“Secretary Grimes does intend to discuss the process, explain where she is in this process and also give what her intentions are as we move forward,” Grimes spokesperson Jonathan Hurst told ABC News.

Hurst added that this will “not be an official roll out” and if she does decide to run there will be an official campaign roll out in the near future.

The announcement is highly anticipated and the 34-year-old is thought to be the Democrats best chance at defeating Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. Local polling shows McConnell is vulnerable, but he has yet to get a high-profile Democrat in to challenge him.

Grimes will meet with supporters at 3 p.m. EST at her Frankfort, Ky., headquarters and then hold a press conference at 4 p.m.

National Republicans weighed in on the possible news with National Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee strategist Brad Dayspring saying in a statement, “If this is a rollout to a Senate campaign it’s amongst the worst in history. It is a total fumble to launch just as folks prepare for a holiday week.”

And in a preview of how Republicans will frame Grimes if she does get into the race, Dayspring said the announcement is “even more bizarre for Alison Grimes in Kentucky, who watched the President that she nominated at the Democratic National Convention last summer just declare a War on Coal and Kentucky families.”

An aide with the McConnell campaign similarly said she “needs a huge roll out” with “big endorsements, coalitions, fanfare at multiple stops across the state.”

“Not a last minute presser in a dead week with barely enough time afterward to get on the evening news,” the aide said. “If this is her rollout, it is incompetent.”

Ashley Judd is the most high-profile Democrat that took a pass on the race, announcing in March she would not run after seriously considering a bid. In May, Judd’s most vocal supporter, Rep. John Yarmuth, D-KY, urged Grimes to make an announcement soon saying it was “very important to do it now” and there were “others waiting in the wings” and Democrats want to “avoid an expensive primary.”

Emily’s List, the group that works to elect female candidates that support abortion rights, all but endorsed Grimes in May.

“Alison Grimes is an impressive candidate who would bring a refreshing perspective to end the Mitch McConnell era of gridlock and partisan politics in Washington,” spokeswoman Marcy Stech said in a statement then. “We are excited about her potential run and an opportunity to send McConnell packing.”

In March, Grimes met with former President Bill Clinton, a close family friend who encouraged Grimes to consider taking on McConnell, assuring he would support her. Clinton told Grimes then that she has “unlimited potential.”

The Clintons are longtime friends and allies of Grimes’s father, Jerry Lundergan, a former state party chairman, and Grimes herself who became secretary of state in 2011 after beating her primary challenger who was backed by Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear. Jerry Lundergan was a strong supporter of Bill Clinton, but also of Hillary Clinton’s presidential bid in 2008, and they remain close.

Despite there being no marquee Democrat in the race, there are already ads on both sides.

A pro-McConnell super PAC Kentuckians for Strong Leadership released ads earlier this month, an answer to two Democratic groups that aired a volley of TV commercials earlier this month attacking McConnell.

According to a strategist with the group, Kentuckians for Strong Leadership spent $260,000 on the ads, which will run on broadcast and cable in the state. That’s roughly $10,000 more than what two Democratic groups, the Senate Majority PAC and an allied organization, Patriot Majority USA spent on their ad.

As far back as February, the McConnell campaign began running online videos, and later a series of television ads, in support of his re-election bid even though he does not yet have a viable Democratic opponent.

Grimes’ decision is being held closely, according to both Kentucky and national Democrats, but in the past she has also considered running for the U.S. House in the sixth district or waging a gubernatorial bid in 2015.

Former Miss America Heather French Henry is still considering jumping into the race, as is  Bill Garmer, an attorney and former state Democratic Party Chairman, and Tom Fitzgerald, an environmental attorney.

Jonathan Miller, former state treasurer described the field as “frozen until Alison (Lundergan Grimes) makes a decision.”

“The consensus is she would be the strongest candidate willing to run and others are on hold until she makes that decision,” Miller told ABC News.

There are three lesser known Democrats who have formally declared their candidacies:  University of Louisville professor Greig Leichty, Louisville music promoter Bennie J. Smith, and building contractor and former congressional candidate Ed Marksberry.

(Getty Images)

A roster of celebrity women will rally this week on behalf of Texas Democrats as they try for a second time to stop state Republicans from pushing through a restrictive anti-abortion bill.

