Palin Makes Her First Gaffe  —  Gov. Sarah Palin made her first potentially major gaffe during her time on the national scene while discussing the developments of the perilous housing market this past weekend.  —  Speaking before voters in Colorado Springs, the Republican vice presidential nominee claimed …

Obama Upconverts His Musings On Palin  —  In Flint, Michigan today, Barack Obama hinted that, far from being off-limits, Gov. Sarah Palin is coming into focus as a target for the Democrats.  —  According to CBS News's Maria Gavrilovic, here's what Obama said:

Gallup Daily: McCain's Bounce Gives Him 5-Point Lead  —  Leads Obama 49%-44% in first results conducted fully after GOP convention  —  PRINCETON, NJ — John McCain leads Barack Obama, 49% to 44%, in the immediate aftermath of the Republican National Convention, according to the latest Gallup Poll Daily tracking results.

Why Palin Scares Me  —  Before I get to that, let me explain what I'm not scared of, which is that Palin has somehow altered the demographics of the race.  I have a hard time believing that female Hillary supporters, or Rust Belt men, are suddenly racing to support McCain because of Palin.

We're Gonna Frickin' Lose this Thing  —  “Stop saying that!” my wife says to me.  But this is not a high school football game and I'm not a cheerleader with a bad attitude.  This is an election and as things stand now, we're gonna frickin' lose this thing.

McCain Gains Momentum in New Poll  —  Both Sens. Barack Obama and John McCain solidified support among party loyalists during the conventions, but it was the Republican nominee who entered the presidential campaign's final stretch with newfound momentum, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.

Democrats must learn some respect  —  This article is not the first to note the cultural contradiction in American liberalism, but just now the point bears restating.  The election may turn on it.  —  Democrats speak up for the less prosperous; they have well-intentioned policies to help them …

A feminist's argument for McCain's VP  —  In the shadow of the blatant and truly stunning sexism launched against the Hillary Rodham Clinton presidential campaign, and as a pro-choice feminist, I wasn't the only one thrilled to hear Republican John McCain announce Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate.

Alaska Democrats pull web page crediting Palin for killing Bridge to Nowhere  —  We linked last week to a web page sponsored by the Alaska Democratic Party, which attacks Sen. Ted Stevens and credits Governor Sarah Palin for killing the Bridge to Nowhere.  Our post is here.

PRIMAL SCREAM  —  The TPM email bag this morning is chock of emails saying, in so many words, is it time to panic?  I'm actually not taking much summary license here.  Most of the emails I'm talking about actually ends with some form of that sentence.  Since a lot of you are asking this I thought I should provide some sort of answer.

Powder Keg  —  It seems to me that this would be a exceptionally effective chain email.  And it has the added virtue of being true: … Read the whole article for a long, shocking list of incidents, most of which I'd never heard about before.  He's a mean bastard.  Here's one: … Yikes.

Is ‘Collaborative Warfare’ The New ‘Shock And Awe’?  —  Bob Woodward has an item this morning explaining more fully his book's assertion that the 2007 troop surge “was not the primary factor behind the steep drop in violence there during the past 16 months.”

Rollins: Obama wrong to spurn Clinton, pick Biden  —  Editor's note: Ed Rollins, who served as political director for President Reagan, is a Republican strategist who was national chairman of former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee's 2008 presidential campaign.  —  NEW YORK (CNN) — Ten days ago …