Government

The first official presidential debate isn't until Oct. 3 in Denver. But as The New York Times writes, last night on CBS News' 60 Minutes there was something of a "shadow debate that offered a likely preview of the tone and substance" of what will happen on stage next week.

Many pundits and pollsters say that this year's Presidential race is already over: polls show Democratic President Barack Obama with a commanding lead over Republican challenger, Mitt Romney.

Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill and Republican challenger Todd Akin sparred about budgets, Medicare and other big issues in their first face-to-face debate earlier today.

President Obama may have the overwhelming support of Latino voters in his race against Republican Mitt Romney, but that didn't get him a free pass during his appearance Thursday at Univision's presidential candidate forum.

Obama faced repeated tough questions from the hosts of the forum on the Spanish-language channel, and from some in the audience, for his failure to deliver on his promise as a candidate in 2008 to push comprehensive immigration reform during his first year in the White House.

With less than seven weeks to go before the presidential election, former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty is leaving his job as co-chairman of the Mitt Romney campaign to take a top Washington lobbying job.

Pawlenty, 51, will become the next CEO of the Financial Services Roundtable, whose 100 members include many of the nation's largest banks and insurance and securities companies.

Of all the ideological battles being fought in this country, none will have more impact on its future than those being waged between the White House and the U.S. Supreme Court.