With GOP jittery, Romney faces test of resolve  —  Mitt Romney and his top aides are running an essentially faith-based campaign.  Whatever the polls say at the moment, whatever the pundits say, whatever some nervous Republicans say, Team Romney simply does not believe President Obama can win re-election in today's terrible economy.

Why the Chicago teachers strike is bad news for President Obama  —  For the first time in nearly three decades, Chicago public school teachers went on strike this morning.  At first glance, you might be tempted to think that what happens in Chicago has little to no effect on the politics of Washington and the presidential race.

Op-Ed Contributor: The Bush White House Was Deaf to 9/11 Warnings  —  IT was perhaps the most famous presidential briefing in history.  —  On Aug. 6, 2001, President George W. Bush received a classified review of the threats posed by Osama bin Laden and his terrorist network, Al Qaeda.

The Most Anti-Gay Piece Of Political Mail This Year  —  There is still time, but a mailer first reported by Politico and prepared in the name of “The Committee To Save The Erie County Republican Party” in New York was never sent — but has set a mighty low bar.

Scott Van Duzer, the Obama hugger: Shop facing boycott  —  The owner of a Florida pizza shop says people are boycotting his business because he bear-hugged President Barack Obama on Sunday.  —  “People are saying a lot of bad things and boycotting my restaurant,” Scott Van Duzer, 46, told POLITICO.

Romney Campaign Appears To Copy Text From Obama Website  —  You didn't write that!  Donation instructions for Romney's new “Victory Wallet” taken from Obama's “Quick Donate” feature.  The Obama version went up in March.  —  Source: donate.barackobama.com  —  Source: mittromney.com

The Ghost of George W. Bush  —  Why Dubya will decide the winner this fall.  —  The conventions are over, but the individual who will determine the 2012 election didn't attend either of them.  His name is George W. Bush.  —  LM Otero / AP  —  Conventional wisdom holds that elections are about the future.

Arizona's Birtherpalooza Canceled Over Low Ticket Sales  —  Not even the promise of crooner Pat Boone singing oldies from a spinning stage could save what was intended to be the premier birther event of the year later this month in Arizona.  —  Organizers of the gala, which would have …

Akin, returning to Capitol, says he's ‘totally in’ Missouri race  —  Washington (CNN) - U.S. Rep. Todd Akin returned to Capitol Hill Monday for the first time since his comments about “legitimate rape” caused widespread condemnation from fellow Republicans, some of whom called on Akin to drop his bid for Missouri's U.S. Senate seat.

Reid mocks Ryan over marathon time misstatement [Updated]  —  Harry Reid wasted little time Monday picking up where he left off before the Senate's summer recess: With partisan attacks on the Republican presidential ticket.  —  Moments after opening the Senate for its brief pre-election season …

Insight: GM's Volt - The ugly math of low sales, high costs  —  (Reuters) - General Motors Co sold a record number of Chevrolet Volt sedans in August — but that probably isn't a good thing for the automaker's bottom line.  —  Nearly two years after the introduction of the path-breaking plug-in hybrid …

Why is Obama skipping more than half of his daily intelligence meetings?  —  President Obama is touting his foreign policy experience on the campaign trail, but startling new statistics suggest that national security has not necessarily been the personal priority the president makes it out to be.

Liberal group targets Ann Romney in new ads  —  A liberal political group is criticizing Ann Romney's comment that she and her husband “have not had a financial struggle in our lives.”  —  The Progressive Change Campaign Committee is launching online ads, first set to run in Ohio …

Pat Robertson: Since 'We Don't Condone Wife-Beating These Days' Husband Should ‘Move to Saudi Arabia’ to Beat Her  —  Mitt Romney this weekend stumped alongside televangelist Pat Robertson, not minding Robertson's legacy of incendiary, insensitive, heartless and apocalyptic rhetoric that has gotten him in trouble in the past.

Maryland Democrat quits congressional race amid vote fraud allegations  —  A Maryland Democratic candidate quit her congressional race Monday after her own party told state officials that she had committed fraud by voting in both Maryland and Florida in recent elections.

GOP Senator: ‘Bomb Everybody Tomorrow’ Is ‘Typical’ Republican Policy  —  Between calls from leading Republicans to get ready for war with Iran, remain in Afghanistan and Iraq, and intervening militarily in Syria, it's no surprise that some on the left might label the GOP's approach to foreign policy “bomb everyone tomorrow.”