Obama Suggests ISIS Must Be Destroyed (or Maybe Not)  —  ANALYSIS:  —  TALLINN, Estonia - President Obama has condemned the beheading of U.S. journalist Steven Sotloff, saying “we will not be intimidated ... justice will be done.”  —  But he offered a mixed message today about what exactly the United States wants to do about ISIS.

DNC chair Wasserman Schultz rips Scott Walker on women's issues  —  Democratic National Committee Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a member of the U.S. House from Florida, is shown speaking at the University of Miami in Coral Gables in 2012.  On Wednesday in Milwaukee, she criticized Gov. Scott Walker for his record on women's issues.

FiveThirtyEight's Senate Model Is Back And It Gives Republicans The Edge  —  The FiveThirtyEight Senate model is launching Wednesday.  We'll be rolling it out in stages, with additional features, functionality and further methodological detail.  We'll also be unveiling our new set …

Louisiana Marriage Ban Is Constitutional, Federal Judge Rules  —  “The State of Louisiana has a legitimate interest under a rational basis standard of review for addressing the meaning of marriage through the democratic process.”  The first federal court ruling upholding a ban in the past year.

Biden: ISIL will reside in hell  —  Vice President Joe Biden on Wednesday delivered a fiery response to the killing of American journalist Steven Sotloff, telling Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant militants that the U.S. will “follow them to the gates of hell.”  —  “[W]hen people harm Americans, we don't retreat.

EXCLUSIVE: ISIS fighter worked at Minneapolis airport  —  He was the second known American killed while fighting for ISIS in Syria, and the second from Minnesota — and a Fox 9 exclusive uncovering his employment history is raising a few eyebrows.  —  An airport is probably the last place anyone …

Juvenile court: Michael Brown had no serious felony convictions, did not face felony charges  —  • By Jeremy Kohler jkohler@post-dispatch.com 314-340-8337  —  Updated with more details.  —  CLAYTON  • Michael Brown was never found delinquent of the juvenile equivalents …

Sen. Coburn: Let's change Constitution  —  Sen. Tom Coburn is pushing for a national convention to amend the Constitution.  —  The Oklahoma Republican, who has grown disenchanted with gridlock in Washington, will officially launch his effort after he retires from the Senate in a few months.

U.S., allies to stage exercises in West Ukraine as battles rage in East  —  (Reuters) - As fighting between the army and Russian-backed rebels rages in eastern Ukraine, preparations are under way near its western border for a joint military exercise this month with more than 1,000 troops from the United States and its allies.

Rand Paul's remarkable metamorphosis  —  After declaring certain Christian defenders of Israel to be “warmongers,” arguing we could not defeat the Islamic State without being an air force for Iran, opining we didn't have a national security interest in Syria or Iraq, accusing interventionists …

Cops: Gun Range Claimed Uzi Release Forms ‘Were Blown Away By The Wind’  —  Staff at an Arizona gun range reportedly told investigators that the release forms signed by the family of a 9-year-old girl who accidentally killed her instructor with an Uzi last week were unavailable because they had been “blown away by the wind.”

Rauner admits $100K wine club; Quinn whines of banana breakfast  —  Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner is known for wearing an $18 watch in TV campaign ads.  But when it comes to wine, he's not exactly popping open bottles of “Two-Buck Chuck.”  —  On Tuesday, Rauner disclosed …

Democrat Chad Taylor drops out of U.S. Senate race against Pat Roberts, Greg Orman  —  ›  —  ‹  —  The Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate has decided to drop out of the race, opening room for an independent to draw a broader base of support.

Why so many Christians won't back down on gay marriage  —  A traditional view of marriage is about much more than today's politics.  It's deeply woven into the 2,000-year-old ethic at the heart of our faith.  —  A majority of Americans already favor same-sex marriage …

Did Sundance Vacations Forge A Court Order To Suppress Online Criticism?  —  Sundance Vacations would like to bill itself as a purveyor of wholesale and discount vacations.  But on the internet, it is widely described as a sleazy hard-sell telemarketer selling sales presentations.

Phil Robertson's Plan For Combating ISIS: ‘Convert Them Or Kill Them’  —  “Duck Dynasty” patriarch Phil Robertson put forward a strategy Tuesday for combating militants with the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria: “convert them or kill them.”  —  Robertson was asked to opine on Fox News' …

Will Textualism Kill Obamacare?  —  The Affordable Care Act is heading for another near-death experience in the Supreme Court.  In July, a divided panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued a ruling in Halbig v. Burwell that would greatly limit the number of people who are eligible for subsidized health insurance.