Georgian president to McCain: Move ‘from words to deeds’  —  (CNN) - Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili on Wednesday called for John McCain and other American leaders to do more for Georgia in their response to the conflict in his country.  —  “Yesterday, I heard Sen. McCain say …

Presidential Race Draws Even  —  GOP Base Getting Behind McCain  —  With less than two weeks to go before the start of the presidential nominating conventions, Barack Obama's lead over John McCain has disappeared.  Pew's latest survey finds 46% of registered voters saying they favor or lean …

Report of shots at Arkansas Dems headquarters  —  LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — The chairman of the Arkansas Democratic Party was hospitalized in critical condition Wednesday, a party executive said.  A television station reported that three shots were fired at party headquarters.

NY Times tries to torpedo anti-Obama book; succeeds in spreading its message  —  Oh dear, Oh dear, Oh dear.  Jerome Corsi, author of the bestselling Unfit for Command in 2004, a book that turned the phrase “swift boat” into a verb and helped defeat John “Reporting for Duty” Kerry …

Obama tickets come with a catch  —  Some of those hoping to wrangle a seat for Barack Obama's speech were told this week they have to put in six hours of volunteer work for his campaign by Friday to have a shot at a ticket.  —  And that ruffled at least a few feathers.

Erasing The Race Factor  —  Obama's Best Hope Is To Face the Issue Directly  —  Barack Obama has a problem.  He really, really doesn't want this campaign to be about race.  He wants it to be about change, President Bush, the economy, gas prices, Iraq, Afghanistan — almost anything else.

Beijing Is All Dressed Up, But No One Is Going  —  Chinese Olympic organizers acknowledged Tuesday they were struggling to handle an unforeseen and baffling problem inside Summer Games venues and at the showpiece Olympic Park.  —  Not enough people.  —  Two weeks after announcing …

Yes, She Can  —  While Obama was spending three hours watching “The Dark Knight” five time zones away, and going to a fund-raiser featuring “Aloha attire” and Hawaiian pupus, Hillary was busy planning her convention.  —  You can almost hear her mind whirring: She's amazed at how easy it was to snatch Denver away from the Obama saps.

Eight Strikes and You're Out  —  John McCain recently tried to underscore his seriousness about pushing through a new energy policy, with a strong focus on more drilling for oil, by telling a motorcycle convention that Congress needed to come back from vacation immediately and do something about America's energy crisis.

SEX, MORE LIES & VIDEOTAPE  —  The ENQUIRER has uncovered bombshell new details about the John Edwards sex scandal after the former presidential candidate finally admitted he'd cheated on his cancer-stricken wife Elizabeth!  —  Edwards' headline-making admission confirmed …

Decade has had fewest 90-degree days since 1930  —  August is the wettest and often the muggiest month of the year.  Yet, summer heat continues in short supply, continuing a trend that has dominated much of the 21st Century's opening decade.  There have been only 162 days 90 degrees or warmer …

Stop Obama/Bayh 08  —  Popular candidates like Gen. Wes Clark and Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA) were famously recruited into politics by volunteer-driven “drafts.”  Now something close to the opposite of a draft is rumbling among concerned Democrats, as insiders and bloggers respond to apparently credible rumors …

PHELPS' PIG SECRET: HE'S BOY GORGE  —  Swimming sensation Michael Phelps has an Olympic recipe for success - and it involves eating a staggering 12,000 calories a day.  —  “Eat, sleep and swim.  That's all I can do,” Phelps, who won two more gold medals today, told NBC when asked what he needs to win medals.

RECLAIMING THE MORALITY OF ABORTION AND THE OVERDUE CHANGE TO THE DEMOCRATIC PLATFORM.  —  The Democratic Party platform of 2008 finally dropped its old abortion language ("safe, legal and rare"), which had asked that women not have abortions unless they absolutely must.