Palin Billed State for Nights Spent at Home  —  Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has billed taxpayers for 312 nights spent in her own home during her first 19 months in office, charging a “per diem” allowance intended to cover meals and incidental expenses while traveling on state business.

Was Biden Talking About Palin During Stem Cell Research Reference?  —  From CBS News' Ryan Corsaro:  —  (COLUMBIA, MO.) - Was Joe Biden referring to Sarah Palin, a mother of a child with Down syndrome, when he made this comment?  —  “I hear all this talk about how the Republicans …

Gallup Daily: McCain Maintains 5-Point Lead  —  Support among registered voters steady at 49%  —  PRINCETON, NJ — The latest Gallup Poll Daily tracking update finds John McCain maintaining his five-point lead versus Barack Obama among registered voters, 49% to 44%.

Media Embrace McCain's ‘Maverick’ Re-Branding Effort  —  By choosing Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK) as his running mate, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) has tried to reinvigorate the perception that he is a “maverick.”  Last week in their respective speeches to the Republican National Convention …

Ron Paul Plans ‘Special Announcement’  —  Brad Haynes reports on the presidential race.  —  Rep. Ron Paul, the former Republican presidential candidate who excited a multitude of young voters during the primaries, announced a “major” news conference in Washington Wednesday.

Koch backs Obama, calls Palin ‘scary’  —  Former New York Mayor Ed Koch, who endorsed and worked for George W. Bush in 2004, is endorsing Obama today, NY1 first reported.  —  I asked Koch just now what prompted the move.  —  “The designation of Palin to be vice president,” he said.  “She's scary.”

Palin repeats Bridge to Nowhere lie.  —  Today at a rally with Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) in Ohio, Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK) once again repeated the lie that she opposed the infamous Bridge to Nowhere in Alaska: … Watch it:  —  ThinkProgress has been keeping track of how many times the McCain campaign is repeating this lie.

World wants Obama as president: poll  —  US Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama may be struggling to nudge ahead of his Republican rival in polls at home, but people across the world want him in the White House, a BBC poll said.  —  All 22 countries covered in the poll would prefer …

Generals Behaving Badly  —  When Abraham Lincoln famously sent word to Gen. George McClellan that he'd like to “borrow” the army if the general wasn't planning on using it, the commander of Union forces likely did not take it kindly.  McClellan, after all, was a man whose letters home referred …

Obama vs. McCain: Why I'm Back on the Fence  —  This morning, I wrote at my own blog that I've pulled the Obama sticker off of my truck; that although I'm not suddenly a McCain supporter, I can no longer be counted in the Obama column.  —  In short, that I'm back on the fence.

The Hunt for Sarah October  —  City slickers invade Wasilla  —  Democrats understand Sarah Palin is a formidable political force who has upset the Obama victory plan.  The latest Washington Post/ABC Poll shows John McCain taking a 12-point lead over Barack Obama among white women …

In a Not-Remotely-Comic Strip, Bill Ayers Weighs In on What He Meant By 'We Didn't Do Enough' to End Vietnam War  —  In a four-panel not-even-remotely-comic strip, William Ayers, the former member of the Weather Underground and associate of Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., weighs in on his blog on some of the controversy he's been causing.

Quietly, Obama Campaign Calls In The Cavalry  —  There's been a spurt of 527 activity on behalf of Sen. John McCain, but Barack Obama campaign has suddenly gone silent on the subject.  —  That's because, after of year of telling donors not to contribute to 527 groups, of encouraging strategists …

Lieberman to skip Dem lunches  —  Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) will not attend the Democratic policy lunches in the Senate this month, the latest sign that he is moving away from the party after criticizing Barack Obama at the Republican National Convention.

Hold Your Heads Up  —  Ignorance must really be bliss.  How else, over so many years, could the G.O.P. get away with ridiculing all things liberal?  —  Troglodytes on the right are no respecters of reality.  They say the most absurd things and hardly anyone calls them on it.  Evolution?

Pastor: GOP may be downplaying Palin's religious beliefs  —  WASILLA, Alaska (CNN) — For more than two decades, vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin was a practicing Pentecostal.  —  She belonged to the Wasilla Assembly of God church in her hometown of Wasilla, Alaska.

O PASTOR IN SEX SCANDAL  —  REV. WRIGHT DONE ME WRONG: CHURCH LADY  —  By SAMUEL GOLDSMITH in Dallas and JEANE MacINTOSH in NY  —  He almost wrecked Barack Obama's presidential dreams, and now firebrand pastor Jeremiah Wright has helped destroy a Dallas church worker's marriage - and her job, The Post has learned.

Surprise Me Most  —  None of us have ever lived through an election at a time when 80 percent of voters think the country is headed in the wrong direction.  But now that we're in the thick of it, a few things are clear.  From voters, the demand is: Surprise Me Most.  For candidates, the lesson is: Weirdness Wins.

Too Cool to Fight?  —  Thank God for Sarah Palin.  Without her jibes, her sarcasm, her exaggerations, her smug provincialism, her hypocrisy about family and government, her exploitation of mommyhood, and her personal attacks on Barack Obama, the Democratic base might never be consolidated.