Top Items:
![](/120830/i156.jpg)
Clint Eastwood Delivers Bizarre, Rambling Speech To Empty Chair — TAMPA, Fla. — Clint Eastwood opened up the primetime portion of the Republican convention with a rambling, mumbling and often incoherent address next to an empty chair that was meant to represent President Obama.
Discussion:
The Raw Story, Towleroad News #gay, CANNONFIRE and The Hinterland Gazette
RELATED:
Washington Post:
(APPLAUSE) — So — but they are there, believe me, they are there. I just think, in fact, some of them around town, I saw Jon Voight, a lot of people around. — Jon's here, an academy award winner. A terrific guy. These people are all like-minded, like all of us.
Discussion:
Election 2012, Salon, The Atlantic Online, Gothamist, LewRockwell.com Blog, USA Today and The Moderate Voice
![](/120831/i5.jpg)
Clint Eastwood's rambling RNC speech — TAMPA, Fla. — Clint Eastwood delivered a rambling performance at the Republican National Convention on Thursday night in a speech that included the Hollywood legend speaking to an empty stool and telling an imaginary President Barack Obama …
Discussion:
The Caucus, NY Daily News, CNN, Pundit & Pundette, Washington Wire, blogs.telegraph.co.uk and Capital Tonight
![](/120830/i157.jpg)
Eastwood surprises GOP convention - maybe in more ways than one — TAMPA, Fla. — The Romney campaign planned a surprise guest to address the Republican convention here: Hollywood actor and director Clint Eastwood. — But it might have been more of a surprise than they bargained for.
Discussion:
Hotline On Call, Saint Petersblog and The Hinterland Gazette
Alyssa Rosenberg / ThinkProgress:
If Clint Eastwood is Mitt Romney's Secret RNC Speaker, It'll Be No Surprise
If Clint Eastwood is Mitt Romney's Secret RNC Speaker, It'll Be No Surprise
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, Mother Jones and Deadline.com
![](/120830/i140.jpg)
Romney takes lead over Obama with convention “bounce”: Reuters/Ipsos poll — (Reuters) - Mitt Romney has moved into a narrow lead over U.S. President Barack Obama in a small bounce for him from the Republican National Convention, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found on Thursday.
Discussion:
Business Insider, Hot Air, Washington Post, Saint Petersblog and Scared Monkeys
RELATED:
Danny Shea / The Huffington Post:
Michael Moore: Mitt Romney Will Win In November (VIDEO) … REACT: — FOLLOW: — Mitt Romney, Michael Moore, Video, HuffPost Live, Josh Zepps, Shadow Conventions 2012, Money In Politics, Shadow Conventions 2012, Politics News — Filmmaker Michael Moore joined HuffPost Live Thursday …
Discussion:
Datechguy's Blog, The Rightnewz, The Daily Caller, Weasel Zippers and The Raw Story
![](/120830/i158.jpg)
TRANSCRIPT: Mitt Romney's Speech at the Republican National Convention — Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney poses with campaign staffers for a photo during the final day of the Republican National Convention at the Tampa Bay Times Forum on Aug. 30, 2012 in Tampa, Fla. (Getty Images)
Discussion:
ABCNEWS, CNN, emptywheel, Naked Politics, The Week, Pirate's Cove, Politico, FiveThirtyEight, nation.foxnews.com, Reuters, Liberal Values and Bark Bark Woof Woof
Alicia M. Cohn / The Hill:
Ann Romney: Mitt showed the ‘deepest part of his soul’
Ann Romney: Mitt showed the ‘deepest part of his soul’
Discussion:
ABCNEWS
Fred Barnes / Weekly Standard:
Romney Aces Convention Test
![](/120831/i23.jpg)
No silver tongue, but Mitt Romney gets job done
Discussion:
Capital Tonight and No More Mister Nice Blog
Alex Fitzpatrick / Mashable!:
Romney Campaign is First to Buy a Twitter Trending Topic
Romney Campaign is First to Buy a Twitter Trending Topic
Discussion:
Alan Colmes' Liberaland, NBC Latino and Twitter Room, more at Mediagazer »
Todd Spangler / Detroit Free Press:
Romney shown closing the gap on Obama in latest Michigan poll
Romney shown closing the gap on Obama in latest Michigan poll
Discussion:
The Fix and Scared Monkeys
Gallup:
Mitt Romney Brings Strengths and Weaknesses to GOP Stage
Mitt Romney Brings Strengths and Weaknesses to GOP Stage
Discussion:
Examiner, The New Republic, Firedoglake and The Moderate Voice
Dan Amira / New York Magazine:
50 Person Poll: RNC Delegate Edition
![](/120831/i4.jpg)
Romney Vows to Deliver Country From Economic Travails — TAMPA, Fla. — Mitt Romney accepted the Republican presidential nomination on Thursday by making a direct appeal to Americans who were captivated by President Obama's hopeful promises of change, pledging that he could deliver …
Discussion:
Swampland, Outside the Beltway, FiveThirtyEight, The Caucus, NBC Latino, Taylor Marsh, Washington Free Beacon and American Power
RELATED:
Gary Langer / ABCNEWS:
Persuadable Voters — One in four registered voters may be persuadable in the 2012 presidential election - rich pickings if either Barack Obama or newly minted GOP nominee Mitt Romney can win their support. But doing so may be a challenge, requiring both subtle and substantive political persuasion.
