To get a grasp on Mitt Romney, start with the lesson of the muffin

If you want to understand who Mitt Romney really is, go beyond the position papers, stump speeches and preposterously presidential coif, and start with muffins.

Obama, Romney in dead heat as voter bases stick

Heading into their nominating conventions, President Obama and Mitt Romney are dead even — down to a tenth of a percent — in the latest The Washington Times/JZ Analytics Poll, which also shows independents, the critical swing group, beginning to pick sides.

Seniors boost Obama over fears of GOP Medicare cuts

Voters believe Mitt Romney and other Republicans are more likely to cut Medicare than President Obama and congressional Democrats, according to the latest The Washington Times/JZ Analytics survey, released Sunday.

Paul forecasts a libertarian storm brewing

Rep. Ron Paul rewarded thousands of his presidential campaign supporters with a rally here Sunday, vowing that with their help, his small government, anti-war libertarian message will continue after he retires — no matter who occupies the White House come January.

Innovators working their way out of a job

Cort Martin followed in the footsteps of his father and grandfather and made his career at IBM.

When Nationals win, D.C. budget-minders let out big cheers

Good defense and timely hitting have been a boon this year for the Washington Nationals, and officials who mind the city's balance sheet are hoping for a share of the good fortune.

GOP officials accuse Romney of 'power grab'

Top Republicans are fighting one another over what one party leader called "one of the biggest power grabs" in the party's history.

HURT: Tampa dancers do politics American style

But with the Republican convention in town, Thee DollHouse has taken on a decidedly political flair. That is because small business owner Warren Colazzo, a modern American patriot if there ever were one, sensed an opportunity to make some money.

In Tampa, loyal Paul backers wary of Romney

As she gathered with others to hear her political hero, Rep. Ron Paul, bow off the stage, Suzanne Squire cringed when she was asked whom she will vote for in the fall election.

CURL: The dog days — Press rolls over for Obama

Take the dog days of August, add a presidential election. What do you get? Time for the mainstream media to roll over like Fido for the Democratic candidate.

GOP plank decries 'social experimentation' in military

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney does not bring up President Obama's social revolution inside the armed forces, but the GOP platform does.

Inside the Beltway: Hope and change, part 2

As "2016: Obama's America" took in $6 million over the weekend, another film is set to hit the public radar: "The Hope & the Change," produced by Citizens United founder David Bossie and writer-director Stephen K. Bannon, is based on 40 interviews with Democrats and independents in six swing states, all concerned about President Obama.

Romney again repudiates Akin's rape comments

Even as they gear up their party convention in Tampa, top Republicans still were forced to spend much of Sunday repudiating the "legitimate rape" comments made by Rep. W. Todd Akin of Missouri and reiterating their calls for the U.S. Senate hopeful to quit the race.

TWT/JZ Analytics Poll: Shut Stephen Strasburg down

Americans overwhelmingly say the Nationals should shut pitcher Stephen Strasburg down for the rest of the season rather than let him continue to pitch and help his team get into the playoffs, according to the latest The Washington Times/JZ Analytics Poll.

Militants from Afghanistan attack Pakistan

Dozens of militants from Afghanistan attacked an anti-Taliban militia post in northwest Pakistan for the third day Sunday, sparking fighting that killed one soldier and 20 militants, a Pakistani official said.

NATO: 202 Afghan bases closed, with more to come

NATO has closed more than 200 bases in Afghanistan and transferred nearly 300 others to local forces, a concrete step toward its 2014 target of handing over security responsibility, NATO officers said Sunday.

Commentary

PRIEBUS: A convention and candidate for a better future

As Republicans take the stage in Tampa, we have a message for Americans: Elect Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan, and we can get this country working again. America can do better than the last four years, and with the proven leadership of Mr. Romney and Mr. Ryan, we can secure a better future for the country and the next generation.

DECKER: Rough waters at GOP convention

It will be a shame if Hurricane Isaac washes out the GOP convention in Tampa. Mitt Romney has done all the big things right so far in his run for the White House. He won a hotly contested Republican primary by sticking to an issues-oriented message that avoided attacking his opponents and isolating their supporters.

SHIRLEY: Another history-making GOP convention

Things were going bumpily according to plan for the men in charge of the President Ford Committee at the Republican National Convention in Kansas City, Mo., in August 1976. With so many moving parts, however, most campaigns are at best "garbage moving in the right direction," as GOP operative Eddie Mahe once quipped.

DECKER: 10 Tips: How Romney beats Obama

Every day brings more good news for Mitt Romney's presidential campaign. As Republicans gather in Tampa, Fla., for their national convention, their standard-bearer is ahead of President Obama in most national polls.

EDITORIAL: Stakes high against Obama

Republicans gather in Tampa on Monday for their nominating convention. These quadrennial gatherings lack their historical drama, and in 2012 the outcome is assured. Former Gov. Mitt Romney and Rep. Paul Ryan will be the party's nominees for president and vice president, the "brokered convention" fantasy scenarios notwithstanding.