I think Molly Ball is on to something here. I’ve been thinking the same — the debate, the Univision Interview and the convention speech, though she points to the 60 Minutes interview too. It wasn’t just the debate. Obama had had a few similar outings in the month or so before Denver. They just got less attention.

I don’t agree that those events were already dragging Obama down. In themselves they didn’t matter. But they do tell me Obama just hadn’t prepped the way he should have for the high stakes live event.

Soup Kitchen calls out Paul Ryan for using them for a drive-by photo op and for cleaning pots that weren’t even dirty.

Soup kitchen to launch new “You Didn’t Wash That!” slogan.

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Tommy Thompson’s son apologizes for birther joke.

Picture of the day: Paul Ryan washing clean pots.

The new national PPP poll sponsored by Daily Kos and SEIU shows Mitt Romney with a 4 point lead over Barack Obama, hitting the 50% mark.

As I mentioned yesterday, it’s likely that if Mitt Romney wins on November 6th, he’ll move to abolish Medicare in the spring and replace it with a voucher system. That’s in addition to repealing the Affordable Care Act and pushing through a major upper income tax cut. Read More

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Funeral services will be held at noon today in Philadelphia for longtime Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter, who died over the weekend at age 82. Vice President Joe Biden will attend.

Photos from Specter’s long political career, which began as Philadelphia district attorney.

Richard Williamson is Mitt Romney’s top foreign policy advisor, the guy who orchestrated Romney’s original effort to exploit the attack in Libya before it was even clear the US Ambassador had died. Now he’s saying that Romney will insist Obama “man up” and take responsibility for the Ambassador’s death at tonight’s debate. Read More