Next 36 Hours Critical for Isaac

UPDATE - 9:30 a.m. Thursday: Tropical Storm Isaac's path is mostly unchanged from late Wednesday forecasts that predict the storm's center will pass south of the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico today approaching the Dominican Republic tonight and on Friday.

The storm is likely to become a hurricane in the next 36 hours, according to Thursday morning forecasts from the National Hurricane Center. But it's pass over mountainous Dominican Republic and Cuba could dampen its strength.

"The primary impediment to strengthening will be the interaction with the land masses of Hispaniola and eastern Cuba," the National Hurricane Center reported. "How much the inner core of Isaac is disrupted while over land will determine just how much re-strengthening will occur."

If the storm remains at all organized after it passes the Dominican Republic's 10,000-foot mountain peeks, it has plenty of time to re-strengthen into a Category 1 hurricane, forecasters predict.

While residents in the Caribbean and in Florida remain watchful, the storm is also being eyed closely across the country because of its potential impacts on the Republican National Convention slated for August 27 to August 30 in Tampa. Current storm tracks put the storm on a direct course for Tampa.

In response to the increasingly dire reports, Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn said safety concerns would trump politics, even if that might mean shutting down the four-day convention, Huffington Post reported.

"If we had to make that decision to cancel or to postpone or move the convention, we will do that knowing full well that my obligation and the city’s obligation is to move people out of harm's way. The politics will take care of itself," Buckhorn said Wednesday morning on CNN's "Starting Point" with Soledad O'Brien.

Original story from Wednesday:

Tropical Storm Isaac continued to worry analysts Wednesday as the storm appeared ready to move through the Caribbean with an eventual landfall in or near Florida on Monday afternoon.

Current projections suggest winds could reach 80 mph by the time the storm arrives on the Florida coastline, but the current uncertainty in the long-term projections mean the storm could hit anywhere from the Atlantic coast or eastern Gulf.

"There remains considerable uncertainty as to which portions of Florida, if any, could be affected by Isaac," according to a National Hurricane Center update.

The storm has already delayed 9/11 hearings at Guantanamo Bay and could impact the Republican National Convention scheduled for Tampa next week.

The Weather Channel is also monitoring Tropical Storm Isaac.