NPR: Republican Stronghold North Carolina Threatened

The problems for the Republican Party may be best indicated in North Carolina, where the presidential race is suddenly close. Republican Sen. Elizabeth Dole is trailing in her re-election bid, and there's at least one GOP House seat in jeopardy of switching parties.

Slate: How Does a Red State Turn Blue?

Tagging along with Obama and McCain canvassers in North Carolina.

New York Times: In Tight Race, Victor May Be Ohio Lawyers

If the outcome of next week's presidential election is close, this precariously balanced state could be the place where the two parties begin filing the inevitable lawsuits over voting irregularities, experts say.

Wall Street Journal: McCain Pins Hopes on Getting Party Faithful to Polls in Ohio

One key to Mr. Bush's re-election was the Republican party's nationwide get-out-the vote effort in the final 72 hours before election day. Heading into the crucial final weekend, Republicans say their operation is even stronger and running ahead of where they were four years ago at this time.

Columbus Dispatch: Obama Army Blankets Ohio

Four years ago, Ohio Democrats helped turn out so many voters that Democrat John Kerry won Cuyahoga County by more than 200,000 votes. This year, the Democrats are trying to prevent a repeat. They have expanded their operation to the point that the Obama campaign claims to be everywhere. They have 80 offices across the state, including places where most voters don't care much for Democrats.

Salon: How Obama Might Just Win Ohio

Ohio is where Democratic dreams died four years ago as John Kerry came up 120,000 votes short of winning the state's 20 electoral votes and the White House. But this year all the signs and portents are pointing in the opposite direction. Barack Obama has led in the last 11 published statewide polls, breaking the 50 percent threshold in the most recent survey released Thursday.

Washington Post: In Rural Va., Coattails Strategy Does a Flip

Some Democrats think that popular former governor and Senate hopeful Mark R. Warner might do something unusual in a presidential election year: Help the top of his ticket. Warner could help secure much-needed votes for Obama (D) in the traditional Republican strongholds of rural Virginia, where Warner has made significant inroads.

San Francisco Chronicle: GOP's Long Virginia Ride Tested by Demographics

The demographic shifts under way in Virginia, mirrored in North Carolina, signal big trouble for Republicans: a heavy influx of white urban professionals and immigrants and a shrinking blue-collar population that is gradually sliding the Mason-Dixon line southward.

Boston Globe: South may be shifting in Democrats' direction

The South is still culturally conservative, and the deep South in particular is still challenging territory for Democrats, political specialists say. But demographic changes - including a migration of voters from other regions, as well as an increase in education and racial tolerance among some younger residents - have given Barack Obama and other Democrats an opening this year and are likely to change the electoral map in future elections.

Los Angeles Times: Obama's Prospects in Missouri May Hinge on the Economy - and Race

Whether Obama or Republican rival John McCain carries Missouri depends in no small part on the nearly 250,000 voters of St. Charles County, a fast-growing working-class area. It would be tough for any Democrat to win in this culturally conservative county, where many voters oppose abortion rights and gay marriage. However, the troubled economy and Obama's huge campaign operation have put the entire state in play.

St. Petersburg Times: In Florida, Democrats Muscle into GOP Turf

Sarasota has been turning more and more Democratic lately, and Obama drew about four times as many people as Sen. John McCain did in the same community a week earlier. Obama is working even in the most reliably Republican areas of the state, opening offices and organizing volunteers in such conservative areas as Sun City Center in southern Hillsborough County and Chipley, near Alabama.

Wall Street Journal: Democrats Vie to Shape an Obama Legislative Agenda

Democrats inside Sen. Barack Obama's circle of advisers and on Capitol Hill are jockeying even before Election Day to shape an Obama administration's legislative agenda and define "Obamanomics," a concept he himself has left vague over the campaign.

Knowledge at Wharton: On Energy Issues, Candidates' Funding Priorities are Fueling the Debate

The energy proposals of John McCain and Barack Obama are more alike than their campaign rhetoric suggests. Both offer to reduce global warming with a cap-and-trade program, "clean coal" technology and expanded use of wind and other renewable energy. But no matter who wins, energy prices are likely to climb.

Washington Post: Obamavision - An Appeal to the Masses

Barack Obama fired the final salvo in the great battle of images that is the 2008 presidential campaign last night with a half-hour, multimillion-dollar television infomercial that could be considered not the "feel-good" but rather the "feel-better" movie of the year.

Los Angeles Times: Vote Watchdogs Warn of Trouble on Election Day

Counting down to an election day expected to draw a record-shattering turnout, voting-rights watchdogs are sounding the alarm that a repeat of the Florida fiasco of 2000 could occur. Lawsuits are already flying in many of these states

Slate: Don't Worry, Be Happy

McCain's campaign now relies on hope more than Obama's does. They hope that the Obama organization isn't as impressive as signs suggest it is. They hope that the greater enthusiasm apparent among Democrats turns out to be less than advertised ...They hope that the public polls that show a big Obama lead are poorly designed, overstating participation by young voters and African-Americans. They hope undecided voters will all break to McCain in the end.

National Interest: Senator Congeniality

What happened to the global standing of Senator John McCain? A year ago, I found a good deal of support for the Republican senator in his bid to become the next president. What changed? Well, to start, Senator McCain had to win the nomination of a party rank-and-file who, for the most part, agreed with the direction President Bush had taken the country. As a senator from Arizona, McCain could be a critic of the administration; as a candidate, he had different priorities.

Huffington Post: ABC News Misleads on Palin Interview, Later Backtracks

The McCain campaign has been battling back against reports of tension and dissension between John McCain -- and his close circle of advisers -- and Sarah Palin. Those reports reached a new level of inflammation on Wednesday when excerpts from Palin's appearance on ABC's Good Morning America were released by ABC News as a preview. But it's plainly evident that the contentions presented in ABC's original preview of the interview just aren't borne out by the interview itself.

Politico: McCain Camp Trying to Scapegoat Palin

John McCain's campaign is looking for a scapegoat. It is looking for someone to blame if McCain loses on Tuesday. And it has decided on Sarah Palin. A "top McCain adviser" told Mike Allen of Politico that Palin is "a whack job." Maybe she is. But who chose to put this "whack job" on the ticket? Wasn't it John McCain? And wasn't it his first presidential-level decision?

