Obama plan: Destroy Romney  —  Barack Obama's aides and advisers are preparing to center the president's re-election campaign on a ferocious personal assault on Mitt Romney's character and business background, a strategy grounded in the early stage expectation that the former Massachusetts governor is the likely GOP nominee.

As Rioting Widens, Cameron Deploys 10,000 More Police  —  By ALAN COWELL, RAVI SOMAIYA and JOHN F. BURNS  —  LONDON — Prime Minister David Cameron pledged on Tuesday to flood the streets of London with 10,000 extra police officers and said Parliament would be recalled in emergency session …

The Day of Reckoning in Wisconsin Recall Fight  —  Outside groups, finger-pointing and acrimony have nearly eclipsed the original reason six state senators face voters today  —  Wisconsin is tired of standing.  —  First the state was told to “Stand with Walker.”  —  Ever since then, it's been “Stand with Rob Cowles.”

Obama's job approval  —  President Obama's job approval rating is 50% or higher in 16 states and D.C. Roll over each state to see how each rated Obama.  The darker the shade of the state, the higher his overall approval rating.  —  Source: Gallup  —  WASHINGTON — Another “wave” …

Is Obama Smart?  —  A case study in stupid is as stupid does.  —  The aircraft was large, modern and considered among the world's safest.  But that night it was flying straight into a huge thunderstorm.  Turbulence was extreme, and airspeed indicators may not have been functioning properly.

The most powerful man on Earth?  —  A familiar air of indecision preceded President Obama's pep talk to the nation.  —  The first draft of his schedule for Monday contained no plans to comment on the downgrading of the U.S. credit rating by Standard & Poor's.

Obama Cancels Schedule to Meet Returned Bodies of Fallen Soldiers  —  President Obama will travel to Dover Air Force base later on Tuesday to honor the 22 Navy SEALs and eight other American troops killed in Afghanistan on Saturday when an insurgent shot down their helicopter …

Forced to strip naked in the street: Shocking scenes as rioters steal clothes and rifle through bags as people make their way home  —  This is the shocking moment a young man is apparently forced to hand over all of his clothes after appearing to be stripped naked during lawless riots overnight.

Bachmann's political touch turns doubter into fan  —  Anyone who doubts Michele Bachmann's talents as a hands-on politician didn't see her performance here Monday.  In an otherwise unremarkable town hall meeting, Bachmann turned a potentially embarrassing encounter with a grouchy voter …

About Jeffrey Goldberg  —  Jeffrey Goldberg, a national correspondent for the Atlantic, is the author of “Prisoners: A Story of Friendship and Terror.”  He was formerly a Washington correspondent and a Middle East correspondent for the New Yorker.  —  Chris Christie Says Jersey's Safe From Shariah: Jeffrey Goldberg

Charlie Rangel to Obama: Bring Congress back  —  A prominent liberal House Democrat is calling on President Barack Obama to bring Congress back from its August recess, joining a growing list asking the president to put lawmakers to work now to fix the economy.

Mr. Cool turns cold  —  In her autobiography, Helen Gahagan Douglas recalled telling President Franklin D. Roosevelt about her visits to the camps of migrant workers.  She was especially poignant about the children and their lack of Christmas toys when the president tried to stop her.

Who ‘made $10bn on 10/1 bet that U.S. credit rating would be downgraded’?  —  A mystery investor or hedge fund reportedly made a bet of almost $1billion at odds of 10/1 last month that the U.S. would lose its AAA credit rating.  —  Now questions are being asked of whether the trader …

Got Hope?  Here's Why Obama Should  —  President's poll numbers aren't so good, but Congress's are much worse.  —  The GOP has been making hay of the fact that President Obama's approval ratings in the latest Gallup Poll dropped to 42 percent, the lowest level since he took office.