Congressman's $121,000 Payoff to Alleged Mistress  —  Tim Mahoney Elected to Remove ‘Ethical Cloud’ of His Disgraced Predecessor, Mark Foley  —  West Palm Beach Congressman Tim Mahoney (D-FL), whose predecessor resigned in the wake of a sex scandal, agreed to a $121,000 payment to a former mistress …

MCCAIN LACKS THE CHARACTER AND TEMPERAMENT TO BE PRESIDENT.  AND PALIN IS SIMPLY A DISGRACE.  —  I used to nod wisely when people said: “Let's discuss issues rather than personalities.”  It seemed so obvious that in politics an issue was an issue and a personality was a personality …

Obama's C*nt: Supporter's Vile T-Shirt Prominently Displayed on Barack Obama's Own Website  —  Ben Smith wrote: … Supporting Obama?  I'll say!  —  Here's the Number Two google hit for Rhiannon Volpe (um, yeah, and I'm Max Howitzer):  —  This s**t is on Obama's own website.  —  How charming.

U.S. Set to Buy Preferred Stock in Nine Top Banks  —  WASHINGTON — The U.S. government is set to buy preferred equity stakes in nine top financial institutions as part of its new comprehensive plan to tackle the credit crisis, according to people familiar with the situation.

McCain's Monday Campaigning Leaves Some Puzzled  —  Elizabeth Holmes reports from Wilmington, N.C., on the presidential race.  —  Several things about John McCain's Monday caused some head scratching, including the tease of some new economic policies to a town hall meeting with no Q&A.

I Get So Weary of This ...  From the Corner today:  —  Respectfully Disagreeing [Kathryn Jean Lopez]  —  David Frum was on CBS this morning and expressed his view that the choice of Sarah Palin was a mistake.  He complained that it was a play to the base that hurts people like Coleman …

McCain calls Lewis remarks ‘outrageous’  —  (CNN) — Sen. John McCain said Monday that Rep. John Lewis' controversial remarks were “so disturbing” that they “stopped me in my tracks.”  —  Lewis, a Georgia representative and veteran of the civil rights movement, on Saturday compared the feeling …

McCain campaign attacks Bill Kristol: 'He's bought into the Obama campaign's party line.'  —  Yesterday on Fox News Sunday, Bill Kristol said John McCain's campaign has really become “a pathetic campaign.”  In his New York Times op-ed this morning, Kristol went further, suggesting that McCain should …

RICO ACTION TO BE FILED AGAINST ACORN TOMORROW MORNING NOTE MAJOR WALK-BACK OF ORIGINAL STORY  —  Major, Tentative Walk-Back: The “US Attorney” part has been deleted from the headline.  Not bait and switch; just can't stand by that at the moment.  —  Damnit.  In all likelihood this is not as great as first reported.

Republican activists off-message at McCain rallies (cont)  —  An AFP shot from this morning in Virginia Beach.  —  I'm told in Ricmond, where Palin is now, the signs only accuse Obama of being a communist and Marxist.

A New Wrinkle (or Unwrinkle) in the Campaign: The Biden Brow  —  Joe Biden looks . . . different.  —  Something about his eyes, which seem smaller, and his forehead, which seems smoother.  Compared with images from last year, he seems better rested — yet also, strangely, a little sleepier.

Nobel Prize to Arch-Critic Krugman Is Blow to Bush  —  Oct. 13 (Bloomberg) — President George W. Bush, whose approval ratings are at historic lows as the U.S. veers toward a recession or worse, got yet another thumb in the eye when one of his most vociferous critics was awarded the Nobel Prize in economics.

Obama Details Plan to Aid Victims of Fiscal Crisis  —  TOLEDO, Ohio — Senator Barack Obama proposed new steps on Monday to address the economic crisis, calling for temporary but costly new programs to help employers, automakers, homeowners, the unemployed, and state and local governments.

Post/ABC Poll: McCain's Structural Problems  —  Photo by Mary Altaffer of the Associated Press  —  The new Washington Post/ABC News national poll puts John McCain behind Barack Obama by 10 points — his biggest deficit in the survey since the general election began in June.

FOX/Rasmussen Swing State Polling - October 12, 2008  —  Overview  —  Fox News/Rasmussen Reports polling this week in Florida, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio and Virginia shows a very stable race whose underlying dynamic strongly favors Barack Obama over John McCain.

AN OBAMA PANIC?  —  MARKETS FEAR HIS POLICIES  —  Barack Obama has re mained cool and confident amid the financial melt down, even as John McCain at times has been embarrassing, lurching from one proposal to the next.  But while the polls are reflecting Obama's steady hand, the markets haven't.

Great Moments In Right-Wing Punditry  —  Via the comments, this gem from the Powerline on 8 August 2005: … John Hinderaker, in peak form.  —  Considering my recent past (at least up until mid 2005), I am not really in a position to get all high and mighty, but after being staggeringly wrong …

Bush signs RIAA-backed intellectual-property law  —  Updated at 12:45 p.m. PDT with quotes.  —  President Bush on Monday signed into law an intellectual-property enforcement bill that would consolidate federal efforts to combat copyright infringement under a new White House cabinet position.

Sen. McCain Stood With ACORN Rally In 2006  —  A goldfish's lifetime ago, Sen. John McCain was happy to accept the honors and acclamation of the Service Employees International Union, People for the American Way, UNITE HERE — and ACORN.  Here he is, on Feb. 20, 2006, telling immigration rights activists …

Questioning Obama  —  For the past two weeks, the focus of the presidential campaign has been on John McCain.  Given the state of the race, it may well stay there for a while.  What can McCain do?  Should he attack more?  Should he go all positive?  Can he come back?

It Ain't Over 'Til It's Over  —  WASHINGTON — Howard Wolfson, the generally pessimistic Democratic consultant who was a senior adviser to Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, wrote an item on his blog at The New Republic the other day, declaring without qualification that Senator Barack Obama would defeat Senator John McCain.

OBAMA SEX PERV SCANDAL  —  The ENQUIRER exclusively reports a “sex pervert” was Sen. Barack Obama's longtime mentor and “father figure”.  —  For seven years, the presidential candidate had a “father-son” relationship with Frank Marshall Davis, who has confessed to having sex with children …