McCain-Palin Crowd-Size Estimates Not Backed by Officials  —  Sept. 13 (Bloomberg) — Senator John McCain has drawn some of the biggest crowds of his presidential campaign since adding Alaska Governor Sarah Palin to his ticket on Aug. 29.  Now officials say they can't substantiate the figures McCain's aides are claiming.

Once Elected, Palin Hired Friends and Lashed Foes  —  WASILLA, Alaska — Gov. Sarah Palin lives by the maxim that all politics is local, not to mention personal.  —  So when there was a vacancy at the top of the State Division of Agriculture, she appointed a high school classmate …

Obama aide: McCain camp ‘sleaziest’ in modern history  —  MANCHESTER, New Hampshire (CNN) — Sen. Barack Obama's spokesman on Saturday accused Sen. John McCain of “cynically running the sleaziest and least honorable campaign in modern presidential campaign history.”

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 …

Powerless: More than 99 percent of region in the dark  —  Comments Recommend  —  Daybreak today in Hurricane Ike's wake only revealed what Houston area power providers already knew — the lights are out for roughly 5 million people, and getting the juice flowing again will be a painstaking process that could take weeks.

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.

I Knew When I Married Her ...  ... she was hot and smart.  Fifteen years on she's all that and it turns the wife can write, too.  But don't take my word for it.  —  New York Times Sunday Book Review: … Reasonable people can disagree about that “comes close to ruining” ending part …

Battlegrounds: Florida, Pennsylvania breaking for McCain?  —  As if the Barack Obama needed any more bad news, the St. Petersburg Times and Zogby both deliver cause for pessimism at Team O. Florida polling shows that despite spending millions in advertising in the Sunshine State and a delay …

‘Obama Waffles’ featuring racist, stereotyped images sold at Values Voter Summit.  —  At the Values Voter Summit this weekend, vendors sold an item called “Obama Waffles” featuring a racist cartoon of Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) on the box front — with “popping eyes and big, thick lips” …

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 …

Palin sticks to the familiar in first solo outing  —  CARSON CITY, Nev. - Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin made her first solo campaign appearance outside her home state Saturday, sticking largely to a speech that has boosted her popularity among Republican faithful but drawn criticism for having misstatements.

The latest Sarah Palin smear from the Left: teen molester  —  Just when you thought the Left could not possibly sink any lower in their bid to smear Sarah Palin, Air America manages to provide what hopefully will be the nadir of their efforts.  Randi Rhodes of Air America/Nova M Radio told …