Tales from the Trail

First he gave an unexpected endorsement to Jon Stewart’s upcoming “Rally to Restore Sanity.” Now President Barack Obama is giving the host of the satirical talk show the ultimate television “get” — himself as a guest.

Obama will appear on “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” on Wednesday, Oct. 27, in the middle of a week of special episodes taped in Washington ahead of the Nov. 2 midterm elections. It all culminates with a Saturday rally on the National Mall.

The Washington episodes – to air Oct. 25 – Oct. 28 – are called “When Grizzlies Attack: A ‘Daily Show’ Midterm Teapartyganza.” That’s a reference to the conservative Tea Party political movement and former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin referring to conservative women politicians as “Mama Grizzlies.”

The Daily Show, watched by about 1.8 million people every night, is particularly popular with viewers under age 35. The appearance gives the president a chance to appeal to young voters just days before the election in which Republicans are expected to gain seats in Congress and possibly take the majority in the House of Representatives away from Obama’s Democrats. Earlier this month Obama appeared at a youth town hall that was shown live on MTV and two music television stations, CMT and BET.

“It’s a great way to appeal to a younger voter audience, and that is a big part of the president’s base,” White House spokesman Robert Gibbs told reporters.

If  President Obama really wants to get his groove back with young voters, he might want to get a bit more in synch with their musical tastes and a bit less in line with songs their parents — and grandparents — listened to. He’s got about 2,000 songs on his iPod, but – as he put it – his selections are more weighted to his childhood – his very young childhood – than to much that 20-somethings are listening to today.

“There’s still a lot of Stevie Wonder, a lot of Bob Dylan, a lot of Rolling Stones, a lot of R&B, a lot of Miles Davis and John Coltrane. Those are the old standards,” Obama said in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine released on Tuesday. He also listens to a lot of classical music. “I’m not a big opera buff in terms of going to opera, but there are days where Maria Callas is exactly what I need,” he said.

The president was born in 1961, which makes him little more than a toddler when some of his favorite artists had their biggest hits, something he and his handlers might want to keep in mind as he tries to connect with young voters and urge them to turn out in force on Nov. 2. The famed diva Callas was born in 1923, and died in 1977, when Obama was 16.

BOSTON – Democrat Barack Obama leads his Republican rival John McCain by a nearly 2-1 ratio among young voters in the race for the White House, a poll by Harvard University’s Institute of Politics showed on Wednesday.

Obama leads McCain 56 percent to 30 percent among likely young voters, according to an online survey of 2,406 18 to 24 year olds conducted by Harris Interactive for the institute between Sept. 12 and Oct. 6. Fifteen percent were undecided.

Obama’s lead is essentially unchanged from polls in July and March, the institute said.