In Dozens of Calls, Palins and Aides Pressed for Trooper's Removal  —  ANCHORAGE — The 2007 state fair was days away when Alaska's public safety commissioner, Walt Monegan, took another call about one of his troopers, Michael Wooten.  This time, the director of Gov. Sarah Palin's Anchorage office was on the line.

Obama on Ayers: ‘I assumed that he had been rehabilitated’  —  In an interview with the sympathetic conservative talk radio host this afternoon, Obama offered the clearest explanation yet of how an extremely careful politician allowed himself anywhere near a former '60s radical who would become …

Judge rules Ohio Secretary of State violated federal election law; plus ACORN victim on tape  —  Well, there's news breaking tonight — and it's good news for election integrity.  A federal district court judge has found Democrat Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner guilty of violating federal election laws.

We Have the Tools to Manage the Crisis  —  Now we need the leadership to use them.  —  Today, the financial crisis has reached a critical point.  The sharp decline in the stock market and its volatility dramatically make the point.  More important if less visible, the flow of credit through …

Anger Is Crowd's Overarching Emotion at McCain Rally  —  There were shouts of “Nobama” and “Socialist” at the mention of the Democratic presidential nominee.  There were boos, middle fingers turned up and thumbs turned down as a media caravan moved through the crowd Thursday …

Moment of Truth  —  Last month, when the U.S. Treasury Department allowed Lehman Brothers to fail, I wrote that Henry Paulson, the Treasury secretary, was playing financial Russian roulette.  Sure enough, there was a bullet in that chamber: Lehman's failure caused the world financial crisis, already severe, to get much, much worse.

JOHN MCCAIN'S SUPPORTERS ARE MADDER (AND SCARIER!)  THAN HE IS.  —  At a normal campaign rally, it's the candidate who tries to whip the crowd into a frenzy.  At John McCain's town-hall Waukesha, Wis., Thursday, it was the other way around.  “I'm mad, and I'm really mad,” said one man who'd been called on to ask a question.

Obama's Magic  —  And now, America, we introduce the Great Obama!  The world's most gifted political magician!  A thing of wonder.  A thing of awe.  Just watch him defy politics, economics, even gravity!  (And hold your applause until the end, please.)  To kick off our show tonight …

As Fears Ease, Baghdad Sees Walls Tumble  —  BAGHDAD — Market by market, square by square, the walls are beginning to come down.  The miles of hulking blast walls, ugly but effective, were installed as a central feature of the surge of American troops to stop neighbors from killing one another.

McCain Co-Chair Calls Obama “A Guy Of The Street,” Raises Drug Use  —  Former Oklahoma Gov. Frank Keating, a McCain campaign co-chairman, edged up to an explicitly racial attack on Barack Obama on Thursday, describing the Illinois Senator as a “guy of the street” before raising his youthful drug use.

Fictitious Donors Found in Obama Finance Records  —  Last December, someone using the name “Test Person,” from “Some Place, UT,” made a series of contributions, the largest being $764, to Senator Barack Obama's presidential campaign totaling $2,410.07.  —  Someone identifying himself as …

Dodd and Countrywide  —  The Senator should take the witness stand.  —  Former Lehman Brothers CEO Dick Fuld was under oath Monday when he was grilled on Capitol Hill about his role in the current financial meltdown.  But if Members really want to understand the credit mania, they should also call Chris Dodd.

Panic attacks: Voters unload at GOP rallies  —  The unmistakable momentum behind Barack Obama's campaign, combined with worry that John McCain is not doing enough to stop it, is ratcheting up fears and frustrations among conservatives.  —  And nowhere is this emotion on plainer display …

The world is at severe risk of a global systemic financial meltdown and a severe global depression  —  The US and advanced economies' financial system is now headed towards a near-term systemic financial meltdown as day after day stock markets are in free fall, money markets have shut …

The Class War Before Palin  —  Modern conservatism began as a movement of dissident intellectuals.  Richard Weaver wrote a book called, “Ideas Have Consequences.”  Russell Kirk placed Edmund Burke in an American context.  William F. Buckley famously said he'd rather be governed …

Iceland is all but officially bankrupt  —  REYKJAVIK: People go bankrupt all the time.  Companies do, too.  But countries?  —  Iceland was on the verge of doing exactly that on Thursday as the government shut down the stock market and seized control of its last major independent bank.

Hoover vs. Roosevelt?  —  Hope vs. fear, new vs. old: Barack Obama and John McCain have placed their bets.  These are the terms on which the 2008 presidential campaign will be decided.  —  That's why it's unfair for political bystanders to attack Obama and McCain for offering few specifics as to how they'd fix an ailing economy.

Obama, Paul net most military workers' campaign donations  —  Democrat Barack Obama and Republican Ron Paul have little in common politically, except their opposition to the Iraq war.  —  Both top a new list of presidential candidates receiving campaign contributions from people who work …

Nuclear Aid by Russian to Iranians Suspected  —  PARIS — International nuclear inspectors are investigating whether a Russian scientist helped Iran conduct complex experiments on how to detonate a nuclear weapon, according to European and American officials.

Meet Sarah Palin's radical right-wing pals  —  Extremists Mark Chryson and Steve Stoll helped launch Palin's political career in Alaska, and in return had influence over policy.  “Her door was open,” says Chryson — and still is. … Video: Interview with former Alaskan Independence Party chairman Mark Chryson

Pollster: Don't believe the Dem hype  —  The presidential race is still too close to call and could come down to the very last weekend before voters decide if they like or distrust Barack Obama, a national pollster predicts.  —  “I don't think Obama has closed the deal yet,” pollster John Zogby told the Herald yesterday.