Obama for president  —  Palin's rise captivates us but nation needs a steady hand  —  Alaska enters its 50th-anniversary year in the glow of an improbable and highly memorable event: the nomination of Gov. Sarah Palin as the Republican vice presidential candidate.

PIT BULL TURNS ON MCMAVERICK  —  NOW PALIN'S BUCKING HER OWN TICKET  —  By CARL CAMPANILE in Mesilla, NM, and GINGER ADAMS OTIS in NY  —  Sarah Palin is the rogue elephant in the GOP war room.  —  The maverick mom is distancing herself from John McCain and blowing off the advice …

Ceding the Center  —  There are two major political parties in America, but there are at least three major political tendencies.  The first is orthodox liberalism, a belief in using government to maximize equality.  The second is free-market conservatism, the belief in limiting government to maximize freedom.

The Obama Temptation  —  I've been thinking this for a while so I might as well air it here.  I honestly never thought we'd see such a thing in our country - not yet anyway - but I sense what's occurring in this election is a recklessness and abandonment of rationality that has preceded …

Republican fears of historic Obama landslide unleash civil war for the future of the party  —  Senior Republicans believe that John McCain is doomed to a landslide defeat which will hand Barack Obama more political power than any president in a generation.  —  Aides to George W.Bush …

McCain brushes off polls, says 'we're doing fine'  —  (CNN) — Despite his sagging poll numbers, Sen. John McCain said Sunday that he is “very happy with where we are” and very proud of his campaign.  —  “We're doing fine,” the Arizona senator said in an interview on NBC's “Meet the Press.”

Obama Campaign Cuts Off Interviews With Florida TV Station  —  Barack Obama's campaign killed all interviews with a Florida TV station after Sen. Joe Biden, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, faced tough and critical questions from a reporter at the Orlando station, reported the Orlando Sentinel .

Campaign Finance Gets New Scrutiny  —  Obama's Take Raises Questions About Web  —  Sen. Barack Obama's record-breaking $150 million fundraising performance in September has for the first time prompted questions about whether presidential candidates should be permitted to collect huge sums …

Inside McCain Camp, a Mood of Gritty Determination  —  Only a few hundred people were on hand at the New Mexico state fairgrounds Saturday morning to hear Sen. John McCain's acknowledgment that “we're a few points down” in the polls and to cheer loudly when he bellowed, “We've got them right where we want them!”

Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby Poll: Obama 49.4%, McCain 44.1%  —  McCain gains as race continues to tighten  —  UTICA, New York - Republican John McCain continues to gain on Democrat Barack Obama, reducing Obama's lead to 5.3 points with just over a week to go before Election Day …

The Next New Deal  —  The huge opportunities—and huge risks—of a possible Obama administration.  —  On a bright, brisk, fat-pumpkin morning in mid-October—the kind of morning you would call glorious were the economy not cratering, the financial system not imploding …

U.S. considers sending special ops to Afghanistan  —  Despite recent setbacks, a large-scale influx of conventional forces is unlikely because of troop commitments in Iraq.  But special operations forces could narrowly target the most violent insurgent ba  —  Reporting from Washington …

McCain, GOP target Frank on taxes and spending  —  Barack Obama may be on top of the Democratic ticket, but John McCain and Republicans running for Congress are focusing their fire on Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.).  —  McCain, the GOP presidential nominee, and other Republicans in recent days …

A Party Without Members?  —  Have you ever heard of a political party that has no members?  Ben Smith has, and he believes.  Based on a claim by New Party co-founder Joel Rogers that “we didn't really have members,” Smith seems to think he's disposed of the issue of Barack Obama's ties to the “dread New Party.”

For Obama, a new cause for confidence - and for caution  —  CONCORD, N.H. - Barack Obama has vaulted to a 15-point lead over John McCain in New Hampshire, according to a new Boston Globe poll, a significant gap in a state that McCain considers his second political home and has long been a swing state in the race for the White House.