The Real Romney  —  The purpose of the Republican convention is to introduce America to the real Mitt Romney.  Fortunately, I have spent hours researching this subject.  I can provide you with the definitive biography and a unique look into the Byronic soul of the Republican nominee:

Over Loud Boos, Romney Supporters Pass New Rules  —  Delegates from Minnesota yell for a “no” vote at a point of order at the Republican National Convention in Tampa.  —  TAMPA, Fla. — Mitt Romney's supporters passed new rules governing future primaries over the loud boos of Ron Paul supporters …

Romney Camp Bets On Welfare Attack  —  Their most powerful weapon, a top aide says.  “We're not going to let our campaign be dictated by fact checkers,” says Newhouse.  —  Source: youtube.com  —  Mitt Romney's aides explained with unusual political bluntness today why they are spending heavily …

NYT reporter leaked advance copy of Maureen Dowd column to CIA  —  Newly available CIA records obtained by Judicial Watch, the conservative watchdog group, reveal that New York Times reporter Mark Mazzetti forwarded an advance copy of a Maureen Dowd column to a CIA spokesperson …

Republican National Convention: The one graph you need to see before watching  —  On the Republican convention stage tonight, you're going to see a really large clock.  But the clock isn't for keeping time.  The idea isn't to stop speakers from going over their allotted time, or the convention from running late.

Breaking News: Federal District Court Denies Preclearance of Texas Redistricting Plans [Now updated with analysis]  —  You can read the opinion here (there was a partial dissent by Judge Griffith, who wrote most of the majority opinion as well).  From the introduction:

Who Is Thursday's Mystery Convention Speaker?  —  TAMPA, Fla. - Republican convention planners appear to have a surprise planned for those tuning in Thursday night.  —  Buried deep in the convention schedule released Monday is a vague reference to a mystery speaker scheduled for the event's final evening.

Coal miners lost pay when Mitt Romney visited their mine to promote coal jobs  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — When GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney visited an Ohio coal mine this month to promote jobs in the coal industry, workers who appeared with him at the rally lost pay because their mine was shut down.

RNC Attendee Allegedly Threw Nuts At Black CNN Camerawoman, Said ‘This Is How We Feed Animals’  —  An attendee at the Republican National Convention in Tampa on Tuesday allegedly threw nuts at a black camerawoman working for CNN and said “This is how we feed animals” before being removed from the convention …

RNC Primetime Speaker Gave Extensive PowerPoint On How To Build Your Business With Government Money  —  Small business woman Sher Valenzuela, who is running for Lt. Governor in Delaware, is giving a primetime speech tonight at the “We Build It” themed day of the Republican convention.

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James O'Keefe not allowed to fly to Tampa  —  Conservative filmmaker and activist James O'Keefe won't be in Tampa, but the show he was supposed to headline will go on.  —  O'Keefe will still speak via Skype on “the role of the citizen journalist” and take audience questions …

Paul Ryan's Intellectual Muse  —  by Richard A. Epstein (Peter and Kirsten Bedford Senior Fellow and member of the Property Rights, Freedom, and Prosperity Task Force)  —  The wisdom of Hayek is exactly what this country needs right now.  —  My last column for Defining Ideas …

Methane Making An Appearance In Pa. Water Supplies … Mike and Nancy Leighton's problems began on May 19, just as Mike was settling in to watch the Preakness Stakes.  A neighbor in Leroy Township, Pa., called Mike and told him to check the water well located just outside his front door.

Obama lead declining in Iowa  —  PPP's newest Iowa poll finds Barack Obama's lead in the state declining all the way to two points.  He's at 47% to 45% for Mitt Romney.  In July we found Obama ahead 48-43 and in May it was 51-41.  —  Iowa makes yet another swing state where voters don't really care for either Obama or Romney.

PolitiFiction  —  The website PolitiFact is going to be truth-squadding the Republican convention speakers this week, delivering verdicts on which claims are “mostly true” and which deserve a “pants on fire” rating.  Our advice: Pay no attention to those ratings.  PolitiFact can't be trusted to get the story right.

Hooters Welcomes Joe Biden to Tampa  —  Vice President Joe Biden cancelled his scheduled trip to the Republican convention in Tampa because of the threat of bad weather, but that has not stopped a local Hooters restaurant (in nearby Clearwater, Florida) from welcoming him to the area anyway.

Marco Rubio Heckled During Speech, Takes Swipe at Crist  —  More fun and games at the RNC in Tampa as the Republican Party of Florida's Tuesday breakfast was interrupted by liberal hecklers during Senator Marco Rubio keynote address.  Several hecklers stood up and interrupted Rubio during his remarks …