McCain has moved ahead in the polls, say some of the latest figures. So what would a McCain-Palin presidency look like? What precisely is at stake in the 2008 election? Now that both parties have put forward their platforms addressing everything from global climate change to the future course of US foreign policy we know exactly what is on offer. Our panel today takes aim at both Parties and whether either is equipped to deal with the housing crisis, the health care mess, social security, and a succession of foreign wars. As the Palin sideshow threatens to overshadow the next eight weeks we want to know what this election is really about.

Tonight on GRITtv we take on the question of US foreign policy after Bush/Cheney with Jeremy Scahill the bestselling author of Blackwater: The Rise of the World’s Most Powerful Mercenary Army, Roberto Lovato Associate Editor at New America Media, Arun Gupta writer and editor for the Indypendent, and Malia Lazu Executive Director of The Gathering for Justice.

And a conversation with community organizers Rebecca Weber, Executive Director of NYPIRG and Joan Minieri, co-author of Tools for Radical Democracy.

Finally a commentary from Phyllis Bennis on the real reason violence is down in Iraq. It's not just the surge, and even after the 8,000 troops Bush has pledged to bring home return, there will still be more US troops in Iraq than there were before the surge. Neither candidate is talking about ending the occupation and ethnic cleansing and sectarian violence have left Baghdad a divided and fragile city. Mission accomplished part II? Hardly. All that and more on GRITtv.

Thanks to Mobile Broadcast News, Stranahan, Remix America, Talk on Da Walk, and the Center for Community Change for their videos on tonight's show.