NBC Wanted to Hire Jon Stewart As Host of Meet the Press  —  “They were ready to back the Brink's truck up,” one source said  —  2.4k  —  This Sunday marks Chuck Todd's one-month anniversary in the anchor chair at Meet the Press.  Despite an opening-week ratings spike from his exclusive sit …

Nephew of Ebola Patient Thomas Duncan Decries ‘Unfair’ Treatment  —  Ebola patient Thomas Duncan died in the hospital in Dallas Wednesday, after weeks of being treated for the virus, and just hours later his nephew, Joe Weeks, spoke out against the “unfair” way he believes his uncle was being treated by the hospital.

Roberts rebounds in Kansas Senate race, CNN/ORC poll finds  —  Washington (CNN) — Kansas Sen. Pat Roberts has galvanized enough rank-and-file Republican voters to close the gap with independent challenger Greg Orman in one of the nation's hottest races, a new CNN/ORC poll has found.

Obama aides knew of possible White House link to Cartagena prostitution scandal  —  As nearly two dozen Secret Service agents and members of the military were punished or fired following a 2012 prostitution scandal in Colombia, Obama administration officials repeatedly denied that anyone from the White House was involved.

Mary Landrieu replaces campaign manager  —  In what appears to be a significant October campaign shakeup, Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu is replacing her campaign manager and hiring her former chief of staff as a senior adviser.  —  The Democrat has pushed Adam Sullivan out of the manager role …

Exclusive: Senate Democrats Flooding South Dakota Airwaves  —  Will voters in South Dakota and Kansas save Senate Democrats?  —  The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee will spend $1 million in South Dakota — mostly on television and the rest on field operations …

In Defense of Obama  —  President Obama signing the Affordable Care Act.  In our new cover story, Paul Krugman explores the president's successes.

Leon Panetta Is What's Wrong With DC  —  Obama's former defense secretary is out with a scathing new memoir about his time in the White House.  But why should we buy anything he says?  —  When Harry Truman apocryphally said, “if you want a friend in Washington, buy a dog” he might have had someone like Leon Panetta in mind.

Police officer fatally shoots teenager in south St. Louis  —  • By Margaret Gillerman mgillerman@post-dispatch.com 314-340-8126 and Valerie Schremp Hahn vhahn@post-dispatch.com 314-340-8246  —  ST. LOUIS  • An off-duty city officer fatally shot a teenager who opened fire on him Wednesday night, police said.

Can Liberalism Be Saved From Itself?  —  My recent collision with Ben Affleck on Bill Maher's show, Real Time, has provoked an extraordinary amount of controversy.  It seems a postmortem is in order.  —  For those who haven't seen the show, most of what I write here won't make sense unless you watch my segment:

Renewed assault on Kobani; 21 dead in Turkey as Kurds rise  —  (Reuters) - Islamic State fighters launched a renewed assault on the Syrian city of Kobani on Wednesday night, and at least 21 people were killed in riots in neighboring Turkey where Kurds rose up against the government for doing nothing to protect their kin.

For McConnell, it's now or never  —  If Republicans fall short of expectations this fall, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) could face a leadership challenge.  —  Republican senators say there is much riding on the Nov. 4 elections for McConnell, who is gunning to become majority leader …

School Told to Call Kids ‘Purple Penguins’ Because ‘Boys and Girls’ Is Not Inclusive to Transgender  —  A Nebraska school district has instructed its teachers to stop referring to students by “gendered expressions” such as “boys and girls,” and use “gender inclusive” ones such as “purple penguins” instead.

Anthony Kennedy Halts Gay Marriage In Idaho, Nevada  —  Justice Anthony Kennedy issued an order to halt same-sex marriage in Idaho — and apparently also Nevada — on Wednesday after the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals struck down the states' bans one day earlier.

Man shot at Ferguson apartment complex dies  —  • By Christine Byers cbyers@post-dispatch.com 314-340-8087  —  Updated at 10 p.m. with death of shooting victim.  —  FERGUSON  • Police said a man who was shot here about 4 p.m. later died.  —  The shooting was in the 1300 block …