Breaking

U.S. Sen. John Kerry will head up to New Hampshire on Saturday for two events on behalf of Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama, according to Obama's campaign.

Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and Sen. John Kerry (D-Boston)Kerry, the 2004 Democratic presidential nominee, will canvass in Nashua at 1:30 p.m. before heading to a "Veterans to Veterans Voter Contact Event" in Manchester at 3 p.m.

In the announcement, the Obama campaign said Kerry will draw on his experiences in 2004 when he faced false character attacks from the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth to address Republican presidential nominee John McCain's recent character attacks on Obama.

Planned Parenthood of Massachusetts, a primary backer of Dianne Wilkerson, is not endorsing the state senator or Sonia Chang-Diaz in their general election match up.

Colin Moore, a spokesman for the organization, told PolitickerMA.com Wednesday that Planned Parenthood's political arm has opted to stay out of the race.

"The advocacy fund board has decided we will stay neutral," Moore said.

Sonia Chang-Diaz's campaign has garnered the endorsements of two groups that backed her opponent, state Sen. Dianne Wilkerson, in the Democratic primary.

Sonia Chang-Diaz (D-Jamaica Plain): Campaign PhotoIn a release Thursday, the National Association of Social Workers announced it is backing Chang-Diaz and on Friday Mass Alliance confirmed to PolitickerMA.com that it is also endorsing the Jamaica Plain Democrat.

Chang-Diaz beat Wilkerson, of Boston, in the Sept. 16 Democratic primary. Wilkerson has since launched a write-in campaign against Chang-Diaz in the general election.

House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi plans to endorse Sonia Chang-Diaz in her general election race against state Sen. Dianne Wilkerson Tuesday morning.

House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi (D-Boston)

Sources close to the speaker told PolitickerMA.com Monday night that DiMasi, who backed Wilkerson last month in her primary against Chang-Diaz, will endorse Chang-Diaz at a Democratic Party unity event Tuesday in Boston's South End.

Chang-Diaz defeated state Sen. Dianne Wilkerson in Suffolk County's 2nd District Democrat Primary on Sept. 16. Since then, Wilkerson, of Boston, has vowed to run a write-in campaign in the general election against Chang-Diaz, of Jamaica Plain.

Eight of the Bay State's 10 congressmen voted for the economic bailout plan Friday, while Reps. Stephen Lynch and Bill Delahunt cast their vote against it.

The bailout plan, which the Senate passed on Wednesday, passed in the House by a vote of 263 to 171.

Congressmen Stephen Lynch (D-Boston) and Bill Delahunt (D-Quincy) voted against the measure, as they did on Monday. Congressman John Tierney (D-Salem), who voted against the measure on Monday, supported it on Friday.

In a statement, Tierney said he changed his vote because of the deteriorating financial situation.

STATEMENT FROM THE OFFICE OF SENATOR EDWARD KENNEDY

WASHINGTON - The office of Senator Edward M. Kennedy tonight released the following statement:

"Senator Kennedy experienced a mild seizure at home in Hyannis Port today and was taken to Cape Cod Hospital for examination. Doctors believe the incident was triggered by a change in medication. Senator Kennedy will return home tonight and looks forward to watching the debate."

Ed O'Reilly, the Gloucester attorney who lost to John Kerry in last week's U.S. Senate Democratic primary, said Wednesday that he is definitely considering running for a political office again, though he isn't sure which one.

Ed O'Reilly (D-Gloucester)O'Reilly, who had never run for statewide political office before, lost to the Democratic senator by 38 points last Tuesday.

Asked if he is thinking of another run, O'Reilly said: "Absolutely. I'm keeping all my options open."

O'Reilly said he is pleased with last week's results since he faced a 24-year incumbent with a significantly larger war chest.

UPDATE: Former Romney strategist Mike Murphy reads an e-mail from Romney himself, reading "I am not planning to go to Dayton."

NBC News is reporting that former Gov. Mitt Romney will not be in Dayton, Ohio this morning for presumptive Republican nominee John McCain's vice presidential announcement.

His absence means he will not be the 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee.

U.S. Sen. John Kerry (D-Boston) addresses the DNC Convention in Denver: Getty Images PhotoU.S. Sen. John Kerry wrote all of his Wednesday primetime speech and the Obama campaign didn't vet it, PolitickerMA.com has learned.

Brigid O'Rourke, a spokeswoman for Kerry (D-Boston), told PolitickerMA.com Thursday that Kerry wrote the speech in its entirety and that there were no ghostwriters involved in the process. She also said that the speech was not vetted by Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama or his campaign team. The speech only had to adhere to a time limit, O'Rourke said, and it was submitted directly to the teleprompter team.

Sources "with strong Michigan ties" are telling Roll Call that "the Secret Service has conducted a security sweep" of the Michigan home of former Gov. Mitt Romney’s sister, a possible indication that he is presumptive Republican nominee John McCain's vice presidential choice.

"However, one campaign operative familiar with the working of a presidential-level campaign cautioned that a sweep of such a location could have been conducted in advance of Romney appearing as a surrogate — not the vice presidential nominee — at an upcoming McCain campaign stop in Michigan."