To the Point

A look at how money and influence meet in Republican politics, and the diversity that makes Florida a swing state with seniors, Hispanics and evangelicals.

Tropical Storm Isaac may not be headed for Tampa, but it has disrupted the Republican National Convention. 

The last time a party "nominating convention" actually nominated a presidential candidate was in 1976, but that doesn’t mean today's TV extravaganzas aren't important.

Political platforms are exercises in democracy that give voice to grassroots activists. Do both parties share the risk of platforms that cater to narrow constituencies?

Congressman Todd Akin (R-MO) won the nomination for a US Senate seat without support of the party establishment. Now he's defied Mitt Romney's request that he step aside.

Medicare and Social Security are issues in the presidential campaign. With young workers paying benefits for the elderly, who are better off, will that divide generations?

Never mind the November election or the US Supreme Court. The biggest challenge to President Obama's Affordable Care Act is a shortage of doctors.

Thousands may be lining up, but President Obama's "modified Dream Act" may be less than it seems to illegal immigrants brought here as children and raised as Americans.

The choice of Paul Ryan as Mitt Romney's running mate: a political master-stroke or a hail-Mary pass to get the GOP challenger back in the game?

Egypt's elected President has suddenly seized new powers, thrown out veterans of the Mubarak dictatorship and even replaced the editors of state-owned newspapers.