Updated 7:10 p.m. - TAMPA, Fla. -- Republicans announced Saturday that they had effectively canceled the first day of their convention for safety concerns associated with an impending hurricane.

Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus said in a statement that "the Republican National Convention will convene on Monday August 27th and immediately recess until Tuesday afternoon, August 28th."

That move essentially postpones the activities of the first of four scheduled days of the convention. But Priebus said in a conference call with reporters that the details of the revised schedule were not yet settled, and could be announced as soon as Sunday.

"The Republican National Convention is going to take place. We know that we will officially nominate Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan," he said.

Romney will now be formally nominated as the Republican Party's presidential candidate on Tuesday instead of Monday, said Russ Schriefer, a senior strategist for the Romney campaign.

"Right now, we expect that the roll call will just take place on Tuesday," he said.

Convention organizers had pushed ahead with the gathering as planned for much of the week, even as it seemed, for some time, that Isaac was on a direct trajectory toward Tampa.

Simultaneously, the Obama campaign said that a bracketing trip by Vice President Joe Biden to Tampa -- which they had postponed -- would officially be canceled.

The impending hurricane aside, Republicans already did some last-minute reshuffling for their convention order, moving Ann Romney's speech to Tuesday from Monday because major television networks hadn't planned to broadcast the first night of the convention.

Following that change, the main speakers on Monday had been set to be South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush.

Schriefer also dismissed worries that the constrained schedule would hamper the GOP's ability to drive its message in this key swing state.

"Even though the time of the convention will be abbreviated...we will absolutely be able to get our message out," he said.

Bill Harris, the convention's president and CEO, said the convention organizers "will continue providing updates in the hours and days ahead."

Republicans needn't worry about Hurricane Issac bearing down on Tampa next week; "Hurricane Todd" Akin has already overshadowed the GOP's national convention, according to Obama campaign officials.

Senior brass from the president's re-election team told reporters that the Florida-based convention had already been marred by Missouri Rep. Todd Akin's controversial suggestion earlier this week that "legitimate rape" rarely leads to pregnancy.

"Hurricane Todd has already borne down on Tampa and the damage has been done.  And I don’t think that whether he stays on the ballot is that material," a senior campaign official told reporters gathered for a background briefing in Washington when asked whether they wanted to see Akin stay on the ballot in Missouri.

Akin has weathered demands from senior Republicans, including Mitt Romney, to step aside from his race to unseat incumbent Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill in Missouri. Though Akin has since apologized for his initial comments about rape, his political brand has become toxic, and has jeopardized not only Republicans' chances of winning back the Senate, but also the GOP's hopes of making inroads with women voters nationally.

To that end, the Obama campaign has sought to tie Akin to vice presidential contender Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) and the Romney campaign as a whole.

“It is true that Paul Ryan is, on these issues, Todd Akin’s ideological twin,” an Obama campaign official said.

The official went on to say: “This is the most radical ticket on these issues, and not just on women’s health and choice issues, but also on pay equity issues, things that are fundamental to women in this country. So, you know, we’ve earned the gender gap through the advocacy of the president ... but there’s no doubt that they have contributed to that through their positions and now through the appointment of Congressman Ryan."

The latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll showed that voters are far more confident in President Barack Obama’s ability to deal with issues of concern to women than Mitt Romney.

The Obama campaign also continued its attempt to frame the Republican Party -- and specifically, the convention -- as only catering to a very conservative base.

“They have no ability to expand the electorate.  They have looked at the Latino vote, the fastest growing voting block in this country and have decided to send out [Kansas Secretary of State Kris] Kobach to be their person at the convention.  They’re going to have [Sheriff] Joe Arpaio speak.  I mean, I may pay to livestream that.  That is going to be a great moment for the Obama campaign,” one campaign official joked.

(Kobach is known for co-authoring Arizona’s controversial immigration bill that was partially upheld by the Supreme Court this year. Sheriff Arpaio is known for his outspoken opposition to illegal immigration, and is currently being sued by the Department of Justice for “discriminatory and otherwise unconstitutional law enforcement actions against Latinos.” He'll be speaking not on the convention stage, but to a small group of Western state Republicans.)

