Apparently some of these donations have fallen through the cracks, but given how adamant the Obama campaign has been about not accepting any donations from this particular group, they’d do well to return every penny…and soon.
From Roll Call:
The Obama campaign said it has not changed its policy regarding lobbyist contributions and that it continues to [...]

With leaners
Obama – 48%
McCain – 46%
Without leaners
Obama – 45%
McCain – 43%
The bounce is goneNot a lot of movement today, as the numbers seem to have come back down to earth.
And some potentially troubling news for Obama?
In the race for the White House, there are nearly twice as many uncommitted voters as there were four years [...]

After Alan posted yesterday about McCain wavering on his tax policy, I wondered how long it would take for the fiscal conservative establishment to say, “John, I think we need to have a word with you…”
Here’s how they open the editorial, and this one has to hurt…
One of the miracles of this Presidential election campaign [...]

There’s a new website for those who are looking for something outside the usual partisanship. It’s called Bipartisan Bridge and is striving to be a meeting place/advocacy group for those who what politicians to work towards solutions and stop the endless bickering. Here’s how site founder Brad Kane describes the effort:
The Bipartisan Bridge was created [...]

Poorly…

;-)
(h/t: The Margins of Error)

As mentioned in my previous post about the initial discovery and removal, if the mole had been cancerous the survival rates are still very, very good.
But it looks like McCain won’t have to worry:
(CNN) — A biopsy on a patch of skin removed from John McCain’s temple Monday shows no evidence the Arizona senator has [...]

Obama’s European bounce seems to be showing signs that it is indeed “bounce,” with the inevitable fall back to earth.

The details…
Gallup Poll Daily tracking showed Obama gaining ground over McCain at the end of last week near the culmination of Obama’s highly visible foreign tour. That “bounce” seems to be ebbing now, and the current [...]

John McCain appears to be wavering on his no tax pledge. This past weekend he admitted that “nothing is off the table” in terms of fixing Social Security, and that includes raising the payroll tax.
McCain said he would obviously prefer not to raise taxes but …
While I tend to think taking tax increases off the [...]

As much as the Democratic surge in power has delighted progressives, there are those who are quite unhappy with the conduct of Congress. Glenn Greenwald has a solution: kick conservative Democrats out of office.
Greenwald’s screed reads practically like satire, but since he’s got all the humor of a slab of granite, he’s clearly decided that [...]

The title of Marc Ambinder’s post today is “Sebelius, Kaine, Bayh, Biden” and I can believe it. These are four of the names that have been mentioned consistently, although I haven’t seen Kaine acting the surrogate for Obama very much. And for that matter, neither has Bayh. But maybe that’s by design?
Here’s what Ambinder thinks…
Sebelius [...]

How can we continue to tell folks that this economy works for them when it’s obvious that only folks at the top get the big rewards and none of it ever seems to trickle down?
From Contrarian Profits…
Let us explain how the financial industry worked. A guy borrowed some money from some other guy who borrowed [...]

1. Virginia Governor Tim Kaine told the Washington Post that he’s had “very serious conversations with Obama” regarding the vice presidency. On Fox News Sunday, The Weekly Standard’s William Kristol said he thinks Obama’s already decided on Kaine, adding that “there will be a secret meeting” with him on Tuesday. He added further speculation that [...]

1. McCain on Tim Pawlenty: “He’s a great, fine person. He was reelected in one of the toughest reelection years in the history of the Republican Party. He comes from — his father, I’m pretty sure, drove a truck. He’s a great success story. He’s been able to work across the aisle in Minnesota with [...]

With leaners
Obama – 47%
McCain – 46%
Without leaners
Obama – 44%
McCain – 42%
The bounce is gone, and as I mentioned yesterday, I trust Rasmussen’s numbers more because they’ve always seem to be more stable.
Tully was nice enough to point out that it’s most likely due to the fact that Rasmussen polls “likely” voters, and Gallup [...]

I’ve debated for awhile whether or not to write this post. But part of the difference between a blogger and, say, a reporter is that we admit our biases upfront. So I felt I needed to say the following:
For most of this election, I’ve supported John McCain. But I can’t say I’m comfortable in his [...]

Disheartening news for the next President…
WASHINGTON (AFP) — The US government’s budget deficit is expected to balloon to a record 482 billion dollars in the next fiscal year, largely due to an emergency economic stimulus and a slowing economy, a White House report showed Monday.
The report revealed that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) [...]

Amidst less-than-stellar economic news, both Barack Obama and John McCain addressed the economy today and both took swipes at the Bush administration.
Obama, while not naming Bush specifically, said irresponsibility on Wall Street and in Washington has caused the current problems – presumably referring to a lack of regulation and oversight. Obama said he would mix [...]

Since McCain has had serious skin cancer problems before, this could prove to be significant news or it could prove to be nothing at all. We simply don’t know yet.
From Wash Post:
BAKERSFIELD, California (Reuters) – Republican presidential candidate John McCain, who has suffered from skin cancer in the past, said on Monday his doctor has [...]

However, that’s only among a narrower sample. Among registered voters, Obama still retains a lead.
Likely Voters
McCain – 49%
Obama – 45%
Registered Voters
Obama – 47%
McCain – 44%
Gallup with some details…
Gallup editor Frank Newport tells Jill that “registered voters are much more important at the moment,” because Election Day is still 100 days away, but that the likely-voter [...]

He drops one today, but still retains a healthy lead over McCain.

Will the bump last?:
Obama’s progress was coincident with his highly visible foreign tour, and it is not unreasonable to expect that his lead over McCain may settle back to a margin closer to what Gallup has measured for most of the summer as [...]