Celebrity singer Natalie Maines, “Friday Night Lights” and “Nashville” actress Connie Britton, actress Lisa Edelstein of “House” and Stephanie March of “Law & Order: SVU” have joined Planned Parenthood in the organization’s effort to aid Texas Democrats in round two of their fight against a 20-week abortion ban and other restrictions on abortion facilities that are aimed a closing a majority of clinics in the state.

Republican Gov. Rick Perry called on lawmakers to return to Austin for another special session after State Sen. Wendy Davis successfully stopped Republicans last week from approving the law with a 11-hour filibuster.

But as lawmakers return to the Capitol for a second special legislative session today, “pro-choice” forces are rallying public support for their cause, all the while knowing that, unlike last week, time is not on their side.

The 30-day session gives Republicans, who hold wide majorities in both the state House and Senate, plenty of time to try whatever legislative maneuvers are necessary to move the bill through.

Maines, lead singer of the country group the Dixie Chicks, Edelstein and March will all join Planned Parenthood at a rally at the state Capitol today. They will be joined by Davis, Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood, and Ilyse Hogue, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America.

Britton, who famously played Tami Taylor, wife of a Texas High School football coach on the cult hit show “Friday Night Nights,” has commissioned a “WWTTD? What Would Tami Taylor Do” T-shirt for the cause.

“The character Tami on ‘Friday Night Lights’ is a Texas woman deeply committed to her community and to standing up for what is right for her neighbors and the people she loves,” Britton said in a statement.

“I have been inspired by how people around the country have united to stand with the women of Texas, and I can’t help but think that, in this moment, we all have the opportunity to join with and become strong, powerful Texas men and women.”

The shirt will be available for the month of July.

Former President George W. Bush will join President Obama in the morning at a wreath-laying ceremony at the U.S. Embassy in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, to honor the victims of the 1998 bombing there, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said today.

The event will be at 10 a.m. local time, 3 a.m. ET.

First ladies Michelle Obama and Laura Bush will also be appearing together on stage here at a First Ladies Summit hosted by Laura Bush.  That joint appearance will be moderated by ABC News’ Cokie Roberts.

Neither George W. Bush nor Obama is expected to speak at the event.

Obama has yet to shape a policy legacy for Africa comparable to that of his predecessor and he has been criticized for the perception that he has done too little for the continent.

On his way to South Africa, the Obama told reporters that George W. Bush deserves “enormous credit” for his foreign policy aid programs, like PEPFAR, the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief.

“It is really important.  And it saved lives of millions of people,” he said.

In shaping his own legacy, Obama has been touting his administration’s plans to promote trade with African economies, boost private investment and increase access to electricity.

“Everything we do is designed to make sure that Africa is not viewed as a dependent, as a charity case, but is instead viewed as a partner; that instead of chronically receiving aid, it is starting to get involved in trade, get involved in production and, over time, is going to be able to feed itself, house itself and produce its own goods,” he said. “And that’s what Africa wants.”

Credit: Tom Williams/Getty Images

By MICHAEL FALCONE (@michaelpfalcone)

NOTABLES

• ALL A-LOAN: Congress has blown another deadline. Before they left for recess, lawmakers in Washington failed to head off an increase in interest rates on certain types of student loans, meaning rates on those loans are going to double today — from 3.4 percent to 6.8 percent. As FUSION’S EMILY DE RUY points out: “Subsidized Stafford loans are the only type of loan impacted, and the increase will apply to new loans, not existing ones. That means that if you’re going to be a junior in college, rates on any subsidized Stafford loans you took out during your freshman and sophomore years won’t change. But here’s some potentially good news: If Congress reaches an agreement in the future, they can make the rate hike retroactive, meaning the increase could be reversible.” http://abcn.ws/1aV9OAX

• IMMIGRATION NATION: The Senate acted last week on the comprehensive immigration reform bill, and lawmakers are back in their states and districts for the July 4 holiday this week hearing from their constituents in town hall meetings and forums. But before leaving for recess, House Speaker John Boehner vowed that “the House is not going to take up and vote on whatever the Senate passes. We’re going to do our own bill through regular order, and it’ll be legislation that reflects the will of our majority and the will of the American people.” As ABC’s JIM AVILA and SERENA MARSHALL point out, it’s likely the House will produce several separate bills on border safety, high-skilled workers and employee verification, while the pathway to citizenship remains a major potential sticking point. MARK YOUR CALENDAR: The next key date in the House is July 10 when conservatives meet in the Republican Caucus with Speaker Boehner to decide how to proceed. http://abcn.ws/14CZdpk

