'Outsider' Palin Used Media Insiders to Win VP Nod

Find out who gets bloodied in Palin's book

(NEWSER) - It's the read all of Washington has been waiting for, but, alas, it has no index. Lest Sarah Palin's friends, foes, and frenemies be forced to read it all the way through to see how they made out, Politico's Jonathan Martin and Andy Barr offer a guide: Friends

• John McCain: Palin praises him, but ruefully recalls his decision to muzzle her on election night.
• Joe Lieberman: The one-time Democrat's advice was “so heartfelt, so genuine, so sincere.”
• Steve Biegun: Rumored to be the aide responsible for connecting Palin with the Candian DJ who pretended to be Sarkozy, Palin calls him "an absolutely stellar professional."

Conservatives meet to make plans

(NEWSER) - A “who’s who of conservative leaders” will meet in Virginia next Wednesday to plot their movement’s future, and the top item on their agenda will be Sarah Palin. Win or lose, many see Palin as the new face of the Republican party, the New York Times reports. Despite all the criticisms, Palin remains a star among conservatives, who are eying her for a 2012 run if McCain loses. More»

Moderates have pushed party out of power, some argue

(NEWSER) - Social conservatives are wrangling with moderates for control of the GOP, plotting a January takeover of the Republican National Committee even if John McCain wins, the Los Angeles Times reports. Moderates like Colin Powell say the party has alienated voters—especially minorities—by narrowing its focus, but “moderating our party is what caused us to lose power,” a state GOP chairman argues. More»

Chides newspaper editors for questions on Palin, truth of ads

(NEWSER) - John McCain showed his combative side in a videotaped interview with the Des Moines Register yesterday, taking umbrage at questions about whether Sarah Palin might be inexperienced and whether some of his campaign ads might have stretched the truth. “I have always had 100%, absolute truth, and that's been my life of putting my country first," McCain asserts with annoyance in one clip. "And an assertion that I've ever done otherwise, I take strong exception to." More»

Focus back on Ohio, Fla., Penn., Mich., despite Obama plans

(NEWSER) - In the final 50 days, the biggest change in Barack Obama's camp is a return to old political strategy, the Washington Post reports. Partly because Sarah Palin's selection has solidified red/blue divisions of past years, Obama is targeting the same swing states—Pennsylvania, Michigan, Ohio, Florida—that determined the past two elections, and have a short list of others that could turn Democrat. More»