Today on the presidential campaign trail

IN THE HEADLINES

Obama says Iran should accept EU nuclear proposal and not wait for next US president ... McCain mocks Obama policy for Iraq as 'audacity of hopelessness' that could have lost the war ... German leader's office praises Obama speech as 'positive signal' to Europe ... Secret Service needs $9.5 million more to protect presidential candidates

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Obama urges Iran to accept EU nuke proposal

PARIS (AP) - Democratic Sen. Barack Obama, nearing the end of a fast-paced international campaign trip, warned Iran on Friday, "don't wait for the next president" to take office before yielding to Western demands to dismantle its nuclear weapons program.

"The pressure, I think, is only going to build," he said at a news conference as he stood beside French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

Obama spent less than five hours in the French capital, time enough for his motorcade to drive past curious Parisians gathered along the sidewalks hoping to catch a glimpse, receive a greeting from his host on the steps of the presidential palace and then hold private talks before a news conference.

The French president veered close to an endorsement to a man he called "my dear Barack Obama."

Sarkozy recalled that when they first met in 2006 neither was president.

"And one of us became president. Well, let the other do likewise, huh? I mean, that's not meddling" in the U.S. election, Sarkozy said.

For his part, Obama observed that when Sarkozy visited the United States two years ago, he met with only two senators - himself and John McCain, now the Republican presidential candidate-in-waiting. "So I would suggest that, for the reporters in the room, if you want to know something about elections, you should talk to the president of France."

Obama said he and Sarkozy agreed that Iran poses "an extraordinarily grave situation," and the world must send "a clear message to Iran to end its illicit nuclear program."

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McCain rejects 'audacity of hopelessness' for Iraq

DENVER (AP) - Republican John McCain, ridiculing Barack Obama for "the audacity of hopelessness" in his policies on Iraq, said Friday that the entire Middle East could have plunged into war had U.S. troops been withdrawn as his rival advocated.

Speaking to an audience of Hispanic military veterans, McCain stepped up his criticism of Obama while the Illinois senator continued his headline-grabbing tour of the Middle East and Europe. The Arizona Republican contended that Obama's policies - he opposed sending more troops to Iraq in the "surge" that McCain supported - would have led to defeat there and in Afghanistan.

"We rejected the audacity of hopelessness, and we were right," McCain said, a play on the title of Obama's book "The Audacity of Hope."

McCain laid out a near-apocalyptic chain of events he said could have resulted had Obama managed to stop the troop buildup ordered by President Bush: U.S. forces retreating under fire, the Iraqi army collapsing, civilian casualties increasing dramatically, al-Qaida killing cooperative Sunni sheiks and finding safe havens to train fighters and launch attacks on Americans, and civil war, genocide and a wider conflict.

"Above all, America would have been humiliated and weakened," he said.

Noting that the buildup was unpopular with most Americans, McCain said: "Sen. Obama told the American people what he thought you wanted to hear. I told you the truth."

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Obama speech draws praise from chancellor's office

BERLIN (AP) - Barack Obama's speech to a huge Berlin crowd sent a "positive signal" to Europe, German Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokesman said Friday, praising the Democratic presidential candidate's focus on working with U.S. partners.

Obama addressed more than 200,000 people at the capital's Victory Column on Thursday evening after meeting Merkel and Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier on the first leg of a three-country European tour.

German newspapers lauded the speech. "Prince America embraces Berlin" was the headline in the capital's B-Z tabloid across a full page photo of Obama. "He was celebrated like a pop star," said the top-selling Bild.

"From the point of view of the chancellor and the government, the speech is a positive signal for Europe and to Europe," Merkel spokesman Ulrich Wilhelm told reporters. Obama "underlined the fact that the challenges of the 21st century can only be tackled together, only in international cooperation - that corresponds with the German government's position."

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Secret Service wants more money for candidates

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Secret Service has asked for an extra $9.5 million to cover unexpected costs of protecting the presidential candidates during what has turned into a historic year for the agency's campaign security job.

Among other things, the extra money would be used for the added costs for the candidates' international travel and a late-in-the-game decision by Barack Obama to accept the Democratic nomination at Denver's Invesco Field at Mile High - an open-air, 76,000-seat stadium - instead of the 20,000-seat Pepsi Center, which is the site of the party's national convention.

Presidential candidates are traveling overseas with Secret Service protection more than ever before.

Obama is on a six-day trip to Jordan, Israel, Germany, France and Britain. Before that he was on a three-day congressionally sponsored trip to Afghanistan and Iraq. Republican candidate John McCain has traveled to Canada, Colombia and Mexico under the agency's protection.

The 2008 presidential campaign cycle is the longest in Secret Service history by about five months. The Secret Service budgeted $106.65 million for the 2008 campaign cycle, compared to $73.3 million in 2004.

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DAILY TRACK

Democrat Barack Obama holds a 6-point lead nationally over Republican John McCain - 47 percent to 41 percent - among registered voters in the presidential race, according to the latest Gallup Poll Daily tracking update.

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THE DEMOCRATS

Barack Obama met with French President Nicolas Sarkozy in Paris.

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THE REPUBLICANS

John McCain spoke at the American GI Forum Convention in Denver. He also planned to meet with the Dalai Lama in Aspen, Colo.

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QUOTE OF THE DAY:

"There's a wonderful tradition in the United States that's not always observed, but I think is a good one. Which is that you don't spend time criticizing a sitting president when you're overseas, because I think that we have one president at a time." - Democrat Barack Obama, speaking at a news conference in Paris.

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STAT OF THE DAY:

Nearly 6 percent of polling places reported having too few workers in the 2004 election, according to the Election Assistance Commission.

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Compiled by Ann Sanner.