Fox News calls N.C. Senate race for Kay Hagan. 

A new ad from the campaign of U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole criticizes Democratic Senate candidate Kay Hagan for attending a fundraiser hosted by members of an atheist group.

What the ad says: The ad shows images of Dole and Hagan. Dole: "I'm Elizabeth Dole and I approve this message." Announcer: "A leader of the Godless Americans PAC recently held a secret fundraiser in Kay Hagan's honor." A clip of Godless Americans PAC executive director Ellen Johnson on MSNBC: "There is no God to rely on." Another Johnson clip: "There was no Jesus." A clip of Bill O'Reilly on Fox News: "But taking ‘under God’ out of the Pledge of Allegiance — you're down with that." Godless Americans PAC member David Silverman: "We're down with that." O'Reilly: "'In God We Trust' — are you going to whip that off the money?" Silverman: "Yeah, we would." Announcer: "Godless Americans and Kay Hagan. She hid from cameras. Took godless money. What did Hagan promise in return?" The ad then shows an image of Hagan as an unidentified voice says "There is no God!"

The background: On Sept. 15, Hagan attended a fundraiser in Boston hosted by author Wendy Kaminer and her husband, Woody Kaplan.

Both are leaders of the Secular Coalition of America, which advocates for atheists and humanists in public policy. Kaplan also sits on the advisory board of the Godless Americans political action committee, which advocates for non-believers.

It is not clear that Kaminer is a leader of the PAC.

Kaplan was listed as one of ten chairs of the Hagan fundraiser, along with Sen. John Kerry, former Austrian ambassador Swanee Hunt and several other Boston-area businesspeople. Another 25 people were listed as hosts.

The fundraiser was advertised on the Democratic Web site ActBlue in August. After Dole criticized Hagan over the fundraiser in late August, Kaminer and Kaplan’s names were removed from the invitation on ActBlue.

The Godless Americans PAC Web site says that it supports candidates who are atheists and supports the separation of religion and government, including a "Godless pledge."

The news clips are of other members of the Godless Americans PAC on MSNBC's "Scarborough Country" in 2004 and 2005 and Fox News' "The O'Reilly Factor" in 2004. The unidentified woman’s voice at the end is Johnson's from a Washington rally in 2002.

Is the ad accurate? It is true that Hagan attended the fundraiser in question, but the ad is misleading in several ways. The fundraiser was not a secret. The people shown in the news clips were not involved with the fundraiser. And some viewers might be led to believe that the unidentified female voice  at the end of the ad is Hagan's.

— Barbara Barrett and Ryan Teague Beckwith

Keith Olbermann says Mike Easley's a terrorist.

Well, not really. The left-leaning MSNBC commentator took a jab Monday at his conservative counterparts on Fox News, one of whom wondered if Barack Obama's fist-bump with his wife Michelle was a "terrorist fist jab." (She later apologized.)

Olbermann poked fun at the flap, showing footage of Easley doing a fist-bump with Obama at a speech in Raleigh.

"Fox Noise's unanswered innuendo could be applied forward, which must mean that North Carolina's Gov. Mike Easley also might be a terrorist," he said.

U.S. Sen. Richard Burr said that John McCain will win on the issues.

The Winston-Salem Republican promoted his Senate colleague on Fox News' "Hannity & Colmes" show on Friday, saying he is a "known entity by the American people."

"They know his background as a war here hero, as a prisoner of war. He's got a solid foundation and more importantly, he's got a track record that the American people have endorsed over and over again," he said.

Asked about Barack Obama's former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Burr noted his own childhood as the son of a Presbyterian minister.

"It would be disingenuous to suggest that my dad didn't have an influence on me but I'm not sure that that's an element of my election or my re-election," he said.

Still, he stopped short of openly criticizing Obama. 

"That's an issue that the American people are going to have to sort out on their own," he said. 

U.S. Rep. Sue Myrick, a Charlotte Republican, has called for former President Jimmy Carter's passport to be pulled over his meeting with Hamas leaders in Palestine.

U.S. Sen. Richard Burr wants an apology from Mitt Romney.

The junior U.S. senator from North Carolina rushed to defend Bob Dole—World War II icon and husband of fellow Tar Heel senator Elizabeth Dole—after Romney called Mr. Dole out this morning in an interview on Fox News, Barb Barrett reports.

Bob Dole yesterday compared GOP presidential candidate John McCain favorably to stalwart Jesse Helms in a letter to talk-show host Rush Limbaugh, who says McCain isn't conservative enough.

This morning, Romney told Fox News: "Well, it's probably the last person I would have wanted write a letter for me. I think there a lot of folks who tend to think that maybe John McCain's race is a bit like Bob Dole's race. That it's the guy who's next in line, the inevitable choice."

Burr, a strong ally of McCain’s, said Romney's words "divide Republicans."

"It is one thing to attack your campaign opponent, but it is another to insult a well-respected American hero like Bob Dole," Burr said in a statement. "Governor Romney should apologize."

U.S. Sen. Richard Burr went on "Fox & Friends" Thursday to discuss the presidential debates.

Burr, a supporter of U.S. Sen. John McCain's candidacy, said he was definitely one of "three top-tier candidates" on the Republican side: 

Steve, John was passionate last night. He looked like a guy that could become president on day one with no learning curve. But more importantly, he's exactly where he's been his entire life on the issues. John McCain was very genuine and it was from the heart last night, and a year from now he's going to be in the same position on those issues.

He also said that McCain would be "the same straight-shooter" that he was in the 2000 campaign.