NEWS SUMMARY

A lovely spring day in the BosWash corridor, a good time for everyone on the stage to play their usual parts:

President Bush -- stressing national security to make sure the election is fought out on his terms.

John Kerry -- mystifying his friends and delighting his enemies by displaying the kind of pandering, flip-flopping verbal gymnastics over abortion that truly have the capacity to single-handedly keep him from winning the White House. Not a smooth slide to the center or a Sister Soulja -- just flailing.

The had-it-up-to-here White House press corps -- looking to pull loose threads, embodied by Elisabeth Bumiller of the New York Times, with a piece about the spring of discontent among congressional Republicans, quoting under one roof LaHood, Lott, King, and Hagel!!!! (Note to EB: what, McCain wasn't reachable??!!)

The journalistic Big Feet -- embodied by the Wall Street Journal's David Rogers, going one part swoon, one part skepticism over the Education of John Kerry.

The DNC -- expressing frustration and outrage over changing Bush stories (Laura Bush on Leno providing about the fifth account of whether and how the President reads newspapers) and alleged lawlessness (those Medicare videos).

Karl Rove and Adam Nagourney -- expressing quiet satisfaction (for different reasons) over a Blue state slipping purple as Quinnipiac suggest the Garden State just might be in play after all. Perfect together.

The goo-goo Establishment -- David Broder symbolizes the parallel universe attitude we simply don't understand by celebrating McCain-Feingold's spirit, but/while claiming that the elimination of the nexus between incumbency and big donations and the entrance into the process of hundreds of thousands of small donors aren't achievements. LINK

President Bush meets Republican members of Congress at the Capitol and with the Prime Minister of Greece at the White House. Watch to see how rah rah Members are after that first meeting.

Sen. Kerry meets with Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus members and community leaders at his Washington campaign headquarters. He then travels to Philadelphia where he meets with GEAR UP students at Edison High School before returning to Washington, D.C. for Senate votes. In the evening Kerry attends a private fundraiser in Boston.

First Lady Laura Bush visits Reginald Chavez Elementary School and speaks about the No Child Left Behind Act and summer reading, while also attending a fundraising luncheon at a private residence, Albuquerque, N.M.

Lynne Cheney speaks about the No Child Left Behind Act at an event sponsored by the Manhattan Institute at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, New York, N.Y.

The House and Senate resume consideration of the Department of Defense Authorization bill.

ABC News Vote 2004: Bush-Cheney re-elect:

As President Bush heads up to the Hill, Elisabeth Bumiller looks at the mood among Republicans there and boils it down to "Thank God it's not October." LINK

Republican Rep. Ray LaHood backs that conclusion up, saying "If it was October, I'd probably be having a heart attack."

Plus, Sen. Trent Lott says the White House needs the return of Karen Hughes and "dismissed the suggestion that Mr. Rove's involvement was sufficient."

Bumiller does have "one Republican official close to the President" brushing off those members as "'a who's-who of nervous Nellies' who waver when things get rough."

Bob Novak looks at the discontent of conservatives with President Bush's performance on Iraq and government growth. LINK

Do read Reps. Peter King and Tom Feeney in The Hill story from Bolton and Earle under the headline "Bush slide worries the party." LINK

And/but The Hill's Kaplan reports the President "will visit with congressional Republicans today in the Capitol amid growing levels of tension between the White House and GOP leaders." LINK

As President Bush heads to the Hill to talk with Republicans, a senior administration official says that "Iraq, and thorny issues such as the prison-abuse scandal, likely will dominate the session," the AP reports. LINK

President Bush's assignment on the Hill today, per the Houston Chronicle's Martinez: "Rev up the GOP ranks amid growing doubts about the war strategy in Iraq and show his concern for their thoughts about issues such as the economy and the military."LINK

The Hartford Courant's Dean David Lightman profiles the Veep and discusses his role this time around. LINK

ABC News' Karen Travers reports that according to the Bush-Cheney '04's April FEC report, the campaign has officially hit the $200 million mark for total fundraising. As of April 30, BC04 had $71.6 million in cash on hand, putting the campaign's spending at about $128.4 million. In March, BC04 spent nearly $50 million.

In the 2000 election cycle, Bush raised $101 million through the convention.

