It's not as if they're going to pose for a "Girls of Foggy Bottom" Playboy spread, but the female-heavy press corps of the State Department is relishing its girlness nonetheless. Some 11 major news organizations have women covering Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice —the highest number ever.

"The majority of correspondents at the State Department are women," cheers CNN's Zain Verjee. And that's led her and others to dub their girl squad "Diplobabes." Says Verjee: "It's a fun, lighthearted way of referring to ourselves"—and their outings, such as a recent U.N. gathering. "For instance," she says, "in New York, we planned a 'diplobabe' dinner one night." The AP's Anne Gearan says she and the female reporters for Reuters and AFP call each other the "Three Graces."

He was the president when the conservative Washington Times started. And Ronald Reagan loved it. But the paper's politics may be changing in a direction the Gipper wouldn't approve. Insiders say the Times, now headed by two ex-Washington Post-men, is considering endorsing Sen. Barack Obama. Times lifers doubt Obama will get the nod, but just considering it is news—and a blow to Sen. John McCain.

In a very odd legal twist that his lawyers plan to milk, disgraced former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay may soon find himself free of money-laundering charges. The Texas turn: In a related case, judges found that in old money-laundering cases like the one DeLay faces, the law applied only to cash—not check—transactions. DeLay's potential lucky break: His case involves a check, not cash. It may be a technicality, but associates of the Texas political powerhouse say they plan to make it stick, and then use it to assail Ronnie Earle as an out-of-control prosecutor.

This isn't easy, but it's time to call out some of our nation's political heroes for a dastardly deed: pilfering the Senate's warehouses. That's right; LBJ, Harry Truman, and others. It's time for your heirs and museums to cough up the goods, including rare mahogany and walnut desks, swivel chairs, and leather sofas made nearly a century ago just for the Russell Senate Office Building, which turns 100 in March. "We'd like them back," says Associate Senate Curator Melinda Smith. To prepare for the birthday, the curator's office is conducting an in-house search for the 3,109 Russell pieces, largely made by subcontractor S. Karpen Brothers of Chicago for the winning bidder, Geo. W. Cobb Jr. Back in 1908, Cobb won with his bid of $61,715 to build the first batch of 14 different office items for senators and their secretaries. So far, a remarkable 1,130 have been found in the Senate and, says Smith, "I really anticipate finding more." That's because a lot is likely in private hands, the result of some sticky finger work by senators and their aides. Let's be clear: Until a few years ago, there were no rules prohibiting taking furniture. It's most likely that ex-senators wanted them as keepsakes, especially the massive desks. Exactly 131 desks were made, and 72 are now accounted for in the search Smith compares to the thriller National Treasure. The curator's office says the Truman library has one, and two LBJ historical facilities in Texas have a desk each: A third was returned last year. Washington auction houses have also seen some of the rare pieces that have an elevated value because of the history. To make it easier to identify the Karpen furniture, Smith says she might make a wanted poster of the 14 types of furniture to put on the curator's website. As for past senators who have the relics, she says, "We can't tell members what to do, but we would like to excite them to restore our stuff."

Illustrations by Joe Ciardiello for USN&WR

Arkansas could go blue if left up to the Clintons. It hasn't since 1996, when native son Bill Clinton was up for re-election, but Democrats are giving it their all. Hillary Clinton returns to Arkansas October 10 for a rally and a $1,000-a-couple fundraiser reception for Barack Obama at old pal Kaki Hockersmith's Italian-style mansion. You might remember Hockersmith; she's the interior designer who refurbished the White House and the Oval Office in 1992. She also designed Clinton's penthouse at his presidential library. Hockersmith and her husband, Max Mehlberger, are longtime Hillary supporters and hosted a fundraiser for the New York senator during the primary season. They have hosted numerous Democratic fundraisers over the years, including one for John Kerry in 2004. Hockersmith was listed as a Hillary bundler this year, having raised more than $100,000 for Hillary.

One of the event's cohosts, Lisa Ferrell, a Little Rock attorney and former state legislator, was an Obama supporter when being one in Arkansas was not cool. "It's exciting for longtime Obama supporters and longtime Clinton supporters to join together," Ferrell tells our Suzi Parker. Ferrell knows Obama. They attended Harvard Law School together, and she remembers him as a leader. "He would walk into a room with people, and people would look to him to be a leader—not that he would assert himself but that he could mediate. His leadership qualities were evident." Ferrell, who attended the Democratic convention in Denver, has kept up with Obama through mutual friends.

In our latest poll we ask Americans what they'd take if Congress were to offer them a bailout. Most pick gas, groceries, a mortgage payment, and even college courses. But a remarkable 27 percent reject any giveaway and tell us that Congress should use the money to pay down the debt. It's an answer that could have an impact on the debate over whether Washington should pass another citizen stimulus bill.

The Whispers Poll

Washington's latest drive to provide bailouts, special credits, and freebies to stumbling corporations hasn't dripped down to taxpayers so far. If Congress and the White House were to support individuals next, what form would you prefer?

Three months of free groceries 28%
Keep it to pay down the deficit 27%
Three months of gasoline 22%
A free monthly mortgage payment 16%
A free semester of college classes 7%

Source: The Synovate eNation Internet poll was conducted September 24-26 among 1,000 nationally representative households by global market research firm Synovate.

Fans of Sarah Palin are fast learning about her days playing basketball for Wasilla High and her time as the town's mayor. Well, get this: The town is known for something much more important. The Iditarod Trail Committee, which hosts the annual dog-sled race, is headquartered there. From their website is this address:

Iditarod Trail Committee
P.O. Box 870800
Wasilla, AK 99687

What's more, the site displays the temperature in Wasilla, which runs about 50 degrees this time of year. Here at Whispers, we're big fans of the race and figure that if John McCain is elected, the 2009 race might have a very special VIP pulling the starting gun's trigger on March 7 in Anchorage.