Chicago Tribune: Where Does Palin Go From Here?

To become a party leader, Palin would have to build a coalition beyond the base she's acquired since the Republican National Convention, and some campaign watchers warn that her record since the convention might prevent that from ever happening. Some suggest that Palin would have been wise to decline McCain's invitation and wait until she could run a campaign on her own terms.

Daily Beast: Tarheel Madness

A one-time Senate candidate, Jim Neal, on how politics replaced basketball in North Carolina--and Elizabeth Dole's strange demise. He writes:"Florence Nightingale unleashed her fangs yesterday. The Dole campaign lit up the airways with a stinging commercial suggesting that Democrat challenger Kay Hagan was other-than Godly."

Anchorage Daily News: Rally Welcomes Stevens Home

The crowd at his Anchorage rally seemed to harbor little doubt that Stevens, who showed flashes of both humility and defiance, would beat his challengers. There was undisguised hostility toward the federal government and the FBI at the Stevens event, with people wearing T-shirts that said "F*#@ the feds, vote for Ted."

Mental Floss: Ten Things You Didn't Know About Colin Powell

Colin Powell is a guy you hear about a lot politically, but it seems like most of us don't know much about him personally. Turns out he's pretty fascinating, and he has a great sense of humor. If you've got a little time to kill, check out this interview with Larry King. It takes a while to get to the funny stuff, but near the bottom he swears that he TiVos Larry King every night and calls Larry a Luddite (Larry: "What's a Luddite?") in the same breath.

New York Times: Two Rivals' Fiscal Plans Would Add to Deficits

While both presidential candidates enter the campaign's final week promising to be the better fiscal steward, each has outlined tax and spending proposals that would make annual budget deficits worse, analysts say, with Senator John McCain likely to create a deeper hole than Senator Barack Obama would.

Boston Globe: Obama on Defense in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania is the one reliably "blue" state where McCain, the Republican nominee, believes he has a shot, as he looks to compensate for the unknown number of "red" states that may slip from his grasp.

Washington Post: Accuracy Of Polls a Question In Itself

Could the polls be wrong? There appears to be an undercurrent of worry among some polling professionals and academics. One reason is the wide variation in Obama leads: Just yesterday, an array of polls showed the Democrat leading by as little as two points and as much as 15 points.

Los Angeles Times: Rethinking the "Bradley Effect"

It has entered political lore as the "Bradley effect" -- the supposed tendency of some white voters to lie when asked if they support a black candidate, producing a bubble of support that isn't really there. More to the point for Obama, there is no evidence that one still exists

Wall Street Journal: Campaigns Try New Web Tactics

For years, Republicans have used the party's so-called Voter Vault, a database of potential supporters fine-tuned over many elections, to target, motivate and secure the backing of voters. The Democrats, building on lessons learned through the primaries by the Obama campaign, are employing an ambitious Internet strategy to rally, harness and manage volunteers even in such inhospitable places as Avery County deep in the Appalachian Mountains, which has voted Republican every presidential election in its 97-year history.

Mental Floss: The Electoral College Survival Guide

As you will be reminded countless times in the coming week, you're not taking part in a nationwide popular vote, but rather helping decide who your state's Electoral College delegates support. So what do you need to know about the least-fun college this side of the Catholic Church's College of Cardinals?

Slate: The October Surprise

What distinguishes a fake October Surprise from the garden-variety, depressingly familiar overhyping of some little thing that we'll all forget in 12 hours? One thing: It relies on the dwindling clock for its fake drama. It's the idea that the Obama and McCain campaigns have been hiding some incendiary secret that's just slipped out at the eleventh hour.

National Review: Obama and the Supreme Court

If America's citizens care to wake up and pay attention before they elect as president a sweet-talking, moderate-posing left-wing ideologue with a history of alliances with anti-American radicals, one of the several matters they ought to think seriously about is the future of the Supreme Court.

Salon: Veepzilla!

To recap: Palin went "rogue," and blamed the Republican National Committee for buying her $150,000 in clothing. McCain advisors then unloaded on their veepzilla, calling her a disastrously underinformed "diva" -- anonymously, of course. Palin supporters shot back, blaming the McCain camp for its poor handling of the talented Alaska political phenom.

Politico: Ten Worst Ads of the Season

Politico asked campaign operatives on both sides to nominate their favorite commercials of the cycle -- and by favorite, we mean the most memorably bad. We weren't looking for ads that were unfair, fact-flouting, insensitive or commercials that otherwise injured our civil society. We asked for those that were poorly executed, dopey, misguided or just plain weird.

Washington Post: In Final Stretch, Pitches Show Stark Contrasts

The presidential candidates pursued votes in the same battleground states on Monday but entered their final week of persuasion with messages that could scarcely be more different in tone and substance.

Los Angeles Times: Social Conservatives Fight for Control of Republican Party

The social conservatives and moderates who together boosted the Republican Party to dominance have begun a tense battle over the future of the GOP, with social conservatives already moving to seize control of the party's machinery and some vowing to limit John McCain's influence, even if he wins the presidency.

New York Times: New to Campaigning, but No Longer a Novice

While some of Senator Barack Obama's advisers once viewed Mrs. Obama as an unpredictable force who sometimes spoke her mind a little too much, she is now regarded within the campaign as a disciplined and effective advocate for her husband.

Anchorage Daily News: Ted Stevens, Convicted

Editorial: Somewhere along the line, the former federal prosecutor lost his ethical compass. Ted Stevens has been in power so long, he developed a sense of entitlement. He thought he should be able to take favors and sweetheart deals from friends like Bill Allen because he was Ted Stevens, Alaskan of the Century, Senator for Life -- and if Ted Stevens does it, it must be OK.

Mental Floss: 10 Presidential Perks

Super interesting facts in the book "How to Be President," especially with the election coming up next week. Who will be the lucky recipient of all of the free M&Ms he can handle? Only time will tell. Until then, here's some trivia about what it's like to be President

New Yorker: Couch Potato Politics

Every four years, beginning in 1984, the artists Antoni Muntadas and Marshall Reese have collected political ads from the Presidential election, adding a dozen or so particularly striking new spots to their project, "Political Advertisement." Reese explained that, in making their selections, they hoped both to spotlight innovative ads and to show how certain motifs return again and again.

