To call this week a pivotal moment in the presidential campaign, and perhaps even in U.S. history, is probably not much of an exaggeration. High-stakes wrangling in Congress over Treasury Secretary Paulson's Wall Street stabilization plan will run around the clock, with elements of both parties threatening to kill it. The first presidential candidates' debate occurs on Friday--planned, inconveniently, to focus on foreign policy. And early voting begins today in Virginia, Kentucky and Georgia, with some estimates suggesting that as much as a third of the national electorate will cast ballots before November 4.

It's often said that winning campaigns are those who "play chess" while their opponents "play checkers." But in this general election, in this peculiar climate, the winner may need to play three-dimensional chess.