Deputies: RNC protestor arrested with machete strapped to his leg  —  TAMPA —  A Republican National Convention protestor was arrested while he allegedly carried a machete strapped to his leg, according to deputies.  —  According to Hillsborough County Sheriff's officials, Jason T. Wilson …

Mitt Romney outlines his governing plan to POLITICO  —  POWELL, Ohio — Mitt Romney conceded President Barack Obama has succeeded in making him a less likable person, but he offered a defiant retort to those hoping he will open up this week: “I am who I am.”

Poll: Obama, Romney neck-and-neck ahead of party conventions  —  A new Washington Post-ABC News poll shows Romney at 47 percent among registered voters and Obama at 46 percent — barely changed from the deadlocked contest in early July.  —  The findings continue a months-long pattern …

Christie chose NJ over Mitt's VP role due to fears that they'd lose: sources  —  Gov. Chris Christie wasn't willing to give up the New Jersey statehouse to be Mitt Romney's running mate because he doubted they'd win, The Post has learned.  —  Romney's top aides had demanded Christie step …

Republicans Worry About Keeping Factions Reined In  —  TAMPA, Fla. — Mitt Romney arrives here this week to accept his nomination from the increasingly disparate coalition of factions known as the Republican Party, confronting the challenge of unifying them behind him and — should he win …

Mitt Romney Reaped Huge Tax Benefits Based On ‘Active’ Role At Bain Capital … REACT:  —  FOLLOW:  —  Elections 2012, Mitt Romney, Elections 2012, Taxes , Mitt Romney Bain Capital, Private Equity, ROMNEy TAXES, Tax Return, Bain, Bain Capital, Loopholes, Mitt Romney 2012, Mitt Romney 2012 …

Ron Paul: If I Was In Charge The People Killed on 9/11 Would Still Be Alive  —  At a speech today in the Sun Dome at the University of South Florida ahead of the Republican convention, the Libertarian former Republican presidential candidate said if he had been in charge 9/11 wouldn't have occurred.

CHART: How Ending The High End Bush Tax Cuts Saves Nearly $1 Trillion  —  President Obama has promised to end the Bush tax cuts on income in excess of $250,000 when they expire at the end of the year, with his aides saying that he is “100 percent committed” to preventing another extension.

Interview: Romney blasts Obama for a ‘vituperative’ campaign  —  POWELL, Ohio - Mitt Romney calls campaign attacks by President Obama and his allies “vituperative” and “vicious” and “absurd” and “sad.”  Also: Effective.  —  “I do think that the president's campaign of personal vilification …

Tracking Poll Wave 1: Latino vote uphill climb for Romney  —  By Pilar Marrero, impreMedia  —  Just before the beginning of the Republican National Convention in Tampa presidential candidate Mitt Romney continues to overwhelmingly lose the Latino vote and has low levels of favorability among the majority of the Latino electorate.

17 Afghans beheaded in insurgent attack on party  —  KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Insurgents beheaded 17 civilians in a Taliban-controlled area of southern Afghanistan, apparently because they attended a dance party that flouted the extreme brand of Islam embraced by the militants, officials said Monday.