Scaring Seniors  —  An Obama-Biden ad says McCain supports “cutting benefits in half” for Social Security recipients.  False!  —  A new Obama ad characterizes the “Bush-McCain privatization plan” as “cutting Social Security Benefits in half.”  This is a falsehood sure to frighten seniors who rely on their Social Security checks.

Administration Is Seeking $700 Billion for Wall Street Bailout  —  WASHINGTON — The Bush administration on Saturday formally proposed to Congress what could become the largest financial bailout in United States history, requesting unfettered authority for the Treasury Department to buy up to $700 billion in mortgage-related assets.

Poll: Racial misgivings of whites an Obama issue  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — Deep-seated racial misgivings could cost Barack Obama the White House if the election is close, according to an AP-Yahoo News poll that found one-third of white Democrats harbor negative views toward blacks — many calling them …

Gallup Daily: Obama 50%, McCain 44%  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Gallup Poll Daily tracking from Wednesday through Friday finds Barack Obama maintaining his lead over John McCain among registered voters, by a 50% to 44% margin.  —  Obama has held at least a small margin over McCain in each …

Uneasy feelings  —  Details are scarce on the big buyout; but as a few dribble out, I'm getting uneasy.  —  Here's the source of my uneasiness: the underlying premise behind the buyout seems, still, to be that this is mainly a liquidity problem.  So if the government stands ready to buy securities at “fair value”, all will be well.

Dazed Capital Feels Its Way, Eyes on Election  —  WASHINGTON — The huge bailout of the financial system that the Bush administration and Congress are rushing to draft will leave taxpayers with at least part of the bill at a time when high gasoline prices, job losses and stagnant incomes …

At Least 40 Are Killed in Blast at Pakistan Hotel  —  ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — A huge truck bomb exploded at the entrance to the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad on Saturday evening, just a few hundred yards from the prime minister's house, where all the leaders of government were dining after the president's address to Parliament.

Transgendered Woman Wins Sex Discrimination Case  —  In Potentially Groundbreaking Case, Court Finds Sex Discrimination Law Applies to Transgendered Woman  —  A transgendered woman, who lost a job offer because of her sexual status, has won a potentially groundbreaking federal sex discrimination lawsuit.

Kopp hiring proved Palin's fundamentalist street cred  —  So far Gov. Palin's handling of Alaska's Troopergate has focused on why Commissioner of Public Safety Walt Monegan was fired.  An equally important question is why Chuck Kopp was hired to replace him.

Debate Pact Lets McCain and Obama Spar  —  The Obama and McCain campaigns have agreed to an unusual, free-flowing format for the three televised presidential debates, which begin on Friday, but the McCain camp fought for and won a much more structured approach for the questioning …

Oh Sarah!  The Week That The Music Stopped  —  I'm not buying into rumors that Sarah Palin is on the way out.  —  If John McCain can't admit that he misheard an interviewer regarding Spain and its premier there is no way in Hell that he's going to acknowledge that picking …

Meanwhile, the Other No. 2 Keeps On Punching  —  FLAT ROCK, Mich. — As the economy reels, Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr. — the Other Running Mate — has been absolutely butchering Senator John McCain across the Rust Belt this week.  It is not clear who has noticed.

Progressive Conditions for a Bailout  —  The events of the last week showed the urgency of dealing with the financial crisis.  There is a real risk that the banking system will freeze up, preventing ordinary business transactions, like meeting payrolls.  This would quickly lead …