George Will: Colin Powell Endorsed Obama Because He's Black  —  This morning on “This Week” George Will was asked what he thought about Colin Powell's endorsement of Barack Obama.  —  His response?  —  Black, black, blackety-black black black blackety-black. … Huh?

A Popular Vote / Electoral College Split?  —  This column has been fantasizing about this scenario for months.  On Meet the Press, NBC News political director Chuck Todd said that it would be virtually impossible for John McCain to win the popular vote.  —  I agree.  The reasoning is simple:

MCCAIN, OBAMA TIED IN OHIO  —  From NBC's Mark Murray  —  A new round of NBC/Mason-Dixon polls shows Obama leading in the battleground state of Wisconsin, McCain ahead in West Virginia, and the two candidates essentially tied in the swing state of Ohio.  —  In Wisconsin …

‘Socialist,’ ‘Muslim’ — Ugly reception for Obama  —  Barack Obama's stop at Cape Fear BBQ and Chicken in Fayetteville, N.C., this afternoon underscored the continued resistance of some voters to his candidacy — and his identity.  The trip, according to a pool report, offered “some powerful and at times ugly interaction.”

How John McCain came to pick Sarah Palin.  —  “Here's a little news flash,” Sarah Palin, the governor of Alaska and the Republican candidate for Vice-President, announced in September, during her début at the Party's Convention, in St. Paul.  “I'm not a member of the permanent political establishment.

RACE TO THE BOTTOM  —  If you're thinking to yourself that there's little more than two weeks before election day and Obama has a solid lead in the polls, don't be so sure.  —  Yes, it looks good for the Democrats.  But you need to play close attention to the McCain campaign's final weeks' strategy under and just above the radar.

GOP voter registration fraud case leads to arrest  —  Mark Jacoby, who was arrested in Ontario and owns a firm hired by the California Republican Party, violated state registration laws, authorities say.  —  SACRAMENTO — The owner of a firm that the California Republican Party hired …

On ‘SNL’ It's the Real Sarah Palin, Looking Like a Real Entertainer  —  Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska made her point by going on “Saturday Night Live.”  She proved she has a sense of humor at a time when the country is still debating whether to take her seriously as a potential commander in chief.

Democrats Favor Spreading Wealth Around, GOP Disagrees  —  John McCain now says it's socialism, but Barack Obama insists, “When you spread the wealth around, it's good for everybody.”  —  Forty-four percent (44%) of voters agree with Obama's statement while 42% disagree in a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.

Limbaugh Wallops Powell  —  The talk radio titan blisters Gen. Powell's Obama endorsement, suggesting to Politico that race was a factor:  —  “I am now researching his past endorsements to see if I can find all the inexperienced, very liberal, white candidates he has endorsed.