• GABBY GIFFORDS — ROAD WARRIOR:  Former Arizona congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and her husband, Mark Kelly, are hitting the road today to bring attention to their push for expanded background checks for gun purchasers — a proposal that failed in the Senate in April. Giffords and Kelly, founders of the super PAC, Americans for Responsible Solutions, are embarking on a seven-day, cross-country tour that kicks off the in Las Vegas today and will take them to key states home to lawmakers they aim to persuade on the background check issue: July 2: Alaska; July 3: North Dakota; July 4: Ohio; July 5: New Hampshire; July 6: Maine; July 7: North Carolina. http://rightsandresponsibilitiestour.com/

PRESIDENTS 44 AND 43 MEET IN AFRICA: This is unprecedented — two U.S. presidents will make a joint public appearance in Africa tomorrow, ABC’s JONATHAN KARL reports. White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said today that former President George W. Bush will join President Obama tomorrow morning at a wreath-laying ceremony at the U.S. embassy in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania to honor the victims of the 1998 bombing.  The event will be at 10 a.m. local time, 3 a.m. Eastern First Ladies Michelle Obama and Laura Bush will also be appearing together — on stage at a conference of African First Ladies hosted by Mrs. Bush. That joint appearance will be moderated by ABC’s COKIE ROBERTS.

HAPPENING TODAY: The first family has arrived in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania where the president had a bilateral meeting with President Kikwete and will soon have a joint press conference, ABC’s MARY BRUCE notes. Later today, President Obama participates in a CEO roundtable. Afterward, he delivers remarks at a business forum. In the evening, the president and first lady attend an official dinner with President Kikwete.

THE ROUNDTABLE

ABC’s RICK KLEIN: Congratulations, students. Your lesson today is how congressional dysfunction sometimes has less to do with partisan disagreements than simple, inexplicable incompetence. The House and Senate are out for the week, and the deadline for figuring out how to keep student-loan rates low passed with barely a mention in Washington. The interest rate on student loans is now twice what it was yesterday, for absolutely no good reason, but lots of bad reasons regarding why Congress can’t get its act together. The good news? Congress gets to write its own laws and make its own deadlines. This could all get solved before school starts again in the fall – except, there’s apparently no solving the dynamics that allow issues like this to fester this long in the first place.

ABC’s MICHAEL FALCONE: Here’s one debate invitation Vice President Joe Biden is likely to turn down: Biden’s appearance at a Virginia Democratic Party Jefferson Jackson Dinner in Richmond, Va. over the weekend on behalf of gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe has Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, the Republican hopeful for governor, crying foul. Biden told the audience that the decision between McAuliffe and Cuccinelli “is about as stark a choice as you could imagine — a choice between the Virginia way and the tea party way,” he said, according to the Washington Post. Naturally, the Cuccinelli campaign responded by challenging Biden, himself, to a debate. “Terry McAuliffe and I are in complete agreement that this election is critically important to Virginia’s future,” Cuccinelli said in a statement. “But if he won’t defend his record and articulate his vision through debates, perhaps his surrogate, the vice president will.” In fact, the first debate between McAuliffe and Cuccinelli comes later this month when the Virginia Bar Association hosts both candidates for their first one-on-one face-off on July 20.

ABC’s SHUSHANNAH WALSHE: Calling it a “historic commitment” the Republican National Committee and five other GOP committees launched several new initiatives last week aimed at recruiting more female candidates and courting more women to join the party. ”We are not a coalition, we are not an outreach group,” RNC co-chair Sharon Day said at a press conference announcing the push. “We are the majority of the voters out there, we are 53 percent of the voters and this party understands this.” At the event at RNC headquarters ten female members of Congress spoke and RNC Chairman Reince Priebus said “as a party we are here to support those who stand up to run and we are going to work hard to get more women to make that decision.” Emily’s List, a group with the goal of electing female candidates who support abortion rights, is the most direct opponent on the other side of this new initiative. They start recruiting possible candidates from the city council level onwards, supporting female politicians throughout their career, something these new GOP initiatives will try to do as well, but Emily’s List has been working on since 2001. Emily’s List president Stephanie Schriock actually sent out a memo to “pre-but” the GOP event writing, “Democrats are doing all of the heavy lifting” of working to get more women elected to office. ”Achieving gender parity in Congress is a huge undertaking, and it would happen a lot faster if Republicans were doing their fair share when it comes to recruiting and training women,” Schriock said. “But the truth is that GOP attempts to bring more women in to the fold are hollow, because the Party platform is to still hostile to policies that actually work for women.” http://abcn.ws/13cYz6p