Slate: America's Five Best Fictional Black Presidents

What might any of this mean for Barack Obama? Beats me. But the next two weeks will see much talk and many pixels devoted to race and his candidacy, and in a nation drunk on entertainment, the legacy of his fictional forebears has to count for something. Herewith, a scan of the most prominent black presidents in American pop culture and a stab at understanding their significance.

Salon: What Barack Obama Needs to Do to Close the Deal

Though many superstitious Democrats around the country refuse to let the thought even enter their minds, much less pass from their lips, the truth is that the 2008 presidential election is, at this point, Barack Obama's to lose. That said, today we ask a very simple question: What should Obama and his campaign do now to close out his presidential bid?

National Review: John McCain, Against the Wind

In many respects, it's a wonder McCain is standing at all, much less within striking distance eight days before the election.

Huffington Post: More Bizarre GOP Purchases - Chocolate Elephants, Art Restoration, Rove's Lunches

The revelation that the RNC spent tens of thousands on clothing for Gov. Sarah Palin has roiled the race in recent days. A more comprehensive review of expenditures by the RNC and the McCain campaign finds more instances of questionable spending, including elephant-shaped shrubbery, baseball tickets, a yacht rental, and lunches for Karl Rove.

New Yorker: Like, Socialism

Sometimes, when a political campaign has run out of ideas and senses that the prize is slipping through its fingers, it rolls up a sleeve and plunges an arm, shoulder deep, right down to the bottom of the barrel. What was left? The anticlimactic answer came as the long Presidential march of 2008 staggered toward its final week: Senator Obama is a socialist.

New York Times: Long by Obama's Side, an Adviser Fills a Role That Exceeds His Title

As Mr. Obama, the Democratic presidential nominee, heads into the final days of his race for the White House, an ever-widening sphere of aides surrounds him. But almost none is as responsible for his current station as David Axelrod, whose title of chief strategist only hints at the extensive role he has played in the senator's evolution: friend, adviser and confidant, always at the elbow of this candidate.

Washington Post: GOP Senate Minority Leader Fights for Survival

The architect of the revival of the Republican Party in this state, Sen. Mitch McConnell is fighting for his political survival and to avoid the fate of former senator Thomas A. Daschle (D-S.D.), who was ousted in 2004 by voters who rejected the argument that his position as his party's leader in the Senate gave him an unparalleled ability to deliver for his state.

Slate: Obama and McCain Lawyer Up for the Election

Each camp has amassed small battalions of lawyers--and the private jets necessary--to parachute into local disputes at contested polling places. Forget what the opinion polls say going into Nov. 4. To paraphrase Boss Tweed, when it comes right down to it, it's not the votes that count, but the vote counters. And it's the armies of lawyers who will be on guard to ensure the votes get counted.

Wall Street Journal: Obama vs. McCain - It's About Your Money

With less than two weeks to go before Election Day, the Journal takes a look at the candidates' positions on the issues that will most affect your family's finances. We culled information from party position papers on Web sites, speeches and nonpartisan third-party reports.

San Francisco Chronicle: Obama's Family in Kenya Weary, Wary of Media

Said Obama, 52, works at a factory in western Kenya and attends night classes in business management. In between, he takes about 20 calls a day from foreign reporters seeking details about an American nephew he hardly knows. It used to be that you could just roll up, and have tea and chat with Barack Obama's 87-year-old step-grandmother, Sarah Anyango Obama. But after initially welcoming reporters, the family now shuns media attention, wary that their words and actions could be misconstrued and used against them.

Mother Jones: Praying for Palin

In Colorado Springs (a.k.a. the "Evangelical Vatican"), people still flock to megachurches and Sarah Palin rallies--but the power of the Christian right is fading.

Reason: The Secret of Obama's Success

Wait long enough during an Obama speech, and you hear the indispensable passage, the one that transcends everything else he says. "There are no real and fake parts of this country," Obama declares. "We are not separated by the pro-America and anti-America parts of this nation--we all love this country, no matter where we live or where we come from."

Weekly Standard: Why Undecided Voters Will Swing to McCain

With Obama outspending McCain by upwards of 4 to 1, getting enormous traction with newspaper editorial boards, generating the enthusiasm to bring out crowds measured in the tens of thousands, and with Palin treated as more of a punch line than a candidate by the press--it seems likely that if voters are not ready to tell a pollster that they are with Obama, they are unlikely to get there.

Los Angeles Times: Election's Endgame Is No Sure Thing

Both sides believe the race is not over, but each acknowledges that the Illinois senator has the upper hand, with multiple scenarios to reach the 270 electoral votes needed to win. He leads in every state he must carry and several that McCain can't afford to lose, including Colorado, Ohio and Virginia.

New York Times: Democrats See Risks and Rewards if Party Sweeps

Democrats would face high expectations, especially from the party's more liberal quarters, that could be difficult to meet even with enhanced numbers in the Senate as well as the House. And they would be at risk of overreaching, a tendency that has deeply damaged both parties in similar situations in the past.

Daily Beast: Why Republicans Are Mad as Hell at John McCain

The only thing worse for the GOP than a Democrat in the White House would be the charming, whimsical, intractable, purposeless John McCain.

Washington Post: Inside McCain Camp, a Mood of Gritty Determination

"Being part of an effort that fails does not make you a loser; it makes you a competitor," senior adviser Steve Schmidt told campaign staff. "What makes you a loser is curling up into the fetal position at a time of adversity. The only thing that would ever define anyone as a loser is to quit before it is over."

Nation: Nader's Stubborn Idealism

Ralph is not delusional. He knows the story. He is stubborn about the facts and honest with himself: "I believe in I.F. Stone's dictum that, in all social justice movements, you've got to be ready to lose. And lose and lose and lose. It's not very pleasant, but you have to accept this if you believe in what you're doing."

National Review: Obama and The Left

Although Senator Barack Obama has been allied with a succession of far-Left individuals over the years, that is only half the story. There are, after all, some honest and decent people on the Left. But these have not been the ones that Obama has been allied with -- allied, not merely "associated" with.

