A Partisan Paper of Record  —  Today the New York Times launched its latest attack on this campaign in its capacity as an Obama advocacy organization.  Let us be clear about what this story alleges: The New York Times charges that McCain-Palin 2008 campaign manager Rick Davis was paid …

Economic Fears Give Obama Clear Lead Over McCain in Poll  —  Turmoil in the financial industry and growing pessimism about the economy have altered the shape of the presidential race, giving Democratic nominee Barack Obama the first clear lead of the general-election campaign over Republican John McCain …

Campbell Brown Rips McCain Camp's “Sexist” Treatment Of Palin  —  A prominent female news anchor chastised the McCain campaign Tuesday evening for engaging in sexism and insulting behavior in its attempt to shield Gov. Sarah Palin from members of the press.  —  In a fiery commentary …

To the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate:  —  As economists, we want to express to Congress our great concern for the plan proposed by Treasury Secretary Paulson to deal with the financial crisis.  We are well aware of the difficulty …

Intrade Betting is Suspicious  —  There's something funny going on over at Intrade with respect to the pricing of the Obama and McCain contracts.  —  Right now, Obama is trading at 52.3 points.  That is, Intrade implies that he has a 52.3 percent chance to become the next President.

Pelosi won't jump alone  —  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is telling Democrats that she will not support President Bush's $700 billion bailout of the financial sector unless there is significant Republican support for the controversial plan.  —  The politics of the bailout are tricky and dangerous …

Pew Research: Missing Cell-Phone Onlys Matter  —  Few in the field of survey research have examined the problem of cell phones and surveys as closely over the last four years as Scott Keeter and his colleagues at the Pew Research Center.  They conducted one of the first large-scale political surveys …

How Main Street Will Profit  —  Capitalism is a delicate balance between production and finance.  Today, our seemingly guaranteed living standard is threatened, much like it has been in previous recessions or, some would say, the Depression.  Finance has run amok because of oversecuritization …

Oh, That Joe!  (No. 17 in a Series) — First Thing We Do, Let's Retain All the Lawyers  —  “I think we're going to be up very late counting votes,” Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., told a kettle of lawyers Tuesday night at a fundraiser for the Democratic Victory Fund hosted by the American Association …

Pinpoint Attacks Focus on Obama  —  STERLING HEIGHTS, Mich. — Hundreds of times in the past three weeks, cable television viewers here have been the exclusive audience for two of the roughest advertisements of the political season.  —  One links Senator Barack Obama to the former mayor of Detroit …

FBI Investigates Four Firms at Heart of the Mess  —  Probe Seeks to Learn if Fraud Played Role in Some of the Woes  —  WASHINGTON — Federal investigators have opened preliminary probes into the financial troubles of four high-profile companies that are at the center of the current financial turmoil …

Patrick McDonald shot to death; 2nd cop wounded; gunman slain  —  This story was reported by staff writers Stephanie Farr, David Gambacorta, Dafney Tales, Damon Williams and Christine Olley, and written by staff writer Will Bunch.  —  IT ALL STARTED with a routine traffic stop on a sunny fall afternoon …

Trooper probe now ‘confidential,’ Palin aides say  —  ANCHORAGE, Alaska (CNN) — Republican campaign officials indicated they are done answering questions about an investigation into Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's firing of her public safety commissioner Tuesday, citing a request by a state investigator.

Kill the bailout: Illegal immigration and the mortgage mess  —  My syndicated column today tackles the bailout angle no one wants to talk about: Open borders and the home loan debacle.  You've heard a lot about Fannie/Freddie and the minority lending shakedowns, but you haven't heard …

Even FOX Rebels Against Palin Media Shutout  —  Dude, first you lost ABC, and now you've lost FOX News, as evidenced by this testy segment with Shepard Smith yesterday.  That's just gotta smart for a Republican when the official water carrier for the Republican Party openly chastises …

Where is the Credit Crunch?  —  Back in February I pointed out that despite all the talk of a credit crunch commercial and industrial loans were at an all-time high and increasing.  At the time, Paul Krugman and others responded that this was just temporary as firms drew on previously existing lines of credit.

The Sucker's Bet  —  As is well known, from 1980-1992 tax cutting was great and deficits didn't matter.  But starting in 1993 it was crucially important for the government to run balanced budgets.  But then suddenly in 2001, budget surpluses became dangerous and we needed giant tax cuts.

What Made the Great Depression “Great”?  —  The Great Depression is being invoked a lot these days, and I understand there's a reasonable real fear of a total meltdown out there.  But some points are worth making.  Even if we entered a serious depression, we will not experience time travel.