Clarence Thomas's Wife Asks Anita Hill for Apology  —  WASHINGTON — Nearly 20 years after Anita Hill accused Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment during his contentious Supreme Court confirmation hearings, Justice Thomas's wife has called Ms. Hill, seeking an apology.

Historic Illiteracy: Idiot Sarah Palin “Party Like It's 1773” After The Election!  —  OMG, will this blithering idiot ever shut up?! … I mean, 1773?!  WOW.  Glad I wasn't the only one who caught this latest Palin gaffe:  —  And finally, channeling the Insane Clown Posse:

Barney Frank gives $200K to his campaign  —  Longtime Massachusetts Rep. Barney Frank has given his re-election campaign $200,000 as he faces his toughest race in years.  —  A campaign finance report filed Tuesday showed that Frank, the chairman of the powerful House Financial Services committee, lent himself the money Tuesday.

Military to accept openly gay recruits  —  WASHINGTON — Openly gay recruits can now join the military as a result of a federal court ruling striking down the “don't ask, don't tell” law, but they are being warned that they can still be discharged if the ruling is overturned.

Democrats bank on early voting to bridge enthusiasm gap  —  LAS VEGAS - Walter Grimsley woke up Saturday morning and remembered he had an errand to run.  He had to go vote.  —  The government retiree's phone had been ringing every few hours with reminder calls from Democratic volunteers.

Secretive Republican Donors Are Planning Ahead  —  A secretive network of Republican donors is heading to the Palm Springs area for a long weekend in January, but it will not be to relax after a hard-fought election — it will be to plan for the next one.  —  Koch Industries …

Is Obama Skipping Temple Over Headgear?  —  From Russell Goldman and Jake Tapper:  —  On an upcoming trip to India, President Obama will skip visiting one of the country's most sacred shrines out of fear that wearing the requisite headgear might make him appear Muslim, according to reports from the United States and India.

RACE OF THE DAY - Minn. 08  —  There wasn't much “Minnesota nice” on display when the supporters of Rep. Jim Oberstar and his Republican challenger clashed.  —  There wasn't much “Minnesota nice” on display when the supporters of Rep. Jim Oberstar and his Republican challenger clashed at a debate Tuesday.

Pelosi's Favorable Rating as Speaker Drops to 29%, a New Low  —  Nearly 6 in 10 independents now view her unfavorably  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's favorable rating is down seven percentage points since May to 29%, a new low for her since assuming the top congressional post.

Taliban's Elite, Aided by NATO, Join Talks for Afghan Peace  —  KABUL, Afghanistan — Talks to end the war in Afghanistan involve extensive, face-to-face discussions with Taliban commanders from the highest levels of the group's leadership, who are secretly leaving their sanctuaries in Pakistan …

Obama to appear on ‘The Daily Show’  —  President is set to tape appearance on Oct. 27  —  WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is taking his campaign message to “The Daily Show” with Jon Stewart.  —  White House spokesman Dan Pfeiffer says Obama is taping an appearance on Oct. 27, just days before the Nov. 2 elections.

EPA in the crosshairs  —  “If we have the gavel, I can assure you that the oversight subcommittee will be very busy,” Upton told POLITICO, adding that Browner can also expect frequent invitations to testify.  “We'll have a seat reserved for her,” he said.  —  Energy and Commerce …

Speaker Pelosi ‘majority makers’ are facing electoral challenges  —  Two-term Democrats, whose victories helped secure the Speaker's job for Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), are facing the possibility of a near-wipeout in the Nov. 2 election.  —  Of 10 reelection races involving sophomore Democrats …

Poll Watchers Claim Harassment And Intimidation At Houston, Texas Voting Places  —  Mediaite's Tommy Christopher reports voter intimidation in Harris County, Texas (Houston) by volunteer poll watchers trained by King Street Patriots, a local non-partisan group who started the True The Vote campaign.

Poll: Joe Sestak overtakes Pat Toomey  —  New U.S. Senate poll shows Democrat with three-point lead.  —  WASHINGTON — Joe Sestak has pulled ahead of Pat Toomey after trailing for months in their closely watched Pennsylvania U.S. Senate race, an independent poll confirms.

Afternoon Fix: Dem poll shows Conway 49, Paul 47; Republicans hit Reid for Ritz-y lifestyle; McMahon has spent more than $40 million  —  Make sure to sign up to get “Afternoon Fix” in your e-mail inbox every day by 5 (ish) p.m.!  —  EARLIER ON THE FIX  —  Fix Daily Poll: What is the nastiest race of 2010?

POLL: Only 1-in-4 see American Dream as still attainable for everyone in the U.S.  —  Just one in every four voters in 10 battleground House districts says the American Dream is “still there for everyone,” while four in 10 say the dream exists “only for some people,” according to The Hill 2010 Midterm Election Poll.

They Want Him For A New Recruit  —  I just spent an hour and 45 minutes at the military-recruitment station in Times Square, where former Lt. Dan Choi attempted to enlist in the Marines.  Honorably discharged from the Army under Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Choi told me he'd always dreamed of being a Marine …

Sparks Fly Between Nikki Haley, Vincent Sheheen in S.C. Governor's Debate  —  ABC News' Devin Dwyer reports: In their first televised debate, South Carolina gubernatorial candidates Nikki Haley and Vincent Sheheen battled Tuesday over who would restore integrity to state government and revive …

Wall Street Bailout Returns 8.2% Profit Beating Treasury Bonds  —  The U.S. government's bailout of financial firms through the Troubled Asset Relief Program provided taxpayers with higher returns than they could have made buying 30-year Treasury bonds — enough money to fund the Securities …

The Third Wave In A Row  —  Republicans had a tsunami phase, then Democrats had a natural tightening, and now things have stabilized in the Newton's Laws of Motion-phase, where for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.  One state might be improving for Democrats …

Virginia Beach Republican Committee Chair Forwards Racist Email  —  David Bartholomew, Chair of the Virginia Beach Republican Committee, has been forwarding around a “joke” via email.  The only problem, other than the fact that it's not particularly funny, is that it's blatantly racist.  Check it out.

Report: In Obama's Chicago, stimulus weatherization money buys shoddy work, widespread fraud  —  Projects to weatherize homes are a key part of the Obama administration's fusion of stimulus spending and the green agenda.  But a new report by the Department of Energy has found serious problems …

As G.O.P. Seeks Spending Cuts, Details Are Scarce  —  WASHINGTON — In Indiana, Representative Mike Pence, the No. 3 House Republican, complains about “runaway federal spending on steroids.”  —  In Alaska, the Republican candidate for the Senate, Joe Miller, talks about “out of control spending.”