As for the tradition of the opposing party keeping a low profile during the convention, the Obama campaign dismissed that notion.

“It’s not unprecedented for principals to be out,” said one campaign official, noting that there are 75 more days until the election. "We’re going to use each and every one of those days and make the most of it."

The Obama campaign's counterprogramming will include a presidential college tour in Iowa, Colorado and Virginia to highlight “the stark choice of going forward or moving back." Vice President Joe Biden will also be in Florida for two days next week, including a stop in Tampa on Monday.  

“Again, 75 days left, Florida is a critical state. We’re not going to cede that state for four days just because they’re having their convention.”  The official continued, “I don’t think that they’re going to hold back during out convention.”

Other topics addressed in the briefing:

THE RYAN EFFECT:  The Obama campaign said the pick of Paul Ryan gave little or no bump to the Romney campaign. After pointing out that Sen. John McCain received a nine point bump after the picking Sarah Palin, a campaign official noted,” Ryan failed the Palin test here and he is a point underwater.”

MEDICARE: “We’re happy to have this debate,” a campaign official said about Medicare while accusing Ryan of having concocted a "voucher plan" multiple times. The official said the debate over Medicare is not one Republicans are poised to win.

BILL CLINTON AS A PRINCIPAL: Expect to see the former president out on the campaign trail stumping for the current president a great deal after the Democratic National Convention is over. On top of a prime speaking spot at the convention and a new commercial in support of Obama’s economic plan, Clinton is willing to give “a significant amount of time” stumping for the campaign.  Obama officials believe he is an “important messenger.”

PERSUASION, REGISTRATION, TURN OUT:  Those three words are the story the Obama campaign wants to have told right now. They believe their registration ground game in swing states far surpasses Romney’s and that will make up for the amount of money being spent by outside political groups that support Romney’s campaign. “Our numbers are going to continue to outpace 2008 in both registration and voter contact,” one official said. While there is more they admit they need to get done on the ground, they showed confidence in their ability to register even more voters in the fall when colleges and universities start classes again. “You haven’t seen nothing yet, because kids are coming back to campuses.  What we learned in 2008 is you will see a major increase in the fall” in terms of voter registration said the same official.

THE VILLAGES, Fla. -- Campaigning with his retired mother at his side, Congressman Paul Ryan made the Romney-Ryan ticket pitch for fixing Medicare Saturday morning before thousands at the world's largest senior citizens community.

“Like a lot of Americans, when I think about Medicare it's not just a program, it's not just a bunch of numbers, it's what my mom relies on, it's what my grandma had,” Ryan said in his most detailed campaign speech yet. “Medicare was there for our family, for my grandma, when we needed it then; and Medicare is there for my mom while she needs it now, and we have to keep that guarantee.”

In a very personal appeal to the crowd that started with Ryan walking hand-and-hand with his 78-year-old mother, Betty Douglas, he promised to make sure “bureaucrats will not mess with my mom’s healthcare or your mom’s healthcare.”

The presumptive GOP vice presidential nominee also assured the crowd at The Villages the Romney-Ryan plan will not affect those already in retirement.

“Our solution to preserve, protect, and save Medicare does not affect your benefits. Let me repeat that. Our plan does not affect the benefits for people who are in or near retirement. It’s a promise that was made and it’s a promise that must be kept,” he said, with a large “protect & strengthen Medicare” sign behind him. “To save it for this generation, you have to reform it for my generation so it doesn’t go bankrupt when we retire.”

The Chairman of the House Budget Committee, speaking in the state with the highest concentration of voters over 65 in the country, had harsh words for President Barack Obama, as well.

“Here is what the president won’t tell you about his Medicare plan—about Obamacare. The president raids $716 billion from the Medicare program to pay for the Obamacare program,” Ryan told the crowd in the battleground state that went for Obama in the 2008 election. “Medicare should not be used as a piggy bank for Obamacare. Medicare should be used to be the promise that it made to our current seniors. Period. End of Story.”

