Several people shot outside Empire State Building  —  NEW YORK (AP) — New York City police say at least four people have been shot outside the Empire State Building and that the gunman is dead.  A witness says the shooter was firing indiscriminately.  —  The shooting happened Friday morning at 34th Street and Fifth Avenue.

Romney May Be Nominated Early  —  TAMPA, Fla. - Mitt Romney's quest to formally win the Republican Party's presidential nomination may come two days earlier.  —  Plans are underway for Mr. Romney to be nominated on Monday - not Wednesday as previously thought - because of a potential threat …

What I Learned at Bain Capital  —  My business experience taught me how to help companies grow—and what to do when trouble arises.  When you see a problem, run toward it before the problem gets worse.  —  The back-to-school season is here, and as parents take their children to shop for school supplies …

Lance Armstong's Statement of August 23, 2012  —  There comes a point in every man's life when he has to say, “Enough is enough.”  For me, that time is now.  I have been dealing with claims that I cheated and had an unfair advantage in winning my seven Tours since 1999.

Cardinal sin: Bam blew off DNC blessing  —  WASHINGTON — President Obama turned down a chance to have Timothy Cardinal Dolan deliver a prayer at the Democratic National Convention after Dolan told Democrats he would be “grateful” to deliver a blessing in Charlotte.

Obama Still Wins on Likability; Romney, on the Economy  —  Obama gains on healthcare and taxes since July  —  PRINCETON, NJ — As the two-week period of back-to-back presidential nominating conventions gets underway next Monday, an Aug. 20-22 USA Today/Gallup poll underscores the strengths …

BRUTAL: Anderson Cooper obliterates DNC Chair over her lies about Romney's stance on abortion  —  This is a MUST WATCH!  And it is brutal.  In his “Keeping them Honest” segment tonight, Anderson Cooper completely exposed Debbie Wasserman Schultz over her lies about Romney's position on abortion.

Galt, Gold and God  —  So far, most of the discussion of Paul Ryan, the presumptive Republican nominee for vice president, has focused on his budget proposals.  But Mr. Ryan is a man of many ideas, which would ordinarily be a good thing.  —  In his case, however, most of those ideas appear …

Box office update: Anti-Obama doc '2016: Obama's America' headed for mainstream success  —  A politically charged documentary called 2016: Obama's America turned heads last weekend when it grossed a whopping $1.24 million out of just 169 theaters.  —  The $2.5 million independent film …

Barack Obama asks eurozone to keep Greece in until after election day  —  US officials are worried that if Greece exits the eurozone, it will damage President's election hopes  —  NOTE: WE DO NOT STORE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS(ES) BUT YOUR IP ADDRESS WILL BE LOGGED TO PREVENT ABUSE OF THIS FEATURE.

Drop in key US durable goods orders shows weakness  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — Signs that U.S. manufacturing is faltering emerged from a report Friday that orders for long-lasting factory goods, excluding the volatile transportation category, fell in July for the fourth time in five months.

George W. Bush doesn't miss ‘the swamp’ of politics  —  DALLAS — George W. Bush has spent much of the month with relatives at the family compound in Kennebunkport, Maine, where he played golf, rode bicycles and dined with friends.  Back in Dallas, the former president will mostly play golf, ride bicycles and dine with friends.

AP Exclusive: Romney uses secretive data-mining  —  Associated Press/Evan Vucci - FILE - In this Aug. 18, 2012 file photo, Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney gets into his car to attend a fundraising event on Saturday, Aug. ...more

The making of Paul Ryan  —  One good way to understand how 42-year-old Paul Ryan vaulted over a generation of politicians into the top tier of national Republican politics is to dive into some numbers.  —  190 times.  That's how often the Wisconsin lawmaker's name appeared in the opinion pages …

NOM's Brian Brown: Anti-Gay Christians Are The Powerless Victims, Not The Gay Community  —  he National Organization for Marriage's Brian Brown has written his own reflection about his recent debate with Dan Savage, attempting to further craft a bizarre narrative that somehow Dan Savage is the bully.

LL Cool J broke burglary suspect's nose, jaw, ribs  —  Los Angeles (CNN) — A man charged with breaking into LL Cool J's home Wednesday morning faces a long prison sentence if convicted because of his previous convictions, the prosecutor's spokeswoman said Thursday.

Household income is below recession levels, report says  —  Household income is down sharply since the recession ended three years ago, according to a report released Thursday, providing another sign of the stubborn weakness of the economic recovery.  —  From June 2009 to June 2012 …

Vice Presidential candidate Paul Ryan one on one interview in Roanoke  —  Paul Ryan and word association  —  WEB EXTRA: VP candidate Paul Ryan talks one-on-one with WDBJ7  —  Most polls show the addition of Representative Paul Ryan to the republican ticket as the vice presidential candidate …

Buying Their Way to Twitter Fame  —  AS a comedian, Dan Nainan was blessed with fans, millions of YouTube views and, once, an audience with President Obama.  But one thing was missing.  —  “The number of Twitter followers I had in relation to how many people in the world know about me was woefully inadequate,” he said.

Concern mounts over U.S. journalist in Syria; Austin Tice's whereabouts unknown  —  The family of Austin Tice, an American freelance journalist who has contributed coverage from Syria for The Washington Post and other news organizations, said Thursday that it has not heard from him for more than a week and is concerned for his welfare.

Noonan: America Meets Mr. Romney  —  Anticipating the highlights of the GOP's Tampa convention.  —  It is good that Joe Biden is going to the Republican National Convention to hold high the flag of his party.  People make fun of his gaffes, of his embarrassing verbal forays …