Mr Deeds has fallen even further in the polls behind Bob McDonnell, the Republican candidate.

ECONOMIST: Local elections in America

Mr Deeds's supporters say his prospects worsened in line with the decline in Mr Obama's approval ratings.

ECONOMIST: Local elections in America

Democratic operatives are blaming the hapless Mr Deeds for a poor campaign, saying he did not listen to advice from the White House about cementing the support of important Democratic constituencies, such as blacks, and getting them out on election day.

ECONOMIST: Local elections in America

But Mr Navalny posted deeds with Mr Pekhtin's signature, identifying him as the part owner.

BBC: Vladimir Pekhtin, Putin ally, quits over foreign homes

Moreover, by offering words but not deeds, Mr Bush may appear to the Muslim world to be showing only false contrition.

ECONOMIST: The buck stops where?

One thing that stands out is Norway's determination not to let Mr Breivik's appalling deeds affect its unusual way of life.

ECONOMIST: Norway after terrorism

And how is Mr Jospin to reconcile his post-election deeds with his pre-election words?

ECONOMIST: Vive la diff��rence?

In both cases, Mr Beinart argues, the desire to do great deeds and not simply what was necessary led to episodes of overreach and disappointment.

ECONOMIST: Lexington

The decision to help out in Afghanistan is the clearest sign so far that Mr Sarkozy is prepared to back his Atlanticist words with deeds.

ECONOMIST: France and defence

Even Mr Medvedev's words on sanctions may be hard to turn into deeds, if only because China opposes them and Vladimir Putin, who still holds the cards in Moscow, has sounded less keen.

ECONOMIST: America abroad

In some of the muckiest deeds, notably the money-raising of the 1996 campaign, Mr Gore played a prominent role.

ECONOMIST: Lights, camera, action