Saturday’s rally marks Ryan’s first visit to Florida since being tapped as Mitt Romney’s VP exactly a week ago. The presumptive GOP VP’s plan to overhaul Medicare has been the focus of both Democrats' and the Obama campaign's attacks since he was selected.

Several thousand retirees turned out in one of The Villages’ town squares not only to hear the seven-term Wisconsin congressman speak but were also able to enjoy the sounds of Lee Greenwood, who sang “Proud to be an American” on stage just before Ryan and his mom walked up.

While Ryan focused on outlining the Medicare plan under a Romney administration in Florida, Mitt Romney was holding six private fundraisers in New York, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire.

Florida, Florida, Florida. The Tampa Bay Times: “Mitt Romney returns to Florida with Medicare back as central issue.” The paper’s lead: “Romney mentioned the word Medicare only twice Monday in his first Florida stop after picking a running mate, but no one doubts it will be a central part of the campaign fight in this must-win state… Vice presidential pick Paul Ryan, who advocates fundamentally restructuring Medicare, has introduced the subject of entitlement reform like never before in a presidential race.”

The Washington Post: “Ryan stirs cheers, heckling in Midwest.”

The Des Moines Register's editorial board goes after Ryan: “Ryan deserves credit for confronting this issue, which most other members of Congress would as soon ignore. He is right, in principle, that federal spending must be reduced. He is right, in principle, that spending on federal entitlements must be reined in. Ryan’s cure is in many respects as bad as the disease, however. He would convert the highly effective Medicare program into a voucher system for future retirees. He would sharply cut Medicaid funding and let the states figure out how to provide medical care for the poor. His proposal to cut spending on food stamps drew criticism from his own church in a statement from the U.S. Catholic bishops.”

Ryan plan primer: “Under the Ryan plan, for example, taxpayers in the lowest fifth of income would see their taxes increase slightly,” the Boston Globe writes. “Those earning $40,000 to $70,000 would get a $739 cut, and those in the top 0.1 percent would get a $773,000 cut. But financing for those cuts remains vague; the Ryan plan said they will be paid for by eliminating various unnamed tax deductions.”

More: “Ryan also believes that, even while cutting tax rates, revenues would go from 15.5 percent of GDP to 19 percent in 2030. The effectiveness of cutting tax rates in anticipation of boosting economic activity has been the subject of debate for years and has escalated since the Bush-era tax cuts have been followed by large deficits. By failing to say which tax deductions would be eliminated, Ryan’s plan has left analysts to wonder whether that would lead to the end of the deduction for mortgage interest, charitable contributions, or other big-ticket items. Nor does the Ryan plan provide details about many spending cuts.”

“The Ryan budget would slash food stamps by $134 billion over 10 years, affecting 47 million recipients… A typical family of four could lose about $90 a month in food stamps…. At the same time, Ryan vows to protect defense spending. Indeed, if his plan is coupled with Romney’s vow to increase Pentagon dollars, there would be little or no room for nondefense spending outside of programs such as Social Security….”

What about Medicare? Eligibility goes from 65 to 67. Changes for those younger than 55 would take place beginning in 2023. There would be a voucher program that seniors could use to buy insurance in a private insurance marketplace, similar to the Obama health law exchange system, which would impact far fewer people, because most people already have health insurance through their companies. Obama’s exchange would only affect those without insurance who make too much to be on Medicaid. Ryan’s would affect anyone over 67.

Seniors would have the choice of staying with the “existing, fee-for-service system,” something Ryan did not offer under earlier versions.

And here’s the catch: “The risk is that if private competition in the Medicare marketplace did not hold down insurance costs, government vouchers — whose annual increases would be capped — could cease to cover plan premiums over time. In this case, more people would chose the traditional fee-for-service model and cost savings for the government would not materialize.”

And this little-known fact: “It aims to save $205 billion between 2013 and 2022, on top of the $700 billion in Medicare spending reductions contained in Obama’s national health care law. Though his plan calls for repeal of the health care law, Ryan would keep and expand Obama’s Medicare cuts, a departure from Romney’s plan to wipe out the law and his sharp criticism of the Medicare cuts.” And it would slash federal spending by $810 billion for Medicaid over just the next 10 years, much faster than Ryan’s proposal for Medicare. And there would no longer be the fee-for-service Medicaid system, instead it would be block-granted to states, who then could do whatever they wanted with the money.

