—8:00 am: Polls open in Mississippi Democratic and Republican gubernatorial primaries
—11:00 am: Senator Joe Lieberman tours and makes remarks at a steel factory, Cicero, Ill.
—11:45 am: Senator John Kerry holds an event with the Minnesota Nurses Association, St. Paul
—1:00 pm: Congressman Dennis Kucinich attends lunch fundraiser at the Plumbers and Pipe Fitters Union Banquet Hall, Aurora, Ill.
—5:15 pm: Senator John Edwards attends rally with supporters on Navy Pier, Chicago
—5:30 pm: Congressman Dick Gephardt attends a rally with labor supporters in the parking lot of the United Center, Chicago
—8:00 pm: AFL-CIO Working Families Presidential Forum with all nine Democratic candidates, Navy Pier, Chicago
—8:00 pm: Polls close in Mississippi Democratic and Republican gubernatorial primaries

NEWS SUMMARY

There are three big stories to watch as the AFL-CIO's summer meeting begins today in Chicago.

Dick Gephardt, Dick Gephardt, Dick Gephardt and the meeting of labor political directors to discuss endorsements and strategy; the decision of the executive council to spend more money on the 2004 election; and tonight's candidate forum at 8 pm ET. NPR's Bob Edwards will host. A panel of a few dozen workers will ask candidates questions by topic; at the end of a topic, Edwards will follow up. The nine will sit before a union pre-screened audience of about 2,000.

Will there be wrestling in the Windy City? From our conversations with the campaigns, we're not sure to what degree the candidates will try to break format tonight at the AFL-CIO's candidate forum and challenge each other. But our gut is bracing for confrontation.

1. What do Dean, Lieberman, Kerry, Gephardt say to each other and about what the others have said about them?

2. To what degree do the candidates out-labor Gephardt and Kucinich? Or will they stick to safer issues like "worker protection," "overtime pay rules," "ergonomics," etc.; will Kucinich once again steal applause lines and momentum with his pro-labor, anti-war positions?

3. The composition of the audience: What's the mix of industrial workers? Service workers? Public employees? Will health care questions/NAFTA questions/war questions predominate? Will anyone prod Lieberman/Kerry/Edwards/Gephardt on the war?

4. Will anyone buck labor on any issue?

5. The Note is sure that somewhere there will be a drinking game involving each mention of "Andrew Stern" … . "health care for working families" … . "nurses" … . "Labor is the backbone of our nation"

Among the things the political press should notice today in Chicago: Jim Andrews, newly hired by the Edwards campaign to manage message and strategy.

And speaking of the AFL-CIO saving political lives, California Governor Gray Davis has been meeting with its political directors to gain support to fight the recall — to loud applause. More below.

In other news, President Bush is getting settled in at the ranch in Crawford. Secretary of State Powell and Deputy Secretary Armitage are expected to drop in for lunch today and shoot the bull about some recent crazy talk back east.

The Democratic candidates are a-campaignin' and a-stumpin' in the Midwest today before they get together with their peers at Navy Pier tonight.

Mississippi voters will go to the polls today for the Democratic and Republican gubernatorial primaries. Democratic Governor Ronnie Musgrove is expected to easily win his party's nomination to run for a second term. Former RNC Chairman Haley Barbour is expected to win the Republican nomination over attorney Mitch Tyner. Polls open at 8:00 am ET and close at 8:00 pm ET.

The Note must make a correction on scheduling information we provided yesterday regarding Senator Edwards' series of town hall meetings in North Carolina. They will be led by the campaign's chairman, Ed Turlington, not Senator Edwards. The second one is tonight in Charlotte.

Senator Clinton appeared to have a good time on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno last night, despite Jay's tough questioning about her alleged affair with a space alien. She has another book signing today in San Francisco.

Consolidated BCRA case defendants' briefs are due today.

In recall news:

-- Governor Davis met with President Clinton for an hour in Chicago Monday.

-- Barbara Boxer said she will say by Friday whether or not she thinks a Democrat should get on the ballot as a backup if the recall is successful.

-- State Senator Tom McClintock (R) is filing his nomination papers tomorrow today, at 2 pm ET at the Ventura County Registrar's office.

-- Arnold Schwarzenegger donated $50,000 to Rescue California.

-- Larry Flynt — oh, he's in. And his slogan? "Vote for the smut-peddler with a heart," according to AP.

