Obama makes rare campaign trail appearance, people leave early  —  (Reuters) - President Barack Obama made a rare appearance on the campaign trail on Sunday with a rally to support the Democratic candidate for governor in Maryland, but early departures of crowd members while he spoke underscored his continuing unpopularity.

The Travel Ban and the New Czar  —  Saturday morning I was thinking of Pascal, as who was not.  He had a mordant observation about the physicians of his time.  Doctors in those days dressed fancy—long robes, tall hats.  From memory: Why do doctors wear tall hats?  Because they can't cure you.

CNN Host Grills Cruz About Ebola And GOP Opposition To Surgeon General (VIDEO)  —  CNN host Candy Crowley on Sunday challenged Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) while asking him how Republican decisions may have negatively impacted the United States' ability to address Ebola.

Black Vote Seen as Last Hope for Democrats to Hold Senate  —  WASHINGTON — The confidential memo from a former pollster for President Obama contained a blunt warning for Democrats.  Written this month with an eye toward Election Day, it predicted “crushing Democratic losses across the country” …

Govt tells Christian ministers: Perform same-sex weddings or face jail, fines  —  Officials threaten to punish senior citizen couple - both ordained pastors - if they decline to officiate same-sex ceremonies  —  COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho - Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys filed a federal lawsuit …

‘Clinton Democrats’ falling flat  —  Self-proclaimed Clinton Democrats are struggling this election cycle, and not even their powerful namesakes may be enough to save them.  —  Both Bill and Hillary Clinton have tried to turn on their charms to help centrist Democrats in Kentucky and Arkansas.

Britain threatens Internet ‘trolls’ with two years in jail  —  12 hrs ago  —  London (AFP) - People found guilty of Internet “trolling” in Britain could be jailed for up to two years under government proposals outlined on Sunday, following a number of high-profile cases of abusive and threatening behaviour on Twitter.

Next - Obama To Sidestep Congress On Iran  —  Who needs Congress anyway?  David Sanger of the Times reports that Team Obama is strategizing to “suspend” Iranian sanctions rather than end them, therby sidestepping any need for action by Congress.  No word on whether this will follow or precede executive action on immigration.

Warren in Minnesota: ‘The game is rigged’  —  NORTHFIELD, Minn. — Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) brought her populist message Saturday to this small college town to rev up the final weeks of Sen. Al Franken's reelection campaign, but also to claim the mantle of the modern liberal movement's political godfather.

Tennessee state Sen. Jim Summerville arrested for stalking, assault one month after public intoxication charge  —  The outgoing Republican senator was arrested twice this weekend after a Dickson, Tenn., neighbor filed stalking charges and Summerville allegedly threatened her the next day.

The Cost of Campaigns  —  Beyond its durable imprint on American civic life, the Watergate scandal of four decades ago left its mark on political language.  For one thing, that suffix will not go away.  Commit a major folly, and you can count on some headline writer describing it as Whatever-gate.

A toxic president  —  Chalk it up to karma, fate or bad luck.  Whatever you call it, the Ebola scare is proof that Bad Things Happen to Bad Presidents.  —  The morphing of what is a single case into near panic is, according to medical experts, unwarranted.

Where's the empathy for Ebola's African victims?  —  The Ebola epidemic … (CNN) — The world's response to Ebola is its own sort of tragedy.  —  Two facts make the point clear:  — The United Nations has asked for $1 billion to fight the spread of the virus.