AP - NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Leading in the polls, Barack Obama hopes to cement his standing while John McCain is trying to turn his fortunes around in their second presidential debate — with economic turmoil bordering on chaos suddenly serving as the backdrop.

AP - Former top executives of insurance giant American International Group Inc. were on the receiving end of a verbal smackdown Tuesday as a congressional panel probed the chain of events that forced the government to bail out the conglomerate.

AP - Wall Street is holding on to steep losses after minutes from the Federal Reserve's last meeting described a U.S. economy that was slowing considerably and credit markets that were deteriorating rapidly.

Reuters - Stocks slid further on Tuesday as a sell-off in financial shares accelerated and investors worried that the widening impact of the credit crisis threatened to drag the economy into recession.

AP - The top congressional budget analyst says pension plans have lost as much as $2 trillion in the past 15 months.