The L.A. Times has its own breakdown of Ryan’s plan. Its chart of how much people would pay in taxes – it cuts for the rich, raises on the poor:

Top 1% - $155,808 cut
Top 20% - $13,907 cut
Middle 20% - $739 decrease
Next 20% - $149 decrease
Lowest 20% - $159 tax INCREASE

“Under Ryan's plan, which has passed the Republican-controlled House twice in slightly different versions, the Internal Revenue Service would tax the wealthiest Americans less, but many of the poorest ones more; Medicare would be transformed; Medicaid would be cut by about a third; and all functions of government other than those health programs, Social Security and the military would shrink to levels not seen since the 1930s,” it writes.

AP: “Mitt Romney says there may be differences between his own budget plan and running mate Paul Ryan's, but he isn’t volunteering any of them.”

Spending hypocrisy? “In 2009, as Representative Paul Ryan was railing against President Obama’s $787 billion stimulus package as a ‘wasteful spending spree,’ he wrote at least four letters to Obama’s secretary of energy asking that millions of dollars from the program be granted to a pair of Wisconsin conservation groups, according to documents obtained by The Globe. The advocacy appeared to pay off; both groups were awarded the economic recovery funds — one receiving a $20 million grant to help thousands of local businesses and homes improve their energy efficiency, agency documents show. … The documents show that Ryan’s attempts to take advantage of the stimulus funds even after he voted against them was more expansive than previously reported.”

The Romney campaign did not comment this time around. When Ryan was first called out for this in 2010, a spokesman said: “If Congressman Ryan is asked to help a Wisconsin entity applying for existing federal grant funds, he does not believe flawed policy should get in the way of doing his job and providing a legitimate constituent service to his employers.”

“Mitt Romney held a campaign event Monday night at a Miami juice shop owned by a convicted cocaine trafficker,” AP writes, adding, “Appearing with Romney was Sen. Marco Rubio. Both men handed out juices to an excited crowd after brief remarks. Romney was filming a campaign ad at the juice shop, aides said.” The owner “told the Miami New Times that the Secret Service vetted everything about him when the Romney campaign asked to use his fruit and vegetable stand and that they knew about his criminal record. ‘Here in Miami there are a lot people with money who have had problems with the law,’ Bermudez told the New Times. ‘Thankfully, we all have the opportunity in this country to re-enter society when we've done something wrong.’”

He wouldn’t be allowed to re-enter a voting booth, though, if Romney had his way. “As a felon, [he] wouldn't be eligible to vote in Florida unless the governor and the Cabinet restore his rights.”

TAMPA, Fla. -- South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham (R) called on government contractors to put employees on layoff notice before November's election as a way to pressure Congress to address the so-called "fiscal cliff."

Graham, joined by Republican Sens. John McCain (AZ) and Kelly Ayotte (NH), were in Florida for their first stop on a  two-day, four-state tour by these three members of the Senate Armed Services Committee designed to bring attention to the $500 billion in automatic cuts scheduled to begin in January if Congress does not find other ways to cut spending.

“Politicians, you know, quite frankly respond to pressure,” Graham said about the  cuts set to begin in 2013 under the so-called sequestration budget.

“I’m urging every defense industry that could be affected by sequestration to put your employees on notice before November,” he continued. “The more it becomes real to us as to what comes the nation’s way, the more likely we are to solve the problem.”

Graham delivered the remarks inside a University of South Florida auditorium here in Tampa this morning to an audience of military veterans, academics, and defense contractors.

Some in the audience were linked to nearby MacDill Air Force base, a sprawling installation housing the U.S. Central Command, the organization that oversees America’s military activity in the Middle East, including Iraq and Afghanistan.

“There is gridlock in Washington,” McCain said as he warmed the crowd shortly after taking the podium. “I don’t need to tell you that.  It’s hard these days, trying to do the Lord’s work in the city of Satan.”

