Republican Convention

Clint Eastwood's impact on Mitt Romney's campaign remains to be seen, but his digressive speech - and the frenzied response to it - will almost certainly be the most memorable media moment to emerge from what had been, until Thursday night, a Republican National Convention notable for its predictability. Earlier in the week, the biggest "story" of the convention seemed to be Hurricane Isaac. On Sunday night, as the storm swirled ominously toward the Gulf Coast, broadcast TV producers faced a dilemma: How to cover the potentially devastating event while also giving adequate attention to the Republican gathering?

TAMPA, Fla. - Party conventions long ago stopped picking the presidential nominees and rarely have much impact once the sound bites fade and the last confetti gets swept away. The exceptions came in 1968 for the Democrats and 1992 for the Republicans, when voters were repelled by what they saw (rioting in the streets of Chicago) and heard (a sharp right turn on social issues inside the convention hall in Houston). There was nothing at the Republican National Convention in Tampa, save Clint Eastwood's free-form performance of a man and his chair, that was not carefully scripted and sanitized to avoid just such a result.

WASHINGTON-- A federal judge has ordered the battleground state of Ohio to open its polling places on the weekend and Monday prior to the Nov. 6 election, restoring the voting rules that were in effect in 2008,  when more than 93,000 early ballots were cast. The decision is a significant victory for the Obama campaign, which hopes for another large turnout in a state that is seen as crucial to both Republicans and Democrats. Obama's lawyers had sued Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted after he eliminated early voting on the weekends, including the three days before Election Day.  A former Republican legislator and Ohio House speaker, Husted said he wanted voting rules that were “uniform” across all 88 counties.

JEAN LAFITTE, La. - The day after accepting the Republican Party's presidential nomination, Mitt Romney abruptly canceled a campaign appearance in a crucial swing state Friday to tour a flood-ravaged area of the Louisiana bayou near New Orleans, acknowledging the damage caused by Hurricane Isaac. The hurricane disrupted the party's national convention in Tampa, Fla., forcing the cancellation of the first day and causing officials to worry about the message it would send to celebrate the GOP ticket while the storm slammed into New Orleans almost seven years to the day after Hurricane Katrina.

TAMPA, Fla. -- Political analysts will have to wait a few more days - probably until Sunday at the least - to have a good sense of how much of a boost Mitt Romney's presidential campaign received from his convention, but so far, the assessment has been “good, not great.” Romney's speech Thursday night hit several important notes, prominent Republicans here say, but the campaign also missed important opportunities to highlight the warmer, more...

TAMPA, Fla. - The idea must have seemed sure-fire when Mitt Romney's advisors hatched it: Highlight the final night of the Republican National Convention with a surprise appearance by that long, tall drink of gritty Americana, Clint Eastwood. The beloved movie star and filmmaker surely would confer some of his abundant credibility on the Republican presidential nominee, still trying after six years of running for the White House to persuade some voters of his authenticity. Eastwood would then flee into the swampy Florida night and Romney would launch his acceptance speech.

Despite the rainy weather, Tampa, Fla., was good for Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan; a bit less so for Clint Eastwood. As the cleaning crew sweeps up the confetti and burst balloons, here are the highlights of the 2012 Republican National Convention… Oddest use of prime time: Clint Eastwood's improvisation with an empty chair They seemed to love it inside the hall, but the folks in charge of keeping the program on schedule were going nuts...

LAKELAND, Fla. - Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan parted ways after a final sendoff rally Friday morning - abandoning plans to spend the day campaigning together so that Romney could join Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal for a tour of an area damaged by Hurricane Isaac. Ryan broached the subject during the rally outside a Lakeland airplane hangar, pausing for a moment of prayer for the hurricane victims as well as those affected by the magnitude 7.6 earthquake off the eastern coast of the Philippines.

Nearly 33 million people in the U.S. watched former Mass. Gov. Mitt Romney accept his party's nomination for president on the final night of the Republican National Convention, according to ratings giant Nielsen. Among the highlights was the controversial "empty chair" presentation by actor Clint Eastwood. The numbers made Thursday the most-watched evening of the Republican convention this year. However, the audience was about 17% lower than it was four years ago when nearly 39 million viewers tuned in to see U.S. Sen. John McCain accept the Republican nomination.

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is storming the national stage like never before, rebutting GOP talking points in Tampa, Fla., during the Republican convention, becoming a fixture on Sunday morning talk shows and preparing to open next week's Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C., where he will play a key leadership role. Written off by some after a much-publicized extramarital affair and a scandal over free sports and concert tickets, Villaraigosa has emerged as a major figure in the Democrats' efforts to get out the crucial Latino vote and is again being talked about as a future governor or senator.