Introducing The New Polling Firm of Madoff, Marist, Quinnipiac and Ponzi  —  After a few weeks spent tracking down and questioning pollsters and the reporters of polls, I can assure the reader that pollsters are the modern-day alchemists.  They promise to turn numbers into predictive gold.

Cramming and Pruning for First Presidential Debate  —  WASHINGTON — In a conference room at the Democratic headquarters, President Obama has been preparing for the debate next week, but the reviews of his staff are already in.  Too long, they tell him.  Cut that answer.  Give crisper explanations.

Shifting Reports on Libya Killings May Cost Obama  —  WASHINGTON — The Obama administration's shifting accounts of the fatal attack on the American diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya, have left President Obama suddenly exposed on the national security and foreign policy issues …

And, Paul Ryan Gets Mocked By Storage Ad  —  Manhattan Mini-Storage does it again.  Much more of a personal jab than the Mitt Romney billboard.  (via newsweek.tumblr.com)  —  copyranter  —  an hour ago  —  respond

Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, 1926 - 2012: Arthur O. Sulzberger, Publisher Who Transformed Times, Dies at 86  —  Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, who guided The New York Times and its parent company through a long, sometimes turbulent period of expansion and change on a scale not seen since the newspaper's founding in 1851 …

Goodbye, Columbus: Why top Ohio Republicans think Romney has lost the state  —  COLUMBUS, Ohio - There are only two plausible explanations for what is going on this week in this swing state central to virtually all Mitt Romney's victory strategies.  —  Either many top Ohio Republicans …

Obama administration tells contractors again: Don't issue layoff notices  —  The Obama administration issued new guidance intended for defense contractors Friday afternoon, reiterating the administration's position that the companies should not be issuing layoff notices over sequestration.

John Kerry defends Susan Rice  —  Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) is coming to the defense of U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice — rumored to be his top rival to replace Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in a second Obama term.  —  “I'm deeply disturbed by efforts to find …

SFC Speer's Killer Leaves Gitmo  —  Omar Khadr has been sent from Guantanamo to Canada, after returning from the jihad in Afghanistan and Pakistan.  Khadr is slated to stay in custody for the time being.  It is difficult to think of a more mythologized figure in the post-9/11 war on terror.

Romney Foreign Policy Adviser Calls Obama's Libya Response ‘Limp Wristed’  —  A foreign policy adviser to Mitt Romney on Friday called President Obama's foreign policy “limp wristed.”  —  Former US Ambassador to the UN John Bolton employed the term, usually used as a slur against or allusion to gay men …

Obama to hit trail after debate  —  (CNN) - President Barack Obama will hit the campaign trail following the Wednesday presidential debate, stumping in four states rated on the CNN Electoral Map as toss ups, according to schedules released by his campaign and the White House.

Ann Romney: If elected, “mental well-being” Mitt's biggest challenge  —  Ann Romney greets supporters at Bartley Ranch Thursday Sept. 27, 2012 in Reno, Nev. / AP PHOTO/THE RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL, MARILYN NEWTON  —  (CBS News) Ann Romney's biggest concern if her husband becomes president …

GOP poll: embattled David Rivera trails Joe Garcia  —  One of the polls showing Rep. David Rivera down 10 points was conducted by a top-flight Republican polling firm with vast experience in Florida.  —  MCAPUTO@MIAMIHERALD.COM  —  Two separate polls from Republican and Democratic third-party groups …