E Minus 18:  Donald Trump yesterday continued his assault on the reliability of the November election. “I would like to promise and pledge to all of my voters and supporters, and to all of the people of the United States, that I will totally accept the results of this great and historic presidential election —  if I win.”

Speaking in Ohio he said, “Of course I would accept a clear election result, but I would also reserve my right to contest or file a legal challenge in the case of a questionable result.”

He didn’t say what he might consider to be a questionable result. In the case of a landslide loss, he would have to challenge the count in multiple states. So far he has offered no evidence of fraud that could influence the national election.

Speaking at a Florida rally, President Obama said, “This is more than just the usual standard lie.” Obama said, “That’s no laughing matter. That’s doing the work of our adversaries for them, because our democracy is based on people knowing their vote matters.”

Political Punchline: Trump proved last night at the Al Smith dinner in New York that running for president is hard, but comedy is harder. Trump bombed at the traditional dinner at which the presidential candidates speak to raise money for Catholic charities. It’s supposed to be a mutual roast with an appeal for good works. But Trump failed to mask mean-spirited remarks about Hillary Clinton with actual humor and for what may have been the first time, guests at the dinner booed a presidential candidate. A sample: “Here she is tonight, in public, pretending not to hate Catholics.”

Clinton’s writers sent her up there with actually funny material. Second to speak, she said, “It’s amazing I’m up here after Donald, I didn’t think he’d be okay with a peaceful transition of power.”

Groper in Chief: A 10^th woman has come forward to say that she was groped by Donald Trump. Yoga instructor Karena Virginia said she encountered Trump in 1998 at the US Open in New York. She said, “I was in shock. I flinched.” She said Trump then asked her, “Don’t you know who I am? Don’t you know who I am?”

Permawar: An American soldier has been killed by a roadside bomb in the assault on the Iraqi city of Mosul. He is the first American killed in the operation. More than 100 US special operations troops are working with the Iraqis in the killing zone. Islamic State forces have been fighting back with car bombs and suicide bombers as Iraqi and Kurdish fighters approach Mosul.

Foreign to Relations: The Philippines’ unsteady President Rodrigo Duterte abruptly announced yesterday at a meeting of Philippine and Chinese business leaders in Beijing that, “I announce my separation from the United States.”

Exactly what that means he didn’t say, but the two countries have been allies since World War II. Duterte said, “Both in military, not maybe social, but economics also. America has lost.” It was a befuddling declaration in light of the Chinese military buildup on tiny islands in the South China Sea.

The Obit Page: Johnny Sain, who with Warren Spahn pitched the Boston Braves to the 1948 National League Championship, inspiring one of the legendary slogans in baseball, has died at age 89. Sain won 20 games in a season four times and pitched on three World Series winning teams. In 1948, after a Boston sportswriter called for Sain and Spahn to alternate days pitching until they won the World Series, the slogan was coined, “Spahn and Sain and pray for rain.”

The Cleveland Indians won in six games.

Late Edition: The reviews are in and some critics believe that Alec Baldwin’s job playing Donald Trump on Saturday Night Live might be in jeopardy because Trump, in Wednesday night’s debate, delivered a better caricature of Trump than Baldwin.

Good Grief: Metlife insurance has fired the “Peanuts” character Snoopy as its spokes character after 30 years. A Metlife statement talked about “focus on the future,” “our brand,” and blah, blah, blah. Snoopy, as usual, was speechless.

-30-