AP's Diana Scarponi looks at the life of "relative anonymity" the Bush twin daughters enjoy on their college campuses and Notes that "[e]xcept for a highly publicized incident at a Texas bar and a few gossip-column appearances, the 22-year-old sisters have stayed out of the limelight that follows a president's children."LINK

The twin also seem to have their friends well-trained: "Classmates who were closer to Barbara declined to comment, and at least one friend called the White House to report inquiries from The Associated Press."

And the New York Daily News' own Lloyd Grove reports that the Bush daughters will do a joint interview in Vogue before pitching in on their father's re-election campaign. LINK

First Lady Laura Bush stopped by the Tonight Show last night and tells Jay Leno that the President really does read the newspaper -- just not the reporters that cover him. LINK

Robin Abcarian writes that "Leno mostly steered clear of such serious topical issues as the war in Iraq and the turmoil over the detainee abuse scandal. Instead, he teased the first lady about "partying until dawn" during a campaign swing through Las Vegas on Tuesday."

The First Lady's response: "'Jay, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.'"

And Note the quotes from Letitia Baldrige, chief of staff for Jacqueline Kennedy on the um, differences between Laura Bush and Teresa Heinz Kerry.

"'Laura is a wonderful hostess and mother figure -- so poised and such a pro and so smooth at deterring questions about her husband,' Baldrige said.

'Teresa is a sophisticated international woman, used to being around people talking about billions of dollars. Laura is more used to talking about families and education, and she is vocal and articulate about them.'"

The Boston Globe's Mary Leonard reports that Mrs. Bush said she was in favor of the debate over gay marriage but "she refused to say that she supported passage of the proposed constitutional amendment that her husband endorsed earlier this year."LINK

The Salem (Oregon) Statesman Journal wraps the First Lady's appearance at a local school to promote No Child Left Behind. "'There's more money associated with the No Child Left Behind act than there's ever been before in any education bill.'" LINK

The Los Angeles Times' Nick Anderson looks at a new ad by the League of Conservation of Voters that calls President Bush a "Texas oilman" who supports drilling off the coast of Florida, a charge his campaign calls "egregiously false."LINK

The Hartford Courant reports "Gov. John G. Rowland, facing a criminal investigation and possible impeachment, has been replaced as chairman of President Bush's re-election campaign in Connecticut -- a personal and political setback for the longtime friend of the Bush family." LINK

The AP's Barry Schweid writes, "President Bush's unflagging support for Israel is in a sudden downward spiral after the White House sharply criticized Israel's military operations in Gaza and the United States allowed the U.N. Security Council to condemn the Jewish state." LINK

Kerry and Nader: The Meeting:

The Washington Post's Dan Balz and Jim VandeHei turn in a chock-full write up of the "two-pronged" Democratic strategy to counter Nader -- keep open lines of communication between Nader and the Kerry campaign while the party and its constituency groups work aggressively to diminish his candidacy. LINK

In other words, progressive voters, they've got someone on board for you: Howard Dean. The duo also wrap in James Carville's comments from Wednesday's Christian Science Monitor breakfast and Tricia Enright's new operation, as well as the National Progress Fund's plans to start airing "targeted television ads next week in as many as six states, including Florida," and NARAL's plan to "match or exceed the activity of 2000, when the group spent about $1.5 million on TV ads for Gore in states where Nader had substantial support."

The New York Times' David Halbfinger Notes the nice things Nader had to say about Sen. Kerry after their meeting, and quotes Nader as saying the difference between Kerry and Gore "is the difference between a spruce tree and petrified wood." LINK

(Do check out Nader's Shrum-rush at piece's end.)

The Boston Globe's Pat Healy reports, "In an interview with the Globe after the two met, Nader said he remained concerned that there was a lack of intensity and focus in Kerry's campaign as the Democrat has failed to seize the advantage as President Bush 'self-destructs politically because of Iraq and other problems.'" LINK

The Los Angeles Times' Anderson and Finnegan offer some interesting he-said-he-said on the Nader-Kerry session.

