Rerouting McCain's Bus  —  Frustrations Lead Campaign To Limit Reporters' Access  —  KANSAS CITY While the traveling press corps was shipped off to a barbecue restaurant here, John McCain charmed his way through an interview with a local TV reporter.  Surae Chinn of KCTV posed such less …

Pelosi firm: No vote on offshore drilling  —  WASHINGTON — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday ruled out a vote on new offshore oil drilling even as Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said he might be open to a compromise that included it.  —  The scramble over expanded drilling …

VP pick may chafe Hillary supporters  —  Many of the foremost activists in the women's movement ardently believe that Hillary Rodham Clinton should be Barack Obama's running mate — and primary wounds that are just beginning to heal may be torn back open should the Democratic nominee select someone else, as it seems very likely he will.

Housing Lenders Fear Bigger Wave of Loan Defaults  —  The first wave of Americans to default on their home mortgages appears to be cresting, but a second, far larger one is quickly building.  —  Homeowners with good credit are falling behind on their payments in growing numbers …

Obama Leads, Pessimism Reigns Among Key Group  —  Democratic Sen. Barack Obama holds a 2 to 1 edge over Republican Sen. John McCain among the nation's low-wage workers, but many are unconvinced that either presidential candidate would be better than the other at fixing the ailing economy …

Obama's crime?  Acting too presidential  —  So the pundits' verdict is in: Obama is too confident.  It all would be funny if many people didn't seem to be inhaling this multimedia stink bomb as if it were fragrant truth.  —  America, meet Barack The Arrogant.

McCain likely to let Obama choose VP first  —  John McCain's extended circle is divided on whether he should announce his running mate in the immediate days ahead—but the Republican is more likely to wait for Barack Obama to announce his choice first, according to advisers.

Additional key facts re: the anthrax investigation  —  (updated below - Update II - Update III)  —  It's perfectly possible that Bruce Ivins really is the anthrax attacker — that he perpetrated the attacks and did so alone.  Perhaps the FBI is in possession of mountains of conclusive evidence that …

Republicans to Mock Obama With Tire Gauges  —  McCain supporters in Michigan will distribute tire gauges at Obama's energy speech in Lansing.  —  The RNC will also deliver gauges reading “Obama's energy plan” to Washington newsrooms.  —  An allusion to Obama's call last week for drivers to keep their tires inflated.

How to Pick a V.P.  —  When you try to talk with McCain staffers about vice-presidential prospects, as I did last week, the normally garrulous become guarded and the usually talkative turn taciturn.  Still, here's what I was able to discern.  —  John McCain apparently intends to announce his pick after the Democratic convention.

Obama ad attacks McCain, helps launch ‘Energy Week’  —  From CNN Deputy Political Director Paul Steinhauser, CNN's Steve Brusk  —  (CNN) — The Obama campaign is out with a new television commercial this morning which outlines some of candidate's energy proposals, including what it says is a …

The Race Issue Isn't Going Away  —  With polls showing the presidential contest between John McCain and Barack Obama getting closer, a question is now looming larger and larger.  Is skin color going to be the deciding factor?  —  Just last week, Sen. Obama warned voters that Sen. McCain's campaign …

Solzhenitsyn, Literary Giant Who Defied Soviets, Dies at 89  —  Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, whose stubborn, lonely and combative literary struggles gained the force of prophecy as he revealed the heavy afflictions of Soviet Communism in some of the most powerful works of the 20th century, died late on Sunday at the age of 89 in Moscow.