Editors:
Here are the top stories at this hour from The Associated Press. At the Nerve Center, news producer Jerome Minerva can be reached at 800-845-8450 (ext. 1600). In photos, Mike Musielski (ext. 1900). Times in EDT.
DEVELOPING
— PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN — Vice President Joe Biden attends a campaign event in Provincetown, Mass., at 11 a.m.
POLITICS
EVERY FOUR YEARS-ESSAY
WASHINGTON — The political conventions are back to ask again if we, as individuals and a nation, are better off than we were four years ago. At their best, these mud-slinging, self-serving, partisan-by-definition displays rise to offer something more: moments that transcend politics. By Connie Cass.
ROMNEY-HURRICANE POLITICS
TAMPA, Fla. — In the end, Mitt Romney chose not to tempt fate. With Tropical Storm Isaac bearing down on Florida, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee scrapped the first day of his national convention, mindful of the good politics of putting safety before, well, politics. Now, his aides and Republican National Committee officials are scrambling behind closed doors to shrink a four-day schedule of events into three for a convention that had been set to open with a sweeping indictment of President Barack Obama’s tenure.
PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN
TAMPA, Fla. — United in their concern over a brewing tropical storm, Romney and Obama keep tabs on Florida from afar. Concern over nasty weather already alters the GOP convention, where Romney will accept his party nomination for president. Obama, away in Camp David, Md., also pays attention to the storm situation threatening Florida.
NATIONAL
OBIT-NEIL ARMSTRONG
CINCINNATI — Neil Armstrong made “one giant leap for mankind” with a small step onto the moon. He commanded the historic landing of the Apollo 11 spacecraft on the moon July 20, 1969, capping the most daring of the 20th century’s scientific expeditions and becoming the first man to walk on the moon. Armstrong, who had bypass surgery earlier this month, died at 82 from what his family says were complications of heart procedures.
TROPICAL WEATHER
KEY WEST, Fla. — Tourists in the Florida Keys muster party faces and residents follow time-worn rituals as the islands prepare for a lashing Sunday from a strengthening Tropical Storm Isaac after it swamped the Caribbean and shuffled plans for the Republican National Convention.
EMPIRE STATE BUILDING-SHOOTING
NEW YORK — In the initial chaos, it wasn’t clear whether the gunman or the officers were responsible for the trail of the wounded. But New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly says that based on ballistic and other evidence, “it appears that all nine of the victims were struck either by fragments or by bullets fired by police.”
INTERNATIONAL
JAPAN-NEW ACTIVISM
TOKYO — Tens of thousands of protesters — the largest demonstrations the country has seen in decades — descend on Tokyo every Friday evening to shout anti-nuclear slogans at the prime minister’s office. The government’s much-criticized handling of the Fukushima nuclear crisis has spawned a new breed of protesters in Japan. Drawn from the ranks of ordinary citizens rather than activists, they are a manifestation of a broader dissatisfaction with government and could create pressure for change in a political system that has long resisted it.
Sports Coverage: Baseball, golf, NFL preseason and auto racing.
Guest lineups for the Sunday TV news shows:
___
ABC’s “This Week.” Topic: Politics. Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, chairman of the Republican Platform Committee; Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, chairman of the Democratic National Convention.
___
NBC’s “Meet the Press.” Topic: Politics. Republican former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush; Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.
___
CBS’ “Face the Nation.” Topic: Politics. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla.; Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus; Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn.; Republican former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour.
___
CNN’s “State of the Union.” Topics: Politics. Priebus; Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas; Gov. Scott Walker, R-Wis.; Gov. Rick Scott, R-Fla.
___
“Fox News Sunday.” Topic: Politics. Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney and his wife, Ann.
