ABC News' The Note: First Source for Political News

W A S H I N G T O N, August 2, 2004—
-- NOTED NOW

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28 days until the Republican convention92 days until election day

NEWS SUMMARYWith the president near the Rose Garden, Senator Kerry in Michigan and Wisconsin, Vice President Cheney in Colorado and Texas, and Senator Edwards in Florida, one thing is clear:

At least 1/92nd of the remaining politico-media news cycles until election day will be dominated by homeland security.

While the Gang of 500 is preoccupied by what Matt Lauer described this morning as what people say "at cocktail parties" about the mind of the terrorist — and about the widely speculated upon "political implications" of all this — let us tell you 10 things of which you shouldn't lose sight:

1. In the wake of yesterday's terrorism news, do any of you whose punditry included the Notion that the Democrats overdid it by emphasizing national security in Boston want to revise and extend your remarks?

2. We will give a free limited edition ABC News The Note reporter's Notebook to the first reporter or BC04RNC researcher who testifies that she or he has read, cover to cover, the new Kerry-Edwards campaign book.

3. How are we to comprehend the Notion that the candidate who is running on a platform asserting that he is for limited government — and the other guy is for big, Washington-knows-best programs — is out there touting a new plan for flex time for workers so parents can go to Little League games?

Even though the campaign and White House have offered up no details whatsoever about how this plan would work, Mr. President, we wonder how having such a thing done from D.C. can possibly be consistent with your vision of limited government. (Of course, there IS that farm law and that Medicare law . . . )

4. With all due respect to Newsweek and Gallup, hold onto your hat and hair for tonight's ABC News/ Washington Post poll. And please say "boost" or "bump," and not "bounce."

5. As important as the economy, health care, homeland security, and Iraq are as the big issues in this race, don't fail to Notice how much the presidential candidates talk about other issues out on the stump (and, eventually, in targeted emails and phone calls at the end): abortion, guns, coal, etc.

6. Read this New York Times paragraph, courtesy of Mr. Nagourney and Mr. Halbfinger:

" … (A) terror threat is much more sobering to those who live in New York and Washington, which includes much of the nation's political and news media ranks. At the same time some Democrats wondered Sunday whether Americans, after hearing so many of these threats, might begin to disregard them."

7. Read the end of Ron Brownstein's Los Angeles Times column:

"Maybe Bush will still find a set of arguments that causes Kerry to crumble as Dukakis did. Kerry might commit a major blunder."

"But more likely the president will win a second term only if he can reverse the demand for change by restoring faith in his own leadership and direction."

"In that, Bush needs cooperation from events. He may also need a different focus."

"For months, his campaign has mostly stressed the risks of change. After Kerry's strong performance last week, Bush's greatest need now is to find a compelling case for continuity." LINK

8. The national media might think it is king, but it is the local coverage that is the real target of these bus trips and daily forays of the candidates, and check out the Los Angeles Times' James Rainey's clever summary about why:

" … (A) reporter from a CBS affiliate in Pennsylvania used his eight minute interview with Edwards and his wife, Elizabeth, to talk mostly about her days growing up in Pittsburgh."

"He closed by asking the candidate to come back "when" he is elected vice president. Edwards agreed."

9. USA Today 's Judy Keen makes two really good points from her time on the Bush bus trip. LINK

First, that the president's biggest applause lines are always about 9/11 and the war on terror (Although, Ms. Keen, those pre-selected audiences might see things differently than the swingers.).

Second, although BC04 has plenty of officials who know loving the media is good policy and good politics, if current trendlines continue, Ms. Keen's media section might be prescient foreshadowing:

"Many Republicans believe the news media have liberal inclinations, so they're not always happy to see journalists who travel with Bush. In 1992, his father's campaign printed caps and bumper stickers that read, 'Annoy the media: Re-elect Bush.' When reporters traveling with that campaign arrived at rallies, it wasn't unusual for audiences to cuss them out and yell, 'Tell the truth!'"

"So reporters were surprised Saturday when they filed into a muddy park in Cambridge. 'Welcome to Ohio,' one smiling person after another said. One man wasn't quite as hospitable, probably because the usually punctual Bush was running 40 minutes late. 'Where have you been?' he demanded of the arriving reporters."

