Special section in the Independent (UK)

Special section in the Independent (UK)
Originally uploaded by rllayman

I doubt it will make it into the edition that makes it to the United States, but the Independent newspaper of the UK announces a special 20 page section on the U.S. presidential election, including a pull out map. It's supposed to run Thursday and Friday.

Federal-level urban policies, including support for building out transit systems, even education (i.e., the No Child Left Behind Act) really matter. The fact that the U.S. is spending billions of dollars on a war for oil in the mideast certainly would justify an increase in the federal excise tax for gasoline, but the current administration doesn't support it. The cost of the war and the cost of automobility is what is driving the dollar to new lows.

Even tourism is an issue. The administration doesn't do a whole lot of support for tourism promotion, despite the best practice efforts of other countries, and the fact that international tourists spend more money...

So the presidential election does matter to cities, very much so. One source for information on this is the City Mayors website and their page on the 2008 presidential election campaign.