politics

The last time Republicans came to Minnesota for a national political convention, they arrived by train and moved around the host city of Minneapolis in horse-drawn carriages or newly electrified streetcars. It was 1892, and Minneapolis was eager to prove itself as an up-and-coming city to the rest of the nation.

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Fundraising is never far away from politics, but within hours of the announcement that the Republican National Convention would be scaled back, raising money for hurricane victims became a major focus of the gathering.

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Among Republicans here for their national convention, the initial surprise -- if not shock -- of John McCain's choice of Sarah Palin as his running mate quickly morphed into near elation.Many of the delegates are social conservatives who had worried that McCain might pick a supporter of abortion rights or gun control or other moderate positions.

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- When Sen. John McCain introduced Gov. Sarah Palin as his vice-presidential running mate Friday, her reputation as a tough-minded budget-cutter was front and center."I told Congress, thanks but no thanks on that bridge to nowhere," Palin told the cheering McCain crowd, referring to Ketchikan's proposed Gravina Island Bridge.

Here is the Scripps Howard News Service budget of stories and opinion pieces on the REPUBLICAN NATIONAL CONVENTION for Monday, Sept. 1, 2008. If you have questions or comments, SHNS editors can be reached at 202-408-1484. For all SHNS content and archives, visit our Web site at www.shns.com.NEWS ... PROFILES ... NOTES:

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Sarah Palin was a hockey mom, small-town mayor and rising young Republican star in Alaska in 2003 when she ran afoul of her party's establishment over ethics reform and was cast into the political wilderness.

EDITORS:Scripps Howard News Service will offer a daily assortment from the Republican National Convention in St. Paul. It will include stories, editorials and op-ed columns that capture the substance -- and silliness -- of this sure-to-be historic event.

The Republicans are gathering in Minneapolis-St. Paul to nominate for president a candidate who by any conventional political wisdom shouldn't be there.And at John McCain's side will be a most unconventional pick as his running mate: Sarah Palin, the Alaska governor, a mother of five and a former sportswriter whose favorite food after snowmobiling is moose stew.

Snapshots from the Democratic National Convention in Denver:Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer got a standing O for his earthy, plain and simple talk from Florida delegates, who hailed his defense of hard-working immigrants.

DENVER -- Originally, the antiwar march that started after an afternoon concert at Denver's Coliseum this week wasn't a permitted parade.But when police got word Wednesday that thousands were expected to take to the streets in what had the potential to be the largest protest of the Democratic National Convention so far, they struck a deal with protest leaders.