WASHINGTON - Republican Ron Paul, the libertarian-leaning Texas congressman who attracted a devoted following in the GOP primaries, said yesterday he rejected an appeal to endorse John McCain and instead urged three other candidates to bring all their supporters together to vote against the "establishment candidates."

Paul said the request to back McCain came from Phil Gramm, a former senator and McCain adviser whom the campaign jettisoned after he said the country was a "nation of whiners" about the economy.

Paul called the presidential elections a charade and said voters are faced with the "lesser of two evils." Although he won no primaries this year, Paul collected more than 1.1 million votes and drew a strong following on the Internet.

He appeared at a news conference with three third-party candidates: independent Ralph Nader, Green Party candidate Cynthia McKinney, and Constitution Party candidate Chuck Baldwin.

Libertarian candidate Bob Barr, a former Republican congressman from Georgia, held his own news conference yesterday to announce that he has asked Paul, the party's nominee in 1988, to be his running mate.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Wasilla adds Web page to deal with media crush

The city government of Wasilla, Alaska, inundated by journalists and researchers seeking information about former mayor Sarah Palin, last Friday set up a page on its website titled "Questions & Answers Concerning Mayor Palin" to minimize the amount of time employees have to spend answering questions.

Bogus Internet postings and e-mails have sought to portray Palin as a book burner because she once asked questions about the city's policy on removing objectionable books from the library.

The website says only five books at the Wasilla Public Library have been challenged in the past 22 years, and none was removed. One complaint was raised during Palin's six years as mayor, but the book, "Heather Has Two Mommies," by Leslea Newman, remained on the shelf, the report states.

BRIAN C. MOONEY

Obama recruits Bill Clinton to hit the campaign trail

NEW YORK - Barack Obama revealed yesterday that Bill Clinton, once the presidential nominee's nemesis, will campaign for him during the weeks leading up to Election Day. "There's nobody smarter in politics," Obama said on CBS's "Late Show with David Letterman."

The two were scheduled to have lunch today at Clinton's office in New York. Clinton spokesman Matt McKenna said the former president would campaign for Obama at a yet-to-be-announced site in Florida on Sept. 29, with plans for more fund-raising and events in the works.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

NRA says Obama would be the most antigun president

The National Rifle Association said yesterday it will send a mailer to 4 million members warning that Barack Obama would be the most antigun president in American history.

When the Supreme Court issued a landmark ruling in June upholding an individual right to bear arms and throwing out a handgun ordinance in Washington, D.C., Obama sought a middle ground. "I have always believed that the Second Amendment protects the right of individuals to bear arms, but I also identify with the need for crime-ravaged communities to save their children from the violence that plagues our streets through commonsense, effective safety measures," he said.

FOON RHEE

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