Charlotte Observer: Barrage of Campaign Ads in N.C. Leaves Stations Happy and Voters Weary

Constant sniping is one of the hazards of living in a battleground state. Turn on your TV and see. There's the two old men in the rocking chairs lamenting "that's not the Liddy Dole I know." There's a yapping dog representing "Fibber Hagan." Garbage barges, Joe the Plumber and armored trucks hauling off your money are some of the instant stars of television these days as political commercials clog the airwaves before Nov. 4.

New York Times: While McCain Looked Away, Florida Shifted

It is a case study of the troubles of the McCain campaign, the problems of its own making as well as those caused by forces beyond the campaign's control, including a deeply troubled economy that is sharply driving up home foreclosures in many areas of the state. And it provides vivid evidence of the Obama campaign's success in using its money and organizational skills to put Republicans on the defensive in once-safe states.

Slate: With Less Than Two Weeks to Go, Obama is Competitive in Indiana

If Obama wins, maybe he'll look back on Thursday, Oct. 23, in Indianapolis as that moment. It's not just the size of the crowd of 35,000 that was significant--heck, he saw nearly three times as large a gathering in St. Louis last week. What's significant was that even in Indiana, a historically red state, he was tied in the polls with John McCain less than two weeks before Election Day.

Boston Globe: Obama, McCain Target the West

Once reliable Republican territory, much of the West has seen its politics and demographics shift over the last decade. Three states considered still in play to varying degrees -- Nevada, Colorado and New Mexico -- could be vital if the electoral math gets tight.

San Francisco Chronicle: GOP Defections Buffet McCain as End Draws Near

Just as striking as the tone of the GOP endorsements for Obama from figures like Colin Powell and former Minnesota Gov. Arne Carlson was the noticeable chill coming from the state parties in such McCain must-win states as Virginia and Florida.

McClatchy: McCain Tries to Reignite his Support in Colorado

John McCain tried mightily Friday to reinvigorate his campaign in Colorado, a state he needs to win, barnstorming alongside local football legend John Elway and bashing Barack Obama as a dangerous spread-the-wealth advocate and untested potential commander in chief.

Chicago Tribune: The Two States McCain Needs Most Are Not the GOP Stalwarts They Used to Be

Colorado and Virginia loom as the final barrier between Democrat Barack Obama and the White House, based on the size of his leads in state-by-state polling. Winning either state would likely vault Obama past the requisite 270 electoral votes. To stop him, McCain must either carry both states, neither of which was a top-tier battleground four years ago, or pull a Pennsylvania upset.

Cleveland Plain Dealer: Obama Has the Momentum in Ohio

A new poll suggests the Illinois senator has momentum on his side. With the economic crisis eclipsing all other issues, especially in Ohio, Obama has been able to keep the race focused on pocketbook issues, to his benefit. See also CQ Politics' "Latest State-by-State General Election Match-ups."

Los Angeles Times: Democrats See Karma at Work in Georgia Senate Race

Today, Democrats are reveling in the fact that Saxby Chambliss -- once considered a shoo-in for reelection -- has seen his double-digit advantage in the polls narrowed to as little as 2 percentage points in recent weeks, a situation probably caused by the nation's current economic crisis and a weakened Republican brand.

Boston Globe: Shaheen Takes Commanding Lead in N.H. Senate Race

Shaheen, a former three-term governor, has the support of 49 percent of likely voters polled, compared with 36 percent for Sununu. Only 13 percent were undecided.

Washington Post: Franken becomes Serious Contender in Minnesota

The political climate this year is such that Al Franken -- best known for starring in an "SNL" skit in which his character stares into a mirror and attempts to reassure himself that, doggone it, people like him -- has pulled ahead in his Senate race against Republican Sen. Norm Coleman.

New York Times: In McCain's Uphill Battle, Winning is an Option

As Mr. McCain enters this closing stretch, his aides -- as well as some outside Republicans and even a few Democrats -- argue that he still has a viable path to victory.

NPR: How McCain Shed Pariah Status Among Evangelicals

The Republican candidate was a pariah to religious conservatives during his run for the White House in 2000. This time around, he's not exactly a Messiah but he has won over his base.

Washington Post: A Happiness Gap - Doomacrats and Republigrins

Now the good news for Republicans: You are happier than Democrats. You always have been, and you probably always will be. The partisan happiness gap -- unbroken for nearly four decades -- is impervious to electoral ups and downs. It has something to do with worldview.

Wall Street Journal: McCain Doesn't Look Competitive in Pennsylvania

The "maverick" John McCain was supposed to play well with the independents and middle-of-the-road Democrats and Republicans in places like Bucks County. It hasn't gone Mr. McCain's way. As Wall Street tumbled, Barack Obama expanded a two point lead into double digits -- 10.5 points as of yesterday, according to RealClearPolitics.

Columbia Journalism Review: On Rush, Racism, Richard Nixon and the "Real America"

It is ironic that conservative commentators, led by radio personality Rush Limbaugh, dismissed Colin Powell's endorsement of Barack Obama as a racist act at the very moment several Republicans are hunting for votes using racially charged rhetoric about "real Americans."

Chicago Tribune: Palin on the $150,000 Wardrobe - "If People Only Knew Her Frugal We Are"

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin insisted in an interview with the Tribune on Thursday that she did not accept $150,000 worth of designer clothes from the Republican Party and "that is not who we are...That whole thing is just, bad! Oh, if people only knew how frugal we are."

Power Line: She's Not Rich

The last 24 hours have been consumed by a media feeding frenzy over the money spent on Sarah Palin's clothes and makeup. Why are they not concerned with how much money Joe Biden spent on his hair-plugs? Why haven't they breathlessly told us how much money Hillary Clinton's wardrobe, plus her cosmetic surgery and Botox, cost? Why haven't they focused on Barack Obama's wardrobe? His clothes are so stylish that he was on the cover of GQ

Huffington Post: McCain and Palin - The Chemistry Is Just Not There

NBC's Chuck Todd says after a joint interview with John McCain and Sarah Palin: "When you see the two of them together, the chemistry is just not there. You do wonder, is John McCain starting to blame her for things? Blaming himself? Is she blaming him?"

Slate: Why American Political Marriages Are So Wretched

A year ago, as I set out to write about political marriages for Slate's First Mates series, I would have sworn that I was already fairly illusion-free...Since then, however, I've concluded that political marriages are even harder to keep real than I thought--to the point that for a lot of these spouses, denial is not so much a diagnosis as a job description.

