Republicans' Hold On the South Gets Test in Tennessee  —  Region's New Demographics  —  May Help Harold Ford Jr.,  —  Centrist Black Candidate  —  Sen. Frist's Seat Up for Grabs  —  KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Race has long been a deciding factor in Southern politics, helping determine …

LYNN CHENEY IN CNN SITDOWN, SLAPDOWN: DO YOU WANT AMERICA TO WIN?  —  Lynne Cheney, wife of Vice President Dick Cheney, took on CNN Friday evening during an interview with anchorman Wolf Blitzer.  —  Transcript:  —  CHENEY: You made a point last night of a man who had a bookstore in London where radical islamists gathered.

Bloomberg Sends Troops to Help Lieberman  —  In the Lieberman campaign office in Hartford are, from left, Korinne Kubena, Ariel Dvorkin, Crystal Cook and Brian Honan.  All but Ms. Cook are on loan from Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg of New York City.  —  In his battle for re-election …

Democrats Get Late Donations From Business  —  Corporate America is already thinking beyond Election Day, increasing its share of last-minute donations to Democratic candidates and quietly devising strategies for how to work with Democrats if they win control of Congress.

Rogich linked to all players but Mazzeo  —  GOP political guru key player in scandal  —  If Chrissy Mazzeo is to be believed, her claims appear to point to a wide-ranging attempted cover-up centering around Republican political guru Sig Rogich, one of the most powerful figures in Nevada, and national, politics.

Exclusive: Former Employee Says Gibbons Knew of Her Illegal Status  —  Congressman and gubernatorial candidate Jim Gibbons is facing more tough questions on a whole new issue.  These questions revolve around an illegal immigrant whom Gibbons and his wife Dawn employed as their housekeeper and babysitter.

HamNation: Racism!  It's Everywhere!  —  It's in every political ad, as long as you look hard enough.  According to my findings, even Harold Ford Jr. himself is sending coded messages.  —  My column, on the same subject, is here.  As one of my commenters put it so well, "I'm fixin' to throw a fit over this."

Is There Progress Through Loss?  —  A national election, a national decision.  —  A year ago I wrote a column called "A Separate Peace," in which I said America's leaders in all areas—government, business, journalism—were in some deep way checking out.  They saw bad things coming …

Investigators Say Speaker's Aide Hindered Inquiry of Hill Security Contracts  —  Two former House committee investigators who were examining Capitol Hill security upgrades said a senior aide to Speaker J. Dennis Hastert hindered their efforts before they were abruptly ordered to stop their probe last year.

DEATH COMES FOR THE CUBAN TYRANT  —  Last Wednesday, Cuban dictator Fidel Castro may have slipped into a coma.  —  On Saturday, his sycophant, Venezuelan strongman Hugo Chavez, flew into Havana (scroll down), possibly to bid a final farewell to his Cuban master.

Keeping false hope alive for Dem war plan  —  You can turn off CNN, stop e-mailing me The New York Times editorials and stuff a sock in Keith Olbermann's piehole.  You've done it.  You've closed the deal.  —  I'm ready to vote Democrat.  —  Yes, the man who proudly ran Pat Buchanan's campaign …

Missouri Senate: Talent by Two  —  Talent (R) 48% McCaskill 46%  —  In the contest of inches that has marked the Missouri Senate race from the start, the most recent Rasmussen Reports election survey shows incumbent Republican U.S. Sen. Jim Talent leading Claire McCaskill 48% to 46% (see crosstabs).

The Choice Could Not Be Clearer  —  It is common, if sad, that people sometimes dismiss American political debates because they see no great differences between the parties.  But, as is often the case, those differences are far more easily seen the closer we get to Election Day.

Deterring Kim Jong Il  —  In an interview aired last week, George Stephanopoulos put the question to President Bush: What would he do if "North Korea sold nukes to Iran or al-Qaeda?"  Bush replied, "They'd be held to account."  —  Seeking specifics, Stephanopoulos asked: "What does that mean?"