Rep. Steve King: I've Never Heard Of A Girl Getting Pregnant From Statutory Rape Or Incest  —  Rep. Steve King, one of the most staunchly conservative members of the House, was one of the few Republicans who did not strongly condemn Rep. Todd Akin Monday for his remarks regarding pregnancy and rape.

Romney slightly ahead in Wisconsin  —  PPP's first Wisconsin poll since Mitt Romney announced Paul Ryan as his running mate finds him taking a small lead over Barack Obama in the state, 48-47.  That represents a 7 point shift from PPP's last look at the state in early July, which found Obama ahead 50-44.

In Praise of Fact-Checkers  —  In the wake of Niall Ferguson's dishonesty, Dylan Byers decided to contact Newsweek to see what controls the magazine had in place to prevent authors from lying to them.  As it turns out, none: … More accurately, Newsweek has unwittingly outsourced its fact-checking to the web.

Mitt Romney: Honor Students Do It All Themselves  —  In his town hall appearance in New Hampshire this morning, Mitt Romney celebrated the individual, who clearly needs no support system to succeed in RepublicanLand.  —  Speaking to a crowd of FreedomWorks devotees and other New Hampshire residents, he said this:

GOP Votes Down Civil Unions In Platform  —  A social conservative hard line in Tampa.  —  TAMPA, Florida — The GOP platform committee overwhelmingly voted down an effort to include recognitions of civil unions in the party's manifesto.  —  The measure, offered by Rhode Island delegate Barbara Fenton …

Court strikes down major pollution rule  —  A federal court has struck down an Environmental Protection Agency rule that forces cuts in soot- and smog-forming power plant emissions that cross state lines, dealing a major blow to the White House's air quality agenda.

RNC Chair: Bring On Biden  —  Priebus brings the “brass knuckles.”  Secret Service agents overheard discussing Biden's trip on a flight to Tampa.  —  Image by Steven Mantilla / AP  —  TAMPA, Florida — Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus said the GOP will respond tenfold …

Hugh Hefner: Gay rights under ‘assault’  —  “Playboy” founder Hugh Hefner criticizes conservatives in an editorial in the September issue, accusing them of continuing “to assault the right of gays.”  —  “The fight for gay marriage is, in reality, a fight for all of our rights.