Revolt of the Nihilists  —  In 1933, Franklin Roosevelt inherited an economic crisis.  He understood that his first job was to restore confidence, to give people a sense that somebody was in charge, that something was going to be done.  —  This generation of political leaders is confronting …

In reintroduction, Palin to do more interviews and “tell her story”  —  Tacitly acknowledging criticism that she's been diminished in part by an overly protective media shield, Sarah Palin will take a more forward-leaning approach and do additional interviews in the weeks ahead, a top aide said today.

A READER AT A MAJOR NEWSROOM EMAILS: “Off the record, every suspicion you have about MSM being in the tank for O is true.  We have a team of 4 people going thru dumpsters in Alaska and 4 in arizona.  Not a single one looking into Acorn, Ayers or Freddiemae.  Editor refuses to publish anything …

Fed Pumps Further $630 Billion Into Financial System  —  Sept. 29 (Bloomberg) — The Federal Reserve will pump an additional $630 billion into the global financial system, flooding banks with cash to alleviate the worst banking crisis since the Great Depression.

Republicans fault Pelosi speech for bailout's failure  —  House Republicans on Monday blamed a partisan speech from Speaker Nancy Pelosi for the failure of a massive Wall Street bailout measure.  —  “I do believe that we could have gotten there today had it not been for this partisan speech …

The politics of the bill  —  There is no glory to go around here.  Assume, arguendo, that most people in the House believed both that the bill would be passed, and that anyone who voted for it would suffer politically, except maybe in New York.  —  Pelosi screwed up royally.  She is the Democratic Tom DeLay.

FOX/Rasmussen Swing State Polling - September 28, 2008  —  Overview  —  Polling this week in Colorado, Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia shows that Barack Obama has gained a net 3 to 5 percentage points in each state compared to the previous Fox News/ Rasmussen Reports poll.

McCain takes credit for bill before it loses  —  Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and his top aides took credit for building a winning bailout coalition - hours before the vote failed and stocks tanked.  —  The rush to claim he had engineered a victory now looks like a strategic blunder …

More Bailout Thoughts  —  WARNING: This stuff is a little bit above my pay grade, but I hope you'll indulge my thinking out loud:  —  1. It's highly likely that some sort of bill will pass the Congress.  What kind of bill, I don't know.  But the Dow is liable to act as something of a thermostat.

Massage firm steps up faith- based defense  —  State calls ‘laying on of hands’ claim a cover for prostitution in Tucson case  —  State attorneys say John LaVoie should be forever barred from the massage business because he ran a house of prostitution camouflaged as a church.

Rep. Pelosi's Remarks on Floor Ahead of House Bailout Vote  —  Her remarks, as prepared for delivery, according to Rep. Pelosi's office:  —  “Madam Speaker, when was the last time someone asked you for $700 billion?  —  It is a number that is staggering, but tells us only the costs …

Revolt of the Elites  —  I am getting ready to take a couple days off from blogging.  If I could count on Congress to leave town now, I would put in an order to increase my holdings of stock index funds.  But I'm going to hold off.  —  I am struck by how bitterly some commentators have taken the House vote against the bailout.