AP - Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said Congress should view the next few months as a "time out" in the highly charged debate over what to do with mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

AP - The United States remains "dangerously vulnerable" to chemical, biological and nuclear attacks seven years after 9/11, a forthcoming independent study concludes. And a House Democrats' report says the Bush administration has missed one opportunity after another to improve the nation's security.

AFP - Barack Obama and John McCain feuded and laid claim to being the authentic candidate of change and reform on Sunday, as their White House showdown roared into a frenetic eight-week final stretch.

CQPolitics.com - The back-to-back Democratic and Republican convention extragavanzas gave both parties a chance to put their best foot forward as the general election campaign gets under way. If their competing efforts are a wash -- and the earliest post-convention polling suggests that -- the advantage remains with the Democrats as far as their push to expand their congressional majorities.

AFP - Barack Obama and John McCain feuded and laid claim to being the authentic candidate of change and reform on Sunday as their White House showdown roared into a frenetic eight-week final stretch.

AP - Auto industry allies hope to secure up to $50 billion in government loans this month that would pay to modernize plants and help struggling car makers build more fuel-efficient vehicles.

AP - The House and Senate reconvene Monday after back-to-back political conventions, both parties eager to use the three-week session to show voters why their candidates are the ones to fix the economy and lower energy prices.

AFP - US presidential candidates jostled for the mantle of change Sunday as more bad economic news threatened to deepen electoral dissatisfaction with the state of the nation.

AP - They embody four uniquely American stories. They offer messages of transformation with two distinct world views. They pursue one goal.