10. The Boss.

President Bush meets with his cabinet at 10:35 am ET at the White House. At this writing, his plans for announcing his policy reaction to the 9/11 commission report are TBD.

On Tuesday, President Bush signs H.R. 4759, the United States-Australia Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act at the Rose Garden, speaks at a Victory 2004 Reception in Dallas, and speaks to the 122nd Annual Knights of Columbus Convention in Dallas.

On Wednesday, President Bush speaks at a Davenport, Iowa, rally, makes remarks on Conservation Reserve Program in Mankato, Minn., and speaks at a Mankato rally.

On Thursday, President Bush signs H.R. 4613, the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2005, participates in an "Ask President Bush" forum in Columbus, Ohio, and makes remarks at Saginaw, Mich., rally.

On Friday, President Bush makes remarks to the UNITY: Journalists of Color Convention in Washington, D.C. and makes remarks at a Stratham, N.H. picnic. His nephew, George P. Bush, gets married in Maine this weekend, and the president is expected to attend.

Vice President Cheney speaks at a rally for the troops at NORTHCOM, Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs at 1:00 pm ET and speaks at a reception for Rep. Randy Neugabauer at Lubbock Memorial Civic Center in Lubbock, Texas at 7:00 pm ET.

On Tuesday, Vice President Cheney hosts a town hall meeting in Hot Springs, Ark., and attends events in Ft. Smith, Ark., and Sioux Falls, S.D.

On Wednesday, Vice President Cheney tours and speaks at Walzcraft Industries, La Crosse, Wis., speaks about the economy at Billy Goat Industries, Lee's Summit, Mo., and attends an event at Jefferson County Fairgrounds Rodeo Arena.

Today, Senator Kerry continues his bus tour, participating in a conversation with fire fighters and first responders at the Grand Rapids Fire Department at 10:30 am ET in Grand Rapids, Mich., and later attending at rallies in Grand Rapids, Mich. at 1:15 pm ET and in Milwaukee at 8:15 pm ET.

Today at 12:30 pm ET, Kerry campaign manager Mary Beth Cahill, senior adviser for national security affairs Dr. Susan Rice, and policy adviser Bruce Reed will hold a conference call with reporters to discuss the new Kerry-Edwards book, "Our Plan for America: Stronger at Home, Respected in the World."

On Tuesday, Senator Kerry continues his bus tour through Wisconsin and Iowa, reaching Missouri by Wednesday.

Senator Edwards begins his first day of campaigning solo, following the Post -convention bus tour with Senator Kerry. He attends a rally in Miami at 9:00 am ET, makes a front porch visit in Orlando at 1:20 pm ET, and attends a Southern Christian Leadership Conference in Jacksonville at 7:00 pm ET.

On Tuesday, Senator Edwards attends rallies in Baton Rouge, Alexandria, and Shreveport, La. On Wednesday, Senator Edwards attends a rally and town hall meeting in Little Rock, Ark.

The politics of national security: The AP's Deb Reichmann reports "President Bush will issue orders as early as Monday to implement some reforms suggested by the Sept. 11 commission, but White House officials still are wrangling over the best way to create a new national intelligence czar." LINK

"The extraordinary and alarming specificity of the latest terror alert — different in kind than all that have come before it since Sept. 11, 2001 — poses new and heightened challenges for a government in the midst of a contested national election, and for a public both inured to the probability of further attack and profoundly unsure of what to do about it," reports the New York Times ' Todd Purdum. LINK

The Washington Post 's Dan Eggen and John Mintz look at the pieces of the al Qaeda threat against financial institutions in New York, Washington, D.C., and New Jersey, taking stock of the details that operatives have been gathering on proposed targets. LINK

Mintz and his Post colleague Walter Pincus look at how U.S. intelligence officials got the "treasure trove" of chilling documents in Pakistan that caused homeland security officials to issue their warning. LINK

Walter Pincus Notes that inter-agency cooperation helped get the intelligence to issue the new terror alert. LINK

News of terror threats caused some shakiness among New Yorkers, the New York Daily News Notes. LINK

The Washington Post 's Michael Powell and Michelle Garcia look at the beefed-up security in New York — and the questioning of the security alert's timing by some New Yorkers. LINK

Security check points will cause major travel-to-work delays in the New York metropolitan area. LINK

Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack warned Iowans yesterday to review their terror preparedness in light of recent news, despite Iowa not being named as threatened, according to the AP. LINK

Bump/boost/bounce :Well, just about now, we bet Bush campaign strategist Matthew Dowd is feeling PRETTY silly for predicting a 15-point bump for the Kerry campaign out of the convention.

