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 …

I Dream About Sarah Palin.  Do You?  —  SEND US YOUR DREAMS ABOUT THE REPUBLICAN VICE-PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE.  —  I rarely remember my dreams, but for the past week, GOP vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin has been haunting me.  Night after night, she appears in my dreams, always as a scolding, ominous figure.

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.

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%.

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 …

McCain Backed Abolishing The Department Of Education  —  Barack Obama's campaign is reminding voters today that John McCain, during the heady days of the “Republican Revolution,” once declared that he favored abolishing the Department of Education.  —  “I would certainly favor doing away …

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.

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.

McCain must embrace Palin's beliefs, evangelical leader says  —  (CNN) — Her faith is one of the reasons many evangelical Christians are excited about Sarah Palin's addition to the Republican presidential ticket, but the Alaska governor's evangelical beliefs have also drawn scrutiny.

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 …

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?

Questions for Palin  —  This week, she'll finally emerge from her protective shell  —  There's no polite way to say it: Sarah Palin has been hiding out from hard questions.  It took 10 days from when John McCain announced his pick until the McCain campaign agreed to schedule Palin an unscripted interview with a serious journalist.

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.

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.

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.