A "Kerry aide said there had been no substantive talk about a key area of disagreement: the Iraq war . . . Nader said in the interview that he brought up Iraq with Kerry. He said Kerry told him 'he has an exit strategy, and he implied he's going to elaborate on it.' The Kerry aide denied that account." LINK

The Kerry campaign staff seems to like 50-50 deniability:

Per the New York Times account: "(Nader) made more the point that he had the ability to go after Bush in ways that we could not," said a Kerry aide who attended the meeting but refused to be quoted by name. "He did not at all say to Kerry, 'I'm here to make you better on things.' That was not his tone at all . . . "

"The two men each brought two aides to the meeting: Mary Beth Cahill and Steve Elmendorf, the Kerry campaign manager and her deputy; and Teresa Amato and Kevin Zeese, the Nader campaign manager and its spokesman.")

The Boston Herald's Andrew Miga writes that "Kerry refrained from asking his prickly independent rival to quit the race -- and Nader never offered to drop out." LINK

Thomas Fitzgerald and Maria Recio of the Philadelphia Inquirer (and its Knight Ridder brethren) write, "The two men met for 70 minutes at Kerry's campaign headquarters in Washington and left without resolving the delicate dance unfolding between them." LINK

The Washington Post's Mark Leibovich looks at the spectacle of Wednesday's uneventful meeting between Kerry and Nader. "Nader arrived and entered the building, unseen, through a back door. By the time anyone realized this -- by way of a pool reporter who had been inside -- Nader was already on the seventh floor, meeting with Kerry." LINK

ABC News Vote 2004: Sen. John Kerry:

Take that, all you armchairquarterbackscomplainingtheSenatordoesn't have a message!

The Wall Street Journal's David Rogers waxes poetic about Sen. Kerry's new "rallying cry" borrowed from Langston Hughes: "'Let America be America again.'" Writes Rogers, "Kerry's three-day Western swing this week could prove a turning point. At a time of national self-doubt, the Massachusetts senator hopes to project an image of reassuring strength that melds 'can-do' American optimism with a call for a return to the sense of community."

Rogers writes up his three days on the road with Kerry and it is a must-read.

The Wall Street Journal's ed board says "Mr. Kerry's claim to be pro-business would be a lot stronger if he dropped his now-familiar political straddle" on the issue of free trade, in specific the Australia Free Trade Agreement, and wonders if one James P. Hoffa is now dictating the Senator's trade positions.

The AP's Ron Fournier writes up Kerry's sit-down with the AP, where he said "he's open to nominating antiabortion judges as long as that doesn't lead to the Supreme Court's overturning the landmark 1973 Roe ruling that made abortion legal." LINK

We think we understand Kerry's clarification, AND why the AP wrote it up originally the way they did, but we look forward to the Senator's principled, on-camera clarification.

BC04-RNC pounced, per usual, ferociously on the confusion, as a textbook case of their strategy of never letting a single opportunity to try to define John Kerry by these moments go by.

The New York Post goes wild with Kerry's latest comments on abortion, with blind quotes and all from Dem strategists fretting about the image of the flip-flop. LINK

NOTE NARAL's statement last eve (we received it at 7:04 pm) " in support of John Kerry's commitment to protecting a woman's right to choose." Went the release, "NARAL Pro-Choice America knows, based on John Kerry's record in the U.S. Senate, and the positions he has articulated as a candidate for President, that Roe v. Wade would be safe in his hands if he is elected President."

Roll Call's Mark Preston reports on Kerry's meetings with Sens. Byrd, Rockefeller, and Breaux on Wednesday, Noting that it was further evidence of Kerry's comparatively deeper engagement of his congressional colleagues than Nominee Gore had in 2000.

Johnny used to work on the dock, but now he hosts high-dollar fundraisers for Democratic politicians. PoliticsNJ.com reports that on June 14, Jon Bon Jovi will play a short live concert at a fundraiser at his Middletown home. The event, hosted by Sen. Jon Corzine, Gov. James McGreevey, State Sen. Raymond Lesniak and Bergen County Democratic Chairman Joseph Ferriero, is expected to "raise $1 million from a crowd limited to 350 people." The next day, New Jersey AFL-CIO leaders will give Kerry their endorsement. LINK

ABC News Vote 2004: Bush v. Kerry:

Independents are splitting evenly in New Jersey, according to Quinnipiac's latest poll.