WHAT WE’RE WATCHING

LIFE AS A SYRIAN REFUGEE: A LOOK INSIDE THE WORLD’S SECOND LARGEST REFUGEE CAMP. Well over a million people have fled Syria to escape the war, and as more people continue to seek safety in refugee camps in bordering countries, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees says it is a challenge to meet the Syrian refugees’ “basic needs” and “ensure their dignity.” In an exclusive interview with On The Radar’s MARTHA RADDATZ during a visit to the largest Syrian refugee camp in Jordan — now the second largest camp in the world — High Commissioner António Guterres says the Zaatari camp is “a place in the world where human tragedy is more evident than anywhere else.” “Here you can see how brutal the conflict has been, how dramatic the situation of the people is, and how difficult it is for us all to be able to support them to ensure their dignity,” Guterres said. For more of the interview with Guterres, and to hear what percent of Lebanon’s population is now composed of Syrian refugees, check out this episode of On The Radar. http://yhoo.it/129kl3w

BUZZ

JULIAN ASSANGE: ‘NO STOPPING’ RELEASE OF ADDITIONAL NSA SECRETS. Wikileaks founder Julian Assange said Sunday morning in an exclusive interview with ABC’s GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS on “This Week” that there is no stopping the release of additional NSA secrets obtained by Edward Snowden, a former contract employee of the organization. “There is no stopping the publishing process at this stage.  Great care has been taken to make sure that Mr. Snowden can’t be pressured by any state to stop the publication process.  I mean, the United States, by canceling his passport, has left him for the moment marooned in Russia.  Is that really a great outcome by the State Department?  Is that really what it wanted to do?” Assange said, speaking from the Ecuadorian embassy in London, ABC’s KARI REA and BEN BELL report. “I think that every citizen has the right to their citizenship,” he continued. “To take someone’s principal component of citizenship, their passport, away from them is a disgrace.  Mr. Snowden has not been convicted of anything.  There are no international warrants out for his arrest.  To take a passport from a young man in a difficult situation like that is a disgrace.” http://abcn.ws/13fNfq2

NOTED: ASSANGE ON SNOWDEN’S NEXT MOVE — ‘ASYLUM IS A RIGHT WE ALL HAVE.’ Also on “This Week,” Assange told Stephanopoulos that the Wikileaks legal team has “been in contact with Mr. Snowden,” and praised the 30-year-old leaker. “He is a hero.  He has told the people of the world and the United States that there is mass unlawful interception of their communications, far beyond anything that happened under Nixon.  Obama can’t just turn around like Nixon did and said, it’s OK, if the president does it, if the president authorizes it,” he said. The United States has asked other countries to turn down Snowden’s requests for asylum. But world leaders have pushed back against that request. On Friday Vice President Joe Biden spoke to the president of Ecuador and asked him not to grant Snowden asylum. Assange called that phone call unacceptable. “Joseph Biden the day before yesterday personally called President Correa, trying to pressure him.  That’s not acceptable.  Asylum is a right that we all have.  It’s an international right.  The United States has been founded largely on accepting political refugees from other countries and has prospered by it.  Mr. Snowden has that right.  Ideally, he should be able to return to the United States,” he said. http://abcn.ws/13fNfq2

WENDY DAVIS CHIDES RICK PERRY OVER TEXAS ABORTION BILL. The Democratic state senator who is leading the fight against significant new restrictions on abortions in Texas said Gov. Rick Perry and other Republicans were hypocritical, claiming to support smaller government but actually trying to increase state intrusion in people’s lives. Wendy Davis, the lawmaker who single-handedly overcame and outlasted the Republican majority in the state senate last week, is preparing for another battle on Monday. Armed with her new-found fame in Democratic circles in Texas and across the nation, Davis vowed to fight even harder. “He’s awfully fond of talking the talk of small government,” Davis told ABC’s JEFF ZELENY, escalating an intense quarrel with Perry. “But this [anti-abortion legislation] is big government intrusion, there is no question about it.” Davis sat down with ABC News inside the Stage West Theatre in Fort Worth, where she worked her way from being a waitress to a Harvard-educated lawyer to a heroine in the eyes of many Democrats. She offered a window into the secrets of standing and talking for more than 11 straight hours during a legislative filibuster: her dusty running shoes (size 7 Mizuno, narrow); a catheter that allowed her to avoid bathroom breaks (“I came prepared,” she explained); and how she felt the spirit of her hero, the late Gov. Ann Richards, during her marathon session in the Capitol in Austin. http://abcn.ws/126Fnjm

