Clinton: ‘I take responsibility’ for security ahead of Benghazi attack  —  Lima, Peru (CNN) — Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the buck stops with her when it comes to who is to blame for security ahead of a deadly assault on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya.

Swing States poll: Women push Romney into lead  —  IN THE SWING STATES, THE POWER OF WOMEN  —  A new USA TODAY/Gallup Poll of the Swing States shows Mitt Romney with a lead among likely voters as he strengthens his standing with women in the nation's top battlegrounds.

Charity president unhappy about Paul Ryan soup kitchen ‘photo op’  —  Paul Ryan and his wife Janna wash pots at St. Vincent De Paul dining hall.  (Associated Press)  —  The head of a northeast Ohio charity says that the Romney campaign last week “ramrodded their way” into the group's Youngstown soup kitchen …

Romney Is Attacked by His Father's Longtime Aide  —  A longtime aide to George W. Romney issued a harshly worded critique of Mitt Romney, accusing him of shifting political positions in “erratic and startling ways” and failing to live up to the distinguished record of his father, the former governor of Michigan.

FLOTUS: Reach out to ‘knuckleheads,’ tell them to vote  —  First lady Michelle Obama is encouraging supporters to reach out to the “knuckleheads” in their life to ask them to vote for President Obama.  —  Speaking in Delaware, Ohio, the first lady encouraged people to cast their net wide …

A reminder about the last plant-infested, CNN-run town hall debate  —  CNN's Candy Crowley will be moderating tomorrow night's second presidential debate.  It will be a 90-minute town hall forum at Hofstra University on Long Island, east of New York City.  Both the Obama and Romney campaigns signed a …

Our Awful Economy, In One Chart  —  Michelle Obama says we are “in the midst of a huge recovery.”  That claim is laughable to anyone who has lived through the last four years; this simple chart from the Senate Budget Committee highlights one of the central failings of Obamanomics …

Romney Camp: Obama Not Macho Enough For Latinos  —  Romney gains in Florida.  Democrats say the polls are skewed.  —  President Obama at a Univision Forum last month.  —  Mitt Romney aides say he has made crucial gains among Florida's Hispanic voters by portraying Obama as fatally weak …

The Tea Party Will Win in the End  —  This is a nation that loathes government and always has.  Liberals should not be deluded: The Goldwater revolution will ultimately triumph, regardless of what happens in November.  —  Were the 2012 campaign a Hitchcock movie, Mitt Romney would be the MacGuffin …

Report: Bush takes up painting  —  Former President George W. Bush's low profile since leaving office has left the Texan with a lot of time on his hands — and he's using those hands to keep himself busy.  —  Bush has started painting, mostly portraits of dogs and arid Texas landscapes, according to New York Magazine.

Mitt Romney: The Great Deformer  —  Is Romney really a job creator?  Ronald Reagan's budget director, David Stockman, takes a scalpel to the claims.  —  Bain Capital is a product of the Great Deformation.  It has garnered fabulous winnings through leveraged speculation in financial markets …

“Would You Consider Voting for President Obama?”  —  A man rang my doorbell Saturday afternoon to ask me that question.  I was busy working on a few projects at the time, so his question caught me off guard.  The first thing that came out of my mouth was a very loud, “Absolutely not!

A Nobel Prize for Market Design  —  It is hard to predict what happens in markets and contests.  But last night, I tweeted that I thought the Nobel prize for economics would be awarded for the field of practical market design.  And, that is indeed what the Nobel committee announced today.

Obama: ‘We Got Back Every Dime’ of Bailout; CBO: Bailout Will Lose $24 Billion  —  (CNSNews.com) - President Barack Obama said on Thursday that “we got back every dime we used to rescue the financial system.”  —  According to the Congressional Budget Office, however, the government will lose about $24 billion on the bailout.

Disappearing story lines: An extra boost for Obama  —  Around the time of the Republican National Convention, the single word on the lips of most of the press corps was “likability.”  Mitt Romney did not have it.  We have never elected someone with such a negative image.  He was a stiff.

Oct. 14: Breaking the State-National Poll Stalemate  —  For the last week or so, we have been hoping to decode a confusing polling landscape.  President Obama still appeared to hold a narrow Electoral College lead on the basis of state-by-state surveys, while national polls were suggestive …