The Big Debate is finally here. The only question left: Who will show up? Will it be folksy Amtrak Joe Biden or the lecturing chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Mr. Biden of Delaware? Will the good-old-boy slaying governor of Alaska arrive in St. Louis or the ill-informed target of CBS anchor  Katie Couric's quiz show? In advance of the Show Me Debate, it looked a bit like Joe Amtrak could be facing Miss Teen South Carolina, the poor girl who flubbed a geography question but came back fast before national audiences. Our Matthew Belvedere caught up to Biden literally on Amtrak Wednesday. Well, specifically the pricier Acela train. Here's what Matthew E-mailed me from the 5 p.m. train from New York City to Washington.

Sen. Biden got on the NYC to DC bound Acela train at Delaware —press corps and all. He was going to DC to vote on the bailout bill Wednesday evening. About 15 minutes before we got to DC, Biden walked up and down the aisle—shaking hands and even taking a cell phone picture with one of the passengers. Biden held the phone and took a picture of the two of them. The guy looked at it and said, "You got my chin." One of Biden's aides snapped it again. On Biden's way back to the front of the train with aides in tow, he said of the conversations he had with passengers, " there's a lot of relief on this train." Then he quipped, " Must be lots of brokers on this train." When we arrived in DC, Biden was whisked past an enthusiastic crowd, though one guy observed: " Must be someone important." Another guy shouted "go Joe" from the crowded platform as Biden made his way past the crush of passengers and press—exiting the train en route to the Hill.

It wasn't as good for Palin, who took another hit in the media today after her latest Couric sit-down. Asked about Supreme Court decisions, she fumbled in a way that some are comparing to Caitlin Upton, the 2007 Miss Teen South Carolina. Asked why Americans have difficulty finding the United States on a world map, Upton said: "I personally believe that U.S. Americans are unable to do so because, uhmmm, some people out there in our nation don't have maps and uh, I believe that our, I, education like such as, uh, South Africa, and uh, the Iraq, everywhere like such as, and I believe that they should, uhhh, our education over here in the U.S. should help the U.S., uh, should help South Africa, it should help the Iraq and the Asian countries so we will be able to build up our future, for us." The good news: Upton quickly recovered on national news shows, explaining in a line Palin could use: "Everybody makes a mistake. I'm human."

We want to see your personal photos with Barack Obama, John McCain, Joe Biden, or Sarah Palin. Send the best shots of you and the candidates to campaignphotos@usnews.com , and we'll post the best on our website over the coming weeks.

As if the war, the economy, and Sarah Palin's newspaper reading list weren't enough to swamp voters, now how the candidates will handle a potential four U.S. Supreme Court openings in the next four years is moving to the front burner. That's right, court watchers say that Sen. Barack Obama or Sen. John McCain might get four bites at the apple during the next presidency, meaning that either could establish his point of view on the court for decades. Consider: John Paul Stevens is 88; Ruth Bader Ginsberg is 75; Anthony Kennedy and Antonin Scalia are 72; Steven Breyer is 70; and David Souter is 69. Come Monday, President Bush plans to push the issue. We don't know what he will say, but he plans to travel to Ohio, a key battleground state, to deliver a speech on the court, which returns that day for its fall session. And a prominent conservative judicial watch group, the Judicial Confirmation Network, this week is kicking in $1 million—and likely more—to raise questions about the kind of judges Obama would pick. The group plans to air a TV ad on Fox and in many Ohio and Michigan markets to warn that Obama will tilt the court left. Wendy Long, the group's chief council, told us that conservatives worry Obama will pick "more liberal and judicial activists who treat the court as a policy-making body." Citing a McCain speech about the court, she said that he is more likely to pick strict constitutionalists, like Bush has. Of course, that's a red flag for liberals who want the court to be a little more flexible when addressing key issues like abortion.

Just what are the judicial philosophies of the two candidates? McCain has a special page devoted to it here . Obama doesn't have a special site but has talked on the Senate floor about his view.

We want to see your personal photos with Barack Obama, John McCain, Joe Biden, or Sarah Palin. Send the best shots of you and the candidates to campaignphotos@usnews.com , and we'll post the best on our website over the coming weeks.

This just in from Sen. John McCain's Arizona ranch, where his top aides are prepping McCain's running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, for Thursday's debate with Sen. Joe Biden. It's been a fact of recent political life that when candidates seek debate prep sites, they choose calm over convenience and that's certainly the case here. Check out Meghan McCain's photos of the ranch. Here's what the campaign just told us about the Sedona, Arizona scene:

The Governor's debate prep today is taking place outdoors near a creek on the scenic McCain ranch in Sedona. The serenity and beauty of this setting has contributed to what can be characterized as a relaxed environment. Her family (Todd, Willow, Piper, and Trig) are also at the ranch. Several advisors are participating.

We're hearing lots of talk this afternoon that with the House unable to quickly come up with an alternative to the $700 billion bank bailout it rejected Monday, the Senate is ready to take the lead. It's being described this way, says a source: "It's time for the adult body to take over." And that's from a Republican. A GOP leadership aide said, however, that the effort isn't meant to snub the House, just suggest that it's the other chamber's turn to act. "I think it's more in the line of: The Senate should do something tomorrow. It's possible we will, but we're saying we should."

It may be for nothing, of course, since we reported earlier today that some House conservatives don't believe anything can be done to make them change their "no" vote to a "yes." And for good measure, former House Majority Leader Dick Armey has just issued a letter to supporters—look below—urging voters angry with the bailout to put pressure on those House members who are being targeted by President Bush's team.