NOTED: PEGGY NOONAN ON WENDY DAVIS — STANDING FOR ‘INFANTICIDE’. Wall Street Journal columnist Peggy Noonan, appearing on the “This Week” roundtable on Sunday weighed in on Wendy Davis’ filibuster in Texas. “Here’s what — in the story of this young woman, she’s so spirited.  You know, she has such energy and she seems to have such commitment,” Noonan said. “But it seems to me — and I think it seems to many Americans — that what she is speaking for and standing for is something we would recognize as infanticide, late-term abortion, the taking of a little child’s life.  That is really, really serious.”

OBAMA URGES AFRICAN YOUTH TO LIVE UP TO MANDELA’S LEGACY. President Obama yesterday urged South Africa’s youth to continue the fight for equality and opportunity, as he challenged them to live up to the legacy of ailing civil rights icon Nelson Mandela, ABC’s MARY BRUCE reports from Cape Town. “Nelson Mandela showed us that one man’s courage can move the world. And he calls on us to make choices that reflect not our fears, but our hopes — in our own lives, and in the lives of our communities and our countries,” the president told a crowd of more than 1,000 at the University of Cape Town. Echoing Robert Kennedy’s 1966 “Ripple of Hope” speech at the same location, Obama told students that every voice can make a difference. “Think of how many ripples of hope it took to build a wave that would eventually come crashing down like a mighty stream,” he said. “If there’s any country in the world that shows the power of human beings to affect change, this is the one. You’ve shown us how a prisoner can become a president. You’ve shown us how bitter adversaries can reconcile. You’ve confronted crimes of hatred and intolerance with truth and love, and you wrote into your constitution the human rights that sustain freedom.” http://abcn.ws/15W2ejS

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: OBAMA VISITS MANDELA’S ROBBEN ISLAND CELL. With the world’s eyes on the ailing Nelson Mandela, President Obama walked in the footsteps of the man he’s called his personal hero over the weekend. Touring the prison on Robben Island, Obama stood alone in the stark “7B” cell where Mandela was imprisoned for 18 of his 27 years in captivity and stared out at the blue sky through the barred window. Obama visited the island before, in 2006 when he was a senator, but this weekend he returned for the first time as president and brought along his family. “For me to be able to bring my daughters there and teach them the history of that place and this country, and help them to understand not only how those lessons apply to their own lives but also to their responsibilities in the future as citizens of the world, that’s a great privilege and a great honor,” Obama said Saturday. http://abcn.ws/14jA1p7

PROP 8 SUPPORTERS LOSE AGAIN. Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy yesterday denied an emergency application filed by Proposition 8 sponsors asking the court to halt same-sex weddings until the justices issue a final disposition on their dismissal of a case asking them to overturn a lower-court decision striking down the California marriage law, ABC’s DEAN SCHABNER and ARIANE DE VOGUE write. That decision paved the way for same-sex marriages, which had been legal in the state before the passage of Prop 8, to resume. A federal court gave the go-ahead Friday evening, and gay couples immediately began tying the knot. Supporters of Proposition 8, which defined marriage as being between a man and a woman, had said they believed that the 9th Circuit Court acted prematurely in allowing marriages to resume before the Supreme Court had issued its final judgment, which usually comes within 25 days of a ruling. They filed an emergency petition with the Supreme Court Saturday, asking the court to stop the 9th Circuit’s “premature move” allowing same sex marriages to go forward. http://abcn.ws/14jqZs5

