memeorandum: GOP Mulls Truncated Convention (Ron Fournier/NationalJournal.com)

4:50 PM ET, August 27, 2012

Top Items:

Republican Talking Points — Here are the official Republican talking points, being circulated to surrogates speaking on behalf of the party here: — Surrogate Message Points: — 2012 Republican National Convention - A Better Future — Top Line Message Points:

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Washington Monthly and Taylor Marsh

Glen Johnson / Boston Globe:

While Romney campaign talks of forging ahead, Isaac may prompt convention cancellation — TAMPA - There is a distinct possibility that the 2012 Republican National Convention will be cancelled. — The decision may come not so much because the Tampa-St. Petersburg area will suffer a direct hit from Isaac …

Discussion: ABCNEWS, CNN, New York Times, Hot Air, Outside the Beltway, NationalJournal.com, Hit & Run and The Daily Caller

Kevin Robillard / Politico:

Rush Limbaugh: Hurricane Center is ‘Obama’ — Rush Limbaugh, while repeatedly insisting he is “not alleging a conspiracy,” suggested Monday that the National Hurricane Center's forecast models for Tropical Storm Isaac were altered to help President Barack Obama and “cast a pall” over the Republican National Convention.

Discussion: Rush Limbaugh, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and Business Insider

Associated Press:

1 Arrest During GOP Protests in Tampa — Rain and wind from Tropical Storm Isaac and a massive police presence kept the protest crowds smaller than expected on the first day of the Republican National Convention on Monday, organizers say. — One protester was arrested following a march through …

CNN:
CNN's GUT CHECK for August 27, 2012

Discussion: Politico, The Huffington Post and Hot Air

CNN:
Isaac eerily follows Katrina's track

Discussion: This Just In, SciGuy, Taylor Marsh and American Prospect

Brian Tashman / rightwingwatch.org:
Christian Broadcasting Network Wonders if Prayer Moved Storm Away From Tampa to Protect the RNC

Discussion: The Raw Story, Washington Monthly, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and The PJ Tatler

Mario Trujillo / The Hill:
FEMA: GOP convention, Katrina overshadow storm's threat to Gulf Coast

Discussion: CNN

Ron Fournier / NationalJournal.com:
GOP Mulls Truncated Convention

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Daily Kos and Outside the Beltway

David Taintor / Talking Points Memo:
Jindal Cancels Plans To Attend GOP Convention

Discussion: The BRAD BLOG

Dylan Byers / Politico:
CNN moves O'Brien, Cooper to NOLA

Discussion: ABCNEWS and Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »

Pema Levy / Talking Points Memo:

Chris Matthews Calls Out GOP: You Are Playing The ‘Race Card’ — Political observers have noted for a while that Mitt Romney's claim that President Obama gutted the work requirement in the 1996 welfare reform law is false. But few in the mainstream media have have gone so far as to accuse Republicans of playing the ‘race card.’

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog, Balloon Juice and The Hinterland Gazette

Thomas B. Edsall / Campaign Stops:
Making the Election About Race

Discussion: The Huffington Post, Mother Jones, The Reality-Based Community, The Maddow Blog, Washington Monthly, Balloon Juice, The Daily Beast and emptywheel

Jonathan Easley / The Hill:
Chris Matthews: RNC chairman, Romney playing ‘the race card’

Discussion: Pundits Blog

Elspeth Reeve / The Atlantic Wire:
Race Takes Over the Race — Mitt Romney says that Obama allowed …

Discussion: The Maddow Blog, The Reality-Based Community, Hot Air, Brad DeLong and Jammie Wearing Fools

Keegan Gibson / PoliticsPA:

Smith Makes Abortion Gaffe (Listen to Audio) — Harrisburg — Republican Tom Smith spoke at the Pennsylvania press club luncheon Monday afternoon The defining moment occurred a few moments after the formal program when, asked about abortion amid a group of reporters, Smith seemed to suggest …

Discussion: Philly.com, Daily Kos, Business Insider and Hullabaloo

Tara Culp-Ressler / ThinkProgress:

Pennsylvania GOP Senate Candidate: Getting Pregnant From Rape Is ‘Similar’ To Having A Baby Out Of Wedlock — In the aftermath of Rep. Todd Akin's (R-MO) offensive and medically inaccurate comments that “legitimate rape” doesn't often lead to pregnancy, Republicans have been scrambling to distance themselves from Akin.

Discussion: Booman Tribune

Eric Kleefeld / Talking Points Memo:
Pennsylvania Senate Candidate: Daughter's Out-Of-Wedlock Pregnancy ‘Similar’ To Rape

Discussion: PennLive.com, Outside the Beltway, Gawker and The Maddow Blog

Politico:

Mitt Romney outlines his governing plan to POLITICO — POWELL, Ohio — Mitt Romney conceded President Barack Obama has succeeded in making him a less likable person, but he offered a defiant retort to those hoping he will open up this week: “I am who I am.”

