McCain unsure how many houses he owns  —  Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said in an interview Wednesday that he was uncertain how many houses he and his wife, Cindy, own.  —  “I think - I'll have my staff get to you,” McCain told us in Las Cruces, N.M. “It's condominiums where - I'll have them get to you.”

When Daley says shhh, library is quiet on Obama  —  Conservative writer Stanley Kurtz—researching an article for the National Review about connections between Barack Obama and former Weather Underground terrorist William Ayers—made a big mistake.  —  The poor man took a wrong turn on the Chicago Way.

U.S., Iraq Are Said to Have Set Withdrawal Timetable  —  BAGHDAD — U.S. and Iraqi negotiators reached agreement on a security deal that calls for American military forces to leave Iraq's cities by next summer as a prelude to a full withdrawal of combat troops from the country, according to senior American officials.

Kristol: A Vice Presidential Clue  —  Here's what Barack Obama told Time's Karen Tumulty and David Von Drehle earlier this week, when asked what we would learn about him from his vice presidential pick: … Is there a clue here as to Obama's pick?  Perhaps not—he'll claim these nice statements would apply to anyone he chooses.

The decay of serious journalism and Rachel Maddow's new show  —  (updated below)  —  As our political culture, economic security, standing in the world and our media institutions have all degraded beyond recognition after eight years of right-wing rule (much of it cheered on by The New Republic) …

MPR poll: Obama leads, but contest is fluid  —  The results of a new Minnesota Public Radio and University of Minnesota Humphrey Institute poll show Democrat Barack Obama leading Republican John McCain in the state by 10 percentage points.  But the poll indicates the race is still very fluid.

The joke's on McCain: Late-night comedians lay off Obama  —  A hilarious new study of late-night political jokes, due to be released later today, finds the network comedians clearly avoiding humor about Democratic candidate Barack Obama, while piling the jokes on President Bush and Sens. John McCain and Hillary Clinton.

Republicans Plan to Grab Some Denver Limelight  —  John McCain and the Republican Party have their own plans for next week in Denver, including a parade of high-profile surrogates, a Web site touting new attack videos, and a tagline for the Democrats' convention: A Mile High and an Inch Deep.

Rural Swath of Big State Tests Obama  —  RACCOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. — Wander up a gravel road and ask George Timko about Barack Obama and John McCain and he wrinkles his nose.  Neither of those guys strikes him as a prize.  —  Mr. Timko is a burly fellow, with close-cropped white hair and a Fu Manchu mustache …

The ‘New York Times’ Votes Big for Obama Economics  —  As economist Arthur Laffer told me a while back, Obamanomics “should be a fascinating economic experiment.”  To see just how fascinating, you should check out the big (nearly 8,000 words) New York Times Magazine story on Obama's economic agenda …

A Few Speculators Dominate Vast Market for Oil Trading  —  Regulators had long classified a private Swiss energy conglomerate called Vitol as a trader that primarily helped industrial firms that needed oil to run their businesses.  —  But when the Commodity Futures Trading Commission examined Vitol's books …

Obama campaign to deploy surrogates to hit McCain's houses  —  Barack Obama's campaign, moving rapidly to exploit what they see as a major opportunity, is deploying high-profile surrogates in 16 states across the country today to highlight John McCain's uncertainty yesterday about how many houses he owns …

Another McCain Religious Story  —  This is interesting.  Part of the McCain Celebrity, as packaged for the evangelical base, is the rescue of two Bangladeshi girls at the behest of Mother Theresa, one of whom, Bridget, they subsequently adopted.  During my live-blogging of Saddleback …