Just minutes after Family Research Council President Tony Perkins told reporters and C-SPAN cameras that Rep. Todd Akin would attend the Values Voter Summit this weekend, officials from the FRC and the …

Romney Camp’s New Explanation Of Libya Reaction: W.H. Actions Prove We’re Right

The Romney campaign continues to defend its increasingly isolated response to the Libya consulate attack, claiming that the White House implicitly acknowledged its criticism was accurate by disavowing an earlier statement from the U.S. embassy in Egypt.

“If Gov. Romney ‘jumped the gun’ why were White House officials also distancing themselves from the statement?” Romney spokeswoman Andrea Saul said in a statement. “Why didn’t President Obama take any questions from the press this morning to explain?”

Carmona Ad: ‘Republicans And Democrats Both Got It Wrong’ On Health Care

Arizona Democrat Richard Carmona is distancing himself from national Democrats on health care reform in his campaign for Senate. In a new ad, Carmona strikes an independent note.

“Republicans and Democrats both got it wrong,” Carmona, a surgeon general under President George W. Bush, says in the ad. “We’ve got to make health care affordable for small business and working families — through innovation and preventive care, while also cutting waste and fraud.”

The Carmona campaign said that Carmona’s criticism is aimed at improving health care reform, not repealing it.

Paul Ryan And Todd Akin Will Both Appear At Values Voter Summit

They won’t share a stage, but Paul Ryan and Rep. Todd Akin will share the same spotlight at the Values Voter Summit this week.

The summit is sponsored by Akin’s most prominent remaining supporter, the Family Research Council. And with the annual confab only days away, FRC President Tony Perkins said his group is not about to keep its star candidate away from its signature event.

Romney’s False Libya Attack Puts Him Way Ahead Of Mainstream GOP

Mitt Romney’s harsh and factually inaccurate condemnation of President Obama’s handling of a deadly attack on the U.S. consulate in Libya puts him well in front of the rest of his party.

Romney’s aggressive attacks on Obama are a reversal from Romney’s usual approach, where he waits for the party to reach a consensus before stepping in. Nowhere was this more clear than during the military operation in Libya that overthrew Muammar Gaddafi’s regime, when Romney avoided taking a decisive stand in any one direction.

Romney Repeats False Libya Attack, Accuses Obama Of ‘Apology’ For America

Mitt Romney reiterated on Wednesday his condemnation of President Obama’s response to an attack on a diplomatic compound in Libya that killed Ambassador Chris Stevens, accusing Obama of apologizing to Islamic miltants.

In a press conference delivered minutes after Secretary of State Hillary Clinton addressed the attacks, Romney expanded on his initial statement, in which he said the administration’s first response was “to sympathize with those who waged the attacks.”

News Of Foreign Service Officer’s Death Breaks Over Gaming Community

Word of foreign service officer Sean Smith’s death in Benghazi, Libya, first broke in the online gaming world, where he was an avid player. The State Department confirmed Wednesday morning that he had been killed in an attack on the consulate Tuesday.

Alex Gianturco, a friend and leader of Smith’s “guild” in the multiplayer game EVE Online, hailed Smith late Tuesday — known online by his handle “Vile Rat” — as a dedicated public servant who was extremely influential within his community.

State Dept. Confirms Death In Libya; Romney Attacks ‘Disgraceful’ White House

This post has been updated.

Protestors attacked United States diplomatic compounds in Egypt and Libya on Tuesday, killing one State Department officer, the State Department confirmed late Tuesday night.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton confirmed the death at the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, according to the Associated Press. Angry mobs descended on the consulate in Libya and the embassy in Egypt to protest an online film promoted by American pastor Terry Jones that denounces Islam.

In a previous incident tied to Jones, a riot at a U.N. mission in Afghanistan killed 12 people in 2011, including three United Nations workers and four security guards, after mullahs urged followers to protest the Florida pastor’s burning of a Koran. More were killed in additional protests elsewhere in the country.

Bill Clinton: A Hard-Fought Campaign Is Patriotic

President Clinton joined House Republicans in breaking the usual tradition of avoiding political rhetoric on Sept. 11, delivering a campaign speech on behalf of President Obama in Florida on Tuesday.

Clinton started off his speech at Florida International University with a moment of silence for the victims of the attack. He went on to make the case that he was honoring the anniversary’s theme of public service by talking recent restrictions on voting rights enacted by several Republican statehouses. More generally, he suggested that a hard-fought election reflected basic American values.

Barney Frank Won’t Walk Back ‘Very Harsh’ Language On Gay Republicans

Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) has taken a lot of flak for his comment during a meeting at last week’s Democratic National Convention likening gay Republican groups like the Log Cabin Republicans and GOProud to “Uncle Tom.”

On Tuesday, Frank sent an extremely long missive to critics of his phrasing. Comparing gay Republicans to Uncle Tom was “admittedly very harsh criticism,” Frank said in statement. But, Frank said, he meant it.