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

Sen. Hagel doubts Palin's ready  —  WASHINGTON — Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska on Wednesday became the nation's most prominent Republican officeholder to publicly question whether Sarah Palin has the experience to serve as president.  —  “She doesn't have any foreign policy credentials,” Hagel said in an interview.

Biden: Paying higher taxes patriotic for wealthy  —  WASHINGTON - Democratic vice presidential candidate Joe Biden said Thursday that paying more in taxes is the patriotic thing to do for wealthier Americans.  In a new TV ad that repeats widely debunked claims about the Democratic tax plan …

Worst Crisis Since '30s, With No End Yet in Sight  —  The financial crisis that began 13 months ago has entered a new, far more serious phase.  —  Lingering hopes that the damage could be contained to a handful of financial institutions that made bad bets on mortgages have evaporated.

Obama mocks McCain in Nevada stops  —  Barack Obama sharpened his attacks on John McCain and mocked the Republican's recent calls for reform in two stops in Nevada on Wednesday after days of listening to nervous supporters fret about the Democrat's chances of taking the White House.

McCain Calls for Firing of SEC Commissioner  —  Susan Davis reports on the presidential race.  —  John McCain has two words for Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Christopher Cox: You're Fired.  —  “The chairman of the SEC serves at the appointment of the president and has betrayed the public's trust.

State of the Race: Is McCain In Trouble?  —  One of the unpleasant things you discover when you sit in major league baseball press boxes from time to time is that the press — or at least the print media — actually do not like close baseball games.  A walk-off home run or a blown save means …

Palin Unscripted  —  Gov. Sarah Palin and Senator John McCain held a town-hall-style meeting Wednesday in Grand Rapids, Mich. (Photo: Todd Heisler/The New York Times)  —  GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - As she took questions from voters for the first time since she was tapped as Senator John McCain's running mate …

Democratic Congress May Adjourn, Leave Crisis to Fed, Treasury  —  Sept. 18 (Bloomberg) — The Democratic-controlled Congress, acknowledging that it isn't equipped to lead the way to a solution for the financial crisis and can't agree on a path to follow, is likely to just get out of the way.

McCain aides: Obama ‘cheerleading’ market crisis  —  CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - Top aides to Republian John McCain are claiming Democrat Barack Obama and his advisers are exploiting Wall Street's financial problems for political gain.  —  Aide Steve Schmidt, who worked for the Bush-Cheney team in 2004 …

McCain's Closing Argument  —  Man is in love and loves what vanishes.  —  What more is there to say?  —  Conservatives, who reputedly have lumps of coal where their hearts should be, have fallen in love.  So have many people who are not doctrinal conservatives.

As Fears Grow, Wall St. Titans See Shares Fall  —  Editors' Note Appended  —  Even Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, the two last titans left standing on Wall Street, are no longer immune.  —  To the surprise of executives within those firms, and their rivals, the stocks of these powerful companies …

FIRST THOUGHTS: BACK TO AUGUST?  —  From Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, Domenico Montanaro, and Carrie Dann  —  *** We're back to August?  This presidential contest has certainly been a roller-coaster ride.  And as we suggested yesterday, something in the race turned this week.

Microsoft announcement tomorrow: No more Seinfeld ads!  —  Remember those awful Microsoft ads with Jerry Seinfeld and Bill Gates?  Well, now you can forget them.  Microsoft flacks are desperately dialing reporters to spin them about “phase two” of the ad campaign — a phase …

You're decent, but just confused and stupid.  —  Good morning, hillbilly mouth-breathers!  How are we today?  Did we put our shoes on the correct feet and wipe all the drool off our faces before heading outside to plant turnips and whup our kids?  Good, good.  —  Now go find a Democrat to help you read the rest of this post.

Key Bush States Might Flip  —  BARACK OBAMA IS DOING WELL IN FOUR OF FIVE BUSH-WON BATTLEGROUNDS POLLED BY ALLSTATE/NATIONAL JOURNAL.  —  Propelled by dissatisfaction with the country's direction but hampered by doubts about his readiness for the presidency, Barack Obama is forcefully challenging John …