In the overall horse race, Kerry gets 46 percent to Bush's 43 percent -- right at the margin of error -- and Nader's 5 percent. Take Nader out of the mix, and it's Kerry with 47 percent and Bush with 44 percent. In a three-way race, independent voters split 41-41, with Nader claiming 13 percent.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Drew Jubera writes up the paper's new poll conducted by Zogby that shows that if "the election were held today [&] Bush would beat Democratic Sen. John Kerry by 15 points -- 52 percent to 37 percent." LINK

ABC News Vote 2004: the battlegrounds:

After a "contentious" school board meeting Tuesday night, the Toledo Blade reports that Sen. Kerry will be the commencement speaker at Bedford High School's June 6 ceremony. LINK

The ground rules:
"[Bedford High School Principal] Mr. Caldwell said the senator's speech must not have political statements in it, that media would be restricted to a platform behind the graduates, and that there would be no signs allowed. He also noted that tickets for the event would be limited."

The Cincinnati Enquirer's Gregory Korte has a must-read look at Ohio's big six Democratic mayors all focused on electing John Kerry president. LINK

"Though the big-city mayors represent just 20 percent of the state's population, Democrats say their influence reaches beyond city limits. The mayors of Cincinnati, Dayton, Columbus, Cleveland, Toledo and Akron are at the center of regional economies -- and media markets -- that cover 80 percent of the state."

Mark Naymik has lots o' good nuggets in his Cleveland Plain Dealer column today. LINK

1. Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones' political organizer Vel Scott will run Cuyahoga County for Kerry.
2. Kerry's Ohio staff will be in Cincinnati today for the mayors meeting, which Jane Campbell is unable to attend, but has sent a representative.
3. The Regional Transit Authority has invited President Bush to attend a groundbreaking ceremony in early fall.

Keystone State residents will soon be able to forgo the long drive down the Atlantic City Expressway to play the slots. LINK

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette leads its Thursday editions with the guilty plea of Bedford County native Jeremy Sivits. The paper reports despite his plea, most area residents are still proud of Sivits and don't believe he acted on his own. LINK

"US Airways Chief Executive Officer Bruce Lakefield yesterday apologized for the carrier's recent decision to strip the city of its hub status&" reports the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. LINK

"&Under a new plan designed to return US Airways to profitability, Pittsburgh would lose flights, service and perhaps jobs as early as this fall . . . "

A battle is brewing in Jefferson City, Mo., about whether the ballot measure concerning a constitutional ban to gay marriage should appear on the August ballot (Gov. Holden's (D) preference) or the November ballot (Secretary of State Blunt's (R) preference). LINK

Mazel Tov to Raja Sri!!! LINK

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports the nation's top Red Cross official's concerns that the nation as a whole and the Midwest specifically are not well prepared for another terrorist attack. LINK

"More than 102,000 employees of SBC Communications Inc. -- including about 4,500 in the St. Louis area -- are poised to walk off their jobs tonight in a dispute over wages, job security and health care costs at the nation's second-largest telephone company," reports the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. LINK

The Albuquerque Journal reports, "Federal officials estimate a drop in agriculture cash receipts because of drought and fallow lands, Woods Houghton, an Eddy County Extension Service agent, said recently."

John Kerry may need to take another photo with a gun, but this time in Arizona. The Arizona Republic's Peter Corbett reports, "about 67,000 gun owners legally carry concealed weapons in Arizona, more per capita than in Texas." LINK

The Arizona LULAC organization is deeply divided about how to move forward with its agenda and that division will be the major topic of discussion at this weekend's annual meeting, reports the Arizona Republic. LINK

A recall of troops later this month could affect 500 National Guard members in Washington State. LINK

The politics of gas prices:

The Los Angeles Times covers the President's ixnay to appeals that he tap the strategic petroleum reserve in order to help lower gas prices. LINK

The Wall Street Journal's ed board says "there's no question the Bush Administration's desire to fill the SPR to the brim has put some modest pressure on the price of oil" as it expresses itself "glad to see Mr. Bush declare yesterday that he won't touch the SPR, despite the political grandstanding from certain Senators."

And the Wall Street Journal's Trottman reports "higher fuel prices threaten to wipe out the progress" the airlines "have made toward financial recovery after being buffeted by the most-recent economic slowdown, the terrorist attacks in 2001 and the conflict in Iraq."