WHAT WE’RE READING

“KASICH SIGNS BUDGET, KEEPS ABORTION RESTRICTIONS, LEAVES DOOR OPEN FOR MEDICAID EXPANSION,” by the Cleveland Plain Dealer’s Brandon Blackwell. “Ohio’s next two-year budget is a done deal. Gov. John Kasich on Sunday evening signed controversial House Bill 59, a nearly $62 billion plan that attempts to spur economic growth while restricting reproductive rights. The Republican governor used his line-item veto to ditch a provision that would bar the state from expanding Medicaid, but held on to the legislature’s tax reform cornerstones and volley against abortion. … Kasich left in place provisions in HB 59 that will strip funds from Planned Parenthood, bar abortion providers from entering into emergency transfer agreements with public hospitals, and force women seeking abortions to undergo an ultrasound. The budget reprioritizes how federal dollars are distributed among the state’s family-planning centers, effectively placing Planned Parenthood at the end of the list, the group says. HB 59 also requires abortion providers to find private hospitals, which are often religious, willing to enter into transfer agreements to comply with the state’s requirements. A last-minute addition demands that abortion providers give women seeking abortions information on family planning and adoption services if a heartbeat can be detected through the use of a trans-abdominal ultrasound. It also compels doctors to inform those women “of the probable anatomical and physiological characteristics” of a fetus during various stages of its development.” http://bit.ly/17NebiE

WHO’S TWEETING?

@sswinkgma: Front page of the Arizona Republic this morning. http://fb.me/RBPkeylk 

@ZekeJMiller: On Rubio, It’s Bloomberg vs. Bloomberg http://ti.me/18qjPXo  via @TIMEPolitics

@JillDLawrence: .@JebBush to GOP: Get on board w #CIR to grow econ, reduce illegal immig & welfare rolls, strengthen border security http://on.wsj.com/19NWUGT 

@politicalwire: Latinos poised to catch up with whites in California population http://politicalwire.com/archives/2013/07/01/latinos_poised_to_catch_up_with_whites_in_california.html …

@davelevinthal: Six governors — three GOP, three Dem — have signed bills increasing campaign contribution limits in ’13 http://ow.ly/mxwka 

Compiled by ABC News’ Carrie Halperin, Amanda VanAllen, Will Cantine and J.P. Lawrence

NSA
ABC’s Kari Rea: “Julian Assange: ‘No Stopping’ Release of Additional NSA Secrets” Wikileaks founder Julian Assange said this morning in an exclusive interview with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos on “This Week” that there is no stopping the release of additional NSA secrets obtained by Edward Snowden, a former contract employee of the organization. “There is no stopping the publishing process at this stage.  Great care has been taken to make sure that Mr. Snowden can’t be pressured by any state to stop the publication process.  LINK

USA Today’s Kelly Kennedy: “Assange: ‘No stopping’ publication of NSA documents” WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said documents taken by National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden will still be published. ”There is no stopping the publishing process at this stage,” Assange told ABC’s This Week Sunday. Assange also called Snowden a “hero” and said he doesn’t know where he is or where he plans to go. LINK

The Wall Street Journal’s Te-Ping Chen and Ken Brown: “Snowden’s Options for Refuge Narrow” As Edward Snowden entered his second week of limbo in Moscow’s airport on Sunday, his decision to go to Russia is looking riskier than it first appeared, and may have left him in a worse situation than if he had stayed in Hong Kong. LINK 

The Hill’s Brendan Sasso: “NSA revelations throw wrench into lawmakers’ cybersecurity push” Revelations about the National Security Agency’s domestic surveillance programs could make it more difficult for Congress to pass cybersecurity legislation. Civil liberties groups have long argued that the House’s cybersecurity bill, the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA), could allow vast batches of private online information to fall into the hands of the NSA. LINK

Bloomberg’s Susan Decker and John Walcott: “Snowden Disclosures Won’t Stop, WikiLeaks Founder Assange Says” Arresting former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden wouldn’t stop the release of information on classified programs to collect phone records and e-mail communications, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said. “There is no stopping the publishing process at this stage,” Assange said yesterday on ABC’s “This Week” program. LINK

AFFIRMATIVE ACTION
The Washington Post’s Robert Barnes: “Ginsburg, Thomas  Spar Over Race; Court Likely To Get More Affirmative-Action Cases” Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s dissent in the Supreme Court’s affirmative action decision last week reminded the world of this gem from the late law professor Thomas Reed Powell: “If you think that you can think about a thing inextricably attached to something else without thinking of the thing which it is attached to, then you have a legal mind.” That is what the great legal minds on the court did, according to Ginsburg, when they put the University of Texas’s freshmen admissions policy under a microscope for eight months and then weren’t sure what they’d seen. They sent it back for a lower court to take another look. LINK

