BuzzFeed Veepstakes: Blame Rafalca

The dressage horse is the scapegoat for Romney's Veep delay. And meet Chris Christie.

Welcome to BuzzFeed Veepstakes, your daily guide to Mitt Romney's search for a running mate.

Questions? Comments? Contributions? Email [e-mail].

Mitt Romney is in Indiana today to stump for Richard Mourdock and to hold a fundraiser. Ann Romney is touring Wales.

Bill Kristol blames Rafalca Romney for the delay in Romney's Veep selection, which now appears to be at least a week off. In her defense, we're skeptical Romney ever would have announced while competing with the Olympics for coverage.

Kristol and Stephen Hayes are calling on Romney to select Paul Ryan as his running mate.

Bob McDonnell and Scott Walker attend events for Romney in Virginia today.

The Clock: 23 days to the convention.

The New Yorker: FUSSBUDGET: How Paul Ryan captured the G.O.P.

"One day in March, 2009, two months after the Inauguration of President Obama, Representative Paul Ryan, of Wisconsin, sat behind a small table in a cramped meeting space in his Capitol Hill office. Hunched forward in his chair, he rattled off well-rehearsed critiques of the new President’s policies and America’s lurch toward a “European” style of government. Ryan’s father, grandfather, and great-grandfather all died before their sixtieth birthdays, so Ryan, who is now forty-two, could be forgiven if he seemed like a man in a hurry. Tall and wiry, with a puff of wavy dark hair, he is nearly as well known in Washington for his punishing early-morning workouts as he is for his mastery of the federal budget. Asked to explain his opposition to Obama’s newly released budget, he replied, “I don’t have that much time."

Salon: Romney’s Olympic tax myth

"More than catnip, this latest conservative tax myth is like a designer drug for the Fox News set, tailored perfectly for maximum impact at a time when Americans are hungry for anything Olympics-related. The offense: According to Americans for Tax Reform, Grover Norquist’s anti-tax outfit, President Obama’s IRS will tax Olympic winners up to $9,000 after they return home victorious from London. Conservative blogs are having a field day and Republican politicians are clamoring to capitalize on news. Darling Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida introduced a bill to exempt Olympians’ winnings from taxes and an adviser to Mitt Romney told reporters today, “He believes that there should be no taxation of the type you are describing.” They’re calling on Obama to support the plan."

Politico: Ones to watch in the GOP

"Some Republicans will benefit more than others from the GOP confab in Tampa. Here’s our list of the movers and shakers who stand to gain the most from the upcoming gathering."

BBC: Who, What, Why: Why are US athletes taxed on Olympic medal wins?

"US medal-winning athletes at the Olympics have to pay tax on their prize money - something which is proving controversial in the US. But why are athletes from the US taxed when others are not? The US is right up there in the medals table, and has produced some of the finest displays in the Olympics so far."

Huffington Post: John McCain Gives Mitt Romney Advice On Vice Presidential Pick

"In selecting a vice presidential running mate, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) says that Mitt Romney should make his pick based on who he believes 'fits best in shaping a winning campaign.' The Arizona senator and former White House candidate discussed the matter in a Q&A with Charlie Rose. He said he would advise Romney to consider the factors of trust and friendship in making his decision, 'particularly the trust side of it because, obviously, that running mate would be next in line for the presidency.'"

The Guardian: Pawlenty dogged by telecom scandal over payments made during 2001 race

"The first payment arrived in August 2001, dropped into a company created by Tim Pawlenty with just one employee – Pawlenty himself. The money kept coming as the then-Republican leader in Minnesota's House of Representative campaigned for governor of his state: $4,500 a month for more than a year. But the voters did not know."

AP: Serena Williams and Condoleezza Rice among the unexpected football fans in ‘My Team’ campaign

"NEW YORK — Football fans will soon be pulling out their jerseys, but a few have gotten a jump on the season: Serena Williams, Melania Trump and Condoleezza Rice are among the NFL fans who’ll be appearing in ads promoting team-themed apparel and gear next week in a campaign called 'It’s My Team.'"

All of this Jeffrey Goldberg piece:

CHRIS CHRISTIE IS, even in moments of tranquility—of which, in his life, there seem to be none—a torqued-up, joyously belligerent, easily baited, and preternaturally exuberant son of New Jersey, so bringing him to a Bruce Springsteen concert is an exercise in volcano management. Christie, in the presence of Springsteen—whom he would marry if he were gay and if gay people were allowed to marry in the state he governs—loses himself. He is, as is well known, a very large man—twice the width of Mitt Romney—but he is a very large man who dances at Springsteen concerts in front of many thousands of people without giving a damn what they think.

Questions? Comments? Contributions? Email [e-mail].

Graphics by John Gara