Discussion:
GOP 12
![](/120831/i13.jpg)
Marco Rubio Delivers Rousing Speech at RNC
Discussion:
The Hinterland Gazette, Scared Monkeys and Florida Political Press
Rebecca D. Robbins / The Harvard Crimson:
Harvard Investigates “Unprecedented” Academic Dishonesty Case — Nearly half of more than 250 students in “Introduction to Congress” are under investigation — Harvard College's disciplinary board is investigating nearly half of the 279 students who enrolled in Government 1310 …
![](/120831/i2.jpg)
Very Quick Take — As we watch the Romneys and Ryans in the traditional balloon drop, a few really quick takes. — On balance, I thought the first half to 2/3 of the speech were really weak, disjointed, kind of rambling. (The protest disruptions probably added to that impression.)
Discussion:
Saint Petersblog, Mother Jones and Taegan Goddard's …
![](/120831/i20.jpg)
‘Honey Boo Boo’ Ratings Top the Republican National Convention — The TLC series hits another high in its fourth episode, nearing 3 million viewers and topping cable news and broadcast network coverage of the RNC among adults 18-49. — Perhaps we spoke too soon.
Discussion:
Addicting Info and Balloon Juice
RELATED:
![](/120830/i149.jpg)
David Koch breaks from GOP on gay marriage, taxes, defense cuts — TAMPA, Fla. - Billionaire industrialist David Koch, who is helping steer millions of dollars to elect Mitt Romney and congressional Republicans, on Thursday told POLITICO he disagrees with the GOP's stance on gay marriage …
Discussion:
Advocate, Towleroad News #gay, Red Alert Politics and Prairie Weather
![](/120831/i19.jpg)
Exclusive: Inside Karl Rove's Billionaire Fundraiser — On the final morning of the Republican National Convention, Karl Rove took the stage at the Tampa Club to provide an exclusive breakfast briefing to about 70 of the Republican party's highest-earning and most powerful donors.
![](/120830/i152.jpg)
Reagan hologram is real, was planned for RNC debut — Despite some conflicting reports, Yahoo News has learned that a holographic projection of former President Ronald Reagan is in the works and was originally intended to debut outside the halls of the Republican National Convention this week.
Discussion:
Riehl World News, Gawker, Mediaite, Deadline.com, Truthdig and Outside the Beltway
Meredith Bennett-Smith / The Huffington Post:
Father Benedict Groeschel, American Friar, Claims Teens Seduce Priests In Some Sex Abuse Cases … REACT: — FOLLOW: — Video, Catholic Priest Sex Abuse, Father Benedict Groescher, Friars Of Renewal, Legion Of Christ, National Catholic Register, Sex Abuse Scandal, Slideexpand, Religion News
Discussion:
Firedoglake, Just-A-Small-Town-Country-Boy and Gothamist
RELATED:
![](/120830/i113.jpg)
Priest Defends Sex Abusers, Apologizes
Discussion:
JIMROMENESKO.COM, Outside the Beltway, New York Magazine, Eschaton and Balloon Juice
Victoria Cavaliere / NY Daily News:
Sympathy for ‘this poor guy’ Jerry Sandusky and other pedophiles? …
Sympathy for ‘this poor guy’ Jerry Sandusky and other pedophiles? …
Discussion:
dotCommonweal, US Politics, Mediaite, The Daily Dish, JIMROMENESKO.COM, The Raw Story, RenewAmerica, Gawker and PennLive.com
Jeremy Herb / The Hill:
Justice Department ends criminal probe of detainee deaths — The Justice Department will not file criminal charges against CIA officials after an investigation into the deaths of two detainees, Attorney General Eric Holder said Thursday. — Justice is closing its investigation …
RELATED:
The United States Department of Justice:
Statement of Attorney General Eric Holder on Closure of Investigation into the Interrogation of Certain Detainees
Statement of Attorney General Eric Holder on Closure of Investigation into the Interrogation of Certain Detainees
Discussion:
New York Times, AEIdeas, Lean Forward and emptywheel
David Dayen / Firedoglake:
Justice Department Ends Investigation Into Bush-Era Torture, With No Charges
Justice Department Ends Investigation Into Bush-Era Torture, With No Charges
Discussion:
The Confluence
![](/120831/i1.jpg)
Pentagon threatens lawsuit over Osama bin Laden book — The Defense Department is threatening to go after an ex-SEAL author and his publisher over a new book that challenges the administration's official account of last year's raid that killed Osama bin Laden.
Discussion:
Outside the Beltway and LewRockwell.com Blog
![](/120831/i7.jpg)
“You Didn't Build That” Isn't Going Away — It doesn't matter what Obama meant. Here's why. — Attendees at the 2012 Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla. — Richard Kalvar/Magnum Photos for Slate. — The official theme of the GOP convention Wednesday night was …
Discussion:
Spectator