US election at-a-glance: 12-18 July

WEEK IN A NUTSHELL

The Obama campaign hits out at the New Yorker magazine for publishing a cartoon on its front cover depicting Mr Obama in traditional Muslim garb, and his wife Michelle as a terrorist. The magazine says the cartoon was a satirical attack on right-wing swipes on Mr Obama by his political enemies. John McCain continues his attacks on Mr Obama's Iraq policy, while announcing that he - like Mr Obama - intends to send more troops to Afghanistan, if elected. Both candidates address Hispanic and African-American civil rights groups, and Mr Obama reveals that he raised $52m (£26m) in June, his second-highest monthly total since the campaign began.

KEY QUOTES

"The New Yorker may think, as one of their staff explained to us, that their cover is a satirical lampoon of the caricature Sen. Obama's right-wing critics have tried to create. But most readers will see it as tasteless and offensive. And we agree."
Bill Burton, Obama spokesman

I am learning to get online myself, and I will have that down fairly soon

John McCain

At-a-glance: 5-11 July

"I think the idea that the Obamas are branded as unpatriotic, let alone as terrorists, in certain sectors is preposterous. It seemed to me that depicting the concept would show it as the fear-mongering ridiculousness that it is."
Barry Blitt, the artist who drew the controversial New Yorker cover

"There's a weird reverse racism going on. You can't joke about him because he's half-white. It's silly."
Talk show host Jimmy Kimmel

"I am learning to get online myself, and I will have that down fairly soon... I don't e-mail, I've never felt the particular need to e-mail."
John McCain is probably not reading this page

"It may be Barack Obama 's consistency on Iraq policy, not the charge of flip-flopping, that puts him in the greatest political peril"
Jonathan Allen, Congressional Quarterly

"Um, yeah. For instance, take, you know, take, for instance, the issue of - I'm drawing a blank, and I hate it when I do that, particularly on television."
McCain supporter Mark Sanford dries up on CNN when asked about the difference between Mr McCain's and President Bush's economic policies

NUMBER NEWS

Barack Obama's campaign revealed that the Illinois senator raised $52m in the month of June, a marked improvement on his May fundraising total, and his second-biggest monthly haul of the campaign so far (he raised $55m in February).

John McCain's June total was £22m, which, although considerably lower than his competitor, was his best ever monthly figure.

But the gap between the two candidates disappears if money raised by the Democratic and Republican National Committees (DNC and RNC) is taken into account.

The RNC has been much more successful than the DNC at raising money in recent months, and although the DNC managed to raise $22m to the RNC's $26m in June, the combined RNC and McCain camps had some $95m cash on hand at the beginning of July, compared to the combined DNC and Obama camp total of $92m.

With similar amounts of cash at their disposal going into the summer, neither candidate will be able to outflank his rival financially in the battleground states.

WEEKLY PICTURE