Supreme Court Hands Gay Marriage a Tacit Victory  —  WASHINGTON — In a move that may signal the inevitability of a nationwide right to same-sex marriage, the Supreme Court on Monday let stand appeals court rulings allowing such unions in five states.  —  The development, a major surprise …

Bluegrass Poll: Grimes takes lead over McConnell  —  After two polls in his favor, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell again has slipped behind Democratic challenger Alison Lundergan Grimes, according to the latest Bluegrass Poll.  —  Grimes, Kentucky's secretary of state …

Ebola outbreak: Nurse infected in Spain  —  The Spanish health minister has confirmed that a nurse who treated a victim of Ebola in Madrid has tested positive for the disease.  —  The nurse is said to be the first person in the current outbreak known to have contracted Ebola outside Africa.

Naomi Wolf Suggests ISIL Beheading Videos May Have Been Staged  —  Journalist and author Naomi Wolf suggested Saturday that videos of Islamic State militants beheading American and British hostages may have been staged.  —  The news site Vox flagged a series of Facebook posts in which Wolf questioned …

Panetta: ‘30-year war’ and a leadership test for Obama  —  Former Director of the C.I.A. Leon Panetta discusses the threat posed by ISIS and offers a critical review of Obama's performance as president.  He speaks with USA Today's Susan Page in this edition of Capital Download.

Risen: Journalists must fight or become irrelevant  —  Colby College's Lovejoy winner, a New York Times reporter, faces the possibility of being imprisoned for refusing to reveal his sources.  —  207-861-9247  —  New York Times investigative reporter James Risen speaks with journalism students …

Rush Limbaugh: Obama Wants Americans To Get Ebola As Payback For Slavery  —  Radio host Rush Limbaugh suggested on Monday that President Barack Obama is refusing to divert flights from Ebola-infected countries and close down America's borders because he believes that the nation “deserves” …

Who is Saul Alinsky, and why does the right hate him so much?  —  “The Hillary Letters”, trumpets the Fox News headline.  “Clinton, Saul Alinsky correspondence revealed.”  —  Here's the story: In 1971, Yale law student Hillary Rodham sent a letter to famed community organizer Saul Alinsky.

Pollsters Predict Greater Polling Error In Midterm Elections  —  At FiveThirtyEight, we write about polls regularly, especially ahead of big elections like next month's.  We rate pollsters for their accuracy and whether they lean Republican or Democratic.  And we use their work to inform our election model and Senate forecast.

Lawsuit: State trooper preached about Jesus during traffic stop  —  Ellen Bogan expects police to protect and serve — not proselytize.  —  But she says Indiana State Police Trooper Brian Hamilton pitched Christianity to her when he pulled her over for an alleged traffic violation in August on U.S. 27 in Union County.

Exclusive: Hundreds Of Devices Hidden Inside New York City Phone Booths  —  Beacons can push you ads — and help track your every move.  Update: Hours after BuzzFeed News exposed the devices, the city ordered the removal of the devices.  —  Hours after BuzzFeed News published this report …

EXCLUSIVE: Bill Maher on Islam spat with Ben Affleck: “We're liberals!  We're not crazy tea-baggers”  —  Comedian tells Salon about his clash with Affleck, his “Flip a District” effort — and a recent meal with Rand Paul  —  If you're just catching up on the weekend's politics news …

Cuomo administration edited and delayed key fracking study  —  ALBANY—A federal water study commissioned by the Cuomo administration as it weighed a key decision on fracking was edited and delayed by state officials before it was published, a Capital review has found.