The line won laughs, but much of the humor today was strictly of the gallows variety.

Before the event began, audience members mingled and expressed satisfaction that South Florida’s defense industry was being recognized.

“I think they’re playing politics with peoples’ lives,” Donna S. Huneycutt, the executive vice president of a small government consulting firm, said of Congress in an interview. 

Huneycutt said she has a staff of 62 people, and nearly had to lay people off last year as a result of earlier budget cuts.

“I’d like to see both sides come to the table and compromise,” she said.

McCain, Graham, and Ayotte called for a bipartisan solution to the crisis.

They signaled they would break with other Republicans and would accept closing loopholes in the tax code in return for concessions from Democrats, including cuts to entitlement programs.

“We shouldn’t put our troops in this position,” Ayotte said. “We shouldn’t put our military feeling like they have the sword of Damocles hanging over their head.”

Ayotte, the wife of a retired Air National Guard pilot who flew combat missions over Iraq, is a buzzed-about prospect for the number-two slot on presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney’s ticket and is rumored to be on his short list.

The town hall tour was scheduled to make stops later today in Fayetteville, NC and Norfolk, VA – also home to key military communities.

The tour will wrap Tuesday morning in Merrimack, NH at a facility for the defense contractor BAE Systems.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie will deliver the keynote address at next month's Republican National Convention in Tampa, FL.

NBC News' Jamie Gangel reported Wednesday that Christie would be afforded the plum speaking slot at the convention, a gig that sometimes serves as a launching pad for political figures with ambitions of higher office.

The selection of Christie, though, would seem to suggest that Christie is not likely the choice by Mitt Romney to serve as the GOP's vice presidential nominee. Typically, the keynote speaker is separate from the vice presidential nominee, who, like the presidential nominee, speaks on separate nights.

Republicans have not yet released a detailed itinerary of the speaking schedule for their convention.

Updated 12:35 p.m. -- Democrats and Republicans each found something to cheer in the Supreme Court's ruling Monday on Arizona's controversial immigration law, reflecting the delicate politics surrounding immigration and the court's own mixed decision.

Each party found something to like and dislike in the Supreme Court's opinion, which struck down most components of the Arizona law but left in place one of its most controversial provisions: the requirement that authorities check the immigration status of anyone they detain who's reasonably suspected of being in the United States illegally.

President Obama said he was "pleased" the court had struck down key provisions of the law, while his likely Republican opponent, Mitt Romney, suggested the decision represented a rebuke of the president.

"What this decision makes unmistakably clear is that Congress must act on comprehensive immigration reform. A patchwork of state laws is not a solution to our broken immigration system -– it’s part of the problem," Obama said. "At the same time, I remain concerned about the practical impact of the remaining provision of the Arizona law that requires local law enforcement officials to check the immigration status of anyone they even suspect to be here illegally."

Romney, meanwhile, emphasized what he said were the president's own struggles to curb illegal immigration.

"Today's decision underscores the need for a president who will lead on this critical issue and work in a bipartisan fashion to pursue a national immigration strategy," presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney said in a written statement.

Yuri Gripas / Reuters

People protest against President Obama's health care reform in front of U.S. Supreme Court in Washington June 25.

But Romney didn't address the components of the law that were thrown out or, alternatively, upheld by the court.

"I believe that each state has the duty -- and the right -- to secure our borders and preserve the rule of law, particularly when the federal government has failed to meet its responsibilities," he said.

Both Obama and Romney's responses were emblematic of the mixed reactions prompted by the decision across the political spectrum.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) said the decision marked a vindication of the Obama administration's initial decision to challenge the Arizona law. Critics in the Democratic Party said that the law, including the prong that the Supreme Court upheld, would open the door to racial profiling.

"This is as strong a repudiation of the Arizona law as one could expect given that the law has not been implemented yet," said New York Sen. Charles Schumer (D). "Three linchpins of the Arizona law were struck down by a convincing majority of the Court as clearly violating federal law, and a fourth is on thin legal ice."

But Republicans found just as much to cheer in the court's ruling.

