With all the talk of political dynasties passing the torch - or being shoved out of the way - little attention has been paid to another Democratic scion who shared the stage with Hillary Clinton last night. Her name is Cecile Richards.

Both John McCain and Barack Obama portray themselves as agents of change who would clean up Washington by curbing the influence of powerful special interests. So why are they permitting those interests to pay for their weeklong political conventions?

The balloons are a problem. Though billed as biodegradable, they’ve sat in a steaming compost heap in Denver with nary a sign of breaking down.