Oh, wait, that was expectations setting — he didn't actually mean it.

This weekend's Newsweek poll, conducted over two nights before and after Senator Kerry's acceptance speech, shows Kerry leading President Bush, 49 percent to 42 percent, respectively, with Ralph Nader getting 3 percent. "Three weeks ago, Kerry's lead was three points. … Kerry's four-point "bounce" is the smallest in the history of the Newsweek poll. There are several factors that may have contributed to the limited surge, including the timing of the poll," Newsweek's Brian Braiker reported, also Noting that Kerry's lead on Thursday was 2 points. LINK

USA Today 's Susan Page reports that the new USA TODAY /CNN/Gallup Poll shows that the Democratic convention "boosted voters' impressions of John Kerry but failed to give him the expected bump in the head-to-head race against President Bush." LINK

The poll, conducted Friday and Saturday, showed Kerry tied with President Bush at 47 percent, and Ralph Nader claiming 3 percent. A two-way matchup shows the numbers at 50 percent for Kerry, 47 percent for Bush.

We're looking forward to the ABC News/ Washington Post poll out tonight for some further guidance on what effects on the horserace and the internals the convention had on the race — recognizing that the rule book has been thrown out for this election cycle.

ABC News Vote 2004: Kerry-Edwards '04:The Washington Post 's Dan Balz and Lois Romano wrap Senator Kerry's visits to the Sunday morning talk shows, Noting that while Kerry promised to significantly reduce troop levels in Iraq by the end of his first term, he didn't offer any specifics on how he'd do it. The duo also mention Kerry's assertion to ABC News' George Stephanopoulos that he doesn't care if his close-to-the-vest plan for Iraq sounds like President Nixon's 1968 secret plan to end the war in Vietnam, and his pledge not to raise taxes on the middle class. LINK

For a Sunday, yesterday's dueling campaign rhetoric was fierce, and as Glen Johnson of the Boston Globe Notes, focused on terror threats and not health care and education as the Kerry/Edwards folks had planned. LINK

The Los Angeles Times' James Rainey writes, "Behind the fun and optimism the Democrats are trying to project with the 'Believe in America' tour, however, are political calculations made in earnest." LINK

Hill Democrats give it the old Heave Ho! for Kerry-Edwards in their tour from swing state to swing state. LINK

The AP's Mary Dalrymple reports "John Kerry told a crowd packed into a block of a small Midwestern town's Main Street on Sunday that he would fight to prevent steel imports from taking American jobs, before winding up the day pitching for support from Michigan auto workers." LINK

Dalrymple follows up with a preview of the new 250-page Kerry/Edwards book. "The book contains excerpts from speeches and photos from the campaign trail and adds detail to the ideas Kerry has talked about in the months leading up to last week's convention, when he officially became the Democrats' choice for president." LINK

"The first chapter outlines Kerry's plans to stop terrorism and improve domestic security."

Robert Wright opines that "the few specifics Mr. Kerry did offer on the terrorism front were underwhelming (he's against closing fire stations, for example). Still, there is a way for Mr. Kerry and John Edwards to frame an antiterrorism strategy that, though not programmatic, would be genuinely illuminating and politically powerful, cutting to the core of President Bush's greatest national security failure." LINK

Wright wants Kerry to come out for earning the respect of the Arab world.

On the campaign's swing through Bowling Green, Ohio, USA Today 's Jill Lawrence pauses to look at the whole trip and writes, "By the numbers: 22 states, 15 days, 11 family members, one movie star, more than 50 stops and 17 vehicles (five of them press buses). As the tour went on, there were dropouts." LINK

Jeff Zeleny Notes another benefit to a bus tour: "Unable to compete with the Bush campaign's advertising offensive in the next four weeks, Kerry plans to turn to free coverage in local television, newspapers and radio as his post-convention tour sweeps through 17 battleground states. His motorcade of a dozen tour buses, complete with theme music that can be flipped on in an instant, creates the image of a rolling campaign commercial that comes at a fraction of the cost." LINK

