Free Republic

Former Vice President Al Gore floated an interesting theory for President Obama's widely panned debate performance: Denver's thin air. "Obama arrived in Denver at 2 PM today — Just a few hours before the debate started," Gore said Wednesday on his Current TV network. "Romney did his debate prep in Denver. When you go to 5,000 feet and you only have a few hours to adjust -- I don't know," Gore said.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The discovery of sarin gas in Iraq and the use of anthrax and ricin against Congress spurred the Senate Wednesday to approve $5.6 billion to help prepare for possible germ or chemical attacks on American soil. The Senate, on a 99-0 vote, approved "Project BioShield" legislation to pay for research, production and stockpiling of vaccines and antidotes for bioterror agents. The House already has approved the legislation, and lawmakers on both sides say they hope to soon have it to President Bush for his signature. Bush commended the Senate for passing the legislation. "BioShield will speed the...