Top Items:
Mark Halperin / The Page:
Moderator Role Under Scrutiny — Before the Debate — In a rare example of political unity, both the Romney and Obama campaigns have expressed concern to the Commission on Presidential Debates about how the moderator of the Tuesday town hall has publicly described her role, TIME has learned.
Discussion:
American Prospect, The Other McCain, BuzzFeed, Mediaite, NationalJournal.com, FP Passport, TVNewser, New York Magazine, The Daily Caller, The Caucus, ABCNEWS, Examiner, The PJ Tatler, Poynter, The Fix, The Daily Dish, The Hill, Newsy, Betsy's Page, Hot Air, Taylor Marsh, ABCNEWS, The Gateway Pundit, Booman Tribune, The Raw Story, Wake up America, Media Decoder, NewsBusters.org blogs and Shakesville, more at Mediagazer »
RELATED:
Dylan Byers / Politico:
Candy Crowley: 'I'm going to react' at debate — The town hall debate is the one presidential face-off in which the audience gets to ask the questions. — But don't tell that to moderator Candy Crowley. — Like any journalist worthy of the assignment, Crowley concedes that the debate …
Discussion:
Gretawire, Roger L. Simon, TVNewser, Mediaite and Althouse
Washington Post:
Presidential contest tight nationally ahead of second debate — On the eve of their second debate, President Obama and challenger Mitt Romney remain locked in a virtual dead heat nationally, with Republicans showing increased enthusiasm for their nominee after his big win in the first debate …
RELATED:
James Hohmann / Politico:
Battleground Poll: Mitt more likable — Mitt Romney is finally getting his Sally Field moment: They like him. At least more than they used to. — President Barack Obama clings to a 1-percentage-point national lead in a head-to-head matchup with the GOP nominee, but the first presidential debate …
Discussion:
First Read, CNN, Washington Wire, Hot Air, LifeNews.com, Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog, Talking Points Memo, Washington Monthly, AEIdeas, National Review and ABCNEWS
Steve Benen / msnbc.com:
The wrong issue for the wrong candidate
The wrong issue for the wrong candidate
Discussion:
Firedoglake, American Prospect, Washington Monthly, Mother Jones and Hullabaloo
David E. Sanger / New York Times:
Jihadists Receiving Most Arms Sent to Syrian Rebels — WASHINGTON — Most of the arms shipped at the behest of Saudi Arabia and Qatar to supply Syrian rebel groups fighting the government of Bashar al-Assad are going to hard-line Islamic jihadists, and not the more secular opposition groups …
Discussion:
JustOneMinute, Belmont Club, Via Meadia, Outside the Beltway, Wired, Weasel Zippers, emptywheel, Prairie Weather, Mother Jones, Jihad Watch and The Jawa Report
RELATED:
Jackson Diehl / Washington Post:
How Obama bungled the Syrian revolution
How Obama bungled the Syrian revolution
Discussion:
Power Line and Right Wing News
Marc A. Thiessen / Washington Post:
The new Middle East coverup: Biden caught in Syria debate falsehood
The new Middle East coverup: Biden caught in Syria debate falsehood
Discussion:
protein wisdom, Conservative Commune and Vodkapundit
USA Today:
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.
Discussion:
Business Insider and National Review
RELATED:
Jonathan Martin / Politico:
The 3 states that may decide the election
The 3 states that may decide the election
Discussion:
Alan Colmes' Liberaland
Ann Romney / CNN:
Romney not taking in ‘The View’ — (CNN) - After criticizing chat program “The View” on a secretly recorded video, and subsequently agreeing to come on the show, Mitt Romney has cancelled his upcoming appearance citing scheduling conflicts. — Barbara Walters, the show's creator and co-host, announced the news Monday.