MIDDLE EAST
The New York Times’ Jodi Rudoren and Michael R. Gordon: “Kerry Sees Progress in Effort To Revive Mideast Talks” After four days of the most intense Middle East peace push in years, Secretary of State John Kerry left Israel on Sunday without securing a public commitment that the two sides would return to the negotiating table, though he insisted that “real progress” had been made and said that a resumption of talks “could be within reach.” In what has become a familiar refrain, Mr. Kerry promised to return to the region soon. LINK

The Boston Globe’s Michael R. Gordon: ”John Kerry cites progress in Mideast peace talks” Secretary of State John Kerry wound up his most intensive push yet for a revival of Middle East peace talks Sunday without achieving a breakthrough, but he said that his four days of marathon meetings with Israeli and Palestinian leaders had yielded “real progress” and that a resumption of substantive negotiations could be “within reach.” LINK

PRESIDENT OBAMA
ABC News’ Jonathan Karl: “Obama Compares Nelson Mandela to George Washington.” Although President Obama will not get a chance to see Nelson Mandela on his trip to South Africa, he is using his historic visit to pay tribute to the man he calls a hero to the world and will meet today with the Mandela family. At a joint press conference with South African President Jacob Zuma this morning, President Obama spoke extensively about Mandela’s legacy. LINK

IMMIGRATION BILL
The Washington Times’ Stephen Dinan: “Sen. Marco Rubio’s political future is tied to success of immigration bill” Sen. Marco Rubio was the glue that held together the immigration deal in the Senate, helping set the stage for adding tens of thousands of Border Patrol agents to the final deal — but failing to win many of the changes the Florida Republican himself said he needed to see. The 68-32 vote last week in favor of the bill was a milestone for the Senate and for the immigration debate, but it was even more important for the first-term senator whose political future is inextricably linked with the landmark legislation he helped write and pass. LINK

ABC NEWS VIDEO
“Former Top Ranking General Allegedly Leaked Secrets to the Press“ LINK
“Julian Assange on ‘This Week’” LINK

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“Nelson Mandela showed us that one man’s courage can move the world. And he calls on us to make choices that reflect not our fears, but our hopes — in our own lives, and in the lives of our communities and our countries,” the president told a crowd of more than 1,000 at the University of Cape Town.

Echoing Robert Kennedy’s 1966 “Ripple of Hope” speech at the same location, Obama told students that every voice can make a difference.

“Think of how many ripples of hope it took to build a wave that would eventually come crashing down like a mighty stream,” he said. “If there’s any country in the world that shows the power of human beings to affect change, this is the one. You’ve shown us how a prisoner can become a president. You’ve shown us how bitter adversaries can reconcile. You’ve confronted crimes of hatred and intolerance with truth and love, and you wrote into your constitution the human rights that sustain freedom.”

The president argued that progress in Africa “rests on a fragile foundation” and encouraged the next generation to turn away from handouts from foreign governments in favor of legitimate partnerships that can advance the interests of the continent.

“I can promise you this: The world will be watching what decisions you make. The world will be watching what you do. Because one of the wonderful things that’s happening is, where people used to only see suffering and conflict in Africa, suddenly, now they’re seeing opportunity for resources, for investment, for partnership, for influence,” he said.

“My bet is on the young people who are the heartbeat of Africa’s story. I’m betting on all of you. As President of the United States, I believe that my own nation will benefit enormously if you reach your full potential,” he said. “I’m calling for America to up our game when it comes to Africa.”

As part of that effort, the president announced a new initiative to double access to power in sub-Saharan Africa with an initial $7 billion investment from the U.S.

“It’s the lifeline for families to meet their most basic needs. And it’s the connection that’s needed to plug Africa into the grid of the global economy,” he said. “You’ve got to have power.”

The keynote speech of the president’s week-long trip to Africa followed a family visit to Robben Island. While the president toured the prison where Mandela spent 18 of his 27 years in captivity in 2006, today, his wife and daughters saw it for the first time.

“There was something different about bringing my children,” he said. “Malia is now 15, Sasha is 12 and seeing them stand within the walls that once surrounded Nelson Mandela, I knew this was an experience that they would never forget. I knew that they now appreciated a little bit more the sacrifices that Madiba and others had made for freedom.”

“What I also know is that because they’ve had a chance to visit South Africa for a second time now, they also understand that Mandela’s spirit could never be imprisoned — for his legacy is here for all to see. It’s in this auditorium: young people, black, white, Indian, everything in between living and learning together in a South Africa that is free and at peace,” he said.

SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images

CAPE TOWN, South Africa — President Obama was treated to an impromptu rap performance today as he toured a classroom at Desmond Tutu’s HIV Foundation Youth Center.