Foreign Policy: If the World Could Vote

What if the rest of the world could help choose the next U.S. president? A stunning new map of Gallup World Poll data from 70 countries shows that Barack Obama would win in a landslide.

Salon: The Punditocracy's Seven Biggest Blunders of the 2008 Election

Guess what? The Conventional Wisdom has blown it again in handicapping Obama vs. McCain in the homestretch.

New York Times: Rivals Split on U.S. Power, but Ideas Defy Easy Labels

John McCain has said his worldview was formed in the Hanoi Hilton. Barack Obama has written that his views began to take shape in the back streets of Jakarta, where he lived as a young boy and saw the poverty, the human rights violations and the fear inspired by the American-backed Indonesian dictator Suharto. Those radically different experiences in different corners of Southeast Asia have created two men with sharply different views about the proper use of American power.

Washington Post: McCain's Image as Reformer Born in Crisis

Sen. John McCain's political resuscitation after the Keating Five scandal in the late 1980s provided a window to his emerging style amid controversy -- his deftness in recasting himself as a chastened reformer and his skill in turning a potentially disastrous setback to his advantage.

ESPN: Can Obama Pick a Fantasy Team?

I have the absolute worst fantasy league football partner. Just try to get the guy to return a call. I asked each candidate to be my running mate for one week in a fantasy league, just to see what kind of president he'd make--how he'd handle decisions under pressure and balance a budget. Only Obama bit.

Los Angeles Times: Palin's RNC-Funded Makeover: A Fashion Do or Don't?

The news that the Republican National Committee has bought Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and her family nearly $150,000 worth of clothing since September has fueled charges of hypocrisy by her detractors and sparked questions about the legality of the expenditures.

Slate: Shopping Like Sarah

Spending $150,000 on clothes is harder than you think. We tried it.

Foreign Policy: (Not Quite) 101 Things Sarah Palin Should Know About the World

Reza Aslan, Parag Khanna, Christopher Hitchens, Andrew Bacevich, and many more sharp minds offer unsolicited advice--some serious, some less so--for the woman vying to become a heartbeat away from the presidency.

Boston Globe: Shifting gears, Obama Meets Foreign Policy Advisers

Senator Barack Obama yesterday sought to reinsert international affairs into a presidential campaign that for weeks has been dominated by the economic crisis.

Daily Beast: The Secret Swift Boaters

It's very quiet on the campaign trail. No October surprise. And no blitz of attack ads featuring Obama's embarrassing friends Bill Ayers, Tony Rezko, and Jeremiah Wright. But the dirty campaign is underway under the radar.

New York Times: McCain Fights to Keep Crucial Blue State in Play

Obama has a double-digit lead in recent Pennsylvania polls, but in these frantic last weeks of the 2008 campaign, Mr. McCain has lavished time and money on this now deep-blue state as if his political life depended on it. And, from his campaign's point of view, it does.

Salon: Among the Hardy Republicans of Abilene

Garrison Keillor on loyalty to George Bush: These Republicans are hardy people not given to endless self-examination of the sort that we liberal elitists practice, and they stick with a position once taken and don't admire people who waver and hedge their bets and cover their butts.

New Republic: How Many Polls Does it Take to Screw Up an Election?

An anxious, politically savvy public has developed a compulsive need to know precisely where the presidential contest stands at any given moment. The profusion of poll numbers in turn fuels the public's hunger for more definitive, or more reassuring, polls--a cycle made all the more relentless by a panoply of websites that post every last number almost in real time.

Boston Globe: For McCain, Father's Error Holds Lesson

John McCain often says that the lessons from the Vietnam War helped shape his views... But what is little-noted is that one of his key lessons came from what he perceived as a failure by his father. Admiral John McCain. Senator McCain has excoriated the way his father failed to make public his misgivings about Nixon's Vietnamization strategy.

Chicago Tribune: Obama's Grandmother Madelyn Dunham in Fragile Health

The country hasn't really met this important figure in Obama's life. Yet she is a crucial part of his story, a woman he speaks of often when he's campaigning. He has invoked memories of her at his most crucial moments in politics, notably when dealing with the complex multicultural tapestry that is his personal narrative.

Politico: RNC Shells out $150,000 for Palin's Clothes

The Republican National Committee has spent more than $150,000 to clothe and accessorize vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin and her family since her surprise pick by John McCain in late August.

Slate: Does "W." Get George Bush Right?

Oliver--if I may call you that--you have my admiration for relying on the Bush Library rather than indulging in supposition and dark fantasy. Still, as someone who has read the key books (much less written a few), I found watching W. to be a strange, disembodying experience, two hours in a Cuisinart.

National Review: Black Like Me - An Overload of Identity Politics

If you think that there is an overload of emotion behind this election, you haven't read the hip-hop and black magazines yet, because that would be an understatement. This month, Vibe magazine endorses Barack Obama in an "HISTORIC COLLECTOR'S EDITION." Black Enterprise magazine, meanwhile, screams "Yes We Must!" from the magazine stand.

Next Left: Real Socialists Say Obama is not a Socialist

If an opinion from the Fabian Society - which did a good deal to invent the non-Marxist, democratic socialist tradition - is of any relevance: clearly Obama is not a socialist. Rather, Obama is a moderately liberal, centrist Democrat.

Stateline: Gay Marriage on the Ballot in Four States

In the wake of Connecticut's Oct. 10 high court decision legalizing same-sex marriage, voters in three states will decide in November whether to roll back or prevent a similar ruling by defining marriage in their state constitutions as a union "between one man and one woman." In Connecticut, a ballot proposal to rewrite the state charter has become a platform to reverse the high court's ruling.

New Yorker: How John McCain Came to Pick Sarah Palin

Palin's sudden rise to prominence, however, owes more to members of the Washington élite than her rhetoric has suggested. Upon being elected governor, Palin began developing relationships with Washington insiders, who later championed the idea of putting her on the 2008 ticket.

Slate: Has Palin Gone Rogue?

Political insiders have started asking whether Palin is simply undisciplined or is intentionally ignoring the playbook. And if it's intentional, the question becomes: Is she putting her own political self interest ahead of her running mate's?

