ANOTHER NAIL IN THE COFFIN

Alaska's top newspaper endorsed Democrat Barack Obama for the White House, saying it would be too risky to put their Republican state governor Sarah Palin just "one 72-year-old heartbeat from the leadership of the free world".

The Anchorage Daily News, the leading daily in the overwhelmingly Republican state, called Palin's vice-presidential nomination "an improbable and highly memorable event" and added that "many Alaskans are proud to see their governor, and their state, so prominent on the national stage".

Nevertheless, the newspaper editorial deemed her not yet ready to serve in the White House, and saying the hometown boosterism "does not overwhelm all other judgment".

The paper was even more scathing in its assessment of the top of the Republican ticket.

"Our sober view is that her running mate, Senator John McCain , is the wrong choice for president at this critical time for our nation," the daily wrote.

" Senator Barack Obama , the Democratic nominee, brings far more promise to the office," the Anchorage Daily News said.

"In a time of grave economic crisis, he displays thoughtful analysis, enlists wise counsel and operates with a cool, steady hand. The same cannot be said of Senator McCain ."

Particularly on the top campaign issue - the faltering US economy - the newspaper said McCain "has stumbled and fumbled badly in dealing with the accelerating crisis as it emerged".

"His behaviour in this crisis - erratic is a kind description - shows him to be ill-equipped to lead the essential effort of reining in a runaway financial system and setting an anxious nation on course to economic recovery."

The news came as Palin announced she will forgo the expensive outfits purchased by the Republican Party for her campaign appearances, and from now on will appear on the stump wearing her own Alaska-bought clothes.

Palin stressed to throngs of supporters at a campaign stop in Tampa, Florida that she was wearing her own jacket, pointing to her blazer, and said she would eschew clothing that wasn't hers, following a campaign kerfuffle over high-priced garb purchased by the campaign for her public outings.

"Those clothes are not my property, just like the lighting and the staging and everything else the RNC ( Republican National Committee ) purchased," said Palin.

"I'm not taking them with me. I'm back to wearing my own clothes from my favourite consignment shop in Anchorage, Alaska," she said, adding that she initially had hoped to "ignore this wardrobe thing", but instead has decided to address it head on.

Meanwhile, the McCain campaign received the good news that his home state newspaper this weekend gave the Arizona senator its backing.

"We have seen the irascible McCain. The bawdy and irreverent McCain. And, yes, the temperamental McCain," the Arizona Republic wrote.

"Nobody in the country knows the Republican presidential candidate better than we do. And no one is better placed to judge whether he would serve honourably and admirably as president of the United States.

"We are confident he will. The Arizona Republic proudly recommends John McCain for president."