Here's a mostly complete list of John McCain's surrogates in North Carolina for the general election:

U.S. Sen. Richard Burr, former Sen. Bob Dole, former Louisiana Gov. Buddy Roemer, former Arkansas Rep. Asa Hutchinson, Republican Party chairwoman Linda Daves, former N.C. Republican Party chairman Ferrell Blount, state Sen. Neal Hunt, House Minority Leader Paul Stam, state Reps. Ric Killian and Nelson Dollar, Dr. Jeanne and David Smoot and former prisoner of war Col. J. Quincy Collins Jr.

It turns out that Bob Dole owns an interest in oil too.

In the ongoing who-loves-big-oil debate in the U.S. Senate campaign comes news that former Sen. Bob Dole has a million-dollar stake in a fund that trades on oil prices, reports Barb Barrett.

Politico, a Capitol Hill newspaper, reports that Bob Dole has a stake of more than $1 million in an offshore hedge fund. The fund speculates on the prices of crude oil, heating oil, natural gas and gasoline, Politico reports.

It cites the personal financial disclosure reports of his wife, Republican U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole. She’s running for re-election against Democratic state Sen. Kay Hagan.

Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Kay Hagan promised today to be attentive to the needs of military veterans, saying she would work for a “world class” health care system.

With former U.S. Sen. Max Cleland of Georgia at her side, Hagan said she would work to reduce the backlog of veterans claims, work to reduce the number of homeless veterans and make sure that vets have job opportunities, reports Rob Christensen.

Hagan did not criticize her opponent, Republican Sen. Elizabeth Dole.

Cleland, a severely wounded Vietnam vet, took an apparent swipe at U.S. Sen. Richard Burr.

"It angered me that your current senator voted against the GI Bill,” Cleland told about 50 people at the state VFW headquarters in Raleigh. “To vote against it is unbelievable.”

President Bush signed a bill in July providing $63 billion over 10 years for increased college aid to service members who served after 9/11. Some Republicans said the bill was so generous it would hurt the military’s ability to retain military members, and backed a less expensive version.

Dole will campaign at a VFW Post in Cary later today with her husband, former Sen. Bob Dole, a wounded World War II veteran.

Correction: An earlier version of the post indicated that Cleland criticized Dole for voting against the GI bill. Dole voted for the bill. Burr initially voted against the bill, but then voted for it on final passage.

U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole and her husband Bob will campaign together Friday.

The two will appear at a rally hosted by the Wake County McCain-Palin Committee and Wake County Veterans for McCain at the Franklin-Sloan post of the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Cary at 5:30 p.m. 

It is an unusual joint appearance for the couple, who have been campaigning separately for her re-election in November. 

The event is open to the public. 

Bob Dole will be campaigning for his wife Thursday.

The former Senate majority leader will tout U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole's re-election campaign at three events in Greensboro and Colfax.

The first is an event honoring police, firefighters and first responders on the anniversary of Sept. 11 at a Harley-Davidson dealership.

He will also appear at Tex and Shirley's Family Restaurant and the Greensboro Farmer's Market. 

MINNEAPOLIS — U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole isn't up here in Minneapolis, though her husband has been making the rounds. Former Sen. Bob Dole stopped by the delegation on the convention floor Wednesday evening, then returned Thursday morning for breakfast.

He told reporters that the couple considered whether she should come up for the week. At first, he said, they considered having her fly up for just one night, Barb Barrett reports.

"But that doesn't look good," Bob Dole said. "I think she made the right choice in staying."

How is she spending her time? Elizabeth Dole's schedule shows various visits this week to tout federal programs and visit constituents. But, her husband said, she's also been making a whole lot of calls to counterbalance the millions of dollars being spent by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.

"She spends as much as seven hours a day on the phone asking for money," Bob Dole said. "This is not a good year for Republicans; let's face it."

U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole has been among the most admired women in an annual poll.

Between 1996 and 2003, Dole was among the top 10 women named by Americans based on random phone surveys done by Gallup each December since 1946. She was also in the top 10 in 1987, 1990 and 2005.

She first landed in the top 10 as Transportation secretary under President Reagan and again while serving as Labor secretary under the first President Bush.

Her highest ratings were in the 1990s, when she headed the American Red Cross, particularly in 1996 when her husband Bob ran for president and in 1998 and 1999 when she ran for president. Her lowest ratings were in the early 1990s and after she became a U.S. senator in 2003.

In 2004 and 2006, Dole received one percent, but she was not in the top 10. In 2007, Dole received less than half a percent, her lowest score since 1994.

In recent years, the list has also grown, with women such as Condoleezza Rice, Angelina Jolie and Nancy Pelosi joining such longtime stalwarts as Hillary Clinton, Oprah Winfrey and Margaret Thatcher. That has pushed Dole farther down the list.

The top 10 list does not include respondents who answered "None or No Opinion," "Other" or "Friend or Relative." Those responses would typically receive a substantial percentage.

Dole's rankings since 1987 after the jump.

Correction: Some numbers have been changed based on new information.

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Bob Dole says Sarah Palin can come to North Carolina.

The New York Times reports that Dole endorsed a visit by the vice presidential nominee during an interview on MSNBC at the Republican National Convention:

Among his tidbits, he said that Ms. Palin has "a lot of homework to do," but he also added with a twinkle, "I'll be happy to have her come to North Carolina any day she wants." His wife, Senator Elizabeth Dole, is in a tough re-election fight, and Ms. Palin is someone who almost certainly could fire up the conservative base there and bring a little energy to Mrs. Dole's campaign.

MINNEAPOLIS — Just 36 African-American delegates are at the Republican National Convention this week. Four are from North Carolina.

So it was no surprise that the delegation tackled race at this morning's breakfast, especially in a year with an African American on the presidential ballot — albeit for the other side, Barb Barrett reports.

State GOP chairwoman Linda Daves told delegates the party should do more to reach out to African Americans, but she praised the black attendees in the delegation. Among them are Tim Johnson, chairman of the Buncombe County GOP party, and Ada Fisher, who has just been elected to the Republican national committee for the state.

Also attending as a guest is William Owens, Jr., of Fuquay-Varina, who stumped at this morning’s breakfast for his new, $17 book, "Obama: Why Black America Should Have Doubts."

"I want to say to my white Republican brothers and sisters, if you ever want to understand why African Americans are supporting Obama, you should read this book," he told the group. Owens said that once America deals with racism, then blacks can get past a "victim mentality."

Former Sen. Bob Dole also was at the breakfast, and he reminded reporters that he was the Senate majority leader when the Martin Luther King bill passed declaring a national holiday.

"That wasn't Ted Kennedy; it was Bob Dole," Dole said. But he, too, said the Republican party needs to do more to recruit people of color.

"We can't be one color, one ethnicity," Dole said. "This party, we've got to be a party of diversity."

ST. PAUL, Minn. — In the quest to be two places at once, U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole has the next best thing to a clone — an equally famous political spouse.

Former Senate Majority Leader and 1996 Republican presidential nominee Bob Dole dropped by the North Carolina delegation on the convention floor Wednesday, Mark Johnson reports.

The current Senator Dole, who is running for reelection, is skipping the convention, a dramatic difference from 12 years ago when she drew rave reviews for her walk-and-talk speech to the convention, the now famous Dole stroll.

Bob Dole didn't seem to mind the spousal duty and was repeatedly stopped in the corridors for handshakes or news media interviews.

"When you get out of politics," he said, "your numbers go up."

Previously: Don't try to shake Bob Dole's hand.