The Mortgage Morass  —  American officials used to lecture other countries about their economic failings and tell them that they needed to emulate the U.S. model.  The Asian financial crisis of the late 1990s, in particular, led to a lot of self-satisfied moralizing.

Nevada Fight Night fizzles  —  LAS VEGAS - Republican Sharron Angle lashed Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in the only debate of the Nevada Senate race Thursday night, telling the Democrat to “man up” at one point and questioning how he got wealthy during his years in Congress.

Christine O'Donnell Tells GOPers: 'I've Got Sean Hannity In My Back Pocket'  —  WHAT'S YOUR REACTION?  —  WASHINGTON — Christine O'Donnell may not be a witch, but she knows how to use scare tactics to raise money, top Republican strategists and officials here tell me.

FIRST LADY CAMPAIGNS INSIDE POLLING PLACE  —  First lady Michelle Obama appears to have violated Illinois law — when she engaged in political discussion at a polling place!  —  The drama began after Mrs. Obama stopped off at the Martin Luther King Center on the south side of Chicago to cast an early vote.

From a Maine House, a National Foreclosure Freeze  —  DENMARK, Me.  — The house that set off the national furor over faulty foreclosures is blue-gray and weathered.  The porch is piled with furniture and knickknacks awaiting the next yard sale.  In the driveway is a busted pickup truck.

NPR Poll Offers Sliver Of Hope For Democrats  —  With only 18 days left until Election Day, an NPR survey of likely voters in battleground districts found that while the overall field still tilts to the GOP, Democrats are closing the gap in some places.  —  The good news for Democrats …

Second Sestak Comeback Is Unlikely  —  There's been some excitement this week about Pennsylvania, where two internal polls commissioned by Democrats show a tight Senate race.  One of the polls actually puts their candidate, Joe Sestak, ahead by 3 points; the other has him 1 point behind Pat Toomey.

Murkowski goes up with Stevens ads  —  Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski will start airing the long-awaited campaign ad featuring the late Sen. Ted Stevens this week.  —  In the ad, Stevens, who died in a plane crash earlier this year, tells voters, “We need Lisa,” according to footage of the advertisement obtained exclusively by POLITICO.

Blue No More: Colo. Dems Struggle for Votes  —  Tea Party-Favored Ken Buck in Close Race With Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet  —  When Barack Obama won Colorado in the 2008 election, many instantly declared it a new blue state.  All but two Republicans running for Congress lost to Democrats …

Barack Obama sees rise of ‘tribal attitude’  —  President Barack Obama thinks that the recession has caused a temporary increase in racial tension by stoking “tribal attitude” among people in economic distress.  —  During an hour-long town hall with young people simulcast on MTV …

Judge disses Dems' ‘Alice in Wonderland’ health defense  —  A federal judge in Florida on Thursday said he will allow some of the lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the health care law to proceed — and criticized Democrats for making an “Alice in Wonderland” argument to defend the law.

The New Career of a Madman: Johnson Shrieks, “My site gave Geller her ‘break’ on the web”  —  UPDATE: LGF FLASHBACK!  The Guardian's new columnist can't scrub fast enough:  —  It get's better  —  And this — this is rich.  —  Talk about a hot mess.  Chuck Johnson has penned …

McGovern Says Constitution is WRONG  —  Lamb Will Uphold Constitution  —  Holliston, MA ...Tonight, Marty Lamb, Republican candidate for Congress in Massachusetts Third District, was shocked at Congressman James McGovern's words and his attitude toward the U.S. Constitution.

California NOW President: ‘Meg Whitman Could Be Described As A Political Whore’  —  Last week, the National Organization for Women and the PAC of the California NOW chapter took heat for their endorsement of state Attorney General Jerry Brown (D) over Meg Whitman (R) in the gubernatorial race …

Boehner's Path to Power Began in Southern Ohio  —  READING, Ohio — John A. Boehner, the House Republican leader, laments that the America he grew up in has been “snuffed out” by Democrats.  Yet Mr. Boehner's hometown seems virtually untouched by the decades that have passed since he lugged kegs …

The Outlook for November 2nd  —  Larry J. Sabato, Director, U.Va. Center for Politics  —  As alert readers of the Crystal Ball will note, we have not changed our projection of +47 Republican net House seats in many weeks.  We made this prediction prior to Labor Day, and we were the first to say definitively …

Cuomo tells gay activists he will legalize same-sex marriage, make ‘equality a reality’ in New York  —  Our Kate Lucadamo is on scene at the Empire State Pride Agenda's Fall Dinner, where just a short time ago, Andrew Cuomo told attendees he wants to make their hopes of legal same-sex marriage a reality.

Modernizing Education  —  Ezra Klein submits this 11:40 video by Sir Ken Robinson on the need to transform education.  —  He contends that Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder is either a complete myth or grossly overdiagnosed.  Rather, the problem is that we're expecting kids used …

Democratic Funding Fades  —  Liberal Groups Lag in Late Efforts to Raise Cash; Less Money for Key Races  —  WASHINGTON—A late effort by Democrats to match record fund raising by conservative organizations has come up short, leaving the party more reliant than usual on the campaign efforts of labor unions.

EXCLUSIVE: New Pakistani Taliban Operative Feared Inside U.S. After Times Square Failure  —  Senior U.S. officials are concerned over recent intelligence indicating that the Pakistani Taliban, which orchestrated the failed Times Square bombing, may have successfully placed another operative inside …

Judge rules concealed carry ban unconstitutional  —  A Clark County judge says Wisconsin's ban on carrying concealed weapons is unconstitutional.  In the case, authorities charged a Sauk City man with carrying a concealed weapon, after he admitted he had a knife in his waistband.  He never threatened anyone.