What McCain Should Do Next  —  Notwithstanding the hype about Barack Obama, here is where the presidential race stands: John McCain was within an average of 1.9% of his Democratic opponent in last week's daily Gallup tracking poll.  —  It shouldn't be this close.  Sen. Obama should be way ahead.

How Would Nominee Clinton Have Treated Obama?  —  Share This: Digg!  —  On Morning Joe, Chuck Todd said that the “feeling in Chicago,” presumably referring to the Obama campaign, is that Hillary Clinton is seeking treatment that she would never have given Barack Obama had the roles been reversed.

A Way Back to the High Road?  —  The first question I asked John McCain and then Barack Obama was: How do you feel about the tone and direction of the campaign so far?  —  No surprise.  Both men pronounced themselves thoroughly frustrated by the personal bitterness and negativism they have seen …

Obama adviser blames McCain ad for poll dip  —  By Stephanie Kirchgaessner in Washington and Edward Luce in Elkhart, Indiana  —  A senior adviser to Barack Obama has blamed recent attack advertisements comparing the Democratic presidential hopeful to celebrities Britney Spears and Paris Hilton …

Tabloid's claims threaten Edwards' role at party's convention  —  RALEIGH, N.C. — Former Sen. John Edwards has a deadline to save his spot on the national stage.  —  With two weeks to go before their national convention, a number of Democrats are saying that Edwards needs …

Guilty as Ordered  —  Now that was a real nail-biter.  The court designed by the White House and its Congressional enablers to guarantee convictions of high-profile detainees in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba — using evidence obtained by torture and secret evidence as desired — has held its first trial.

Race Takes Central Role in a Memphis Primary  —  In the culmination of a racially fraught Congressional campaign in Memphis, a black candidate is linking her liberal-leaning white primary opponent in Thursday's contest, Representative Steve Cohen, to the Ku Klux Klan in a television advertisement.

Obama Hits Back, Too Softly For Some  —  Barack Obama released a television advertisement yesterday that questions John McCain's claims to be a “maverick,” and he charged in a campaign appearance that the Republican displays independence only when it suits him politically.

Dude, You Stole My Article  —  HOW I INVESTIGATED A SUSPICIOUS ALT WEEKLY.  —  The saga began in the classical manner: with an e-mail about Jimmy Buffett.  Several weeks ago, I received a note from a Slate reader drawing my attention to an article published in March 2008 in the Bulletin …

Obama's View on Abortion May Divide Catholics  —  WASHINGTON — Sixteen years ago, the Democratic Party refused to allow Robert P. Casey Sr., then the governor of Pennsylvania, to speak at its national convention because his anti-abortion views, stemming from his Roman Catholic faith …

500: Deadly U.S. Milestone in Afghan War  —  Not long after Staff Sgt. Matthew D. Blaskowski was killed by a sniper's bullet last Sept. 23 in eastern Afghanistan, his mother received an e-mail message with a link to a video on the Internet.  A television reporter happened to have been filming …

The Age Issue  —  I've tended to dismiss it in the past but a reader directs me to this medical article, Cognitive Impairment without Dementia in Older Adults.  He writes: … McCain clearly falls in the population susceptible to this -  — not Alzheimers, but less pronounced cognitive impairment …