McCain Stacks Fox News ‘Town Hall’ With Supporters  —  Tonight was the first in a much-hyped series of ‘town hall’ forums scheduled by John McCain's campaign, in which Barack Obama had been challenged to show up to discuss the issues directly with the GOP nominee.

McCain Slams The Supreme Court's Habeas Decision  —  PEMBERTON, N.J.—I am still sitting in a John McCain town hall, so have not had time to transcribe the full quotes, but wanted to post this quick.  After a day of consideration, the McCain Campaign has decided to come out hard against yesterday's 5 …

Countrywide's Many ‘Friends’  —  Two U.S. senators, two former Cabinet members, and a former ambassador to the United Nations received loans from Countrywide Financial through a little-known program that waived points, lender fees, and company borrowing rules for prominent people.

McCains report more than $100,000 in credit card debt  —  Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and his wife reported more than $100,000 of credit card liabilities, according to financial disclosure documents released Friday.  —  The presidential candidate and his wife Cindy reported piling up debt on a charge card between $10,000 and $15,000.

Iraq PM: security deal talks at dead end  —  AMMAN, Jordan - Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki says talks with the United States on a longterm security agreement have reached a “dead end.”  Al-Maliki says the talks slumped because each side refused the other's demands.

Obama Campaign Dispatching Thousands  —  Moving to harness the grass-roots energy that helped win the Democratic nomination, Sen. Barack Obama's campaign will deploy 3,600 volunteers in 17 states this weekend, each committed to six consecutive weeks of full-time political work.

The Kozinski mess  —  So the wires are a twitter with the story of Chief Judge Alex Kozinski's “web site” which, from reading the stories, you'd think was filled with porn (and worse), revealing a dark soul who, some experts in legal ethics suggest, shouldn't be presiding at an obscenity trial.

Perfect Madness  —  John Podhoretz nominates this Judith Warner post for the “Repulsive Blog Item of the Year Award.”  I would second the nomination, but I also think it's worth zeroing in the structure of Warner's post, which reflects the kind of gonzo inanity that's made her a hathetic joy to read for a long time now.

Town hall talks break down  —  The talks between the McCain and Obama campaigns on debates appear to have broken down, with Obama's campaign — evidently concluding that the format could favor McCain, or at least give McCain some oxygen — offering just one town hall and one extra debate in response to McCain's suggestion of 10.

Fight the smears...against Rush and the Right  —  The ogling Obamedia is so incorrigibly predictable I can't even get mad about this crap anymore.  —  They took a break from staring at Barack's loins and weeping over his nomination to blame Rush Limbaugh for spreading the left-wing Larry …

Dems delegate turns ugly  —  So much for party unity: As Florida Dems prepare for Saturday's Jefferson-Jackson dinner aimed at bringing the party “together once and for all,” a spat over the Obama campaign's decision to replace some already-designated Florida delegates with Obama backers has intensified.

Texas Inmate Says Judge and Prosecutor Had Affair  —  HOUSTON — Lawyers for a Texas inmate facing execution next week filed court papers on Thursday accusing the judge at his double-murder trial of having an affair with the prosecutor.  —  The papers, filed in the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals …

Obama Moves To The Center  —  Barack Obama faces the difficult task of shifting his message away from the primary electorate to general election voters, while avoiding angering the more liberal primary voters who gave him the presidential nomination.  —  Obama appears at the close of this week …