Daily Beast: [Palin's Second Act](http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2008-10-21/palins-second-act/)

Tina Brown says, "I suspect that Palin is harboring an angry contempt for her running mate and his handlers."

Foreign Policy: The Next President's Foreign Policy Dream Team

The next American president will confront a host of potential cataclysms: from a virulent financial crisis to a vicious terrorist enemy, nuclear proliferation to climate change. He'll need his country's brightest minds--not his party's usual suspects. So, we asked 10 of the world's top thinkers to name the unlikely team that can best guide No. 44 through the turbulent years ahead.

Los Angeles Times: Swing Voters Are Bothered by McCain's Temperament and His Party

Swing voters have tilted Obama's way as the economy has overwhelmed all other issues as the top priority for Americans. Demeanor has emerged as a dominant theme in their explanations for why they trusted Obama more than McCain to guide the nation out of its financial crisis.

New York Times: In Fine Print, a Proliferation of Large Donors

Enabled by the fine print in campaign finance laws, they have written checks that far exceed normal individual contribution limits to candidates, to joint fund-raising committees that benefit the candidates as well as their respective parties.

Washington Post: McCain Emphasizes Distance from Bush

As he struggles to pull his campaign out from beneath the shadow of a president whose approval ratings have reached historic lows, McCain is offering some of his toughest criticism of the Bush White House.

Wall Street Journal: Volcker Makes a Comeback as Part of Obama Brain Trust

At 81 years old, former Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker is getting a second chance to shape his legacy with a presidential hopeful more than 30 years his junior.

Wired: Obama and McCain Silent on Repairing Country's Failing Infrastructure

The state of America's infrastructure -- roads, bridges, drinking water, even schools and transit systems -- couldn't be much worse. A report card issued three years ago by the American Society of Civil Engineers gives it all a D. The society says we've got to spend about $1.6 trillion just to bring things up to a B-.

Anchorage Daily News: Palin Strikes the Right Chord for Songwriters

Since Sen. John McCain announced the Alaska governor as his running mate on Aug. 29, amateur songwriters have cranked out enough Palin parodies to fill an iPod.

Mental Floss: Ten People Banned for Life from Stuff

The headline says it all. This has absolutely nothing to do with politics, but we couldn't resist.

New Yorker: The Rise and Fall of Joe the Plumber

Reporters quickly discovered that Joe Wurzelbacher was not everything he seemed. He lacked a license to perform plumbing ... Wurzelbacher's prospects for participating in Sarah Palin's 2012 Joe Six-Pack tour may also have been dented when, speaking to Katie Couric, he described Obama's remarks on tax policy as a "tap dance . . . almost as good as Sammy Davis, Jr."

New York Times: Endorsement Puts Spotlight on Powell's Legacy

People in both parties debated the impact of Mr. Powell's endorsement, but on a Sunday morning in Washington the conclusion was that the action revealed less about Mr. Obama and Mr. McCain than about Mr. Powell, who 13 years ago was himself thinking of trying to become president.

Columbia Journalism Review: In Which Colin Powell is a Statesman

The cynic will say that Powell has discovered that it's repositioning time in America. The fact is that Powell went beyond conventional political phrases. He made arguments in behalf of Obama, he commented on what, politically, is at stake, and he offered Obama ammunition that might come in handy in budgetary wars he will have to fight if he is president.

San Francisco Chronicle: Next President Will Shape Supreme Court

Abortion is only one of many issues in which the court's moderate-to-liberal bloc of four justices has joined with the moderately conservative Justice Anthony Kennedy to form a precarious majority - one that would probably be undone by a McCain appointee.

Slate: The GOP's Voter Fraud Mania

As far as "gotcha" stunts go, the right-wing feeding frenzy over the vile vote-fraud treachery of ACORN has yet to yield much fruit. Evidence of voter-registration wrongdoing is no more a sign of widespread, Obama-sanctioned vote fraud than evidence of minorities being misled and intimidated on Election Day is a sign of official, McCain-sanctioned vote suppression.

Weekly Standard: Sarah Palin's Future

Whatever else the 2008 presidential campaign may produce, it has created a new Republican star--Palin--a political natural who's at ease in front of crowds and whose cheerfulness, self-confidence, and optimism haven't slackened in the face of unusually harsh--and often highly personal-- attacks by Democrats and the mainstream media.

Boston Globe: The Last New England Republican in the House Fights for His Political Life

US Representative Christopher Shays, of Connecticut, the last remaining Republican representing New England in the US House, is fighting for his political life against a rising Democratic challenger and a backdrop of generalized voter anger and uncertainty.

Los Angeles Times: McCain and Obama Get Ready for the White House

Even as they plot their paths to victory, Barack Obama and John McCain are thinking past election day, enlisting advisors to quietly vet potential Cabinet secretaries, devise a governing strategy and assemble the rudiments of a new White House. * NPR:* The First Black Woman to Run for President

Shirley Chisholm sought the Democratic nomination in 1972 as the first black woman to run for president. When the congresswoman from New York launched her spirited campaign, she took on the political establishment. Chisholm said she ran for the office, despite the hopeless odds, to challenge the status quo.

New York Times: Among Rock-Ribbed Fans of Palin, Dudes Rule

Ms. Palin's stoutest defenders are often the Joe Sixpacks in her crowds, who shrug off her critics, ridiculers and perceived adversaries in the news media. They say they appreciate Ms. Palin for, above all else, how "real" and "like us" she is.

Washington Post: An Arduous Transition Faces the Next President

The 77-day period between Election Day and Inauguration Day, traditionally known simply as the transition, is sure to present difficult challenges to a new president buffeted by intense forces, political and economic, without any chance to recover from the long and bruising campaign.

Salon: Unlike You Liberal Elites, I Live in the Real World

Newsweek: It's Not Easy Being Blue

America remains a center-right nation--a fact that a President Obama would forget at his peril. McCain apparently mistook Wurzelbacher's desired salary of $250,000 for his current salary.

Boston Globe: Obama Seeks to Score in the Red Zone

As the election draws near, polls show Obama within striking distance in a half-dozen states like Indiana that are usually safely red. The economy is driving that advance, but the Obama campaign is working to capitalize on it by pushing hard in rural areas where Democrats generally don't bother competing.

