Palin In 2012: The Argument  —  There's a suspicion in some McCain loyalist precincts that Gov. Sarah Palin is beginning to play the Republican base against John McCain — McCain won't let her campaign in Michigan...McCain won't let her bring up Jeremiah Wright... McCain doesn't like her terrorist pal talks....

EXCLUSIVE: McCain lambastes Bush years  —  ‘We just let things get completely out of hand’  —  NEWSMAKER INTERVIEW:  —  ABOARD THE STRAIGHT TALK AIR — Sen. John McCain on Wednesday blasted President Bush for building a mountain of debt for future generations, failing to pay for expanding Medicare …

WHO IS JOHN GALT?  —  We've previously noted the gusher of illegal campaign contributions flowing into the Obama campaign from contributors such as “Doodad Pro” and “Good Will.”  More recently, incidents have been reported in which people have seen credit card charges surface suggesting they donated to Barack Obama when they did not.

Greenspan Concedes to ‘Flaw’ in His Market Ideology  —  Oct. 23 (Bloomberg) — Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said a “once-in-a-century credit tsunami” has engulfed financial markets and conceded that his free-market ideology shunning regulation was flawed.

Woman Attacked At ATM, Assailant Carves Letter Into Her Face  —  Woman Robbed, Attacked With Knife At Bloomfield ATM  —  PITTSBURGH — A 20-year-old woman who was robbed at an ATM in Bloomfield was also maimed by her attacker, police said.  —  Pittsburgh police spokeswoman Diane Richard …

Far-right Austrian leader sacked for revealing gay affair with Jörg Haider  —  The successor of the Austrian far-right leader Jörg Haider was dismissed yesterday after he revealed a “special” relationship “far beyond” friendship with his former mentor.

NYT'S UNFORGETTABLE HIRE: BONO  —  Like Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter before him, New York Times editorial page editor Andrew Rosenthal sees something special in a certain teensy Gaelic man who refuses to remove his sunglasses.  That's right, the Timesman announced last night …

The Full Obama Interview  —  Q] I want to ask you some questions about the way you make decisions and then some questions about issues.  To me the signal decision of this election was the way you chose your vice-president and the way he chose his.  You are known for deliberation and being a rational decision-maker.

Gallup Daily: Obama Has Modest Lead Among Likely Voters  —  Size of margin four or six points depending on turnout assumptions  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Gallup Poll Daily tracking shows Barack Obama running ahead of John McCain among likely voters — 50% to 46% using the “traditional” …

Breaking: New poll shows Russell over Murtha, 48-35  —  A Pennsylvania source has just leaked me brand spanking new poll data showing GOP upstart Bill Russell leading John Murtha among over 800 probable voters by 48-35.  —  This comes on top of the Susquehanna poll showing Murtha ahead …

McCain Shifting His Ad Spending From Kerry States To Bush States, A New Analysis Finds  —  In another sign that John McCain is on the defensive as time runs out, the McCain campaign is shifting its ad money out of blue tossup states and into red tossups and even traditionally red states, according to ad maven Evan Tracey.

Wardrobe Mysteries Linger  —  About that wardrobe ...  There are still aspects of the Republican National Committee's shopping sprees on behalf of Gov. Sarah Palin and her family that are murky.  —  Some of the fashion experts consulted Wednesday, for instance, about the $150,000 in purchases …

Poll: Obama edges ahead of McCain in Montana  —  Eds: APNewsNow.  Will be led.  —  By MATT GOURAS Asscoiated Press Writer HELENA, Mont. (AP) A new poll shows that Democrat Barack Obama could be edging ahead of Republican John McCain in Montana.  —  Obama is at 44 percent and John …

Jury reports ‘violent outbursts’ in Stevens case  —  The jury foreman in Sen. Ted Stevens's criminal case has asked Judge Emmet G. Sullivan to dismiss one juror because of her “violent outbursts,” temporarily delaying deliberations in the Alaska Republican's corruption case.

NRSC ad assumes Obama win  —  The underlying premise of this new ad from the National Republican Senatorial Committee: Obama's going to win.  —  The ad, on behalf of Senator Elizabeth Dole, urges a vote against challenger Kay Hagan as the last bulwark against complete Democratic control:

GOP Mailer discovered: Democrat has ‘radical homosexual’ agenda, will force Boy Scouts to accept gays  —  A new anti-gay offensive has been launched against Democratic North Carolina state senator and U.S. Senate candidate Kay Hagan.  Campaign literature produced by the North Carolina Republican Party …

Quiet in the peanut gallery  —  Matt Taibbi shreds Byron York into little tiny pieces … I love Matt Taibbi's work.  I just wish that when he has no idea what he is talking about, he would shut the hell up, rather than making an awkward public.  Of course, in this exchange he looks …

The history argument  —  Thank you all so much for the early voting stories, and if you early voted for McCain, please send in those stories as well.  (Between the enthusiasm gap and the blog reader demographic, these e-mails tilt disproportionately to Obama backers.)

Hasselbeck to Campaign for Palin  —  ABC News' Rick Klein Reports: The McCain-Palin campaign's efforts to reach women is about to get a celebrity boost: Elisabeth Hasselbeck is set to join Gov. Sarah Palin on the campaign trail.  —  “The View” co-host said Thursday the McCain campaign contacted …

DEFINING ‘ELITE’.... It's a little jarring to hear John McCain and Sarah Palin complain about “elites.”  We are, after all, talking about two wealthy and powerful Republican politicians.  And yet, complain they do.  —  In the second part of his interview with the members of the Republican ticket …

AM Polls Show Surprisingly Large Leads for Obama  —  New polling this morning from the Big Ten polling consortium and Quinnipiac University present a view of what the world might look like if Barack Obama wins in a landslide.  —  The Big Ten polls have Obama ahead by double digits in ten Midwestern states …

Finally, Someone Asked Her  —  We now know what Gov. Palin thinks about immigration, and the results are not good (h/t Auster): … Now, it was obvious, as McCain's running mate, she had to toe the McCain line.  But which McCain line?  After the campaign's near-death experience …

Gingrich: SNL's Palin skits are ‘slander’ ‘worthy of a lawsuit.’  —  Bashing the “elite” media as usual on Fox News last night, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich claimed that Saturday Night Live's skits mocking Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin were “vicious” and a “total distortion of who Governor Palin is.”

Someone Put On His Thinking Cap  —  From a reader:

Weekly jobless claims rise 15,000 to 478,000  —  Trend in continuing unemployment benefits highest in five years  —  WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — Jobless claims moved higher last week, pointing the way to an increase in the nation's unemployment rate, economists said Thursday.

HIGH-SPEED RAIL IN CALIFORNIA?  —  Ezra mentions the various progressive outcomes possible from California ballot initiatives this year, including maintaining the legality of gay marriage and ensuring humane treatment of livestock.  But the truly awesome and under-the-radar California ballot initiative …

Prop 8 a Toss-Up  —  A ‘yes’ vote on California Proposition 8 would amend the state's constitution to prohibit gay marriage.  A ‘no’ vote would maintain the constitution, which the California Supreme Court ruled in May provides equal protection for gay marriage.

Rebranding the U.S. With Obama  —  The other day I had a conversation with a Beijing friend and I mentioned that Barack Obama was leading in the presidential race:  —  She: Obama? … [Long pause.]  —  She: Really? … We're beginning to get a sense of how Barack Obama's political success …