McCain Plans Fiercer Strategy Against Obama  —  Sen. John McCain and his Republican allies are readying a newly aggressive assault on Sen. Barack Obama's character, believing that to win in November they must shift the conversation back to questions about the Democrat's judgment …

GOP Strategists Whisper Fears Of Greater Losses in November  —  With the party already struggling to generate enthusiasm for its brand, Republican strategists fear that an outpouring of public anger generated by Congress's struggle to pass a rescue package for the financial industry may contribute …

Linguist: Palin spoke at higher level than Biden did  —  (CNN) — An analysis carried out by a language monitoring service said Friday that Gov. Sarah Palin spoke at a more than ninth-grade level and Sen. Joseph Biden spoke at a nearly eighth-grade level in Thursday night's debate between the vice presidential candidates.

Franken bypasses Coleman as voters react to attack ads  —  DFL U.S. Senate candidate Al Franken has moved into his first solid lead over incumbent Republican Norm Coleman, according to a new Star Tribune Minnesota Poll.  —  The survey, conducted Tuesday through Thursday …

AP Goes Neo-Con  —  OK, al-P and reasonable people might dispute that.  —  But try as it might to discuss where we are five years on without giving Bush any props, the Associated Press has to admit that we have some leverage, and a substantial national interest, at stake in that nascent democracy won …

What's The Matter With Harry?  —  One of the more curious — but not unprecedented — incidents in the last couple of weeks involved Harry Reid.  The Wall Street Journal explains: … But this wasn't the only such incident: … All of this raises the question: are they trying …

Obama: McCain health plan ‘radical’  —  With families increasingly worried about their economic security, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) is opening a major assault on what he charges is a “radical plan” by Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) to decentralize health insurance.

Gallup Daily: Obama Maintains Significant Margin  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Gallup Poll Daily tracking from Oct. 1-3 finds 50% of registered voters supporting Barack Obama, and 42% John McCain, for president.  —  Obama has now held a statistically significant lead over McCain for the last eight days …

O.J. Simpson guilty of armed robbery, kidnapping  —  LAS VEGAS, Nevada (CNN) — Former gridiron great O.J. Simpson was found guilty Friday of all 12 counts in the armed robbery of two sports memorabilia dealers at a Las Vegas, Nevada, casino hotel last year.

Talking in Points  —  The Republicans were euphoric over Sarah Palin's debate performance, particularly the part in which she stood tall and refrained from falling off the stage.  “There are conservatives and Republicans across America who are ... breathing a sigh of relief,” …

DESPERATE  —  Republican state legislators, at the behest of the McCain campaign, have now filed an emergency appeal with the Alaska Supreme Court trying to shutdown the ‘Troopergate’ investigation.  The plaintiffs (echoing the Bush v. Gore decision) claim “the plaintiffs and Alaskans …

The Problem Is Still Falling House Prices  —  The bailout bill doesn't get at the root of the credit crunch.  —  A successful plan to stabilize the U.S. economy and prevent a deep global recession must do more than buy back impaired debt from financial institutions.

Michigan Republicans oppose McCain pullout  —  In the aftermath of John McCain's decision to pull out of Michigan, Republicans in the state are expressing shock and bewilderment at his move—and aren't willing to cede the state's 17 electoral votes just yet.