Chicago Tribune: Campaigns Blitzing Red States as Voter Turnout, Undecideds Loom Large

The numbers suggest McCain's window has not closed completely. About a fifth of voters remain undecided or willing to switch allegiances. Those voters tend to be older, white, independent, Catholic men who lean moderate-to-conservative--a group Obama often struggled to attract in his primary battle with Sen. Hillary Clinton.

Time: How Much Do Plumbers Really Make?

Much has already been said of Joe the Plumber's sharp ascent into the public eye over the past two days. McCain apparently mistook Wurzelbacher's desired salary of $250,000 for his current salary. Which of course begs the question: How much do plumbers actually make?

NPR: Williams Jennings Bryan, the Electrifying Orator

At the 1896 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, William Jennings Bryan gave a speech that electrified his party. His "Cross of Gold" speech -- about the gold standard and its impact on the working class -- won him the nomination. It is known today as one of the most important oratorical performances in American history.

Washington Post: Thousands Face Mix-Ups in Voter Registrations

Thousands of voters across the country must reestablish their eligibility in the next three weeks in order for their votes to count on Nov. 4, a result of new state registration systems that are incorrectly rejecting them.

New York Times: Obama's Ad Campaign Swamps McCain and Nears Record

Senator Barack Obama is days away from breaking the advertising spending record set by President Bush in the general election four years ago, having unleashed an advertising campaign of a scale and complexity unrivaled in the television era.

Los Angeles Times: Obama and McCain Solidify Campaign Themes in Fight for Crucial States

The Republican defends Florida, and the Democrat makes a push for Virginia. They gird for potential legal fights after the election.

Washington Post: Impersonation's Real Deal

Political impersonations are an elusive thing, but when they are dead-on -- when the comic take on a subject rings so right -- the impression can nearly define a candidate. Think of Dana Carvey's George Bush the elder, or Darrell Hammond's Al Gore, to cite two of "SNL's" greatest hits, and sometimes the real person starts to seem like an imitation of the imitation.

Slate: Petraeus' Strategy in Afghanistan Closer to Obama's than McCain's

Obama has at least embraced diplomacy as an essential tool for dealing with security problems in general. McCain, on the other hand, has said that Petraeus will win in Afghanistan simply by using the same strategy that he employed as commander of U.S. forces in Iraq. (Petraeus himself dismissed this notion in an Oct. 8 speech).

Foreign Policy: Why October Surprises Work

It seems intuitively obvious that McCain, given his polling advantage on national security and his weakness on economic issues, would stand to gain from an attack. But can the connection between terrorism and electoral outcomes be proven? How large is the effect? To answer these questions, you have to look at the one country with enough data on terrorism and elections: Israel.

Boston Globe: Black Neighborhood Says Its Vote Goes Beyond Race

It's a distinction many voters in the Over-the-Rhine neighborhood in Cincinnati make: They are deeply proud - beside-themselves proud, over-the-moon proud, too-good-to-be-true proud - of Obama and how far he has come. But they are not voting on skin color.

New York Review of Books: Election by Sound Bite

Joan Didion writes that bsessed by "lipstick on a pig," economic "free fall" and other "great stories," America has failed to see the real challenges it faces.

NPR: When TV Changed Politics: Adlai Stevenson vs. Ike

While Eisenhower boiled his campaign down to a few sound bites -- "Ike for President" and "You like Ike, I like Ike, everybody likes Ike" -- Stevenson believed in longer speeches to sell a message. So he bought 30-minute blocks on TV, but nobody tuned in to watch them.

New Yorker: What Joe Biden Wants as Vice President

Biden closely studied a memorandum that Mondale sent Carter outlining Mondale's duties as Vice-President. "I believe the most important contribution I can make is to serve as a general adviser to you," Mondale wrote. "The biggest single problem of our recent administrations has been the failure of the President to be exposed to independent analysis not conditioned by what it is thought he wants to hear or often what others want him to hear."

The Daily Beast: My "W" and Oliver Stone's

Scott McClellan, Bush's estranged former press secretary, on what the movie nails (his stubbornness and his relationship with his father)--and what it screws up.

TPM Election Central: In Private Calls, Obama Advisers Worry About Complacency

In two private conference calls this week with leading fundraisers, surrogates, and prominent supporters, senior Obama advisers expressed genuine worry that his lead in the polls is creating a complacency among supporters that the advisers are afraid will create a serious drag on fundraising and turnout, a person who was on both calls says.

New York Times: Real Deal on "Joe the Plumber" Reveals New Slant

As it turns out, Joe the Plumber, as he became nationally known when Senator John McCain made him a theme at Wednesday's final presidential debate, may work in the plumbing business, but he is not a licensed plumber.

Columbia Journalism Review: Joe Wurzelbacher and the Politics of the "Middle Class"

McCain "keeps referring to Joe, who in these first few minutes of the debate has become the universal middle-class taxpayer," wrote Katherine Seelye in The New York Times... So if anything, this means that labels like "middle class" deserves re-examination, not inflation--and if not from the candidates, then from the press. They shouldn't be so easily repackaged

Stateline.Org: States Warned to Prep for Election Glitches

The states least-prepared to handle problems that could crop up at polling places are the presidential swing states of Colorado and Virginia, along with Delaware, Kentucky, Louisiana, New Jersey, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Utah, said a joint report by voter advocacy groups.

Washington Post: How Obama Shaped His Political Image

Early in 2005, Barack Obama met with half a dozen advisers in Washington to plot strategy. Some of those who participated remember that the group focused less on the details of Obama's new job as the junior senator from Illinois than on managing his overall political image.

San Francisco Chronicle: Bush's Shadow Still Hangs Over McCain

"The branding with the Republican Party and Bush are connected," said Mark DiCamillo, director of the Field Poll. "It's been a Republican administration for eight years." And, like it or not, he said, "McCain is running as the standard-bearer."

New York Observer: How Bad Can it Get for McCain?

No one on John McCain's team will ever admit this (before the election, at least), but his campaign is rapidly curling up into the political fetal position.

Wall Street Journal: A Liberal Supermajority

If the current polls hold, Barack Obama will win the White House on November 4 and Democrats will consolidate their Congressional majorities...Though we doubt most Americans realize it, this would be one of the most profound political and ideological shifts in U.S. history. Liberals would dominate the entire government in a way they haven't since 1965, or 1933.

