Tampa, Florida (CNN) -- It was supposed to be Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney's night.
But instead of basking in the afterglow of what many called a solid acceptance speech, the Romney campaign is now forced to deal with the aftermath of Clint Eastwood's rambling "empty chair" routine at the Republican National Convention on Thursday night.
(CNN) -- Karl Rove, a former adviser to President George W. Bush and now head of the conservative super PAC American Crossroads, apologized on Friday to Rep. Todd Akin of Missouri after a reporter published biting words Rove used to describe the embattled Senate candidate.
"We should sink Todd Akin. If he's found mysteriously murdered, don't look for my whereabouts," Rove said Thursday at a private fundraiser, according to a Businessweek reporter who was not supposed to be there.
New Orleans, Louisiana (CNN) - When iconic actor and Romney supporter Clint Eastwood asked for a chair to be brought onto the convention stage Thursday night, staffers did not realize it would become an integral part of his speech, according to a senior aide.
Eastwood's performance on-stage -- largely a conversation between the actor and the empty chair he used to symbolize President Obama -- raised eyebrows and quickly went viral, as thousands of viewers tweeted bemused reactions to the unconventional remarks.
CNN's GUT CHECK | for August 31, 2012 | 4 p.m.
- n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle
DEVELOPING: ROMNEY VISITS STORM DAMAGED LOUISIANA, OBAMA CHANGES SCHEDULE TO VISIT ON MONDAY:
MITT ROMNEY TOURS LAFITTE, LOUISIANA WITH STATE’S GOVERNOR AND U.S. SENATOR: Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney arrived in Louisiana Friday afternoon to tour damage left in the wake of Hurricane Isaac with Gov.
(CNN) -- Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney arrived in Louisiana Friday afternoon to tour damage left in the wake of Hurricane Isaac with Gov. Bobby Jindal and Sen. David Vitter.
Romney, who was accompanied by his wife, Ann, said that the trip was to learn and obviously to draw some attention to what's going here... so that people around the country know that people done here need help."
(CNN) -- One party ends, another begins.
With the Republican National Convention wrapped up, all eyes now turn to Charlotte, North Carolina, the site of the Democratic National Convention that officially kicks off Tuesday.
(CNN) -- Vice President Joe Biden hit back Friday against his Republican counterpart's recent comments about a shuttered General Motors plant--one that Paul Ryan blamed the president for closing.
"But what he didn't tell you is the plant in Janesville, (Wisconsin) actually closed when President Bush was still in office," Biden said to a local United Auto Workers crowd in Lordstown, Ohio.
(CNN) -- President Barack Obama plans to go to Louisiana on Monday to meet with officials handling the response to Hurricane Isaac, which made landfall this week, the White House said Friday.
According to White House Press Secretary Jay Carney, the president canceled a campaign trip to Cleveland, Ohio in order to make the Gulf Coast visit. He will travel from Toledo, Ohio to Louisiana.
(CNN) - The Obama campaign offered a pointed comeback to Clint Eastwood's Republican National Convention chair sketch Thursday night tweeting, "This seat's taken" along with a picture of Obama in his Cabinet Room chair with a plaque inscribed: "The President."
Clint Eastwood was revealed as the GOP convention's "mystery guest" Thursday prior to the evening's prime time rundown and following media speculation of the schedule's empty slot.
By Dan Gilgoff, CNN.com Religion Editor
(CNN) -- After years of keeping quiet about his Mormon faith, Mitt Romney’s campaign thrust his church life into the national eye Thursday night, as a handful of Mormons took to the Republican National Convention’s stage to deliver moving testimonials about the Republican presidential nominee’s role as a member and leader in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
