Minnesota Poll: Obama, McCain are dead even in state  —  With 51 days before Election Day, Barack Obama and John McCain are tied with 45 percent support, raising the stakes in the campaign.  —  Minnesota has become a battleground in a presidential campaign that has dramatically tightened nationwide.

As Mayor of Wasilla, Palin Cut Own Duties, Left Trail of Bad Blood  —  WASILLA, Alaska — On Sept. 24, 2001, Mayor Sarah Palin and the City Council held their first meeting after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.  The council condemned the attacks and approved a $5,000 gift to a disaster relief fund.

Is This It?  Really?  —  The New York Times does the all-so predictable Sarah Palin bill of indictment for its Sunday front page.  It certainly sounds compelling in the paragraph called the “nut graf”: … But what is so remarkable is how little there is in the page after page of minutiae thrown against the wall by the Times.

The Palin-Whatshisname Ticket  —  WITH all due deference to lipstick, let's advance the story.  A week ago the question was: Is Sarah Palin qualified to be a heartbeat away from the presidency?  The question today: What kind of president would Sarah Palin be?

Group With Swift Boat Alumni Readies Ads Attacking Obama  —  A new group financed by a Texas billionaire and organized by some of the same political operatives and donors behind the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth campaign against Sen. John F. Kerry in 2004 plans to begin running television ads …

Conflict Over Spying Led White House to Brink  —  This is the first of two stories adapted from “Angler: The Cheney Vice Presidency,” to be published Tuesday by Penguin Press.  Original source notes are denoted in [brackets] throughout.  —  A burst of ferocity stunned the room into silence.

Lib Photographer Admits Making McCain Look Sinister for Mag Cover  —  Media watchers are well-aware that it's not only words that can be used to spread propaganda, but oftentimes it's the pictures involved in the articles.  —  For months, people around the country have been noticing …

It's race against time to save Ike stalwarts  —  GALVESTON, Texas - Rescue crews canvassed neighborhoods inundated by Ike's storm surge early Sunday morning, racing against time to save those who spent a second harrowing night trapped amid flattened houses, strewn debris and downed power lines.

Palimania Spreads— 10,000 Show Up For 3,500 Seats in Carson City  —  Governor Sarah Palin bid farewell to Alaska today...  Then it was off to Nevada for one of her first solo campaign appearances.  —  The People of Nevada Were Psyched to see Sarah—  A swarm of Palin fans hoping …

McCain's Economist: We Need Tax Increases  —  Douglas Holtz-Eakin, a former Director of the Congressional Budget Office and current chief McCain economic advisor tells Fortune columnist Matt Miller in a forthcoming book, The Tyranny of Dead Ideas, that the next President is simply going to have to raise taxes.

The Bush Doctrine and the Palin Performance  —  I think Charles Krauthammer makes a persuasive case that Charlie Gibson's understanding of the Bush Doctrine is wafer thin.  I also think Rich is correct to say that Palin's answer demonstrates that she has a lot of material to master over the weeks ahead …

Barack Obama under fire for ignoring advice on how to beat John McCain  —  Barack Obama and his senior advisers are under fire for ignoring the advice of Democratic senators and governors who are concerned that they do not know how to beat John McCain.  —  The Democratic presidential candidate's slump …