The Note: Income, Iran, Iraq, Irish

— -- WASHINGTON, Feb. 28

A day after the Dow's wild ride, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke testifies at a previously scheduled hearing on the economy before the House Budget Committee at 10:00 am ET. If Iraq ever fades as an issue, "it's the economy, you genius," might end up a Democratic mantra in 2008 after all.

Ring 2 (non-Iraq legislative business) is dead; Ring 3 (2008) is 90% about fundraising for the next 31 days; and Ring 1 is at a critical, vital, essential, epoch crossroads. See our "Politics of Iraq" section and make your best guess now about how the "Perils of Harry and Nancy" will turn out.

Remember: it is rare for so many political players to be acting so much based on trying to do what they think is right, rather than doing the politically expedient thing. It is also rare for one side in a political fight to sustain a position that flies in the face of public opinion. But so it goes.

After a newsless, dark, and graceful Imus appearance, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) attends the Irish-American Republicans 10th annual awards reception at the Women's Republican Club in New York City at 7:00 pm ET where he will be an honoree. He is also expected to appear on the "Late Show with David Letterman" tonight.

Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) was scheduled to have an 8:00 am ET breakfast with the New York state delegation at the U.S. Capitol.

When the Libby trial jury deliberations resume this morning at 9:30 am ET, Judge Walton is expected to disclose what the jurors asked him in a Note before they left Tuesday afternoon. After the Note request is resolved it is expected the jury will continue to deliberate.

The House Republican leadership holds a 10:00 am ET media availability following the 9:00 am ET meeting of the House Republican Conference in the lobby of the Republican National Committee in Washington, DC.

President Bush holds a 1:55 pm ET meeting with Military Service Organizations in the Roosevelt Room of the White House.

Rep. Marty Meehan (D-MA) holds a 2:00 pm ET news conference to introduce legislation repealing the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" ban on lesbian, gay and bisexual military personnel, at the Rayburn Office Building in Washington, DC.

ABC News' Jake Tapper reported this morning on "Good Morning America" about a wounded U.S. Marine, the first major casualty in the war in Iraq and who happens to be gay, will testify today about gays serving openly in the military. The Clinton-era "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy is being revisited in Congress. Activists are hoping to lift the ban on gays and lesbians serving in the military, which is drawing heavy criticism. LINK

In his first public address after his Oscar moment, former Vice President Al Gore delivers 6:30 pm ET remarks and presents his film "An Inconvenient Truth" at the University of Miami in Miami, FL.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) will be honored with the Excellence in Leadership Award from the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund at its 8th Annual Washington, D.C. Awards Dinner at 6:30 pm ET at the Capital Hilton.

At 10:15 am ET, Sens. Joe Lieberman (I/D-CT) Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) join former 9/11 Commissioner Richard Ben-Veniste and World Trade Center United Families Group Board member Bruce DeCell to call on Congress to fully implement the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission at an event in the Mansfield room in the U.S. Capitol.

Before heading to Hawaii, First Lady Laura Bush participates in a 3:15 pm ET viewing of the Red Dress Collection and a Roundtable on Heart Health at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, CA.

ABC News' George Stephanopoulos moderates a 9:30 am ET panel discussion on the 2008 election at the Brookings Institution, Washington, DC.LINK

Sen. Joe Biden (D-DE) delivers 10:30 am ET remarks at the Granite State Independent Living Center in Concord, NH. He then holds a 3:30 pm ET town hall meeting on Iraq at New England College in Henniker, NH, followed by a 5:30 pm ET reception at the public library in Bedford, NH.

Reps. Duncan Hunter (R-CA) and Timothy Ryan (D-OH) hold a 12:00 pm ET news conference on the Fair Currency Act of 2007 at the U.S. Capitol.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-GA) and former Gov. Mario Cuomo (D-NY) participate in a 6:30 pm ET debate as part of the Cooper Union Lincoln Dialogue Series in the "Great Hall" in New York City. NBC's Tim Russert moderates. The New York Times' Sam Roberts provides a preview. LINK

Politics of Iraq:
Everywhere one looks, the day is filled with Democratic disarray on Iraq. (See Monday's Note list for the foreshadowing.)

The Los Angeles Times' Noam Levey and Richard Simon report that just a few weeks ago, Win Without War was "targeting Republicans for standing in the way of the resolutions. Now, Tom Andrews, a former Democratic congressman from Maine who heads the antiwar coalition, says antiwar groups are encouraging their members to "pressure Democratic lawmakers." LINK

"'There seems to be a new world land-speed record set in back-peddling,'" Andrews tells the Left Coast Times.

"As members of Congress returned to Capitol Hill after a weeklong break at home, Democrats searched for a way to translate a tide of public sentiment against the war into legislation that makes practical -- and political -- sense," report the New York Times' Jeff Zeleny and Robin Toner. LINK

"Senate Democrats are accusing their leaders of mismanaging the twin efforts to block President Bush's troop surge in Iraq and force a quicker end to the war," Politico's John Bresnahan writes in a story looking at Majority Leader Reid's move to postpone a plan to rewrite the 2002 Iraq war authorization. And the House is confronting a similar problem, Bresnahan reports. LINK

Check out the kicker: "Republican strategists, though, for the first time since their big loss in November, looked at the problems facing Reid and Pelosi and gloated, although only for a minute."

"'We're at the best we've been since the election,' said one senior Senate GOP aide. 'It may not last, but this is definitely the best we've been in a while.'"

Politico's John Harris pulls back the curtain a bit and admits he came up with "slow-bleed strategy" as the term to describe Rep. John Murtha's plan to end the war in Iraq. LINK

Senate Democrats promised to keep the Iraq war out of the 9/11 Commission bill debate, with their reverse course undermining the desire for a unified opposition to the war, writes The Hill's Elana Schor. LINK

The Bush Administration is willing to join Iran and Syria in next month's meeting organized by the Iraqi government, reports USA Today's Barbara Slavin. State Department spokesman said the move is consistent with Bush's position since discussions will be confined to Iraq while critics contend that it's a reverse course. LINK

The Washington Post's Dana Milbank Sketches the White House getting "neighborly" in the Middle East. LINK

2008: ABC News/Washington Post poll:
ABC News' Polling Director Gary Langer breaks down the numbers in a new ABC News/Washington Post poll that has everyone buzzing and that shows Americans have a high interest in the 2008 contest. The poll also shows that "initial support levels are showing some shift in the preliminary jockeying for position."LINK

"Among the Democrats, Clinton still leads, but by less of a margin than last month, given a seven-point gain in support for Barack Obama. His advance has come overwhelmingly among African-Americans, many of whom likely have learned more about Obama in recent news coverage," writes Langer.

"Clinton's support, meanwhile, slipped by five points. The reason, again, is entirely blacks. In ABC/Post polls in December and January, she led Obama among African-Americans by 60-20 percent. Today it's a 44-33 percent race among blacks, with Obama in front."

Read the full ABC News/Washington Post poll results here: LINK

The Washington Post's Dan Balz and Jon Cohen also take a look at the huge swing in African American support from Clinton to Obama in their Washington Post write-up of the poll. LINK