Most important newspaper stories of the day:

1. Lieberman repeated his "ticket to nowhere" comments; they were thrown back in Dean's face on LKL and Today; Dean gave them the usual brush off. Lieberman made the front page of USA Today , with Susan Page saying he "aces a centrist's dilemma in campaigning in Democratic primaries … " LINK; the indomitable Kit Seelye (!!!)'s Times version notices that both Dean and Lieberman seem to run against the "stale orthodoxies" of the right and left. LINK; or maybe they represent those orthodoxies; the Des Moines Register 's Beaumont says the two "have emerged as standard-bearers for the party's divergent views have sharpened their criticism of rivals as the race reaches critical tests of strength." Beaumont also gets an Iowa-campaigning Kerry to respond to recent Iowa polling. LINK; The Post 's Balz says Lieberman's criticism "ensures that the concerns about Dean's gathering strength and what it represents will continue to be a dominant feature of the battle for the Democratic nomination." LINK; the AP's Pickler estimates that Dean has spent $800,000 in ads so far this cycle. LINK

Lieberman's Monday speech at the National Press Club generated a whole bunch of clips: LINK, LINK, LINK, LINK, LINK , LINK , LINK, LINK.

2. AFL-CIO: Bill Clinton broke bread with union leaders yesterday LINK; another endorsement for Gephardt: the United Steelworkers of America. Gephardt introduced the phrase "Houdini economics" in New York: LINK; But a Chicago Teamsters local backs Kerry LINK; and Kerry introduces an online petition to oppose the Labor Department's proposed changes to overtime rules; the Ullico affairs makes the Tribune's story previewing the AFL-CIO convo LINK; the AP's Strope says that labor leaders will consider "transferring about $5 million from the AFL-CIO's general fund or organizing budget, and levying another surcharge on its affiliates of 4 cents per member per month to boost its political funds." LINK

3. The Washington Post 's Tom Edsall says President Bush's fundraising strategy "is choking a major feature of post-Watergate campaign regulation: the promise of federal matching funds in return for a candidate's vow to limit spending." And that's prompted "some Democrats to suggest that their party's presidential hopefuls should consider abandoning public financing." LINK

Be sure to read the prescient items about 2008; there may not be a GOP candidate yet, but there's little reason to think Republicans won't have a similar $$ advantage.

4. Hollings: just that more difficult for Democrats to regain control of the Senate, the Post says … LINK; The Washington Times Notes the bipartisan praise: LINK; the New York Times Noted Hollings' "pungent" remarks about President Bush; LINK

5. The New York Times on the looking crisis in mortgage rates; the higher they go, the weaker a pillar of the economic recovery becomes. LINK

6. Al Gore will break his public silence about the recent doings during a speech at New York University Thursday. Everyone continues to insist that the former veep won't get back in the presidential race, but the New York Post is skeptical. LINK

Elsewhere:

The Wall Street Journal 's Schlesinger on Oliver Muoto: "With a new start-up called PayDemocracy, Mr. Muoto aims to create a national clearinghouse to steer people and money to various causes, just as eBay Inc. used the Internet to stitch together a global marketplace for second-hand items. Mr. Muoto's goal is to convince Americans that small donations to political candidates and causes matter — in the 2004 election and beyond. His market is small donors, not big ones, and he believes it is ripe for exploitation."

The Wall Street Journal 's Alan Murray wants the administration to come clean on Iraq's costs.

New York Daily News' Greg Smith on Denise Rich under investigation LINK

A skeptical Times editorial on NASCAR dads: LINK

California recall:

With apologies to Maureen Dowd:

Who am I?

I'm a 70ish, former mayor of one of California's biggest cities.

My party sees me as the most popular political figure in the state, and I have been besieged by people in the last week telling me I'm the only hope to make sure we control the Golden State governorship.

Sure, I'm fabulously wealthy, with a spouse who isn't all that crazy about my running, and being governor might make taking the kind of vacations to Europe and other non-California spots that we love so much significantly harder.

Granted — my consultants and advisers see me as indecisive, demanding, and (did I mention?) indecisive, but I've got so many (rich) friends telling me that I must do this.

I know that the number of fancy parties I'll be able to go to in Sacramento is no where near the number available to me on Nob Hill or in Brentwood, and if I had $10,000 for every time someone has asked me in the last week, "Why would you want the job and to have to deal with the budget mess?" its possible I might even notice the increase in my bank account.

When it comes to end-game decision-making, Mario Cuomo has got nothing on me.

The only person I don't want to run against in this crazy process is my friend, the OTHER famous former mayor. This game of chicken is making me crazy.

