The Note: Canines and Humans

— -- WASHINGTON, July 20

When it gets above 90 degrees, people in politics and journalism get a little loopy.

Holding things together requires slotting everything into the appropriate category.

As a service to Note readers, here is a summary of this news cycle's top stories, put in one of the two basic categories into which all news falls:

Man-bites-dog political news:
George "Refused to Support Hate-crime Legislation, It Was Like My Father Was Killed All Over Again" Bush speaks to the NAACP. LINK

Sen. Voinovich becomes the champion of getting John Bolton confirmed as U.N. ambassador.

Dog-bites-man political news:
Bill Clinton triangulates within his own family by announcing he is going to campaign for Joe Lieberman.

Bob Novak wails on Israel.

The press appears pro-stem cell research.

Zeleny fans the Obama '08 flames.

Democrats believe that President Bush has reached a Tipping Point with Hispanic voters.

The press appears to want voters to care about the scandal storyline and punish Republicans for it.

Peggy Noonan shows she is a woman of impeccable taste and judgment (and a declining stickler for usage rules she thought would live forever). LINK

Mike Allen works 23 out of every 24 hour period. LINK

ABC News' Karen Travers reports, "President Bush speaks to the NAACP's annual convention in Washington at 10:30 am ET, taking a 'moment of opportunity' to speak to the group he has snubbed since taking office in 2001."

More Travers: "Bush spoke to the NAACP as a presidential candidate in 2000 but has not as president. His relationship with the group has been cool, as the President declined invitations to speak before the group and its leaders have openly criticized his policies."

"White House Press Secretary Tony Snow said on Tuesday that the President is making the remarks this year because there is a 'moment of opportunity' there and he 'wants to make his voice heard.'"

"Snow stressed that the President has a good relationship with Bruce Gordon, the new head of the NAACP and while the President has 'political disagreements' with the organization, the speech 'marks an opportunity to have a conversation.'"

ABC News' Kirit Radia reports Secretary of State Rice is expected to accompany the President to the NAACP gathering for his remarks.

Here's the curtain-raiser from the Nation's Newspaper: LINK

Yesterday at the convention, Rev. Jesse Jackson and Sens. Ted Kennedy (D-MA), Hillary Clinton (D-NY), and Barack Obama (D-IL) acted as if the President was Voldemort, balking at using his name and instead referring to him as "the surprise guest." And since the crowd's applause increased directly with the speakers' growing vitriol against he-who-shall-not-be-named, Bush should probably expect a somewhat difficult audience at his morning speech.

Rev. Al Sharpton, who was scheduled to attend the convention this morning, cancelled his appearance in protest of President Bush's address.

The Senate is expected to vote on extending the Voting Rights Act today. Up to eight hours of debate is expected to get underway at 9:30 am ET. The House voted overwhelmingly last week to extend provisions of the civil rights act that was signed into law by President Johnson after violence erupted in the South over voting rights for African Americans.

After his speech, President Bush returns to the White House and meets with the first vice president of the government of national unity of Sudan and president of Southern Sudan at 11:40 am ET in the Oval Office. Pool coverage is expected at the bottom of the meeting.

Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Chris Hill testifies about North Korea before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee at 9:30 am ET.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke heads to the other side of the Capitol to deliver his market-impacting remarks on the economy to the House.

Majority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) holds his weekly on-camera press briefing at 10:30 am ET.

On the other side of the aisle, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) holds her weekly on-camera press briefing at 10:45 am ET.

Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) moves on from stem cells and takes on "Islamic Fascism" during a luncheon program at the National Press Club. The 12:30 pm ET event is billed as "a major policy address."

Reps. Duncan Hunter (R-CA), Steve King (R-IA), Silvestre Reyes (D-TX), and a crew of military and INS officials address the House Homeland Security Committee and House Government Reform Committee on "Expanding the Border Fence."

First Lady Laura Bush speaks to children at the Library of Congress at 10:20 am ET for the day's "Big Red Event."

At 5:30 pm ET, Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol -- perhaps feeling queasy on account of the Administration's newfound diplomacy and a public slap by George Will -- is likely to find a receptive crowd at an American Enterprise Institute book discussion with Frederick Kagan, author of "The View from a Rogue State: What Napoleon Can Tell Us about Dealing with Iran."

At 12:45 pm ET DCCC Chair Rahm Emanuel and DSCC Chair Chuck Schumer will host a conference call with reporters on protecting Ohio voters this fall.

RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman travels to New Mexico today where he will participate in local fundraisers and political events. All events are closed to the press.

DNC Chairman Howard Dean heads to a storm-torn St. Louis, MO today to kick off the College Democrats of America annual convention at 7:30 pm ET. Retired Gen. Wesley Clark is expected to appear before the group tomorrow and Gov. Tom Vilsack (R-IA) and Rep. Pelosi are slated to speak on Saturday.

President Bush and the NAACP:
The AP's Reichmann sets the stage for today's big speech including the fact that President Bush has met three times with the NAACP's Bruce Gordon during his year leading the organization compared to a single meeting with Kweisi Mfume during his tenure at the helm. LINK

Jeff Zeleny of the Chicago Tribune reports that Senators Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and Barack Obama (R-IL) warned those gathered at the NAACP convention not to be "bamboozled" by President Bush's promises in his upcoming speech to the organization. LINK

Sen. Lieberman's primary politics:
Quinnipiac University released a new poll this morning that will likely be the cause for some political chatter over the course of the next few days.

The poll shows 51 percent of likely Democratic primary voters favoring businessman/challenger Ned Lamont compared to 47 percent of likely Democratic primary voters supporting Sen. Lieberman. (Margin of error is +/- 3.8%.)

Back in June, Quinnipiac found Lieberman leading Lamont 55 percent to 40 percent, so clearly Lamont has made some gains -- which will come as no surprise to either camp.

As expected, the Iraq war seems to be Joe Lieberman's biggest problem in the eyes of the primary electorate.

However, it is important to Note that the poll shows Lieberman easily winning a 3-way contest in November if he runs as an independent. Lieberman announced that he is moving ahead with the petition process to secure his spot on the November ballot should he lose the August 8 Democratic primary.

ABC News' Jake Tapper reminds readers of his blog what Sen. Lieberman is all too aware of. . . When reading polls, it's the trend that matters. LINK

And if the new poll is not a strong enough peg for all you television folks, the Lieberman campaign announced today that Bill Clinton is scheduled to campaign with the Senator in Waterbury on Monday July 24.

Note: The amount of analysis the Clinton-Lieberman-Clinton-Dean-Lewinsky-Gore thingy is about to get boggles our minds. Release the bloggers!!!!

2006: landscape:
Although recent polls show Democrats leading in many races, "anyone who buys the early Democratic polls at face value is making a mistake," Stuart Rothenberg opines in typical must-read fashion in Roll Call; we have to wait until mid-October, when "Republicans have spent some of their sizable war chests on demonizing their opponents," to know whether Republicans will succeed in localizing the elections, in taking the focus off the GOP's national problems.

The Washington Post's Jim VandeHei has a "GOP source" saying that "House GOP leaders are privately discussing a pre-election plan to compromise with the Senate on legislation clamping down on lobbyists and member perks." The GOP source said that if Ney or other Republicans are indicted, "House leaders will drop their demands to include strict curbs on the special-interest election spending that favored Democrats in 2004 and quickly pass the lobbying bill to provide political cover to candidates." LINK