“This is a pretty cool place to be,” the president said, before sitting down and asking two boys what they were working on.

A teenage boy in a hat then showed the president a music program he was working on. “Are you a rapper?” Obama asked.

When the boy said he was, the president asked him to perform for him.

The two “loosened up” before the boy, 15-year-old Aviwe Mtongana, aka “Katmeister,” performed his song, entitled “Hell on Earth.”

“Hell you earth, what people gonna do… on TV, you watching Scooby Doo… saying the punch line, he’s not cool,” he sang, through a thick accent. “Now you face the hardest living… Getting out there is not pimping… The real way is through rapping.”

When the song ended, Obama exclaimed “you gotta drop the mic!” as he motioned for him to do just that.

“I like that. Fantastic,” Obama said, as the boy sat back down.

Asked what it was like to rap for the president, Katmeister told reporters it was “cool.”

(Credit: JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images)

CAPE TOWN, South Africa — With the world’s eyes on the ailing Nelson Mandela, President Obama today walked in the footsteps of the man he’s called his personal hero.

Touring the prison on Robben Island, Obama stood alone in the stark “7B” cell where Mandela was imprisoned for 18 of his 27 years in captivity and stared out at the blue sky through the barred window.

Obama visited the island before, in 2006 when he was a senator, but today he returned for the first time as president and brought along his family.

“For me to be able to bring my daughters there and teach them the history of that place and this country, and help them to understand not only how those lessons apply to their own lives but also to their responsibilities in the future as citizens of the world, that’s a great privilege and a great honor,” Obama said Saturday.

The first family viewed the quarry where Mandela and his fellow prisoners were forced to do grueling labor, endlessly breaking large stones into smaller ones, and the courtyard provided for their recreation. They walked through the tiny, barren cells, which were barely wide enough for the prisoners to lie down.

The president, first lady, daughters Sasha and Malia, first grandmother Marian Robinson and the president’s niece Leslie Robinson were guided through the prison by a former inmate. Like Mandela, Ahmed Kathrada was imprisoned for 18 years for his anti-apartheid activities.

The president was overheard chiming in with his own history lessons.

“One thing you guys might not be aware of is that the idea of political nonviolence first took root here in South Africa because Mahatma Gandhi was a lawyer here in South Africa. Here is where he did his first political [activism]. When he went back to India the principles ultimately led to Indian independence, and what Gandhi did inspired Martin Luther King,” he told his family.

Before departing, the president and first lady signed the visitors log.

“On behalf of our family we’re deeply humbled to stand where men of such courage faced down injustice and refused to yield. The world is grateful for the heroes of Robben Island, who remind us that no shackles or cells can match the strength of the human spirit,” the president wrote.

“Our minds and our hearts are not fully here because a piece of us, a piece of our heart is with a man and a family not far from here,” Obama said, in brief remarks at the formal dinner hosted by President Zuma, not far from where the ailing 94-year-old civil rights icon remains in the hospital.

Obama recited the words Mandela often turned to in his cell in Robben Island prison, “a poem he read to the others in their darkest moments to give them strength,” he said.

He then read aloud William Ernest Henley’s “Invictus”:

“Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds and shall find me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.”

Raising a glass, Obama proposed a toast “to a man who has always been the master of his fate, who taught us that we could be the master of ours.”

PRETORIA, South Africa — President Obama will not visit the hospital to meet with ailing civil rights icon Nelson Mandela, the White House announced today.

“Out of deference to Nelson Mandela’s peace and comfort and the family’s wishes, [the president and first lady] will not be visiting the hospital,” the White House said.

The president and first lady will, however, meet privately with members of the Mandela family “to offer their thoughts and prayers at this difficult time.”

The president downplayed expectations Friday that he would meet face-to-face with Mandela during his stay in South Africa.

“I don’t need a photo-op,” the president told reporters. “The last thing I want to do is to be in any way obtrusive at a time when the family is concerned about Nelson Mandela’s condition.”

@petesouza/Twitter

Obama and Mandela have met only once in person, during a spontaneous meeting in Washington in 2005, when Obama was just a junior Senator.

It was widely speculated that Obama would meet with Mandela for the first time as president during his week long trip to Africa, in what would have been a deeply symbolic face-to-face encounter.

The 94-year-old former president was admitted to the hospital three weeks ago for a chronic lung infection.