Inside the campaign: How Mitt Romney stumbled  —  Stuart Stevens, Mitt Romney's top strategist, knew his candidate's convention speech needed a memorable mix of loft and grace if he was going to bound out of Tampa with an authentic chance to win the presidency.

Ambassador Susan Rice: Libya Attack Not Premeditated  —  U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice said the attack on the American consulate in Benghazi was not premeditated, directly contradicting top Libyan officials who say the attack was planned in advance.

Maureen Dowd meets anti-Semitism charge  —  New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd set the Jewish political community on fire today with a column about the Republican ticket's foreign policy proposals that, according to her critics, peddled anti-Semitic imagery.

WEIGHING OFFER, CHICAGO TEACHERS REMAIN ON STRIKE … CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago teachers uncomfortable with a tentative contract offer decided Sunday to remain on strike, insisting they need more time before deciding whether to end an acrimonious standoff with Mayor Rahm Emanuel …

Benjamin Netanyahu To NBC: Those Who Believe Iran Should Have Nukes ‘Set A New Standard For Human Stupidity’  —  During his tour of several Sunday morning American talk shows, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told NBC's Meet the Press that Iran is guided by fanaticism with no rationality …

BREAKING: VIDEO PURPORTS TO SHOW US AMBASSADOR DRAGGED FROM BENGHAZI CONSULATE  —  YouTube user “Abdalgadar Fadi” has uploaded a video on the arabic language version of the video sharing site purporting to show US Ambassador Christopher Stevens dragged from the consulate in Benghazi.

Poll: Warren opens up 6-point lead over Brown in Mass. Senate race  —  Elizabeth Warren has opened up a 6-point lead against Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) in their hotly contested senatorial race, according to a new poll.  —  The poll, from the Western New England University Polling Institute …

Obama crams for debates, works on being concise  —  (Reuters) - On long flights to swing states in the West and late nights at the White House after his children have gone to bed, President Barack Obama is cramming like a student for a test that could determine his political future.  —  The subject?

Romney Camp Decides: The Economy Isn't Enough  —  “It's not enough just to criticize,” says Ryan.  Agrees an aide: “We have to bring more to the table.”  —  OLDSMAR, Fla. — Mitt Romney's campaign for president appears to have quietly abandoned its guiding assumption …

Obama up 5 in Virginia  —  PPP's newest Virginia poll finds Barack Obama leading by 5 points, 51-46.  Obama's lead is unchanged from a month ago when we found him leading 50-45 in the state.  He may not be seeing a bump from the convention in the state at this point, but he was in a pretty good position to begin with.