FATHER OF HACKER Is Tennessee Dem State Rep!!!!! ...  Update: Name- David Kernell ...Update: He's Been Contacted by Feds!  —  FOLKS— MEET DAVID KERNELL—  WOAH!!!!!!  —  Do you remember this from Michelle Malkin's post last night: … Now there's this...  Wired.com has the latest on the Palin scandal:

McCain Flub?  Republican Says He'd Fire SEC Chair as President  —  ABC News' David Wright reports: At a joint rally in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Thursday, Republican John McCain slammed the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) for being “asleep,” saying that if he were president, he would fire Chris Cox …

Palin's transparency proposal already exists in D.C.  —  CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (CNN) - Sarah Palin likes to tell voters around the country about how she “put the government checkbook online” in Alaska.  On Thursday, Palin suggested she would take that same proposal to Washington.

Palin disinvited from Iran rally  —  The organizers of an anti-Iran rally Monday rescinded their invitation to Alaska Governor Sarah Palin after Democrats protested that her presence would turn the event into a political rally, McCain campaign and Jewish community sources said.

Fed and Treasury Offer to Work With Congress on Bailout Plan  —  WASHINGTON — The head of the Treasury and the Federal Reserve began discussions on Thursday with Congressional leaders on what could become the biggest bailout in United States history.  —  While details remain to be worked out …

Dodgy Journalism: Time's Michael Scherer debates strawman, loses  —  Under the header “Dodgy Politics: Using Old Votes to Obscure Current Policies,” Time's Michael Scherer unsuccessfully debunks a claim Barack Obama didn't make in order to accuse the Democratic candidate of offering misleading criticisms of John McCain.

Shocker: Palin Cancels Big California Swing  —  Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, who was to star at two major California fundraisers and an Orange County rally for 15,000 next week, has canceled her two-day swing through the Golden State, campaign sources said.  —  The change is a shocker …

Michelle Obama: Don't vote because 'she's cute' … CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - Michelle Obama asked voters Thursday to make their choice on the issues, not because, “I like that guy” or, “she's cute.”  —  Might she be talking about Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin?

What's on the desk  —  In a picture supplied by Sarah Palin's family to the Associated Press, Palin appears with some rather odd reading matter: The magazine of the ultraconservative John Birch Society.  —  The picture, dating to 1995, when Palin was a member of the Wasilla City Council …

McCain Slights Spanish Prime Minister  —  The Union Radio interview with John McCain on issues of interest to Hispanics was conducted in English and only later translated into Spanish for listeners.  The audio above is of the English-only interview.  —  By Glenn Kessler and Ed O'Keefe

Energy Expertise  —  Today, the person who “knows more about energy than probably anyone else in the United States of America” let slip some pearls of wisdom: … I'm not sure I fully grasp that, though I am relieved to know that they, whoever they are, don't have to sit around flagging individual molecules all day long.

Obama denies Raines ties, accuses McCain of throwing stones from his “seven glass houses”  —  The campaign puts out a statement from former Fannie Mae chief Franklin Raines, disowning ties to Obama, after a McCain ad attacked him for the ties.  —  The Washington Post reported …

Palin's husband won't testify, campaign says  —  ANCHORAGE, Alaska (CNN) — Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's husband won't comply with a subpoena issued by state lawmakers investigating her firing of Alaska's public safety commissioner, the McCain-Palin campaign said Thursday.

Palin asked daughters on veep vote after they were already in OH for announcement  —  Appearing on Fox last night, Sarah Palin told Sean Hannity a heartwarming story of how she asked her teenage daughters for their opinion before accepting the vp offer.  —  “So ask the girls what they thought …

A New McCain on the Campaign Trail  —  VIENNA, Ohio — Senator John McCain's campaign events were once free-wheeling journeys marked by flashes of humor, candor and arch observations from the candidate about presidential politics — and John McCain.  Oh, and moments that left no doubt that Mr. McCain was not working from any script.

Gallup Daily: Obama 48%, McCain 44%  —  Marks Obama's first statistically significant lead in two weeks  —  PRINCETON, NJ — The Sept. 15-17 Gallup Poll Daily tracking update shows Barack Obama with a 48% to 44% lead over John McCain among registered voters, marking the first time that Obama …

Obama and McCain in tight race in inaugural Big Ten Battleground Poll  —  In the inaugural Big Ten Battleground Poll taken as the nation's financial crisis worsened this week, John McCain and Barack Obama were in a statistical dead heat in seven of the eight Midwest states included in the survey.

Opposition to same-sex marriage ban grows  —  (09-17) 07:28 PDT — Opposition to a California ballot measure to ban same-sex marriage is mounting following Attorney General Jerry Brown's move to change the language on the initiative, according to a Field Poll to be released today.