The politics of Iraq:

The Washington Post's Robin Wright and Mike Allen report that President Bush on Monday will spell out details of the U.S. plan to turn sovereignty of Iraq over to the Iraqis on June 30. LINK

"Beginning with Monday's address at the Army War College, Bush will give a major speech on Iraq every week through June 30, when the U.S.-led coalition is due to turn over limited authority to a new interim Iraqi government. 'We're entering a critical phase, and the president will be speaking out each week to discuss with the American people, and the world, the way forward in Iraq,' said a White House official."

Reports the AP this morning, "U.S. soldiers and Iraqi police surrounded the residence of Iraqi politician Ahmad Chalabi on Thursday, and an aide said the troops raided the house ostensibly to search for fugitives." LINK

Wedding or way station for foreign infiltrators? The Washington Post's Wilson and Chan write up the U.S. attack near Syria that killed "more than 40 civilians, most of them women and children." LINK

The White House "is leaning toward a plan to allow Iraqi security forces to decline to take part in military operations ordered by American commanders," reports Steven Weisman of the New York Times. LINK

ABC News' Jonathan Karl reports that there's a short list to replace newly minted ambassador to Iraq John Negroponte as the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, including a 79-year-old former presidential candidate, the great-great grandson of a president, and the only Republican to lose a U.S. Senate race to Carol Moseley Braun.

The short list:

Richard Williamson -- Former chair of the Illinois Republican party ran for Senate and lost to Carol Moseley Braun. More recently he served as Negroponte's deputy.

Howard Baker

William Howard Taft IV -- Currently the legal advisor to the Secretary of State

Robert Blackwill -- Presidential envoy to Iraq

The politics of the 9/11 Commission:

The New York Times' Kleinfield looks at former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani's testimony and writes that the "matter of whether he and his administration had indeed performed wisely and heroically is central to his reputation and to his seemingly bountiful business and political future." LINK

The Sept. 11 commission is concerned the private sector is unprepared for possible terrorist attacks and "is likely to endorse a national emergency-readiness standard to require businesses to conduct full-scale evacuation drills, improve emergency intercoms and radios, and provide for continuing operations if key facilities are destroyed," the Wall Street Journal reports.

Dan Eggen of the Washington Post writes up Giuliani's defense of city emergency personnel before the 9/11 Commission Wednesday. Eggen Notes that Wednesday's staff report praised the emergency resources responding to the attack on the Pentagon, though the situation was on a far different scale in the two cities. In addition, the final 9/11 Commission report, to be published by W.W. Norton and Co., will be on sale in your local bookstore for $10 after its July release. LINK

The Chicago Sun-Times' Fran Spielman and Scott Fornek get all snarky -- and we like it -- about Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley's statements about how much money he spent on the Windy City's $217 million 911 emergency center. LINK

The politics of national security:

On Wednesday, the Senate unanimously approved Bush's plan to spend $5.6 billion within a 10-year period to develop anti-terror drugs and vaccines. LINK; LINK

Prison abuse scandal:

The Washington Post's Bradley Graham writes up Wednesday's testimony by Gen. John Abizaid, during which he assured the Senate Armed Services Committee that Abu Ghraib is not part of a larger pattern of abuse in Iraq and Afghanistan, and that those responsible will be punished. LINK

The Los Angeles Times' Schrader writes "since the scandal broke last month, the Bush administration has blamed the abuse on a small number of rogue prison guards. But at a tense hearing, Army Gen. John Abizaid and some of his top commanders in Iraq went further, detailing an array of flaws in the prison system that went undetected by commanders for months while incidents of physical and sexual abuse and humiliation of prisoners apparently flourished." LINK

Maureen Dowd talks to Sen. McCain as she praises him and his colleague Sen. Warner for holding hearings into the prison scandal this week. LINK

Big casino budget politics:

The Wall Street Journal reports the "House approved a $2.4 trillion budget for 2005, but Republican leaders struggled to find enough votes to push it through the closely divided Senate."

"A two-month-old House-Senate standoff over the 2005 budget burst into public acrimony yesterday, when the GOP House speaker questioned Sen. John McCain's credentials as a Republican and suggested that the decorated Vietnam War veteran did not understand the meaning of sacrifice," the Washington Post's Weisman and Allen report. LINK

"Amid such rancor, Bush will travel to Capitol Hill this morning to try to rally Republicans on both sides of the Capitol behind his flagging agenda and reassure them that his campaign is on course despite his drop in the polls."

