OBAMA: ROMNEY WANTS VP PETRAEUS  —  President Obama whispered to a top fundraiser this week that he believes GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney wants to name Gen. David Petraeus to the VP slot!  —  “The president wasn't joking,” the insider explains to the DRUDGE REPORT.

The best Newsweek cover yet  —  Tina Brown's shock-and-awe approach to Newsweek covers is so familiar now it hardly warrants mention.  But the strategy is predicated upon ginning up false controversy and feigned outrage to call attention to the struggling print edition …

The scandal behind Romney's new attack ad  —  Mitt Romney's presidential campaign has presented the political world with an important test.  I'm eager to see whether we pass or fail.  —  First, a little background.  Some Republican governors this year asked the Obama administration …

It's Time to Stop Celebrating Harry Reid  —  Here is Harry Reid on Mitt Romney's taxes: “I was told by an extremely credible source that Romney has not paid taxes for 10 years.”  PolitiFact rates this a Pants on Fire lie.  —  An awful lot of liberals disagree.

Woman mentioned in Priorities ad died in '06  —  The pro-Obama super PAC Priorities USA Action lobbed a heavy-duty attack at Mitt Romney this morning, airing an ad that links the closure of a GST Steel plant in Kansas City to the loss of a family's health insurance — and the death of a woman some time later.

OBAMA'S COLLEGE CLASSMATE: ‘THE OBAMA SCANDAL IS AT COLUMBIA’  —  I am President Obama's classmate at Columbia University, Class of '83.  I am also one of the most accurate Las Vegas oddsmakers and prognosticators.  Accurate enough that I was awarded my own star on the Las Vegas Walk of Stars.

TRENDING: Koch brothers slam ‘guy who makes obscene gestures with a monkey’  —  (CNN) - Actor Zach Galifianakis may be known for his less-than family-friendly sense of humor, but billionaires David and Charles Koch demonstrated Tuesday they don't find him so funny.

Allen West Offended Everyone When He Ordered Chick-Fil-A For Entire Congressional Black Caucus  —  Rep. Allen West reportedly offended the entire Congressional Black Caucus when he delivered a selection of Chick-fil-A chicken and biscuits to the members' weekly meeting.

Oval Office Interview with President Barack Obama  —  President Obama sat down with Black Enterprise Magazine for an exclusive interview in which he talks about black businesses and unemployment.  —  In three months voters will head to the polls to decide whether to give President Obama a second term.

FIRST LOOK: Daniel Day-Lewis embodies ‘Lincoln’ in Steven Spielberg's historical drama  —  Penny for your thoughts?  —  Long-range paparazzi (and the occasional sneaky fellow diner) grabbed snapshots of Daniel Day-Lewis as he was shooting Steven Spielberg's Lincoln last fall.

Exclusive: Brigham Young's Great-Great-Granddaughter on Mormonism and Mitt Romney  —  A direct descendant of Brigham Young, Sue Emmett left the church because of the very values she says would make Romney a frightening president.  She speaks exclusively with Jamie Reno.  —  Sue Emmett is Mormon royalty.

A Surprise in a Hot Dog Cart  —  IT'S common in New York to see teams of college-age students handing out samples of goods like fruit juice and dog food.  Even seen-everything New Yorkers may do a double-take this week, however, when they encounter street teams with hot dog carts stocked with vibrators.

Papa John's: Health law hurts prices  —  Pizza chain Papa John's told shareholders that President Obama's health care law will cost consumers more on their pizza.  —  On a conference call last week, CEO and founder John Schnatter (a Mitt Romney supporter and fundraiser) …

Romney: America Is No Kibbutz His ties to Israel only extend so far.  —  Mitt Romney bills himself as an ardent friend of Israel running against President Barack Obama who hasn't visited the American ally since taking the oath of office, but Romney's friendship only extends so far.

Syria: Iran vows it will not allow Assad to fall  —  Iran pledged that its “axis” with Syria will “never” be allowed to break when Tehran sought to bolster President Bashar al-Assad by sending a senior envoy to Damascus.  —  Syrian President Bashar al-Assad

When 1,099 felons vote in race won by 312 ballots  —  Popular in Politics  —  In the eyes of the Obama administration, most Democratic lawmakers, and left-leaning editorial pages across the country, voter fraud is a problem that doesn't exist.  Allegations of fraud, they say …

Scalia Denies Stay, Texas Executes Mentally Retarded Man  —  “Seldom has an opinion of this Court rested so obviously upon nothing but the personal views of its members.”  —  The Supreme Court justices have jurisdiction over various regions of the country when it comes to injunctions, particularly when it comes to stays of execution.

Elizabeth Warren backs off demand that Scott Brown release more tax returns  —  Elizabeth Warren demanded Monday that Senator Scott Brown release more of his tax returns.  The only problem was that Brown, her Republican rival, had already released six years of tax returns while Warren …

Emails: Geithner, Treasury drove cutoff of non-union Delphi workers' pensions  —  Emails obtained by The Daily Caller show that the U.S. Treasury Department, led by Timothy Geithner, was the driving force behind terminating the pensions of 20,000 salaried retirees at the Delphi auto parts manufacturing company.

Scandinavians launch ship to break Gaza blockade  —  Swedish and Norwegian backed SV Estelle set to sail from Oslo to Gaza; organizers hoping more ships will join.  —  OSLO - Scandinavian activist groups are launching an aid ship destined for Gaza on Tuesday, hoping to challenge …

Ed Lee drops stop-frisk plan amid uproar  —  Photo: Liz Hafalia, The Chronicle / SF  —  Mayor Ed Lee has dropped plans to bring New York City's controversial stop-and-frisk policy to San Francisco and instead will rely on targeted police enforcement, crime-tracking software and increased involvement …

In Police Pat-Downs, Many Women See Sexual Overtones  —  Shari Archibald's black handbag sat at her feet on the sidewalk in front of her Bronx home on a recent summer night.  The two male officers crouched over her leather bag and rooted around inside, elbow-deep.