Obama Over 50 Percent In Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania Quinnipiac University Swing State Poll Finds; Debate, Palin's Fade, Economy Put Democrat On Top  —  FLORIDA: Obama 49 - McCain 43 pre-debate; Obama 51 - McCain 43 post-debate; OHIO: Obama 49 - McCain 42 pre-debate; Obama 50 - McCain 42 post-debate …

WHAT IT'S LIKE TO DEBATE SARAH PALIN  —  I know firsthand: She's a master of the nonanswer.  —  Republish  —  When he faces off against Sarah Palin Thursday night, Joe Biden will have his hands full.  —  I should know.  I've debated Governor Palin more than two dozen times.

A debate “moderator” in the tank for Obama; Update: McCain campaign didn't know about book  —  My first syndicated column of the week, filed this afternoon, shines light on PBS anchor Gwen Ifill, who will moderate Thursday's only vice presidential debate.  Try as she might to deflect questions …

Palin Opens Up On Controversial Issues  —  VP Candidate Speaks Frankly With Katie Couric About Feminism, Homosexuality, Abortion And The Environment … The day began early.  After being briefed by her staff, Sarah Palin heads out with her 14-year-old daughter Willow in tow.

Bill v. Barack on Banks  —  Clinton instructs Obama on finance and Phil Gramm.  —  A running cliché of the political left and the press corps these days is that our current financial problems all flow from Congress's 1999 decision to repeal the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933 that separated commercial and investment banking.

Senate to Vote Today on the Bailout Plan  —  WASHINGTON — Senate leaders scheduled a Wednesday vote on a $700 billion financial bailout package after accepting tax breaks and a higher limit for insured bank deposits in a bid to win House approval and send legislation to President Bush by the end of the week.

Nervous GOP urges McCain to attack  —  John McCain's fade in recent polls, combined with a barrage of negative news coverage during the financial crisis, has leading Republican activists around the country worrying about his prospects and urging his campaign to become much more aggressive …

The Omen In My Mail  —  Allow me to introduce myself.  I am a traitor and an idiot.  Also, my mother should have aborted me and left me in a dumpster, but since she didn't, I should “off” myself.  —  Those are a few nuggets randomly selected from thousands of e-mails written in response …

Recapitalise the banking system  —  The emergency legislation currently before Congress was ill-conceived - or more accurately, not conceived at all.  As Congress tried to improve what Treasury originally requested, an amalgam plan has emerged that consists of Treasury's original Troubled …

Feisty McCain duels with Des Moines Register  —  An emphatic, combative and at times surly John McCain today tangled with the Des Moines Register editorial board over his running mate, the nature of his campaign and whether he can appreciate the health care needs of Americans.

Obama Boosts Leadership Image and Regains Lead Over McCain  —  Growing Concerns About Palin's Qualifications  —  Barack Obama has achieved a significant lead over John McCain in the days following the first presidential debate.  Pew's new survey conducted Sept. 27-29 finds that Obama …

Sarah Palin On Today's Show  —  I will air an interview with the governor at the top of the first hour and repeat it in the third hour.

Rescue the Rescue  —  I was channel surfing on Monday, following the stock market's nearly 800-point collapse, when a commentator on CNBC caught my attention.  He was being asked to give advice to viewers as to what were the best positions to be in to ride out the market storm.

We erred in our judgment  —  More than 300 people have taken the trouble this month to complain to the CBC ombudsman about a column we ran on CBCNews.ca about Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin on Sept. 5.  —  The column, by award-winning freelance writer Heather Mallick …