes up a little when she thinks about the last few years in politics.

The USC Annenberg/Los Angeles Times poll on Politics and the Press shows President Obama leading Mitt Romney 48% to 45% in a race one pollster labels 'static.' With his running mate in place and his nominating convention looming, Republican Mitt Romney narrowly trails President Obama, according to a new nationwide poll of likely voters.

With a nod to his basketball star host, Michael Jordan, President Barack Obama used a sports analogy at a fundraiser in New York on Wednesday to describe the election campaign and his opponents, who he said played "dirty."

Mitt Romney claims he's got a winner with his criticism that President Barack Obama is giving welfare recipients a free ride. Never mind that aspects of his argument against the Democrat are factually inaccurate....

These days, President Obama is running as much against Paul Ryan as Mitt Romney. Having used the Medicare issue against Romney and his running mate Ryan -- who is chairman of the House Budget Committee -- Obama today zeroed in on education funding. "Putting a college education within reach for working families just doesn't seem to be a big priority for my opponent," Obama told supporters today in Columbus, Ohio.