The Note: 9/11/2006

— -- WASHINGTON, Sep. 11

President Bush and Mrs. Bush participated in a moment of silence at 8:46 am ET at the Fort Pitt Firehouse in New York City. The President and First Lady participate in a wreath laying in Shanksville, PA at 11:55 am ET and another wreath laying at the Pentagon at 3:30 pm ET. The President addresses the nation from the Oval Office at 9:01 pm ET.

ABC News will have coverage of all of that throughout the day across all platforms.

ABC's Tom Shine reports that five years ago, members of the House and Senate, both Republican and Democrat, embraced one another in a spirit of love and camaraderie and spontaneously burst into patriotic singing on the steps of the Capitol, which had avoided a direct hit earlier in the day due to the bravery of passengers aboard flight 93.

Today, there will be a re-enactment of that moment, but missing will be the spontaneity as well as the (genuine) love and camaraderie of five years ago. That isn't a cynical statement, just one of fact.

Participants will include House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL), Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN), House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), and Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid (D-NV). One could not help but be struck by the number of partisan-as-usual press releases that showed up in reportorial inboxes on Sunday. At this writing, no one has pressed SEND on such a release today that we have seen, but it is a safe bet that right after the singing ends, the releases (and rhetoric) will fly again).

Vice President and Mrs. Cheney attended a 7:40 am ET prayer service at St. Johns Episcopal Church. At 8:46 am ET, the Vice President participates in a moment of silence on the South Lawn of the White House. Present and former cabinet officials will also be in attendance, as well as former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld hosts a 9:30 am ET memorial service for family members of victims. Gen. Peter Pace and Vice President Cheney are slated to make remarks.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice hosts a 10:30 am ET remembrance ceremony at the State Department for foreign nationals who died five years ago. At noon, the Secretary of State will depart for Halifax, Canada where she will meet with workers from the Halifax International Airport that assisted the thousands of Americans stranded there on September 11th. She will also meet with citizens of Halifax to thank them for their support.

Former President Bill Clinton delivers 11:15 am ET remarks to the United Jewish Communities International Lion of Judah Conference at the Washington Hilton.

Earlier today, Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) attended New York City's commemoration ceremony at Ground Zero, where Rep. Harman bussed her. At 2:00 pm ET, she attends a 9/11 Monument unveiling at the Bayonne Marine Ocean Terminal in Bayonne, NJ. Sen. Clinton, along with Mayors Bloomberg and Giuliani, and Gov. Pataki, did a round robin of television interviews this morning on broadcast and cable, during which no discernable news was made.

Rep. Chris Shays (R-CT) chairs a hearing entitled, "When can Iraqis Assume Full Internal Security?" at 10:00 am ET. Eric Edelman, undersecretary of defense for policy, and Navy Rear Adm. William Sullivan, Joint Chiefs of Staff, testify.

The National Press Club holds a 1:00 pm ET discussion with Tom Kean Sr., chairman of the 9/11 Commission, and Lee Hamilton, vice chairman of the 9/11 Commission.

At 11:30 am ET, Gov. Mitt Romney (R-MA) and First Lady Ann Romney will attend a luncheon with the families of victims of 9/11.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R-CA) delivers remarks at a 1:00 pm ET City of Los Angeles September 11th Remembrance Ceremony. He delivers 4:15 pm ET remarks at the State of California September 11th Memorial in Sacramento, CA. He dedicates the California's Global War on Terrorism Wall of Honor at 5:30 pm ET. And he ends his day with ESPN's Monday Night Football at 10:15 pm ET.

The Senate resumes consideration of the port security bill (HR 4954). No roll call votes are expected.

Former Sen. John Edwards (D-NC) visits Las Vegas to speak at the 23rd Convention of the Laborers International Union of North America and to attend an event to support former Reid spokeswoman and congressional candidate Tessa Hafen.

He M.K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence holds "A Day of Peace and Reconciliation and Remembrance for 9/11" at 11:30 am ET with Rep. John Lewis (D-GA), Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), and Gandhi's grandson at the Lincoln Memorial.

Tuesday's primaries:
The most compelling political storyline for Tuesday's primaries is in Rhode Island where Sen. Lincoln Chafee (R-RI) is being challenged by the Club for Growth-backed Steve Laffey. Coming one month after Sen. Joe Lieberman (D-CT) lost a Democratic primary in Connecticut, would a Chafee loss signal a resonant additional purging of party moderates?

