Romney spokesperson cites Massachusetts health law  —  A Mitt Romney spokesperson offered an unusual counterattack Tuesday to an ad in which a laid-off steelworker blames the presumptive GOP nominee for his family losing health care: If that family had lived in Massachusetts …

Polls See Sharp Divide in 3 Swing States  —  For all of the Democratic attacks painting Mitt Romney as an out-of-touch elitist who will help the rich at the expense of the middle class, he is maintaining the traditional — and sizable — Republican advantage among a politically vital constituency …

Why the Reaction Is Different When the Terrorist Is White  —  Atrocities like the attack on the Sikh congregation in Wisconsin introduce terrifying dissonance into America's post-9/11 mindset.  —  Members of the Sikh congregation mourn their dead.  / Reuters

Expect Romney to Surprise With Running Mate Pick  —  Every month at the Hotline, we publish our veepstakes rankings, the list of the most likely running mates to serve on Republican Mitt Romney's presidential ticket.  It's preceded by a vigorous staff-wide debate on the merits of the numerous contenders.

Jewish gal shows up IOC with a gold salute to Munich 11  —  It wasn't a gloved-fist salute from the medal stand, but Jewish-American gymnast Aly Raisman made quite a statement yesterday by winning a gold medal and invoking the memory of the Israeli athletes killed 40 years ago in Munich.

New Poll Puts Mitt Romney In The Deep End (The Note)  —  By MICHAEL FALCONE (@michaelpfalcone) and AMY WALTER (@amyewalter)  —  NOTABLES:  — BEARING IT ALL: THE POLITICAL STRIPTEASE OF CHOOSING A VEEP.  The vice presidential search is more than a guessing game or a waiting game …

Mitt Romney: “Under Obama's plan (for welfare), you wouldn't have to work and wouldn't have to train for a job.  They just send you your welfare check."  —  The Truth-o-Meter says: Pants on Fire!  Mitt Romney says Barack Obama's plan for welfare reform: “They just send you your check.”

Paul Ryan veep prospects split GOP  —  As Mitt Romney's vice presidential selection nears and buzz about Rep. Paul Ryan's prospects builds, a split is emerging among Republicans about whether the choice of the House Budget chairman and architect of the party's controversial tax and spending plan …

The GOP's Kamikaze Candidate  —  I spent most of July in the upper Midwest and was reminded that not everyone in America passes the summer fixated on politics.  They go to the beach, catch fish, grill burgers, eat ice cream, try to stay cool, see The Dark Knight Rises without recognizing …

How Romney's Pick of a Running Mate Could Sway the Outcome  —  We haven't had that much to say about Mitt Romney's choice of a vice-presidential nominee — mostly because it just isn't something that lends itself to rigorous analysis.  —  But let's focus on the part of the problem where our tools …

Bryan Fischer: Children Of Same-Sex Couples Must Be Saved Through ‘Underground Railroad’ Kidnapping  —  The American Family Association's Bryan Fischer has sunk to a new, disturbing low with his anti-gay statements.  In two separate tweets last night, he called for an “Underground Railroad …

One night in Rob Portman's haunted hotel  —  LEBANON, Ohio—The sun is setting on this small town in southwest Ohio, and when darkness reigns, strange things happen at the Golden Lamb Inn.  Or so I'm told.  —  The Inn, owned by the family of Ohio Sen. Rob Portman for the better part of the last century …

Romney confuses ‘Sikh’ with ‘sheik’  —  WEST DES MOINES, Iowa — Mitt Romney mistakenly confused the words “Sikh” and “sheik” at a fundraiser here Tuesday night when he offered his condolences to the victims of last weekend's shooting at a Sikh temple in Wisconsin.

Fit for Senate?  Thompson drops and gives us 50  —  By James B. Nelson of the Journal Sentinel  —  The Republican primary race for the U.S. Senate has become a bit physical.  —  Mark Neumann won a contest for how long he could hold a full beer stein, arm outstretched.

Papa John's Founder Warns That Obamacare Will Lead to Imperceptably Small Increase in Pizza Prices … - Pat Robertson's Slam of Atheists for the Sikh Shootings Is Actually a Sign of Progress - Why Do Olympic Track Cyclists Have Such Weird Wheels on Their Bikes?

Harry Belafonte on Capitalism, Media Moguls and His Disappointment With Jay-Z and Beyonce (Q&A)  —  At the Locarno Film Festival to pick up the Golden Leopard Honor Award, the singer and actor also talks about his fears of a Fourth Reich and why Mitt Romney shouldn't be president.

Obama Is an Avid Reader, and Critic, of the News  —  WASHINGTON — A few months after President Obama's $787 billion economic stimulus package passed, he began to notice news reports, but not about the jobs the bill might create or how much of the country's infrastructure it would repair.

Bachmann and Reid: A Troubling Double Standard  —  Conservatives often complain of two sets of standards in politics: one for Democrats and another for Republicans.  Sometime that double standard is imaginary.  Often, it's quite real.  Consider the events of the last three weeks:

Welfare voter push has GOP crying foul  —  Critics blast state's Dems for ‘inside job’  —  The state has mailed out voter registration letters to nearly 500,000 welfare recipients, in a push sparked by a group led by former ACORN bigwigs that critics say is a naked bid to boost Democrats at the polls in November.