AP - The former treasurer of the National Republican Congressional Committee pleaded guilty Friday to embezzling more than $840,000 from a variety of political committees, including an NRCC account for annual fundraising dinners with President George W. Bush.

AP - Former President Bill Clinton slammed Republicans Friday for their stewardship of the economy during their years in power in Washington, and said the party's campaign message heading into the 2010 midterm elections is: "Put us in because the Democrats didn't fix what we did to you in 21 months."

Time.com - Nine weeks before the midterm elections, Barack Obama finds himself on the wrong side of the polls. Where did all that adoration go -- and is a Republican sweep next?

CQPolitics.com - Pre-primary fundraising reports filed Thursday with the Federal Election Commission provided fresh evidence that New York is a state to watch this cycle, with competitive primaries coming up Sept. 14 and the potential for Republicans to pick up a handful of seats in November.

Reuters - The former treasurer of a top Republican campaign committee pleaded guilty to embezzling $845,000 over 6-1/2 years and likely will face three years in prison, U.S. prosecutors said on Friday.

AP - Twenty-one years after she began her undergraduate work, Republican Christine O'Donnell can accurately call herself a college graduate.

The Christian Science Monitor - As campaigns move into full gear after Labor Day, Republicans have moved well within striking distance of taking over the House of Representatives, especially if the economic recovery continues to fizzle.

AFP - President Barack Obama should fire his top economic advisers and quit his "job-killing" policies, the top House Republican said after US unemployment jumped to 9.6 percent in August.

U.S. News & World Report - As if Democrats don't have enough problems, the economy they've tried so hard to revive is lapsing back into a stupor. By the midterm elections in November, it might even seem worse than it is now. And that could add fresh punch to the Republican "wave" some forecasters think could sweep Democrats out of the majority in both houses of Congress.

AP - Republican Jesse Kelly was still basking in the glow of his victory in an Arizona congressional primary when the Democratic congresswoman he's trying to unseat released a scathing TV ad branding him "a risk" who would gamble away people's retirement savings.

Time.com - Nine weeks before the midterm elections, Barack Obama finds himself on the wrong side of the polls. Where did all that adoration go -- and is a Republican sweep next?

AP - Delaware Republicans call Senate hopeful Christine O'Donnell a liar who "could not be elected dog catcher" in a fierce attack that underscores GOP fears of the tea party-backed candidate knocking off top recruit Rep. Mike Castle and winning the nomination.

AP - Republican U.S. Senate candidate Bill Binnie knows a little something about immigrating to the United States.

CQPolitics.com - Republican strategists wary of relying on a Republican National Committee beset by controversy are relying on third-party organizations to fund and manage crucial ground game operations for the midterm elections.

The Christian Science Monitor - Democrats will defy convention wisdom and keep control of both the Senate and House in November’s midterm elections, predicts Richard Trumka, America’s top labor union leader.

McClatchy Newspapers - WASHINGTON — The Democrats are likely to lose 47 seats and control of the House of Representatives in November's elections, a top political analyst says in a new forecast Thursday.

AP - The defeat of Republican U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski by an upstart fiscal conservative in Alaska's GOP primary could mark a significant shift for a state that has so long relied on federal pork to survive. The outcome was also an unexpected blow to the seniority Alaska has enjoyed in the Senate.

AP - Is the tea party the new Republican Party? The grass-roots network of fed-up conservative-libertarian voters displayed its power in its biggest triumph of the election year: the toppling of Sen. Lisa Murkowski in Alaska's GOP primary. Political novice Joe Miller is the fifth tea party insurgent to win a GOP Senate nominating contest, an upset that few, if any, saw coming.

CQPolitics.com - With Sen. Lisa Murkowski conceding the Alaska GOP primary Tuesday night to lawyer Joe Miller, some Democrats now believe they have a chance to pick up a seat in a state no one thought could be in play in a cycle where Democrats are facing a significant loss of seats.

AP - Is the tea party the new Republican Party? The grass-roots network of fed-up conservative-libertarian voters displayed its power in its biggest triumph of the election year: the toppling of Sen. Lisa Murkowski in Alaska's GOP primary. Political novice Joe Miller is the fifth tea party insurgent to win a GOP Senate nominating contest, an upset that few, if any, saw coming.