When celebrities at your convention are few and far between, it’s no surprise that this kind of thing would happen. Legendary GOP strategist Karl Rove was seen getting the rock star treatment inside the Tampa Bay Times Forum as the 2012 Republican National Convention officially got underway. As delegates began …

FDC has sent a dream team down to Tampa to cover the ins and outs of the RNC, the famous folks, the inside scoop, the best parties and the behind the scenes fun that never makes it to the big screen. This isn’t your grandpa’s regular ol’ coverage, bless his Republican soul. Below you’ll find a running timeline of rants, quotes, pictures and commentary from the GOP whirlwind hurricane that is taking over Florida this week. Enjoy and stay Famous.

Quick tidbit for the folks headed to Tampa in a couple years: [pole] Joe Redner may be a Democrat, but the owner of Tampa’s most renowned cultural institution, Mons Venus, was thrilled with the news his hometown will host the 2012 Republican convention. “I promise I won’t tell anybody when …

The smart money would have been on Vegas. The Republican National Committee’s site-selection committee is expected to name Tampa as site of the party’s 2012 convention today, according to Mike Allen. [Political Wire] Note: The convention headquarters will be nowhere near here: