No deal  —  I hate to say this, but looking at the plan as leaked, I have to say no deal.  Not unless Treasury explains, very clearly, why this is supposed to work, other than through having taxpayers pay premium prices for lousy assets.  —  As I posted earlier today, it seems all too likely that a …

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.

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.

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 …

Pact on Debates Will Let 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 …

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 …

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.

Does John McCain understand the Army?  —  Hat Tip to E&P for catching this one and alerting folks to it: … To some, confusing the Army National Guard and the Army would seem a small thing, but to someone with John McCain's family history, this is a pretty big slip up.

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.

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.

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 …

Report: Organizers of Iran rally threatened with loss of tax-exempt status if they invited Palin  —  Name 'em and shame 'em.  Seriously.  Fox News and the Journal should be all over this.  Judging from the number of Democrats quoted in the piece as being upset about it, there's no shortage of people willing to leak.

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.

Obama has slight edge on McCain in Mich.  —  Poll: Democrat leads 43% to 42%; veep choices have had little impact.  —  Democrat Barack Obama has the smallest possible lead — one point — over Republican John McCain in battleground Michigan, according to a new poll, setting up a six-week sprint …