Well I used to be disgusted

Now I try to be amused

That's my reaction to Gov. Sarah Palin's offer in Michigan to have voters play "Stump the Candidate."

This is an open thread.

The Reuters/Zogby poll released today has Sen. Barack Obama leading John McCain by 2 points, wiping out McCain's pre-convention lead.

Obama leads McCain among likely voters by 47 percent to 45 percent, within the poll's 3.1 percent margin of error. He gained ground in the last month among independent and women voters and on the question of who could best manage the faltering U.S. economy.

Obama wiped out McCain's 5-point edge in a Reuters/Zogby poll taken in August before the nominating conventions, a sign the Arizona senator could be drifting back to earth from what other opinion polls showed was a post-convention surge.

Sarah Palin isn't helping McCain with anyone except his core base. [More...]

The National Jewish Democratic Council is calling on the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations to rescind its invitation to Sarah Palin to participate in the protest rally against Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad:

Monday’s protest against Ahmadinejad is too important to be tainted by partisanship. Unfortunately, the campaign of Senator John McCain is much more interested in scoring political points than insuring there is bipartisan solidarity around the anti- Ahmadinejad efforts. Therefore, we call upon the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations to withdraw the invitation to Governor Sarah Palin and we applaud Senator Hillary Clinton’s decision to not attend the rally after the attendance of Palin was announced.

By withdrawing Palin’s invitation, the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations will be able to return the focus to America’s outrage towards the genocidal musings and nuclear ambitions of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

My earlier post on Hillary's refusal to appear with Palin is here.

Yesterday John McCain opposed federal intervention to keep AIG alive. Today he supports it. Sen. Obama had a great line today when commenting on McCain's changed position:

"But it sounds like he got a little carried away, because yesterday, John McCain actually said that if he's president, he'll take on the - quote - 'old boys network' in Washington. I am not making this up. This is someone who's been in Congress for 26 years - who put seven of the most powerful Washington lobbyists in charge of his campaign - and now he tells us that he's the one who will take on the old boy network.

"The old boy network? In the McCain campaign, that's called a staff meeting," Obama said.

Good one.

Great ad.

CNN just aired the McCain Palin Michigan town forum live here. (Link no longer working since it's over.) I caught the last ten minutes or so.

Question by young woman on health care. McCain answered that Government run health care is not in the best interest of Americans.

He favors a $5k refundable tax credit for people to get the health plan they, not their employer, chooses. He favors Community health centers, outcome- based treatment, instead of paying for evey conceivable test, we cover people for a year. Stresses wellness and fitness, citing an increase in child obesity. He will reward you when you succeed.

More...

Today is Constitution Day. The ACLU launched a new campaign today encouraging voters to consider the Constitution in deciding whom to vote for.

• This is Your Bill of Rights on Drugs

• The (Constitutitonal) Aches and Pains of Over-Incarceration

Take the pledge (pdf):

More...

Dos Caras...Two-Faced. That's the theme of Sen. Barack Obama's new ad airing in Spanish in Colorado and New Mexico.

The Obama campaign has released new radio and TV ads in Spanish that seek to tie Sen. John McCain to anti-immigrant comments made by radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh. The ads also suggest the Republican has "dos caras" -- "two faces" -- when it comes to his relations with Latino voters. The new messages, airing in Colorado, Nevada and New Mexico, come in response to recent Spanish-language ads by the McCain campaign that suggest Obama is responsible for the collapse of last year's bipartisan immigration reform efforts.

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A new CNN/Time Magazine poll came out today.

• In Indiana and North Carolina, McCain/Palin leads Obama/Biden, 51% to 45%, and 48% to 47%, respectively.

• Obama leads McCain in the states of Ohio and Wisconsin, 49% to 47% and 50% to 47%, respectively.

• The new poll finds the candidates in a dead heat in Florida, each with 48%.

Bottom line: Factoring in the margins of error, Florida, North Carolina and Ohio remain in a virtual tie between John McCain and Barack Obama. As to the electoral map, CNN says: [More...]

Former federal prosecutor Edward O'Callaghan, now working for the John McCain campaign, is actively involved in fighting the subpoenas issued in TrooperGate, the investigation into whether Gov. Sarah Palin abused the power of her office.

O'Callaghan resigned as co-chief of the terrorism and national security unit of the U.S. attorney's office in New York in July to work for McCain. Newsweek reports:

He told NEWSWEEK that he and another McCain campaign lawyer (whom he declined to identify) are serving as legal "consultants" to Thomas Van Flein, the Anchorage lawyer who at state expense is representing Palin and her office in the inquiry. "We are advising Thomas Van Flein on this matter to the extent that it impacts on the national campaign," he said. "I'm helping out on legal strategy."

And, it appears a conflict of interest may have arisen. Palin's lawyer is no longer representing the Office of the Governor -- as of last week, he is only representing Palin and her husband. [More...]

Another bad day on Wall St. CNN's Money reports:

Dow slumps 250 points as AIG bailout adds to fears about the financial markets. WaMu, Goldman and Morgan Stanley tumble.

The press will not ignore TrooperGate. The Alaska Attorney General informs us that Gov. Sarah Palin's employees won't honor the subpoenas to testify about TrooperGate.

In a letter to state Sen. Hollis French, the Democrat overseeing the investigation, Republican Attorney General Talis Colberg asked that the subpoenas be withdrawn. He also said the employees would refuse to appear unless either the full state Senate or the entire Legislature votes to compel their testimony.

Colberg, who was appointed by Palin, said the employees are caught between their respect for the Legislature and their loyalty to the governor, who initially agreed to cooperate with the inquiry but has increasingly opposed it since McCain chose her as his running mate.

More....