Discussion: CNN, theGrio, The Lonely Conservative, bustardblog, The Daily Caller, Hot Air, Daily Kos, Right Wing News, The Hinterland Gazette, TheBlaze.com, No More Mister Nice Blog, Lawyers, Guns & Money and Saint Petersblog

Bay News 9:

Former Fla. GOP Gov. Charlie Crist to speak at DNC — An official with President Barack Obama's campaign said Sunday that Charlie Crist will speak at next week's convention in Charlotte, N.C., but the day hasn't been worked out. — Florida's former Republican Gov. Charlie Crist will be a speaker …

Discussion: Power Line, Hot Air, Political Insider, Outside the Beltway, Politico, National Review and Naked Politics

Daniel Strauss / The Hill:

Poll: Majority of Floridians would vote for Obama-Biden — A majority of voters in Florida, the location of the 2012 Republican National Convention, say if the election was held today they would vote for President Obama and Joe Biden over Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan.

Discussion: CNN and Politico

Politico:

Low turnout at RNC protest expecting thousands blamed on Isaac — TAMPA — Dozens of law enforcement officers swarmed to Perry Harvey, Sr. Park on Monday during the Coalition to March on the RNC when several people wearing all black clothing arrived at the rally.

Discussion: Tampa Bay Times and The Daily Caller

BuzzFeed: Democrats Hit Romney For Outsourcing On Billboard Facing GOP Convention

Josh Rojas / Bay News 9:
Deputies: RNC protestor arrested with machete strapped to his leg

Discussion: American Spectator, ABCNEWS, CANNONFIRE, The Daily Caller, The Hinterland Gazette, The Raw Story, Scared Monkeys, Pirate's Cove, Roger L. Simon, The Lonely Conservative, Patterico's Pontifications, The Other McCain and Tampa Bay Times

Michael Warren / Weekly Standard:

Elizabeth Warren Aide Knocks Around Republican Cameraman — An aide to Massachusetts Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat, appears to have knocked the video camera of a Republican tracker after an event this weekend in Martha's Vineyard. Watch the video below:

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Washington Free Beacon, The Right Scoop and Jammie Wearing Fools

Jim Treacher / The Daily Caller:

We all know the world revolves around The Greatest President in the History of Everything. So it makes sense that all the other celestial bodies were placed in the sky to shine down upon him. — This is not a Photoshop. This was actually posted on Obama's official Tumblr page:

Discussion: Wizbang, Ed Driscoll, Obama for America, Ricochet Conversations Feed, small dead animals and Outside the Beltway

SOOPERMEXICAN:
Obama Remembers Neil Armstrong with a Big Picture of... Himself

Discussion: BREITBART.COM, TheBlaze.com, Nice Deb, The Lonely Conservative, The Jawa Report, Atlas Shrugs, The Other McCain and Doug Ross

BuzzFeed:

Trial Judge Orders Prop 8 Case Closed — Judge James Ware issues an order under which same-sex couples should be allowed to marry immediately in California. Supporters of the initiative could ask the Supreme Court to stop weddings. — The trial court judge in California who has taken …

Discussion: Joe. My. God.

Kim Parker / Pew Social & Demographic Trends:

Yes, the Rich Are Different — As Republicans gather for their national convention in Tampa to nominate a presidential candidate known, in part, as a wealthy businessman, a new nationwide Pew Research Center survey finds that many Americans believe the rich are different than other people.

Discussion: Firedoglake, National Review, Economix and Politico

Paul Ryan / The Daily Beast:

What the *#@% Is Wrong With Republicans?! — It's not just Akin. By pushing some of the most invasive state policies in modern history, the men of the GOP are driving their party off a cliff. — Blame it on the “idea cloud”—that cumulus cartoon bubble that dumps the same idea on diverse populations at once.

Discussion: Taylor Marsh and The Daily Dish

Dylan Byers / Politico:

Obama gives one-on-one to Glamour — Yet another push in President Barack Obama's soft-media strategy, unearthed this morning by WWD's Erik Maza:

Discussion: Riehl World News and Mediaite

Erik Maza / WWD:
Glamour Gets Time With President Obama

Discussion: Jammie Wearing Fools

Philip Klein / Washington Examiner:

RNC swag bag has Romney book with unaltered health care section … TAMPA — All credentialed media checking into the Republican National Convention are being given a swag bag featuring brochures and items from various sponsors such as sunglasses and a pocket fan.

Discussion: The Buzz Florida Politics Feed, The Raw Story and Daily Kos

Adam Nagourney / New York Times:

Republicans Worry About Keeping Factions Reined In — TAMPA, Fla. — Mitt Romney arrives here this week to accept his nomination from the increasingly disparate coalition of factions known as the Republican Party, confronting the challenge of unifying them behind him and — should he win …