Obama Aides: Record Cash Raised In September, Polls Show McCain Ads Backfired  —  With the presidential campaign approaching its final stretch, Barack Obama finds himself in an enviable position.  —  One official close to the campaign said that September's fundraising haul set a new record …

Fire the Campaign  —  It's time for John McCain to fire his campaign.  —  He has nothing to lose.  His campaign is totally overmatched by Obama's.  The Obama team is well organized, flush with resources, and the candidate and the campaign are in sync.  The McCain campaign …

Palin Makes Troopergate Assertions that Are Flatly False  —  On Saturday, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin twice spoke to reporters about the so-called “Troopergate” scandal and the investigative report on whether she had abused her power in trying to get her sister's ex-husband Mike Wooten fired as a state trooper …

No New Economic Proposal Expected From McCain  —  WASHINGTON — Despite signals that Senator John McCain would have new prescriptions for the economic crisis after a weekend of meetings, his campaign said Sunday that Mr. McCain, the Republican presidential nominee, would not have any more proposals …

Krugman Wins Nobel Prize for Economics  —  STOCKHOLM, Sweden — The American economist Paul R. Krugman won the Nobel economics prize on Monday for his analysis of trade patterns and location of economic activity.  —  Mr. Krugman, 55, a professor at Princeton University in New Jersey …

Obama Up by 10 Points as McCain Favorability Ratings Fall  —  With just over three weeks until Election Day, the two presidential nominees appear to be on opposite trajectories, with Sen. Barack Obama gaining momentum and Sen. John McCain stalled or losing ground on a range of issues and personal traits …

Gordon Does Good  —  Has Gordon Brown, the British prime minister, saved the world financial system?  —  O.K., the question is premature — we still don't know the exact shape of the planned financial rescues in Europe or for that matter the United States, let alone whether they'll really work.

The Man Behind the Whispers About Obama  —  The most persistent falsehood about Senator Barack Obama's background first hit in 2004 just two weeks after the Democratic convention speech that arguably set him on the path to his presidential candidacy: “Obama is a Muslim who has concealed his religion.”

Prostitution has not suffered drop-off despite economic meltdown  —  It's still a good time to be morally bankrupt.  —  The plunging Dow Jones and panicky investors are hardly a problem for the world's oldest profession, where business is still brisk.  —  “The market is down, business is down …

Discontent Buffets the Nation; Bush Craters, Obama Benefits  —  Obama in Drivers Seat, Amid Economic Worry  —  A tornado of economic discontent is buffeting the nation, sending satisfaction with the country's direction to a 35-year low, George W. Bush's approval rating below Richard Nixon's worst …

Obama's Kenya ghosts  —  About 50 parishioners were locked into the Assemblies of God church before it was set ablaze.  They were mostly women and children.  Those who tried to flee were hacked to death by machete-wielding members of a mob numbering 2,000.

Guilty by Participation: Barack Obama's radical associations and what they mean  —  As the race for president heads into the homestretch, the McCain campaign finally seems willing to raise the matter of Barack Obama's past radical associations.  Obama's links to the far left are easily established.

History Suggests McCain Faces an Uphill Battle  —  Has John McCain fallen too far behind, too late in the presidential campaign, to overtake Barack Obama?  —  That is the question facing strategists in both parties three weeks before Election Day.  History suggests that the answer is probably so.

Venezuela's oil output slumps under Hugo Chavez  —  Venezuela's daily oil production has fallen by a quarter since President Hugo Chavez won power, depriving his “Bolivarian Revolution” of much of the benefit of the global boom in oil prices.  —  To win allies and forge an anti-American front …

Hindu Threat to Christians: Convert or Flee  —  BOREPANGA, India — The family of Solomon Digal was summoned by neighbors to what serves as a public square in front of the village tea shop.  —  They were ordered to get on their knees and bow before the portrait of a Hindu preacher.

Democrats call for massive econ stimulus plan  —  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States needs a new economic stimulus plan that pumps billions of dollars into infrastructure projects and budget relief for cash-strapped state and local governments, Democratic lawmakers said on Sunday.