Vol. 172 No. 17
COVER
Call it reflexes in a crisis. Or instincts under pressure. The qualities that a President needs to succeed are both essential and elusive
What Kind of Temperament Is Best? (The Well / Cover Story)
personalities of Presidents can determine how they handle crises
NATION
The U.S. helped unlock lending by injecting $250 billion into big banks. But consumers and businesses mauled by the market aren't in a spending mood
(The Well)
Financial experts offer advice to Main Street
Passbook Protector (The Well / Profile)
The job of the FDIC's Sheila Bair is a bear: balancing the rights of small depositors against those of the megabanks that Washington hopes will kick-start the economy
The Drive for 60 (The Well / Nation)
It was a fantasy a month ago. Democrats now eye a filibuster-proof Senate
Postcard from Lame Deer (Postcard: Lame Deer)
On reservations nationwide, tribal colleges are teaching Native Americans what other schools don't. Sharpening minds at Chief Dull Knife College
ESSAY
What kind of people vote a month before the campaign ends? People who know what they're doing
Round Three (In The Arena)
McCain summoned old-fashioned antigovernment outrage in the final debate. But this is a different year
The Leader We Deserve
Obama and McCain are both good men. But, in times like these, that isn't good enough
NOTEBOOK
10|14|08: Afghanistan
The World (Briefing)
10 ESSENTIAL STORIES
Verbatim
The Page (Briefing)
A Brief History Of: The 401(k) (Briefing)
The Skimmer (Briefing)
Pop Chart
Drawing Room (Briefing)
Joerg Haider (Briefing)
William Claxton (Briefing)
Milestones
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Oliver Stone's biopic of the President leaves its central figure a mystery and the moviegoer unmoved
Bodies of Evidence (Television)
Sweetness and Light (Music)
Brotherly Love (Books)
Per Petterson's new novel sets a sister's devotion against the backdrop of war
Sarah Vowell's Favorite Five
Short List
TIME's Picks of the Week
BUSINESS
John McCain's "gaffe" wasn't really wrong: the U.S. economy will dip, but it should come back
HEALTH & MEDICINE
New just-in-case policies aren't perfect, but they'll do in a pinch
SCIENCE
No gridlock yet, but traffic on the Red Planet is getting heavier
SOCIETY
Yes, we're overfishing the oceans, but here's how consumers can help keep the seas stocked
A Frosh New Start (Life / Education)
SPECIAL SECTION
The kingdom's scheme to build five new cities gives ambitious a new meaning
New World Disorder (Global Business / Global Competitiveness)
Countries and companies are facing an economic environment that is not only borderless but also ruleless
The Renew Deal (The Well / History)
Today's crisis isn't a repeat of the Depression. But we can still borrow lessons from the past
PEOPLE
TO OUR READERS
In the campaign homestretch, TIME--with some wise friends--sizes up the qualities we should look for in a President