Discussion:
The Hill
RELATED:
Rebecca Shapiro / The Huffington Post:
Mitt Romney ‘View’ Appearance: Republican Presidential Candidate Cancels On ABC Talk Show (VIDEO)
Mitt Romney ‘View’ Appearance: Republican Presidential Candidate Cancels On ABC Talk Show (VIDEO)
Discussion:
Daily Kos
Alex Weprin / TVNewser:
Mitt Romney Cancels On ‘The View’
Mitt Romney Cancels On ‘The View’
Discussion:
Alan Colmes' Liberaland and Mediaite
Nate Silver / FiveThirtyEight:
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 …
Discussion:
skippy the bush kangaroo and The Daily Dish
Frank Rich / New York Magazine:
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 …
Discussion:
protein wisdom and National Review
David Stockman / The Daily Beast:
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 …
Discussion:
The Political Carnival, Mother Jones, AMERICAblog, The Daily Beast and The Daily Dish
Greg Sargent / Washington Post:
How Romney can win — and how Obama can avoid it — One thing Obama urgently needs to prevent during tomorrow's debate is this: He can't allow Mitt Romney to become the candidate of change in this race. And that may be in the process of happening. — In an interview this morning …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, The Atlantic Online, Democracy Corps and The Daily Dish
Wall Street Journal:
Jackson Is Subject of Criminal Probe — Federal prosecutors and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are in the final stages of a criminal probe into allegations that Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. misused campaign money to decorate his house, according to people familiar with the matter.
RELATED:
Natasha Korecki / Chicago Sun Times:
Report: Jackson allegedly improperly used campaign money to decorate home
Report: Jackson allegedly improperly used campaign money to decorate home
Discussion:
Jammie Wearing Fools
Jim Rutenberg / New York Times:
Gary Johnson Libertarian Candidate Worries Republicans — When he was running for the Republican presidential nomination last year, Gary Johnson, the former two-term Republican governor of New Mexico, drew ridicule from mainstream party members as he advocated legalized marijuana and a 43 percent cut in military spending.
Discussion:
The Maddow Blog, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and No More Mister Nice Blog
Daniel Strauss / Ballot Box:
Poll finds Akin with slight lead over McCaskill — Rep. Todd Akin (R-Mo.) leads Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) in his bid for the Senate by a slim margin, according to a new poll. — Wenzel Strategies, a Republican leaning pollster, found Akin leading McCaskill 49 to 45 percent with 7 percent undecided.
Discussion:
Mediaite
New York Magazine:
Bush in the Wilderness — And should that happen, the answer in be 2016 may be a GOP nominee with the courage of his more centrist positions. In other words: Jeb. Even his own son, George P., acknowledges that his father's declaration that 2012 was “probably my time” contains a significant caveat.
Discussion:
Politico, USA Today, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and Mediaite
Igor Volsky / ThinkProgress:
Top Romney Surrogate Says Romney ‘Should Be Exploiting’ Libya Incident For Political Gain — Top Mitt Romney surrogate Rudy Giuliani admitted that the GOP is accusing President Obama of covering up the violence that led to the death of an American ambassador in Libya for political gain.
Discussion:
Alan Colmes' Liberaland, The Political Carnival and The Raw Story
RELATED:
Justin Sink / The Hill:
Giuliani: White House ‘trying to cover up this scandal’ in Libya until after election
Giuliani: White House ‘trying to cover up this scandal’ in Libya until after election
Discussion:
Politico, Instapundit and Jammie Wearing Fools
JSOnline:
Tommy Thompson's son calls for sending Obama back ‘to Kenya’ — Jason Thompson, the son of former Gov. Tommy Thompson, was caught on video Sunday suggesting at a Republican event that voters this fall could send President Barack Obama back “to Kenya.” — “We have the opportunity …
The Caucus:
Romney Raises $170 Million to Finance Final Push — Mitt Romney and the Republican Party have begun a late push to raise tens of millions of dollars in the closing weeks of the election, cash that will finance a last-minute barrage of advertising that Mr. Romney's aides believe is critical to beating President Obama.
Discussion:
Hot Air
Josh Gerstein / Politico:
Obama: ‘We are winning in the battleground states’ — President Barack Obama believes his campaign is ahead in the swing states expected to decide next month whether he prevails in his bid for a second term, according to a little-noticed radio interview he conducted on Friday.
Discussion:
Washington Free Beacon
RELATED:
Zeke Miller / BuzzFeed:
Biden To Appear On Network Morning Shows After Obama-Romney Debate
Biden To Appear On Network Morning Shows After Obama-Romney Debate
Discussion:
TVNewser