Who am I?

Who am I, indeed.

The AFL-CIO, the nation's largest labor organization evidently has decided that California Governor Gray Davis is their guy — and they're sticking by him. The Los Angeles Times' Jones, Morain, and Rainey describe Davis' meeting in Chicago yesterday with the organization's political directors, where he asked for $10 million to fight the recall. LINK

The group is expected to vote on whether or not to pony up the cash today. The trio report that Davis was greeted with "rousing applause" — a sound he's not much used to these days. Which begs the question: is the AFL-CIO that supportive of Davis, or that opposed to Dianne Feinstein?

"Although some prominent Democrats have talked about U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) as a potential alternative candidate, union leaders have strong disagreements with her and have discouraged any talk of her candidacy," Jones, Morain, and Rainey write.

"Davis' push to keep other Democrats off the ballot is expected to receive another boost today, when the California Labor Federation plans to issue a warning that it would 'punish' any Democrats who break ranks and challenge the governor."

California recall, Arnold:

More Jones, Morain and Rainey:

"Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has flirted with opposing the governor, donated $50,000 to the campaign to remove Davis."

The Mercury News has George Gorton saying: "'[Schwarzenegger] told me this morning: 'George, don't assume I'm not running.''" LINK

California recall, the Democrats:

The San Francisco Chronicle's Marc Sandalow reports on then-Mayor Feinstein's own recall in 1983 and writes, "The parallels between Feinstein's campaign to keep her job and Davis' situation are striking. Her strategist, Clint Reilly, told her it was a mistake to cast the recall as a referendum on her record, according to Roberts' book, 'Don't Let Them See You Cry.'" LINK

"Reilly urged Feinstein to focus on a three-pronged strategy: the cost of the special election, the unfairness of a recall against an official not accused of malfeasance or corruption and the message it would send to the rest of the nation."

"Through the strength of those messages and a strong grassroots campaign, Feinstein beat back the recall by winning more than 80 percent of the vote. It was overpowering victory that helped establish Feinstein as a political force. Walter Mondale considered naming her his running mate on the Democratic ticket the following year."

The Mercury News gets Feinstein consultant Kam Kuwata to go on the record: "Kuwata said Monday that the senator, who turned down Democratic pleas to run for governor in 1998, has no plans to jump in at the last minute." LINK

The Los Angeles Times' Peter Nichols does a good job of describing the lay of the land for Democrats. LINK

California recall, the GOP:

State Senator Tom McClintock will file papers to get on the ballot today at 2 pm ET (11 am PT) at the Ventura County Registrar of Voters office, according to his press release. Watch for him to say a few words to the press afterward.

The Christian Science Monitor writes up Richard Riordan's potential candidacy on the front page under the headline: "Riordan: 'Goofy' or a Mr. Fix It?" LINK

California recall, the field:

The San Francisco Chronicle's Salladay and Marinucci write, "A barrage of public opinion polls showing Gov. Gray Davis at risk of being ousted from office pushed frightened Democrats closer Monday to demanding that a strong replacement candidate appear on the Oct. 7 recall election ballot." LINK

Regarding the meeting of the 17 Democratic state senators, the duo reports, "There was no agreement, senators said, except that the recall should be opposed and voters need to be better informed about how a Republican governor might undermine abortion rights, labor laws and the environment."

And what's the governor's plan?

"Speaking by telephone from Chicago, Davis said he would spend most of his time over the next two months working on gubernatorial business, such as passing financial privacy legislation and propping up the failing workers' compensation system."

The AP's Lisa Leff has a story chock-full of great stuff. LINK

The AP's Laura Wides reports on Candidate Flynt. LINK

The Los Angeles Times' Mary McNamara looks at the, er, less than diverse crowd of gubernatorial wannabes, and asks, "When exactly did Brentwood become Hyannis Port west?" LINK

California recall, the courtroom:

USA Today 's Martin Kasindorf writes, "Like Davis' claim, several lawsuits are likely to rely on the U.S. Supreme Court's 5-4 decision in Bush vs. Gore. The nation's high court drew fierce criticism for its intervention in a partisan political dispute. Now the courts again are being asked to wade into the political arena." LINK

The AP's David Kravets reports, "Legal experts said the governor's case is among the strongest of the five challenges pending before the California Supreme Court, since it addresses fundamental voting-rights issues." LINK

The AP has a very useful round-up of the five legal challenges pending before the California Supreme Court. LINK