GOP pros fret over Paul Ryan  —  You've heard them on television and read them on POLITICO — cheerful, defiant statements from Republican political professionals about Mitt Romney's bold masterstroke in tapping Paul Ryan as his running mate, and turning the 2012 presidential race into a serious …

Obama hits Romney on Seamus  —  OSKALOOSA, Iowa — President Obama strayed from his prepared remarks here Tuesday to get in a jab at Mitt Romney's famous dog-on-top-of-car moment.  —  Noting that the Republican candidate has criticized wind energy, saying a windmill can't be put on top of a car to power it, Obama had a zinger.

Romney camp blasts Biden for ‘chains’ remark, calls it a ‘new low’  —  Mitt Romney's campaign issued a scathing statement Tuesday, blasting the Obama campaign for hitting a “new low” after Vice President Biden's suggestion to voters that the Republican ticket's economic policies would “put y'all back in chains.”

More questions raised about Fareed Zakaria's work  —  Columnist and TV host Fareed Zakaria, who acknowledged plagiarizing parts of a magazine article last week, appears to have also published without attribution a passage from a 2005 book.  —  Zakaria's 2008 book, “The Post-American World …

Rep. Dennis Cardoza announces resignation  —  Citing sensitive family needs, Rep. Dennis Cardoza, D-Merced, has tendered his immediate resignation from the House of Representatives.  The surprisingly timed departure takes effect at midnight Wednesday.  —  A veteran San Joaquin Valley politician …

Tea Party House Candidate Calls For Troops Along Arizona Border To ‘Start Shooting’  —  Samuel Wurzlbacher — known to most as Joe the Plumber — made an appearance at a fundraiser for a Republican Arizona State Senator candidate over the weekend, and told the audience that the way to solve …

My Sister Paid Progressive Insurance to Defend Her Killer In Court  —  I've been sending out some impertinent tweets about Progressive Insurance lately, but I haven't explained how they pissed me off.  So I will do that here as succinctly as possible.  There's a general understanding that says …

Obama buys beers for 10 Iowans, snubs Romney supporter  —  President Barack Obama is beating Gov. Mitt Romney on the so-called “beer test” of likeability, but the president doesn't want to have beer with Republicans.  —  A revealing moment came Monday, when Obama told a tent of drinkers …

McCain rebuts Reid on Romney, says “nothing in his tax returns shows he did not pay taxes”  —  Arizona Sen. John McCain said today that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is wrong about his assertion that Mitt Romney did not pay taxes for 10 years, saying his team that vetted the presumptive GOP nominee in 2008 found no such thing.

Twice-Jilted Pawlenty Sat on VP Secret  —  REPORTER'S NOTEBOOK by SHUSHANNAH WALSHE (@shushwalshe)  —  Tim Pawlenty was passed over as a presidential running mate twice.  But to a reporter sitting on his front lawn during what must have been a difficult time — getting passed …