Republican Party

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Kid Rock (left) and Johnny Van Zant of Lynyrd Skynyrd perform last week on “Good Morning America.” Kid Rock’s “Born Free” is Mitt Romney’s campaign song, and Skynyrd will play “Sweet Home Alabama” at a GOP-convention-related event. (Associated Press)

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Rep. Ron Paul, Texas Republican, will be feted at a “We are the Future” rally in Tampa, Fla., on the day before the start of the GOP convention there. Among the celebrants will be the son of the party’s 1964 presidential nominee. (Photo provided by Ron Paul campaign)

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Rep. Paul Ryan (right), the Republican presidential running mate, listens at right as GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney makes a point during a town-hall-style campaign event at St. Anselm College in Manchester, N.H., on Monday, Aug. 20, 2012. (AP Photo/Cheryl Senter)

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This undated combination photo shows Republicans Clark Durant (left) and former Rep. Pete Hoekstra, who were running in the Aug. 7, 2012, Michigan GOP primary. Mr. Hoekstra was declared the winner and will take on Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow in November. (AP Photo)

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**FILE** Speaker of the House John Boehner, Ohio Republican, stands July 24, 2012, next to a portrait of former President George W. Bush as he waits to speaks with reporters following a House GOP caucus meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington. (Associated Press)

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Ted Cruz thanks his wife, Heidi, in front of a cheering crowd after he defeated Republican rival, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, in a runoff election Tuesday for the GOP nomination for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by the retiring Kay Bailey Hutchison. (Houston Chronicle/Johnny Hanson via Associated Press)

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Former Texas Solicitor General Ted Cruz, once considered a long-shot underdog for the GOP nomination for U.S. Senate, defeated Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst in the party’s Tuesday primary runoff, and the reason appears to be his strong support from state tea-party conservatives. It’s a sign of the movement’s growing national clout. (Associated Press)

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Rep. Ron Paul, Texas Republican, doesn’t want the GOP to forget he’s still a candidate for president, so he has told his staff to offer financial assistance to get “pro-liberty delegates” who can’t afford the cost of travel and lodging to the convention in Tampa, Fla. (Associated Press)

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GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney visits the Western Wall in Jerusalem. “We must lead the effort to prevent Iran from building and possessing nuclear weapons capability,” he said. (Associated Press)