YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — Democrat Barack Obama broadened his advertising campaign yesterday into two once reliably Republican states and further bedeviled rival John McCain by placing a commercial in the Republican presidential nominee's home state of Arizona.

Obama's campaign, capitalizing on his vast financial resources and a favorable political climate, announced that it was going back up with advertising in Georgia and North Dakota, two GOP states that it had teased with ads earlier in the general election campaign but then abandoned.

MCCAIN SET FOR 'SNL' CAMEO

WASHINGTON — My friends, it's John McCain, live from New York, just three days before the election.

Aides to the Republican presidential candidate said yesterday that McCain will make a detour from battleground states to appear on "Saturday Night Live," the late-night show that has been a must-watch for many during the political season.

Hosting the show tonight is actor Ben Affleck, a supporter of Democratic candidate Barack Obama. The musical guest is singer David Cook.

EAGLEBURGER SAYS PALIN NOT READY

WASHINGTON — A former secretary of state and supporter of Republican John McCain says that McCain's running mate, Sarah Palin, isn't up to the task of taking over the presidency in a crisis but could become "adequate" if not "a genius in the job."

Then again, added Lawrence Eagleburger, several other vice presidents also were not ready. And he said he was confident that Palin, Alaska's governor, was tough enough if called to serve.

Eagleburger, who was secretary of state under President George H.W. Bush, has been cited frequently by McCain as one of several seasoned diplomats and former Cabinet members who back his presidential bid.

Asked Thursday on National Public Radio if he thought Palin would be ready to take over in a crisis, Eagleburger said, "Of course not."

"I don't think at the moment she is prepared to take over the brains of the presidency. I can name for you any number of other vice presidents who were not particularly up to it, either," Eagleburger said.

1 IN 7 VOTERS NOT FULLY COMMITTED

WASHINGTON — With just days left in the 2008 campaign, some people are still making up their minds about who should be president.

One in seven, or 14 percent, can't decide, or back a candidate but might switch, according to an Associated Press-Yahoo News poll of likely voters released yesterday.

Who are they? They look a lot like the voters who've already locked onto a candidate, though they're more likely to be white and less likely to be liberal. And they disproportionately backed Hillary Rodham Clinton's failed run for the Democratic nomination.

For now, their indecision remains intact despite the fortunes that have been spent to tug people toward either McCain, the Republican, or the Democrat Obama. Fueling their uncertainty is a combination of disliking something about both candidates and frustration with this campaign and politics in general.