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer, who first championed the law, called the decision "a victory for the rule of law."

While many elements of the law were struck down, the court upheld what Brewer called the "heart" of the law -- a requirement that authorities check the immigration status of anyone whom they suspect of being in the United States illegally.

The state's two Republican senators, Jon Kyl and John McCain, also cheered the court for appearing to validate the status-check portion of the Arizona law.

The president will participate a series of public events set Monday in New England; as a matter of coincidence, Romney is in Arizona today to attend fundraisers.

The issue of immigration has assumed broader political significance in the 2012 campaign, following the president's announcement earlier this month that his administration would cease deporting illegal immigrants who were brought to the United States as children and would instead allow them to apply for temporary work visas. This shift, which achieved many of the intentions of a Republican version of the DREAM Act, was poised to mobilize Latino voters behind the president, who had otherwise fallen short on delivering on his promise of comprehensive immigration reform.

The administration's announcement also threatened to exacerbate Romney's gap against Obama among Latino voters, a growing bloc that could prove especially decisive in swing states like Arizona, Colorado, Nevada and beyond. An early May oversample of Latino voters in the NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll found that 22 percent of Latinos had a positive opinion of the GOP, versus 50 percent who expressed a negative impression of the Republican Party.

Romney responded to the new immigration policy by promising to supersede it with his own "long-term" plan on immigration. But he hasn't specified how his plan would work, or what it would differ in practical terms from the Obama plan.

The former Massachusetts governor has wrestled with immigration as an issue writ large, but has also struggled with positioning himself on the Arizona law.

Romney called the Arizona law a "model" at a debate this February, though his campaign insisted Romney only meant that in terms of some of the employment parts of the law (which the Supreme Court threw out on Monday). The Romney campaign was also forced to distance itself from Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach (R), one of the principal authors of the Arizona law and another tough immigration law in Alabama.

But Romney also said at the same debate that "the right course for America is to drop these lawsuits against Arizona and other states" in addition to more aggressive enforcement of immigration laws.

Romney had used immigration to pummel some of his opponents in the Republican primary from the right, making his pivot toward the general election even more difficult.

“A week after the bombshell announcement he was blocking the deportation of young illegal immigrants, President Barack Obama will arrive in Florida on Friday flush with confidence,” the Tampa Bay Times writes. “Hispanics, a growing voting power, are energized. A new poll shows broad support for the policy. And GOP rival Mitt Romney is struggling to respond. When both candidates address the influential National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials in Orlando this week, make no mistake, Obama will have the upper hand. But beneath the image of the victorious defender of immigrants is a starkly different reality. Obama has been tougher on deportations than any modern president — expelling nearly 1.5 million people so far. Many have been criminals, but the effort has also torn apart families and hurt some of the young people Obama now wants to help.”

The Washington Post’s fact checker Glenn Kessler calls the Obama campaign’s claim that Romney outsourced as governor “overblown” and gives it four Pinocchios. “The Obama campaign fails to make its case. On just about every level, this ad is misleading, unfair and untrue, from the use of ‘corporate raider’ to its examples of alleged outsourcing,” Kessler writes. “Simply repeating the same debunked claims won’t make them any more correct.”

The Arizona Secretary of State – who said it was possible Obama might not be qualified to be on the ballot there -- now says Hawaii has verified that Obama was born there, and he believes he was, in fact, born in Hawaii. BUT he now believes that when Obama was trying to get into college he claimed he was born in KENYA. And it’s on tape.

The Washington Post on author Edward Klein: “His latest, ‘The Amateur,’ in which he contends that the president is ill-suited by experience and temperament to occupy the White House, contains scenes that did not occur or that were vastly misconstrued, according to those who Klein says were present. The Obama book, released by conservative publisher Regnery, has been largely ignored by the mainstream media. Nonetheless, it has sold vigorously thanks in large part to an early boost from conservative blogger Matt Drudge. It will perch at No. 1 on the New York Times bestseller list Sunday for the fourth consecutive week. In the month since its mid-May release, nearly 66,000 copies have been sold, according to Nielsen BookScan.”