Here's the "Breaking News" update currently topping Reuters.com: "McCain says will suspend campaign to return to Washington Thursday to help with bailout negotiations, asks that Friday debate with Obama be postponed so bailout negotiations can continue."

And here, linking to Reuters, is how Time's Mark Halperin describes the same development: "McCain suspends campaign, wants debate postponed."

According to the Minnesota Independent, my hometown won't be prosecuting those journalists who were charged with "presence at an unlawful assembly" during the course of covering the Republican National Convention.

The Independent also reports that St. Paul won't be charging* Democracy Now's Amy Goodman, Nicole Salazar, and Sharif Abdel Kouddous.

Apparently Sarah Palin is officially off limits to the press. ABC's Jake Tapper writes:

Rick Davis, campaign manager for Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., just told Fox News Channel's Chris Wallace that McCain running mate Gov. Sarah Palin won't subject herself to any tough questions from reporters "until the point in time when she'll be treated with respect and deference."

Because I thought John McCain stank it up last Thursday, I didn't find it too worrisome that more people watched his convention-closing speech than watched Barack Obama's the week before.

Whoops. Gallup is reporting that McCain now leads Obama among registered voters, 48 percent to 45 percent. And that particular trend line looks ominous for the Democrats.

ST. PAUL--Suppose Sarah Palin had somehow ended up as the Republican presidential nominee this year. Suppose she’d picked John McCain as her running mate. And suppose he’d given the speech he did tonight. You know what people would be saying? “Crap. She should have gone with Giuliani.”

McCain’s speech wasn’t a total failure.

MINNEAPOLIS--Earlier today I had lunch with an old friend who’s Jewish, pro-Israel, and pro-Obama. When I mentioned reservations about Obama in the Jewish community, he looked worried, but suggested that those reservations were based on a lack of familiarity and starting to dissipate. “My view is that there’s concern because he’s new and they don’t know him,” he said.

ST. PAUL--After Monday's big RNC protest march, I had kind words for the comportment of the police. "Despite their scary-ass outfits," I said, "they ultimately proved to be a pretty restrained bunch."

That description still applies to the police I saw in action that day. It's clear, though, that there's been some deeply troubling behavior by law enforcement during the RNC--including the arrests of Democracy Now's Amy Goodman, Nicole Salazar, and Sharif Abdel Kouddous.

ST. PAUL--In an email, a DQM reader takes vigorous issue with my assessment of Mitt Romney's speech to the RNC:

A B-plus my ass! You won't see or hear a worse speech all year than Mitt's. I was sitting on my couch practically covering my eyes. I don't like him, but I was touting him for VP.

Real quickly, here's my response.

Photo credit: Joeff Davis

DOWNLOAD: Sarah Palin, RNC 2008 Convention Speech [mp3]

ST. PAUL--Here's what really stood out about Sarah Palin's RNC speech tonight:

1. The woman has ice in her veins. This was the biggest moment of her political career to date, probably the biggest moment she'll have during the '08 campaign, and she didn't look nervous.

ST. PAUL--Unless my ears deceived me, our former governor didn’t mention gay marriage once! That’s a big change from his last RNC speech, when he described gay marriage was a threat comparable to Islamic radicalism. He did, however, give a little nod to family values, referring to the fact that we need to raise our children in “homes free from promiscuity.

ST. PAUL--Spent some time this afternoon in "The Fox Experience," which is basically just a great big Fox newsroom located across the street from the Xcel Energy Center. After going through security, delegates and other visitors can pick up some free Fox memoribilia and watch Fox's journalists do their thing. It all happens underneath a great big projected American flag (or something reasonably flag-esque):

ST. PAUL--Like conspiracy theories? Try this one: John McCain’s selection of Sarah Palin wasn’t the result of poor vetting or poor judgment. Instead, it was a crafty, forward-thinking move aimed at turning Palin into a martyr and then using her martyrdom for political benefit.

If that sounds far-fetched, consider what transpired earlier today during a pro-Palin conference at the Xcel Energy Center.

MINNEAPOLIS--Sometimes Ron Paul seems like a bona fide political prophet. Here, for example, is what the Republican congressman from Texas and former GOP presidential candidate had to say about militarism and American culture during the closing speech of his three-day "Rally for the Republic" this evening: "We get taught history in our public schools, and who are the great presidents? The great presidents are always said to be the ones who run a war! Why don't we have the peace candidates be the great presidents?"