TPM, sans Rasmussen and Gallup trackers. Gallup has Romney up by two. Who cares what Rasmussen says?

Nate Silver:

So far, Romney's VP bounce appears to be 1-2 points. That's below average historically but better than nothing.

That's the GOP's motto these days: "We're below average, but better than nothing."

David Stockman:

Paul Ryan’s Fairy-Tale Budget Plan Paul D. Ryan’s talk of shrinking Big Government and giving tax cuts to “job creators” will do nothing to reverse the nation’s economic decline.

Ouch.

Dana Milbank:

The lanky lawmaker from Wisconsin made his first solo appearance as Mitt Romney’s running mate on Monday, and the Romney campaign chose to have him do it from the Iowa State Fair. This was a mistake. Ryan spoke from what fairgoers call the soapbox — a small platform where any citizen, even a politician, can have 20 minutes to voice his or her mind. But because of the open venue, the crowd of 3,000 people could not be cleansed of Democrats, indifferent Iowans and other undesirable elements.

Ryan was supposed to be a “bold” and “daring” pick for Mitt Romney, but so far, he seems reluctant to capitalize on Ryan’s outsized influence in the Republican Party, opting instead to return to a campaign that is relentlessly focused on the economy. Thus far, Ryan seems to exist as a consolation prize to conservatives — a way to generate enthusiasm and keep them from abandoning his campaign. It’s not hard to see the problem with this strategy. By choosing a controversial figure like Paul Ryan, Romney has announced that he wants to talk about far-reaching change to the nature and structure of government. If you do that, then you actually have to talk about the changes you want.

The Fix surveyed Senate candidates in some top races — a few of which we highlighted Monday as states where Ryan’s V.P. nomination and his proposal to turn Medicare into a voucher program could matter. A couple of candidates in blue-leaning states have balked at tying themselves to Ryan, while Sen. Dean Heller (R-Nev.), Rep. Denny Rehberg (R-Mont.), and Rep. Rick Berg (R-N.D.) said they would welcome Ryan to the trail.

Ryan is in Heller’s home state today. The two won’t appear together, but Heller’s campaign said it would be happy to do so in the future.

Take Medicare. Please. What is Medicare except a program that lavishes tax dollars on the old and sick, people who are no longer paying much in taxes and who are a drain on society? Talk to any old person. All they say is, “Gimme, gimme, gimme.” Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security. Me, me, me. Shouldn’t money be saved for the strong? For the productive? For the superior individuals who are amassing happiness through their own sheer will, drive and, perhaps, large inheritances? Some think Paul Ryan’s Medicare plan would “end Medicare as we know it.” Well, maybe it does and maybe it doesn’t. But you should have seen the plan we argued him out of. We don’t want to go into details, but let’s just say it involved ice floes.

Just 10 percent of Americans approved of Congress in August, down six points from last month, and tied with February as the lowest rating in Gallup's 38-year history of the measure.

Luckily, there are no sitting Congressmen on either ticket. Oh, wait...