Obama the Unknown  —  “Just tell me one thing Barack Obama has done that you admire,” I asked a prominent Democrat.  He paused and then said that he admired Obama's speech to the Democratic convention in 2004.  I agreed.  It was a hell of a speech, but it was just a speech.

Sebelius, Kaine, Bayh, Biden  —  The following three Democrats are being vetted by Eric Holder and Caroline Kennedy and there is independent evidence that Obama is taking a serious look at them:  —  Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, Gov. Tim Kaine, Sen. Evan Bayh.  —  Additionally, allies …

The Price of RomneyCare  —  Gearing up for 2009, liberals are eager to claim Massachusetts as a Valhalla of health reform.  Their enthusiasm is apparently evidence-proof.  —  Even Mitt Romney, who should know better, took to these pages recently to proclaim, “Health-care reform is working in Massachusetts.”

Alaska's Sen. Ted Stevens indicted by federal grand jury  —  WASHINGTON — Sen. Ted Stevens, the longest-serving Republican in the U.S. Senate and one of the chamber's most powerful members, was indicted Tuesday in Washington, a result of a year-long investigation into corruption in Alaska politics.

Reid plan splits Dems  —  Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has split the Democratic front opposed to drilling with a plan that would open new areas for exploration.  —  Reid's proposal was meant to insulate Senate Democratic candidates from public anger over gas prices.

Pelosi: 'I'm trying to save the planet'  —  Just call her Nancy the Navigator.  —  “I have always loved longitude,” Nancy Pelosi says before breaking into laughter.  “I love latitude; it's in the stars.  But longitude, it's about time. ...  Time and clocks and all the rest of that have always been a fascination for me.”

Obamanomics Is a Recipe for Recession  —  What if I told you that a prominent global political figure in recent months has proposed: abrogating key features of his government's contracts with energy companies; unilaterally renegotiating his country's international economic treaties …

Bradley says ‘no’ to Obama VP job.  What about Clinton?  Not her.  Him!  —  Just in case you're keeping score, yet another Democratic politician has said he would decline to be the vice presidential running mate of Sen. Barack Obama.  —  This one was a surprise, too, because, to be honest …

A Canceled Obama Visit, and the Story Behind It  —  WASHINGTON — For four days, Senator John McCain has sought to keep alive a story about how Senator Barack Obama called off a visit to American troops recuperating from war wounds at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany.

Assessing the Impact of Obama's Trip  —  Americans, especially Republicans, critical of media's coverage of candidates  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Could John McCain benefit from Barack Obama's much-publicized foreign trip?  Several observations from the just-completed USA Today/Gallup poll suggest that this is a possibility.

The campaign is all about Obama  —  If you made a movie about the general election campaign so far, John McCain would be a supporting actor.  —  Despite vulnerabilities that have kept the race closer in polls than most analysts expected - and McCain even jumped to a four-point lead among likely voters …

Toby Keith's Pro-Lynching Publicity Tour Hits Colbert, CBS, And More!  —  Despite his background as a comedian, Stephen Colbert is known by many of the authors who have appeared on his show as one of the toughest interviewers in the business.  But on July 28, when country music superstar Toby Keith stepped …

Discussion: An Elite Backlash Against McCain's Tone? … A question from “Scott” in New York is just the start of it.  USA Today calls a new McCain ad “a marker on the path toward the kind of simplistic, counterproductive demonizing that many expect will poison the fall campaign.”

Let's give “Blue Dogs” the boot  —  Pushing conservative Democrats out of Congress could help the party stand up to the GOP.  —  In American politics, exceedingly few positions generate overwhelming agreement across the ideological spectrum.  Even propositions that ought to be uncontroversial …

‘Active grannies’ the new soccer moms  —  Despite all the talk about this election being driven by the youth vote, America as a nation has never been older and the power of the senior vote has never been greater.  —  In the relentless quest to find the soccer moms of this election …

McCain Backs Off His No-New-Tax Pledge  —  McCain steps back from ‘no new tax’ pledge, gets rebuked by conservative anti-tax group  —  Republican presidential candidate John McCain drew a sharp rebuke Monday from conservatives after he signaled an openness to a higher payroll tax for Social Security …

Obama: Odds of winning are very good  —  ARLINGTON, Virginia (CNN) - Barack Obama told donors at a Monday night fundraiser just across the Potomac River from Washington that “the odds of us winning are very good.”  —  Obama was reflecting on how far the campaign had come since its early days when …

Perle Linked to Kurdish Oil Plan  —  Iraq War Advocate Denies Taking Part In a Consortium  —  Influential former Pentagon official Richard Perle has been exploring going into the oil business in Iraq and Kazakhstan, according to people with knowledge of the matter and documents outlining possible deals.