The Obama campaign hammers Mitt Romney in a short new video: “American doesn’t need a birther-in-chief.”
A Look Back at Previous Conventions
Michael Barone has a great look back at when national political conventions actually meant something.
“The national conventions are diminishing in importance, but I would be sorry to see them go extinct. I always feel a twinge of sadness when they adjourn and the maintenance people start popping the balloons and folding up the chairs. There’s something awesome about being part of an American political tradition that goes back to the 19th century.”
Huckabee Attacks Establishment Republicans
Mike Huckabee harshly criticized establishment Republicans who have tried to force Rep. Todd Akin (R-MO) from the Missouri U.S. Senate race, CNN reports, and at one point compared the National Republican Senatorial Committee to “union goons” who “kneecap” their enemies.
Said Huckabee: “This is unprecedented, to see to this orchestrated attempt to humiliate and devastate a fellow Republican.”
“At one point, Huckabee mused about whether Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney affected his poll numbers in Missouri by not coming to Akin’s defense.”
Rubio May Be Bumped
The RNC is “making big changes to the lineup of speakers at the convention next week in Tampa to ensure that broadcast networks cover Ann Romney’s speech,” the Weekly Standard reports.
“Among the changes most seriously under consideration: moving Marco Rubio to Tuesday night and having Mrs. Romney speak Thursday night in the spot originally reserved for Rubio. Mrs. Romney’s speech was initially scheduled for Monday night, but the big three television networks won’t be covering the convention that night, so the Romney campaign and Republican officials have scrambled over the last several days to ensure her speech gets the widest coverage possible.”
Obama Holds Small National Lead
A new CNN/Opinion Research poll shows President Obama leading Mitt Romney by just two points among likely voters, 49% to 47%.
Josh Marshall: “If you look at the number for registered voters it’s a 9 point Obama margin. What that means is that President Obama has actually gained a bit of ground (obviously within the margin of error) on last week’s eye-popping poll showing him with a 7 point lead over Mitt Romney. But it also shows that turnout and propensity to vote are going to be the whole game going into November.”
Extra Bonus Quote of the Day
“I’m very proud of my pro-life record, and I’ve always adopted the idea that, the position that the method of conception doesn’t change the definition of life.”
— Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), in an interview with WJHL-TV, when asked if a woman should be able to get an abortion if she’s raped.
When Did the GOP Get So White?
John Avlon: “The one-time Party of Lincoln boasted the first African-American, Asian-American, Native-American, Hispanic, and popularly-elected woman senators. Now polls show Romney-Ryan will get virtually no black votes.”
“But ’twas not always thus for the GOP. Dust off your history books and you will see Republicans once had a virtual lock on the minority vote — and minority elected officials. The legacy of Lincoln was alive and well until not so long ago. Which makes the retreat of recent decades both unfortunate and ill-timed.”
Obama Responds to Romney Birther Joke
President Obama responds to Mitt Romney’s joke about his birth certificate with a simple tweet:
Song of the day: Born in the U.S.A. OFA.BO/irL3ZV
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) August 24, 2012
New York Times: “Politicians sometimes think they can get away with saying something profoundly offensive or just plain stupid by acting like it was a joke. It never works, just like it didn’t work today when Mr. Romney shamelessly played the birther card in what seems like an increasingly desperate campaign against President Obama.”
Obama Holds Edge in Colorado
A new OnSight Public Affairs poll in Colorado finds President Obama leading Mitt Romney by four points, 48% to 44%.
Bonus Quote of the Day
“No one has ever asked to see my birth certificate — they know that this was the place we were born and raised.”
— Mitt Romney, campaigning in Michigan.
Congressman Accused of Assaulting His Ex-Wife
The ex-wife of Rep. Joe Heck (R-NV) accused the freshman lawmaker of assaulting her during their marriage in the 1980s in a sworn statement, BuzzFeed reports.
Heck denied the charges and said that “anyone perpetuating a story like this… demeans the pain that so many victims of domestic violence experience and the courage it takes to confront it.”
Facing the Next President
Wonk Wire: Why 2013 will be a terrible year even if we don’t go over the fiscal cliff.
Exchange of the Day
Parade: How has tithing [the Mormon practice of giving 10 percent of one’s income to the church] shaped your view of how we treat each other?
Ann Romney: I love tithing. When Mitt and I give that check, I actually cry.
Mitt Romney: So do I, but for a different reason.
Predicting the Convention Bumps
Tom Holbrook forecasts polling bumps coming out of the conventions of 3.6 percentage points for Mitt Romney and 1.1 percentage points for President Obama.
“Right now, the two candidates are in a tight race, with Obama holding a slight advantage in the polls. Based on my bump predictions, I expect that the race will continue to be tight after the conventions but that Romney will hold a slight lead.”
The Victory Lab
In the mail: The Victory Lab by Sasha Issenberg.
This is a book I’ve been looking forward to reading.
Firsthand Account of Mission to Kill Osama bin Laden
Out next month: No Easy Day: The Firsthand Account of the Mission That Killed Osama Bin Laden by Mark Owen.
The book was written by a former Navy SEAL who helped plan and execute the raid that killed Osama bin Laden.
Fox News says the book is penned under the pseudonym “Mark Owen,” but multiple sources identify him as Matt Bissonnette, 36, of Wrangell, Alaska.
Cruz Defeats Dewhurst in Texas
Ted Cruz (R) defeated Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst (R) in the Republican U.S. Senate runoff, the AP reports.
“The Texas contest has become a national emblem of the GOP’s internal
tug-of-war between the establishment and the tea party and already is
the most expensive non-presidential race in the country, according to
the Center for Responsive Politics. Outside groups spent $14.4 million
in the race on top of the $32 million that the candidates spent,
including the $19 million that Dewhurst lent to his campaign.”
Dallas Morning News: “Wow, this is going to send some shockwaves through the GOP — in Texas and across the country.”
Return of the Bush-Era
A new Obama ad makes clear that Mitt Romney would return the policies of George W. Bush: “You watched… and worried. Two wars. Tax cuts for millionaires. Debt piled up. And now we face a choice.”
The ad will run in Colorado, Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, Ohio, and Florida.
