Washington Post polls: Obama lead in Ohio, edge in Fla. hamper Romney path to victory  —  President Obama has grabbed a significant lead over Mitt Romney in Ohio and holds a slender edge in Florida, according to two new polls by the Washington Post that indicate there are fresh hurdles …

Portman: Obama will be ‘formidable’  —  From the Department of Debate Expectations-Setting, Sen. Rob Portman told POLITICO's Alexander Trowbridge that President Obama has the upper hand in the presidential debates because Mitt Romney hasn't faced a Democrat in awhile:

In New York, defiant Ahmadinejad says Israel will be “eliminated”  —  (Reuters) - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Monday Israel has no roots in the Middle East and would be “eliminated,” ignoring a U.N. warning to avoid incendiary rhetoric ahead of the annual General Assembly session.

Bill Clinton: Romney's refusal to share tax plan specifics a ‘red flag’  —  Former president Bill Clinton on Tuesday hammered Mitt Romney over the Republican candidate's refusal to say which deductions and loopholes he would eliminate as part of his tax reform plan.

Romney Doesn't Understand Why You Can't Roll Down Windows On A Plane … On Monday, Mitt Romney offered a remedy to the problem that caused his wife's airplane to land prematurely last week: Allow passengers to roll down the airplane windows.  —  Ann Romney's plane was grounded Friday after the main cabin filled with smoke.

The Conservative Mind  —  When I joined the staff of National Review as a lowly associate in 1984, the magazine, and the conservative movement itself, was a fusion of two different mentalities.  —  On the one side, there were the economic conservatives.  These were people that anybody …

Harry Reid: Mitt Romney is not the face of Mormonism  —  • Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid says he agrees with a fellow Mormon who wrote recently that Mitt Romney has “sullied” the LDS faith and that the GOP presidential candidate is “not the face of Mormonism.”

A Measure of Change: Arab Spring Proves a Harsh Test for Obama's Diplomatic Skill  —  WASHINGTON — President Hosni Mubarak did not even wait for President Obama's words to be translated before he shot back.  —  “You don't understand this part of the world,” the Egyptian leader broke in.

I'm from the economics profession, and I'm here to help.  —  EconoTrolls: An Illustrated Bestiary  —  In your journey through the Econ Blogosphere, you will be beset by a great many curious and interesting species of EconoTroll.  At first you may be intimidated by their voluminous use of insider jargon …

Complaints Mount Against Michelle Obama's New Lunch Menu  —  In Wisconsin, high school athletes are complaining about not getting enough to eat each day, due to the skimpy new school lunch menu mandated by the United States Department of Agriculture and First Lady Michelle Obama.

Will Obama Free the Blind Sheik?  —  The theologian of terrorism inspired the 1993 and 9/11 World Trade Center attacks.  The White House should state clearly that he will serve out his life term in the U.S.  —  Are senior Obama administration officials considering transferring to Egypt …

More Mitt Romney science: He believes University of Utah ‘solved’ cold fusion  —  Captain Seamus in December 2011 (audio clip below the fold), rolling down the window on what he believes to be true about cold fusion: … Um.  I'll be gentle here.  Other than to point out this New York Times article …

Hello, Ohio: Key To 2012 (The Note)  —  By MICHAEL FALCONE (@michaelpfalcone) and AMY WALTER (@amyewalter)  —  NOTABLES:  — OBAMA AT THE UN — WHAT HE WILL SAY: Excerpts from the speech President Obama plans to deliver this morning at the United Nations: “The attacks of the last two weeks are not simply an assault on America.

Ancient (and Modern) Ignorance  —  I suppose the thing I most enjoy about religion commentary in the New York Times is the serenity of its ignorance.  All sorts of NYT writers just say stuff about religion, without much caring whether any of it is true.  A lovely recent example is this column …

Pennsylvania Voter ID Law In Jeopardy As Next Court Case Opens … REACT:  —  FOLLOW:  —  Elections 2012, Video, Voting Rights, Voting Rights, Pennsylvania Voter Id, Pennsylvania Voter Id Court Appeal, Pennsylvania Voter Id Court Case, Voter ID, Politics News

The 10% President  —  The annotated Obama: How 90% of the deficit becomes somebody else's fault.  —  A question raised by President Obama's immortal line on CBS's “60 Minutes” on Sunday—"I think that, you know, as President, I bear responsibility for everything, to some degree"—is what that degree really is.

Obama campaign had twice the staff as Romney last month at same cost  —  (Saul Loeb / AFP/Getty Images / September 22, 2012)  —  This post has been updated, as indicated below.  —  WASHINGTON — One of the big challenges Mitt Romney faced after effectively clinching the GOP presidential nomination …

Howard Stern Interviews Obama Supporters 2012  —  Howard Stern contributors Sal and Richard travel to Harlem to interview Obama supporters and ask them why they are voting for Obama.  —  Stern and his crew ask denizens of Harlem various outrageous questions, including if they believe Obama …

Christie on Romney: If Election Were Tomorrow ‘That Would Be a Problem’  —  Photograph by Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images  —  New Jersey Governor Chris Christie addresses the 2012 Republican National Convention.  —  Republican Mitt Romney has been forced to take a more aggressive tack …