Despite voting against the Iraq war, against the Bush tax cuts, and refusing to vote for George W. Bush for reelection in 2004 (he wrote in Bush the elder on the ballot), Chafee is still being backed by the national party because they view him as their best chance to keep the seat in GOP hands, and because he is the incumbent. If Laffey wins, the favorite in the race will be Democrat Sheldon Whitehouse in November -- a key building block for Democrats as they try to gain six seats for control of the Senate.

Also on Tuesday, Sen. Clinton is on the ballot in New York. In her bid for the Democratic nomination for re-election, she has faced only nominal opposition from Jonathan Tasini, who has vigorously opposed the Iraq war.

In addition to Rhode Island and New York, other states holding primaries are: Delaware, Maryland, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Vermont, Wisconsin, Arizona, and the District of Columbia.

USA Today lays out the five primary races to watch this Tuesday. Their picks? NY-11 (which has "spotlighted racial divisions"), AZ-08 (which has focused on immigration), plus Senate races in Maryland , New York, and Rhode Island. LINK

Robbie Sherwood writes in the Arizona Republic that thousands of voters could be turned away in Arizona's primary on Tuesday, the first election since ID requirements were stiffened. LINK

The Democratic primary eve poll numbers out this morning from Quinnipiac University:

Senate primary (D):
Hillary Clinton 85%

Jonathan Tasini 9%

Gubernatorial primary (D):
Eliot Spitzer 79%

Tom Suozzi 12%

Attorney general primary (D):
Andrew Cuomo 50%

Mark Green 31%

Sean Maloney 7%

The New York Daily News' Ben Smith writes of how the Iraq war is playing a central role in the Democratic primary in New York's 11th congressional district. LINK

Rest of the week ahead:
On Tuesday, House Majority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) holds a pen-and-pad session with reporters in H-107 of the Capitol. Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS) celebrates his 50th birthday. And Leading Authorities hosts a reception for former RNC Chair Ed Gillespie's "Winning Right: Campaign Politics and Conservative Policies," Washington, DC, which got a nice review in the Weekly Standard. LINK

On Wednesday, President Bush attends an RNC reception at Evermay in Washington, DC at 12:35 pm ET. Meanwhile, the DCCC's A-list is coming to DC for a "March to the Majority" reception at the Sewall-Belmont House on Capitol Hill. They will also be meeting with the House Democratic caucus, DCCC staff, and relevant interest groups. Rep. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) unveils a new progressive vision on "Health Care for All," Washington, DC. Rep. Shays chairs a House hearing entitled, "What Will it Take to Achieve National Reconciliation?," Washington, DC. Former Gov. Mark Warner (D-VA) hosts a fundraiser for his Forward Together PAC, New York, NY And Geraldine Ferraro headlines the "2006 National Symposium on Women in Politics," Charlottesville, VA

On Thursday, President Bush makes remarks to the House Republican Conference at 9:30 am ET. He meets with the President of South Korea at 11:00 am ET. And he participates in a social dinner in honor of The Thelonius Monk Institute of Jazz at 7:45 pm ET. Meanwhile, Democratic Senate candidate Bob Casey, Jr. (D-PA) delivers a speech focused on "Restoring America's Moral Compass: Leadership and the Common Good" at the Catholic University of America's Columbus School of Law, Washington, DC. The AFL-CIO hosts a special evening with Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-ND), author of "Take This Job And Ship It: How Corporate Greed and Brain Dead Politics Are Selling Out America," at 5:30 pm ET in the Samuel Gompers Room.

On Friday, Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT) joins Gov. John Lynch and the 2006 New Hampshire Democratic candidates to kick off the final 60 days of the general election campaign at Democratic headquarters in Manchester, NH.

On Sunday, Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) makes his Iowa debut at Sen. Tom Harkin's (D-IA) annual Steak Fry, West Indianola, IA. Sen. McCain travels to New Hampshire to act as Grand Marshal for the Sylvania 300 NASCAR race. And Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN) hosts a fundraiser for Gov. John Lynch (D-NH) and gubernatorial candidate Chet Culver (D-IA), New York, NY.

Weekend must-reads:
In Sunday's New York Times, David Sanger and Eric Schmitt reported that as the nation observes the fifth anniversary of 9/11, Congress and the Supreme Court have pushed back at Vice President Cheney's claim that the President alone, as commander in chief, "can set the rules for detention, interrogation and domestic spying." LINK