This is no way to get us up & running  —  Generators should give power to people — not marathon  —  As hundreds of thousands of Big Apple residents suffer in homes left without power by Hurricane Sandy, two massive generators are being run 24/7 in Central Park — to juice a media tent for Sunday's New York City Marathon.

Going out on a limb: Romney beats Obama, handily … Fundamentals usually prevail in American elections.  That's bad news for Barack Obama.  True, Americans want to think well of their presidents and many think it would be bad if Americans were perceived as rejecting the first black president.

Romney: Elect Me Or House GOP Will Wreck The Economy  —  In what his campaign billed as his “closing argument,” Mitt Romney warned Americans that a second term for President Obama would have apocalyptic consequences for the economy in part because his own party would force a debt ceiling disaster.

CNN Poll: Obama 50% - Romney 47% in Ohio  —  (CNN) - With four days to go until the presidential election, a new poll indicates the race for arguably the most important battleground state remains very close.  —  According to a CNN/ORC International survey released Friday …

Why Did We Abandon Benghazi Compound?  —  Yet more amazing revelations continue to emerge about the Benghazi attack.  —  Foreign Policy magazine has a story on its website by two Dubai-based Arabic TV reporters who visited the site of the former U.S. consulate on Oct. 26 …

The Obama defectors  —  Barring some kind of last-minute surge, President Obama is going to fall well shy of the 52.9 percent he won in the 2008 election.  It might still be good enough to win, but it won't be resounding.  —  But just who exactly has deserted Obama over the last four years?

OBAMA: VOTING ‘BEST REVENGE’ AGAINST ROMNEY  —  As is often the case when he goes off-teleprompter, at a campaign stop in Ohio today, Obama revealed a side of himself we haven't seen since Hurricane Sandy gave him the opportunity to play The American President for a few days.

Karl Rove's Mission Accomplished  —  The estimable Rick Perlstein has a fascinating essay about the seamless continuum from direct-mail marketing scams to direct-mail right-wing fundraising, and from there to the whole character of modern movement conservatism.  Go read.

Nov. 1: The Simple Case for Saying Obama Is the Favorite  —  If you are following some of the same people that I do on Twitter, you may have noticed some pushback about our contention that Barack Obama is a favorite (and certainly not a lock) to be re-elected.

WaPo-ABC tracking poll: Most see U.S. on ‘wrong track’.  So can Obama win?  —  Most likely voters see the country as seriously offtrack; barely half say the president is doing a good job; and the challenger's supporters rival the incumbent's when it comes to being “fired up,” …

Biden: 'There's Never Been A Day In The Last Four Years I've Been Proud To Be His Vice President'  —  Joe Biden, at a campaign event today said, “There's never been a day in the last four years I've been proud to be his vice president.”

Employment Situation Summary  —  Transmission of material in this release is embargoed USDL-12-2164 until 8:30 a.m. (EDT) Friday, November 2, 2012  —  Technical information:  —  Household data: (202) 691-6378 * cpsinfo@bls.gov * www.bls.gov/cps

House Republicans may actually add to their majority on Election Day  —  The Fix now projects that the 2012 race for the House is likely to be close to a draw, and there is even a fair chance that Republicans will add to their biggest majority in six decades on Tuesday.

How Victoria's Secret Saved the National Guard During Hurricane Sandy  —  On Monday night, Hurricane Sandy hit the armory of the New York Army National Guard's 69th Infantry Regiment, leaving the soldiers without power, hot water, or anything but the most rudimentary means of communicating with the outside world.