RNC appears to shell out $150K for Palin fashion  —  The Republican National Committee appears to have spent more than $150,000 to clothe and accessorize vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin and her family since her surprise pick by John McCain in late August.

On Al-Qaeda Web Sites, Joy Over U.S. Crisis, Support for McCain  —  Al-Qaeda is watching the U.S. stock market's downward slide with something akin to jubilation, with its leaders hailing the financial crisis as a vindication of its strategy of crippling America's economy through endless, costly foreign wars against Islamist insurgents.

Early Voting Update: North Carolina Gets Big Turnout  —  Maurice Tamman reports on the 2008 election.  —  Nearly half a million North Carolina voters have already cast their ballots, either with a mail-in absentee ballot or by casting one in person.  —  That means nothing Republican …

Rendell ‘still a little nervous’ about Penn., asks Obama to return  —  (CNN) — Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell has sent two separate memos to the Obama campaign in the past five days requesting that the Democratic Presidential candidate—as well as Hillary and Bill Clinton—return to campaign in Pennsylvania …

THE END OF JOURNALISM AS WE KNEW IT  —  I'm not familiar with columnist Orson Scott Card, but his open letter to journalists is must reading.  It appeared first in The Rhinoceros Times of Greensboro, North Carolina.  Via InstaPundit: … But the mainstream media—which is to say …

As clock ticks, hope dims for McCain savior  —  For the GOP, the cavalry apparently isn't coming.  —  Republicans attuned to conservative third-party efforts say that with less than two weeks to go until Election Day, the prospects for any 11th-hour, anti-Obama ad campaign are highly unlikely.

Woman quits job at call center over anti-Obama script  —  WESTON, W.Va. — Chaylee Cole, a student at Fairmont State University, lost her part-time job in Weston last Friday after refusing to make telephone calls attacking Barack Obama.  —  McCain-Palin 2008 and the Republican National Committee …

Police prepare for unrest  —  Police departments in cities across the country are beefing up their ranks for Election Day, preparing for possible civil unrest and riots after the historic presidential contest.  —  Public safety officials said in interviews with The Hill that the election …

Are the Polls Accurate?  —  Reading them right is more art than science.  —  Can we trust the polls this year?  That's a question many people have been asking as we approach the end of this long, long presidential campaign.  As a recovering pollster and continuing poll consumer, my answer is yes — with qualifications.

NYT Mag Lifts Curtain On Palin Choice, Angst With Schmidt, Worry In McCain Campaign  —  The New York Times Magazine is set to publish an explosive story this Sunday on the inner workings and combative personalities of what has been a wild few months for the McCain campaign.

Big Donors Drive Obama's Money Edge  —  The record-shattering $150 million in donations that Sen. Barack Obama raised in September represents only part of the financial advantage the Democratic nominee has amassed entering the final weeks of the presidential contest, newly released campaign finance records show.

Obama and the Tax Tipping Point  —  How long before taxpayers are pushed too far?  —  What happens when the voter in the exact middle of the earnings spectrum receives more in benefits from Washington than he pays in taxes?  Economists Allan Meltzer and Scott Richard posed this question 27 years ago.

O'Reilly: You'll Still Have Me to Kick Around  —  Bill O'Reilly has signed up for another tour of duty at Fox News, saying that he decided “to put myself through all the attacks and smears” for several more years.  —  The pugnacious pundit said that he signed the contract despite what he sees as a constant assault on his reputation.

Haters  —  In this week's New Yorker, Steve Coll remarks that at McCain-Palin rallies “the mood has been not so much socialist as national-socialist.”  This comes on the heels of last week's New Yorker, in which Hendrik Hertzberg described McCain-Palin rallies as “bloodcurdling hate-fests.”

Gay Marriage in Peril in California  —  A state ballot measure to ban gay marriage in California is gaining momentum, with polls showing almost even odds of it passing after trailing by double digits a month ago.  —  In June, the state legalized same-sex marriages.

In Endgame, Metrics Are Adding Up For Obama  —  It Ain't Over Till It's Over, But Several Key Factors Don't Look Good For McCain  —  One of the most unsettling aspects of this campaign is that for an election cycle so turbulent, with so many surprising twists and turns …

Mortgage Prospects Dim for Illegal Immigrants  —  Jose Luis Hernandez rose from vegetable chopper to sous chef at an exclusive New York restaurant — and saved $100,000 along the way.  Recently, the illegal immigrant from Mexico contacted real-estate agents in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he currently rents an apartment.

Steal Back Your Vote!  —  Greg Palast's book: Armed Madhouse is a good read.  —  Intimidation is a big part of Republican strategy to keep turn out low.  Latinos should band together and show up to vote in groups of at least four so that they won't be intimidated when someone tries to deny them the right to legally vote.