Senator McCain told fellow veterans yesterday that Senator Obama tried to legislate failure in Iraq and has refused to acknowledge that he erred when opposing the military increase there last year. Mr. McCain said that Mr. Obama placed his political self-interest ahead of his country’s, a theme the Arizona Republican has often repeated. “With less than three months to go before the election, a lot of people are still trying to square Senator Obama’s varying positions on the surge in Iraq. First, he opposed the surge and confidently predicted that it would fail. Then he tried to prevent funding for the troops who carried out the surge,” Mr. McCain said. “Not content to merely predict failure in Iraq, my opponent tried to legislate failure.” Iraqi leaders have been pressing America for a timetable for withdrawal. “It is hard to understand how Senator McCain can at once proclaim his support for the sovereign government of Iraq, and then stubbornly defy their expressed support for a timeline to remove our combat brigades from their country,” an Obama campaign spokesman, Bill Burton, said.

McCAIN CRITICIZED OVER FUND-RAISER TIED TO ABRAMOFF

The McCain campaign is facing criticism over fund-raising by a political strategist tied to the disgraced and imprisoned lobbyist Jack Abramoff. The campaign moved quickly to distance itself from the strategist, Ralph Reed, after reports surfaced that Mr. Reed, an associate of Abramoff’s, was to attend a McCain fund-raiser last night in Atlanta and had sent out fund-raising solicitations on the candidate’s behalf. Aides to the Arizona senator told ABC News that Mr. Reed, a former director of the Christian Coalition, was not at the fund-raiser, and solicited donations independent of the campaign. Mr. McCain has highlighted his record of fighting corruption, and pledged to clean up Washington, and the Democratic National Committee pounced on the reports yesterday, sending out an e-mail suggesting that Mr. Reed’s involvement with the campaign would “strip the veneer off McCain’s reformer rhetoric.” Mr. Reed’s firm did business with Abramoff, now serving a jail sentence for conspiracy, mail fraud, and tax evasion. Mr. McCain had led a Senate investigation into the Abramoff scandal.

DASCHLE SAYS HE IS NOT OBAMA’S VP CHOICE

Senator Daschle of South Dakota said yesterday that there is no chance Senator Obama will pick him as a running mate. The former Senate majority leader and close adviser to the Democratic presidential candidate has turned over personal information the campaign is using to review potential vice presidential nominees. But Mr. Daschle said he is confident he is not Mr. Obama’s choice. “I did give [them] documents a long time ago, but these matters have been resolved for a long time now as far as I’m concerned,” Mr. Daschle told the Associated Press in an interview. Mr. Daschle said he doesn’t know who Mr. Obama’s pick is, if it’s been decided, or when it will be announced. He said he imagines the only person who knows is the person who has been chosen — and that’s not him. “Nope,” Mr. Daschle said when asked if there’s any chance he’ll be asked to join the ticket. Given that the Democratic National Convention begins next Monday in Denver, “one would have to assume that it’s going to be this week,” he said.

DNC SENDS ‘EXXON-McCAIN’ CAMPAIGN KIT TO REPORTERS

When Senator Obama first suggested that Americans inflate their tires as a way to use less gas and conserve energy, the McCain campaign mocked the idea by handing out tire gauges to reporters inscribed with the words “Barack Obama Energy Plan.” Now the Democratic National Committee has come up with a gift bag retort: “Exxon-McCain” stress barrels. The DNC mailed a package of goodies to Washington-based reporters yesterday aimed at highlighting — and mocking — Senator McCain’s ties to the oil industry. The contents include an oil barrel-shaped stress ball (for reporters stressed out by their lack of access to the suddenly press-shy Republican), along with campaign buttons and bumper stickers with the “ExxonMcCain ’08” slogan. The DNC has been hammering Mr. McCain over campaign contributions from oil companies and an economic plan that it says would give $4 billion in tax breaks to the industry amid record gas prices.