The KE04 camp is launching a new strategy aimed at Jewish voters in battlegrounds. With help from Cameron Kerry, "A dozen or more Jewish civic and political officials — led by Steve Grossman, former chairman of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, and Alan Solomont, Kerry's New England finance chairman — will campaign in Florida, Ohio, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, where Jewish voters could well tip the balance and decide the presidential election," reports the Boston Globe 's Frank Phillips. LINK

Drawing parallels to President Bush's playbook, the Boston Herald's Straub writes of Senator Kerry, "The Bay State senator, who is Catholic but rarely speaks directly about his religion, yesterday made comments about faith designed to appeal to more conservative voters." LINK

The Washington Post 's Al Kamen reports that "A Catholic antiabortion group sharply questioned the propriety of John F. Kerry's sister, Peggy Kerry, giving a speech to "a campaign crowd of feminists" in Boston and telling them that, if elected, her brother would overturn various Bush policies — such as barring funds for U.N. population control efforts." LINK

Knight-Ridder's James Kuhnhenn looks at the yin and yang of the Kerry-Edwards ticket. LINK

Paul Gigot writes that Kerry's convention speech could cost him the election because it opened several new avenues for President Bush to attack.

The Washington Post 's Sebastian Mallaby looks at Kerry's position on trade, and while the Senator is surrounded by former Clinton advisers, Notes "the tone of his convention speech — nationalistic not just on matters of defense but also on trade and economics — marked a departure from the Clinton orthodoxy." LINK

It's Monday. That means it's time for an anti-Kerry editorial in the New Hampshire Union Leader — this time a particularly biting take on Kerry's inability to take a strong stance for or against anything. Other popular days for such editorials include Tuesdays through Sundays. LINK

ABC News Vote 2004: Bush-Cheney re-elect:"Federal revenue appears to be bouncing back after a puzzling multiyear tumble, allowing the Bush White House to shrink its estimate for this year's budget deficit just as the presidential campaign intensifies," reports the Wall Street Journal 's John McKinnon. Therefore, the president has a stronger platform to stand on as he answers Senator Kerry's claims that he's fiscally irresponsible and that Kerry would do better.

ABC News Vote 2004: Bush-Cheney v. Kerry-Edwards:The New York Times ' Nagourney and Halbfinger write that "aides on both sides say they are thinking about how the elevated alert level affects the election and about the possibility of an actual terrorist attack as they try to discuss the political repercussions of terrorism without being accused of doing anything as crass as discussing the political repercussions of terrorism." LINK

The Wall Street Journal 's Hitt and Schlesinger wrap the weekend's events, noting that "While the economy forces Mr. Bush to play defense even in areas he won four years ago, Mr. Kerry sees pocketbook concerns opening doors. Five of eight counties he visited in recent days went to Mr. Bush in 2000. But Mr. Kerry drew well over 10,000 people to a rally in front of the Pennsylvania state capitol building in Harrisburg, an area that gave Mr. Bush 57% of its vote in 2000." LINK

Bob Novak hints that Republicans will no longer "give Kerry a pass" on his Vietnam record (the after-action protesting part) in light of his convention speech. LINK

The Wall Street Journal 's editorial page urges a serious GOP effort to attract black voters.

Adam Smith of the St. Petersburg Times writes that's it'd be nice to have a presidential race that didn't feature trash talk, and the promises of positive campaigning are nice, but he ain't buyin'. LINK

ABC News Vote 2004: The Big Four: Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin:The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's Dan Benson maps out the Kerry-Edwards campaign's two-day swing through Wisconsin. LINK

For those of you who just haven't had your fill yet, the Columbus Dispatch's Joe Hallet writes about Ward 62. LINK

Sabrina Eaton of the Cleveland Plain Dealer paints a picture of the Kerry rally in Bowling Green Sunday, where a crowd estimated at 10,000 lined up to hear the Democratic ticket talk about taxes, jobs, heath care and education — and even a Bush supporter queued up to take a picture. LINK

The Akron Beacon Journal picked up Nedra Pickler's story for the AP on Kerry's focus on God and guns in Ohio. LINK

The Canton (Ohio) Repository Notes Senator Edwards' response to slams by Republican Ohio officials that Democrats' focus on job loss in Stark County is a criticism of the state or its people (it is not, Edwards stressed).LINK