NPR: Victoria Woodhull - the First Woman to Run for President...in 1872

In the 19th century, Victoria Claflin Woodhull was many things: a clairvoyant, a businesswoman, an advocate for women's rights and sexual freedom, and a magnet for media attention and scandal. But she is best known as the first woman to run for president.

Knowledge at Wharton: Avoiding the Tough Issues - The Candidates on Health Care and Entitlements

Senators Barack Obama of Illinois and John McCain of Arizona fall short of laying out richly detailed plans to solve the deep, structural problems with these programs, mainly because there are no easy solutions and speaking hard truths is likely to alienate voters.

Editor & Publisher: Obama Widens Lead in Newspaper Endorsement Race

The Obama-Biden ticket maintains its strong lead in the race for newspaper endorsements, picking up seven more papers in the past day. This brings his lead over McCain-Palin by this measure to about 3-1 in both the number and circulation of the papers

Washington Post: Candidates Make a Name for This Guy Joe

News organizations no doubt set to work scrambling to find Joe the Plumber and give him the rest of his 15 minutes of fame; the electronic media are ever on the lookout for ways to trivialize the democratic process.

New York Times: Rivals Split, with Joe in the Middle

Barack Obama looked like a prosecutor delivering a polished summation in a long civil case, Joe the Plumber v. George W. Bush. John McCain was closer to a personal injury lawyer, staring into the camera to address "Joe the Plumber" as if he were standing by with an 800 number.

Slate: His Best Wasn't Good Enough

McCain had some strong moments, such as when he distanced himself from President Bush and when he stood up for the majority of his supporters at his rallies. But his attacks came like out of a Gatling gun. He wasn't particularly mean, but his approach had a scattered feel to it.

Weekly Standard: McCain Wins but It Isn't a Game Changer

The winner, and in my view quite decisively, was John McCain. From the very first question, McCain seemed certain of himself and his answers. While he wasn't as polished and articulate as Obama has been in the first two debates, I thought McCain had several winning moments.

New Republic: Good Enough to Hold off McCain

Obama wasn't close to his best tonight. He was much less crisp and coherent than last week. Having said that, Obama was coherent enough when he had to be. More to the point, Obama was much, much more coherent than McCain.

Huffington Post: Put McCain Out of His Misery

McCain also sounded like an aggrieved coot who thinks this campaign is all about him. Obama nailed him cold when he reminded his opponent that it's not about the hurt the candidates may feel, but the economic hurt inflicted on the American people.

National Review: **"I Am Not President Bush"

You can talk all you want about Joe the Plumber, but the moment of the final presidential debate, held last night at Hofstra University on Long Island, came when John McCain said, quickly and cleanly, "Sen. Obama, I am not President Bush. If you wanted to run against President Bush, you should have run four years ago."

The Root: Measure the Drapes

It's just the latest display of how bad McCain's been at creating the distractions he so desperately needs. He lashed around from taxes to character so wildly, poor Joe must have gotten dizzy trying to follow along.

The Daily Beast: Gamblers Take Note

From McCain's smile to Obama's hands, our team of psychiatrists on what the candidates were really saying.

Power Line: For Obama, A Comfortable Night in the End

John McCain opened strongly in his debate with Barack Obama tonight, but he faded in the second half. Ultimately, it seems unlikely that McCain cut into Obama's lead through this performance. And Obama may have taken another small step towards making Americans comfortable with the prospect of his presidency.

The Daily Beast: "Sorry, Dad, I'm Voting for Obama"

Christopher, t he son of William F. Buckley has decided--shock!--to vote for a Democrat.

Wall Street Journal: Wall Street Donors Resent Being Bashed by McCain

The senator's recent demonizing of Wall Street made it tough to lure contributors to a Tuesday night fundraiser in New York, with Wall Street and corporate executives balancing their aggravation with the Republican presidential hopeful against their rising unease about his Democratic opponent.

New York Times: Quiet Political Shifts as More Blacks Are Elected

Black officials, who often serve in small- and medium-size towns, have been overshadowed by the presidential candidacy of Senator Barack Obama of Illinois, who if elected would be the first African-American to hold that office. But over the last 10 years, about 200 black politicians have won positions once held by whites in legislatures and city halls in states like New Hampshire, Iowa, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina and Tennessee.

Washington Post: Looking Ahead, Obama Pals with "Blue Dogs"

Obama took a break from campaigning last week to call ...leaders of the "Blue Dog Coalition," a group of conservative-leaning Democrats who are committed to balancing the federal budget. The group's 49 members already wield significant power in the House, and their ranks are expected to expand in the next Congress.

Boston Globe: Anxiety Shadows Economic "Oasis"

Here, in Lordstown, Ohio, where nearly 5,000 workers produce truckload after truckload of Chevrolet Cobalts and Pontiac G5s, the work keeps growing, and with it hope that US automakers can compete in a radically reshaped global economy.

Los Angeles Times: McCain is Looking for Another Comeback

For just about every Republican urging McCain to focus relentlessly on the economy, there was another who said McCain should continue questioning Obama's character by citing his association with William Ayers, a Vietnam-era radical.

Slate: McCain's Embarassment - Palin is a Disgrace

Christopher Hitchens writes: "The most insulting thing that a politician can do is to compel you to ask yourself: "What does he take me for?" Precisely this question is provoked by the selection of Gov. Sarah Palin. I wrote not long ago that it was not right to condescend to her just because of her provincial roots or her piety, let alone her slight flirtatiousness, but really her conduct since then has been a national disgrace."

Power Line: Obama's Persistent Dishonesty on Health Care Reform

The most persistent of these dishonest (Obama) ads, at least in the Northern Virginia area, pertain to McCain's health care plan. They follow the line taken by Lyin' Joe Biden in his debate with Sarah Palin, where Biden claimed that McCain's plan effectively gives Americans $5,000 and then takes away $12,000.

Anchorage Daily News: Board's Troopergate Probe Casts Wider Net

The state Personnel Board investigation of Gov. Sarah Palin's firing of Walt Monegan has broadened to include other ethics complaints against the governor and examination of actions by other state employees

Vanity Fair: Is This the Ugliest Campaign Ever?

Todd Purdum and Dee Dee Myers discuss it.