AP - The head of the House tax-writing committee acknowledged Wednesday that he owes about $5,000 to the Internal Revenue Service for failing to report income on his returns.

AFP - The stump speeches of John McCain and Sarah Palin are shaping up to be long on patriotism and personality and short on policy as the Republican running mates crisscross battleground states ahead of the November 4 presidential election.

AP - Sarah Palin was a relative newcomer to politics when she took on Alaksa's Republican boss and quietly challenged his ethics. From the outside, though, it looked as if she might be part of cover-up, and Palin feared her once-promising political future was over almost before it began.

AP - Republican Rep. Ron Paul, the libertarian-leaning Texas lawmaker who attracted a devoted following in the GOP primaries, said Wednesday he rejected an appeal to endorse John McCain's presidential bid.

AP - Obama says Bush plan to increase Afghanistan force is too slow and not enough ... Obama promises twice the money for charter schools ... Report: Palin's expense statements shows she tapped state travel allowance while at home ... Biden says McCain doesn't understand that economy is in tough times ... Former NY Mayor Ed Koch endorses Obama ... Gore to give keynote at Iowa Democratic dinner

AP - Reliably Republican, Nebraska has been giving the GOP all its electoral votes in every presidential election since 1964. Democratic candidate Barack Obama is trying to take just one of its five votes this year by focusing on Omaha, the state's biggest, most diverse city.

AP - Listening to Barack Obama, it can seem like Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin is the main person standing between him and the White House instead of John McCain.

AP - House Republican leaders demanded Tuesday that embattled Rep. Charles Rangel be removed from his post as chairman of a tax-writing committee while an ethics panel reviews his personal finances.

AP - Sarah Palin thought her star had burned out early, a promising political career dead thanks to the wayward ethics of Alaska's Republican boss.