Daily News Feed 10.28.08

Triple tragedy leaves Hudson career at crossroads
Just a month ago, a bubbly Jennifer Hudson — who had been striking gold with just about everything she touched — was running down the list of all the projects that she expected would soon dominate her life. Already an Oscar-winning actress, the 27-year-old was about to release her first album, which would become an instant best-seller, and a new movie, “The Secret Life of Bees.” But the entertainer saw so much more in her future. “I am planning on touring,” she said, rattling off a list of her upcoming priorities. “There’s more films and more music and stuff like that … I want to start a fashion line as well, start writing music.” There were also plans of a big wedding to new fiance David Otunga. “It’s gonna be a production,” she gushed. “I have so many visions for it right now — I get to put that together.” (Continue Reading…)

Obama to Voters: Our Future Depends on This Week
Sen. Barack Obama told voters on Monday that “we are one week away from changing America.” Delivering what his campaign billed as his “closing argument,” Obama told a crowd in Canton, Ohio, that “there’s so much at stake” in the week ahead. “We cannot let up for one day, one minute, or one second in this last week. Not now,” he said. The Democratic candidate, who has a sizeable lead in national polls, warned against acting as if the election is already over. “Don’t think for a minute that power concedes. We have a lot of work to do. We have to work like our future depends on it in this last week, because it does depend on it this week,” he said. Obama told voters it was up to them to “give this country the change we need,” as he tried to make the case that Sen. John McCain is too similar to President Bush to bring about that change. (Continue Reading…)

NAACP Sues Virginia Governor Over Election Day Preparations
The Virginia branch of the NAACP sued Gov. Tim Kaine and state election officials on Monday, claiming that the state is “inadequately prepared” for the record number of voters expected to turn out in next week’s presidential election. The complaint, filed Monday afternoon in U.S. District Court in Richmond, says state officials have not set up enough polling sites to keep up with the turnout. “The allocation of polling place resources is plainly irrational, non-uniform and likely discriminatory,” the suit states. It cites the 2004 presidential election, arguing that too few polling places in Virginia at the time led to long lines and forced some voters to turn away. (Continue Reading…)