"The hurriedly scheduled trip was designed to assuage the trepidation of lawmakers as they head back to their states and districts for the Memorial Day break," Weisman and Allen Note, and go on to write, "Deep cracks are appearing within the GOP, not only over tax policy and the budget deficit but also the conduct of the war in Iraq."

House Republicans hope to bring up a bill that would offer the full child tax credit "to families with incomes of up to $250,000, and it would offer a partial tax credit to families with incomes as high as $309,000," writes the New York Times' Edmund Andrews. LINK

Big casino budget politics: Medicare:

Nieman Fellow Amy Goldstein of the Washington Post reports that the Department of Health and Human Services illegally spent federal money on its marketing campaign to promote changes in Medicare. A General Accounting Office legal investigation found that the video news releases violated a law designed to prevent propaganda from being fueled by federal money, and another outlawing the use of federal money without authorization. LINK

The New York Times' Robert Pear also reports on the GAO finding. Note the use of the catchy phrase "'covert propaganda.'" LINK

The politics of faith:

The Washington Post's Alan Cooperman reports that 48 Catholic members of the House of Representatives have penned a letter to Cardinal Theodore McCarrick of Washington, protesting the stance of Catholic bishops who say they will refuse Communion to Catholic politicians who support abortion writes. The letter's authors, all Democrats, argue that the action will incite anti-Catholic bigotry and harm the church. Cooperman Notes that some who signed their names have strong anti-abortion voting records. LINK

The New York Times' Laurie Goodstein quotes the letter as saying that the threats by some bishops to deny Communion to politicians who support abortion rights are "'deeply hurtful,' counterproductive and 'miring the church in partisan politics.'" LINK

The politics of same-sex marriage:

The Boston Globe's Raphael Lewis and Yvonne Abraham report that the "state Senate yesterday voted overwhelmingly to repeal a 1913 law that Governor Mitt Romney is enforcing to prevent out-of-state same-sex couples from marrying in Massachusetts." LINK

The Washington Post's Hanna Rosin profiles Rev. Lou Sheldon, founder of the Traditional Values Coalition, and his daughter, Andrea Lafferty, who refer to Monday, i.e., the day that same-sex marriage became legal in Massachusetts, as "Two minutes to midnight." LINK

Big casino budget politics: the highway bill:

The impasse on the highway bill just might be over, reports the New York Times' Carl Hulse, who Notes "the chief stumbling block to approval of the legislation may be President Bush who has pledged to veto any highway bill that exceeds $256 billion. Both the House and Senate versions surpass that figure." LINK

ABC News Vote 2004: the Senate:

The Madison Capital Times reports that Sen. Russ Feingold is kicking off his re-election campaign with a $50,000 radio ad buy before hitting the road on a statewide campaign swing. LINK

ABC News Vote 2004: the House:

The New York Times' Stephen Kinzer previews the June 1 special election to fill South Dakota's House seat and Notes its very national implications. LINK

Democrat Stan Matsunaka launches his campaign today to unseat Marilyn Musgrave (R-Colo.), sponsor of the constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriages. LINK

The conventions:

The Boston Globe's Rick Klein reports, "A coalition of antiabortion groups is asking a federal judge to toss out Boston's permitting process for would-be protesters at the Democratic National Convention, saying that the city's new guidelines are likely to be used to violate their First Amendment right to free speech." LINK

The Boston Globe's Anthony Flint reports that parking garages and lots will be on lockdown near the FleetCenter during the convention (which probably makes sense if all of the roads are closed near the FleetCenter during the convention!). LINK

Michael Slackman of the New York Times follows yesterday's Brian Faler story in the Washington Post that said a charity with ties to Rep. Tom Delay says it has cancelled events surrounding the Republican Convention in New York this summer due to the high costs of the Big Apple. LINK

Politics:

This morning it's a who's who of Hispanic vote wooers as Dems gather at the New Democrat Network's annual meeting over here at the Mayflower Hotel. Those on the day's roster include Rep. Bob Menendez, who is expected to offer his assessment of the President's Cuba policy, along with Sen. Clinton, Richard Holbrooke, and aspiring Dem up-and-comers Stephanie Herseth and Roger Salazar.

