On the cover, "The Money Trail" explains the ever-more-tangled Lippo scandal, and denounces the administration's readiness to sell favors for campaign donations: "The Clinton White House is on the block to a degree that leaves even Republican influence peddlers breathless." The magazine claims that fund-raiser/Commerce Department official John Huang's top-secret clearance could have opened "an intelligence gusher" to the Chinese government. Also, a bit of Richard Jewell-bashing in a feature on the nonbomber. Time calls the FBI's overzealousness "understandable," and slaps Jewell for filing a lawsuit instead of being "noble and merciful." And an article about Barbie CD-ROMs wonders if girls like software as much as boys do.

San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown and New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani are profiled in a package praising mayors who are "experimenting, solving problems, reinventing [government]" in the face of declining federal aid. Patronage politics is out; hard-nosed business is in, the magazine claims, as it lists its 23 other favorite mayors and details their enterprising tactics: graffiti hot lines, crack-house bulldozing, and union-busting. Also, the magazine canvasses a dozen experts on how to prevent a repeat of this year's lame presidential contest. Recommendations include rescheduled primaries, wealthier candidates (they're less beholden to special interests, and smarter about business), and deeper discussions of important issues. A story on Gulf War Syndrome asserts that politics have overwhelmed the scientific evidence against the syndrome's existence.

A profile of Justice Anthony Kennedy calls the current Supreme Court "The Kennedy Court" because of the justice's swing vote in gay-rights, abortion, and free-speech cases. The article twits Kennedy's legal reasoning (calling his vision of liberty "too abstract" for anyone but himself to understand), but generally admires his independence: More than any other justice, Kennedy is willing to take stands that go against his own beliefs. Kennedy bucks recent Supreme Court tradition by speaking extensively on the record to the magazine. An article admires Bob Dole's close-of-campaign irritability, describing his candidacy as a "protest campaign ... against everything." Also, a creepy first-person account of being eaten (but not killed) by a hyena. And a satire of The Rules by Christopher Buckley.

An uplifting cover story. "Invincible Kids " says that children can overcome even the worst family circumstances. The prerequisites: Attention from caring adults, structured activities like scouting and sports, and personal responsibility. A sidebar concludes that exposure to danger and distress can permanently warp kids' brain chemistry. A long article frets over the crisis in public housing (there's not enough of it) and investigates a possible scandal involving insider trading of HUD mortgages.

An essay bemoans growing anti-Americanism among the religious right. Some Christian conservatives find America's immorality and libertinism so disturbing that they now call the American government an illegitimate "regime." They are, sniffs the Standard, no better than the '60s leftists who denounced the U.S. government. The cover story warns that the Panama Canal will fall into disrepair as soon as the United States leaves the isthmus in 1999. The article wonders whether the United States should abrogate the canal treaty and keep control over the passageway. Also, the Standard editorial blames the Richard Jewell fiasco (indirectly) on President Clinton.

The cover story lays out a post-election progressive strategy. Borrowing from the Christian Coalition and other right-wing groups, the authors advocate local organizing: Progressives need to run for the thousands of low-level, nonpartisan offices that are the heart of local politics. This will ultimately lead to a "massive membership organization" that can sway national issues. Also, medical backlash: An article scorches Columbia/HCA Healthcare Corp., the nation's largest hospital company, for favoring profits over patients. A book review regrets the rise of managed care.

A month after a TNR cover story denounced affirmative action, the magazine takes a softer position. In a long article about the California Civil Rights Initiative, Glenn Loury argues that, while "preferential affirmative action" is wrong, "developmental affirmative action" is not. "Racial justice is a legitimate public goal," Loury says, and government should try extra hard to help blacks improve their performance, without lowering standards. (His model: the military. See Loury on affirmative action in SLATE's "Committee of Correspondence.") The cover story, "The Seducer," is a campaign journal. It is ostensibly about Clinton, but is actually about reading anti-Clinton books and flying on Air Force One. Also, the opening editorial welcomes the surfeit of ballot initiatives in Western states, describing them as "the real substance of the campaign."

An endorsement for Bob Dole, but no enthusiasm. The cover editorial bemoans the "lousy" choice between Dole and Clinton. It labels Dole "a flawed challenger" and "an unappealing choice," and calls his tax-cut plan "a disaster." But, hey, he's better than Clinton. "A mediocre president," Clinton might revert to his awful liberal ways during a second term. "No one can be sure what he would do [if the Democrats control Congress]. And that is why the Economist feels unable to endorse him." A separate article wonders what happened to the angry American voter. The answer: He was less angry than he seemed, and only Pat Buchanan could fire him up. Also, a pair of articles on China's very low-key, very tentative, experiments with democracy.

The campaign dominates the last pre-election issue. The cover story traces the tumultuous first term of Rep. Mark Neumann, a freshman Republican from Wisconsin, and uses his experience to ask if the Gingrich revolution can survive. Neumann has stayed true to his deficit-slashing, anti-pork principles, but his convictions may cost him the election. Another article makes the case for negative campaign ads: They expose truths that candidates would prefer to hide. And the magazine interviews famous political losers--Michael Dukakis, Oliver North, Mario Cuomo, Dan Quayle, Dick Lamm--about defeat. (Quayle tells the Times to call George Bush.) Also, a revolting photo essay on fraternity hazing, and a profile of America's most famous female boxer. (Her promoter? You guessed it: Don King.)