Election briefs

DES MOINES, Iowa — Oprah Winfrey will join Democrat Barack Obama again on the campaign trail, this time visiting the early contest states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, the candidate’s campaign said Monday.

The popular talk show host and media mogul plans to visit Iowa on Saturday, Dec. 8, with stops in Des Moines and Cedar Rapids. The following day, she’ll travel to Columbia, S.C. Later that day, Obama’s campaign said, she’ll travel to Manchester, N.H.

This isn’t the first time Oprah has lent her star power to the Illinois senator.

In September, she rolled out the red carpet for Obama at a gala fundraiser in California that brought in about $3 million for his campaign.

Winfrey is a well-known fan of Obama, calling him "my favorite guy” and "my choice” on CNN’s "Larry King Live” last year before he announced he would seek the presidency.

In a news release announcing the events, Obama’s campaign said tickets to the Iowa events will be given first to precinct captains, then campaign volunteers, then to supporters and undecided caucus-goers.

It said volunteers can be guaranteed a ticket by completing a four-hour volunteer shift or attending local caucus training before the event.

Thompson acknowledges some states could enact abortion on demand if Roe reversed

WASHINGTON — Republican presidential contender Fred Thompson, endorsed by the National Right To Life Committee, said Sunday that reversing Roe v. Wade would allow states to restrict abortion, but acknowledged that some could permit abortion on demand.

Thompson said that reversal has a better practical chance than a constitutional amendment banning abortion. A reversal would leave state governments in charge of abortion policy once again. States enacted their own laws before the Supreme Court’s historic ruling in 1973 that established a woman’s constitutional right to an abortion.

States "would have the ability to restrict abortion more than they do now. I mean, the gain would be on the pro-life side,” Thompson predicted.

Asked in a broadcast interview whether some states could approve abortion on demand, Thompson acknowledged that was a possibility. "Do I think a state ultimately has to have the right to maybe do something that I would disagree with? If you can’t carry the ball in those states, yes. Yes. There’s no question. We live in a democratic society.”

Thompson said a constitutional amendment would be the ideal, but it must be approved by two-thirds in both the House and Senate and by three-fourths of the states.

"If we can’t carry the argument, if we can’t win the argument, which I think that we are winning nationwide now, we can never pass a constitutional amendment anyway,” Thompson said. "We sit here and talk about the ideal which would be a constitutional amendment, two-thirds of the Congress, three-fourths of the states, and are basically saying that we could get that done, but we can’t go state by state and win this argument? I believe that’s wrong. I think we could make substantial progress.”

He appeared on "Fox News Sunday.”