Do check out the inside look at the breakfast-formerly-known-as-Sperling with Stan Greenberg and James Carville. Topics discussed include Nader, Iraq, and third-party politics. LINK

The theme for this weekend's Maine Democratic Party convention is "'united for victory.'" LINK

AP reports that former South Dakota Rep. William Janklow, just released after spending 100 days in jail after being convicted for second-degree manslaughter and reckless driving, is appealing his convictions, saying he didn't get a fair trial. LINK

TODAY'S SCHEDULE (all times ET):
—8:00 am: Boston Mayor Thomas Menino and the Greater Boston Chamber of Congress hold a DNC Convention security briefing, Boston, Mass.
—8:30 am: Sen. John Kerry meets with Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus members and community leaders at his headquarters, Washington, D.C.
—8:30 am: Sen. Hillary Clinton discusses health care at the New Democrat Network's annual meeting, Washington, D.C.
—8:30 am: Labor Department releases the weekly report on initial jobless claims
—9:00 am: President Bush meets with Republican members of Congress at the Capitol, Washington, D.C.
—9:00 am: Secretary of State Colin Powell speaks at the International Political Directors meeting, Washington, D.C.
—9:45 am: Sen. Max Baucus and members of Congress hold a news conference to announce legislation on Cuba and urge elimination of the travel ban and embargo with Cuba, Washington, D.C.
—10:00 am: The Senate convenes for morning business
—10:00 am: The House of Representatives meets for legislative business
—10:00 am: Lynne Cheney speaks about the No Child Left Behind Act at an event sponsored by the Manhattan Institute at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, New York, N.Y.
—10:05 am: Vice President Cheney meets with Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis, Washington, D.C.
—10:30 am: Democratic Caucus Chairman Bob Menendez speaks about U.S.-Cuba policy before the New Democrat Network, Washington, D.C.
—10:30 am: Sen. Sam Brownback holds a news conference to discuss the Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act at the Capitol, Washington, D.C.
—10:30 am: Transportation Secretary Mineta and Labor Secretary Chao hold ceremony marking National Maritime Day, Washington, D.C.
—10:45 am: House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi holds her regular news conference at the Capitol, Washington, D.C.
—11:00 am: The Senate resumes consideration of Department of Defense authorization bill
—11:25 am: President Bush meets with the Prime Minister of Greece at the White House
—11:30 am: Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, Sen. Ron Wyden, Sesame Workshop President and CEO Gary Knell and Sesame Street characters hold a news conference on Childhood Obesity Initiatives, Washington, D.C.
—12:00 pm: Sen. Kerry meets with Rep. Chaka Fattah and holds a roundtable discussion with students, parents, and teachers at Edison High School, Philadelphia, Pa.
—12:00 pm: First Lady Laura Bush visits Reginald Chavez Elementary School and speaks about the No Child Left Behind Act and summer reading, Albuquerque, N.M.
—12:00 pm: Paul Volcker, former Fed chairman who headed panel investigation of U.N.-Iraq oil-for-food program, holds news conference, New York, N.Y.
—12:30 pm: Sen. Kerry talks with GEAR UP students about his plan to ensure that all students have the opportunity to succeed at Edison High School, Philadelphia, Pa.
—1:00 pm: On-camera briefing by White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan
—1:00 pm: DSCC spokesman Brad Woodhouse and NRSC spokesman Dan Allen discuss Senate races on Politics Live on ABC News Live and AOL
—1:00 pm: Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld holds briefing on Iraq with senators at the Capitol, Washington, D.C.
—1:30 pm: Laura Bush attends a Victory 2004 Fundraising Luncheon, Albuquerque, N.M.
—1:45 pm: Ambassador Richard Holbrooke and Rep. Jane Harman speak about security and Iraq before the New Democrat Network, Washington, D.C.
—2:00 pm: Secretary of State Powell meets with the founder of Pennies for Peace, Washington, D.C.
—4:00 pm: All commissioners of the FEC testify before the House Administration Committee in a hearing on the FEC and the 527 rulemaking process, Washington, D.C.
—6:15 pm: Sen. Kerry attends a fundraising reception at a private residence, Boston, Mass.
—7:00 pm: Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge delivers the commencement address at the University of Maryland, College Park, Md.
—8:00 pm: Sen. Clinton delivers the keynote address at the Asia Society Washington Center's 17th Annual Dinner celebrating India and Indian-American relations at the Fairmont Hotel, Washington, D.C.