ABC News Vote 2004: battleground states:The Boston Globe reports "Voters in Missouri will become the first in the nation tomorrow to decide on a gay marriage ban since the Supreme Judicial Court ruling in Massachusetts, and polls indicated the amendment to the state's constitution is expected to pass even though opponents have raised more campaign money." LINK

Tom Zucco of the St. Petersburg Times writes about Libertarians' realistic focus on Florida's state legislature. LINK

Jackie Hallifax of the Associated Press looks at how initiatives actually make the ballot in Florida. LINK

And the AP provides this handy guide of the eight initiatives on the Florida ballot this November. Highlights: parental notification for minors to get abortions; the way initiatives qualify for the ballot; slot machines; minimum wage; and medical malpractice. LINK

St. Paul Mayor Randy Kelly, a life-long Democrat, will tour Minnesota with state Republicans to stump for President Bush today, writes the Pioneer Press' Tim Nelson. LINK

The Detroit Free Press' Kathleen Gray reports on Kerry's stop in Taylor, Mich., writing, "Although he didn't mention Bush by name, he derided one of the president's new slogans." LINK

"'We've turned the corner?' he asked. 'Why don't you talk to the people who've lost their jobs. Have they turned the corner?'"

The Detroit News also has a report on Kerry's visit to Taylor, Mich., and you should check out the picture of Kerry mid-swing. LINK

The Des Moines Register 's Jonathan Roos writes that Gov. Tom Vilsack's approval rating has risen about seven points since February, according to a poll by that paper. LINK

A Des Moines Register poll shows that 48 percent of Iowans are pessimistic about the future of Iraq, compared to 47 percent showing optimism, writes Roos. LINK

Senator Jay Rockefeller discusses West Virginia's status as 2004 political hotspot with Jennifer Compston in the Wheeling News-Register. LINK

The Denver Post reports the Christian Coalition of Colorado is targeting Republican U.S. Senate candidate Pete Coors with a mass-mail campaign that accuses him of supporting the "radical homosexual agenda." The group sent fliers to 100,000 voters last week, calling Coors "one of the most gay-friendly companies in the nation." LINK

Over the weekend, Vice President Cheney told the good people of New Mexico, "I really like this crowd." LINK

Oregon may be in the clear when it comes to voting problems, but that doesn't mean problems in states like, oh let's pick a random state, Florida, shouldn't worry voters in the Northwest, editorializes the Oregonian. LINK

Maine seniors are largely "unimpressed" with the new prescription drug cards, according to the AP. LINK

ABC News Vote 2004: casting and counting:The Washington Post 's Michelle Garcia Notes "Federal promises to make registering to vote easier for Spanish-speaking voters by posting the required forms on the Internet have been lost in translation." DeForest Soaries, the chairman of the Election Assistance Commission, Noted that no federal law mandates providing voter registration forms in any language other than English — despite the fact that Latinos make up 5 percent of the voting population. LINK

Gary Fineout of the Miami Herald writes that some Florida voters are forgoing new electronic voting technology in favor of casting their ballots the old fashioned way — on paper, and absentee. Fineout reports that thus far, more than 35,000 voters in Broward and Miami-Dade counties have requested absentee ballots for the primary election. LINK

Jane Musgrave of the Palm Beach Post reports that absentee ballots might not fix the problem, though; "Despite instructions that clearly explain how to connect arrows so their votes will be counted, warnings to vote for only one candidate and admonitions not to erase, at least 150 Palm Beach County voters managed to mess up their absentee ballots in the March presidential primary." Palm Beach County Elections Supervisor Theresa LePore estimates that her office may handle as many as 125,000 absentee ballots in November — as many as 75,000 more than were cast in 2000. LINK

The Miami Herald 's Phil Long looks at the argument against touch-screen voting machines currently before a Florida appeals court. LINK

The Sun-Sentinel's William Gibson explains all the reasons Florida elections officials are concerned about electronic voting. LINK

The Miami Herald 's David Kidwell reported on Sunday that Florida Secretary of State Glenda Hood knew about problems with the database of felons they planned to use to purge some voters from the state's voter rolls two months before they ended up scrapping it. LINK

The Orlando Sentinel opines that the Republican Party of Florida "seems to be taking it on itself to undermine the vote." LINK

The Palm Beach Post ticks off a list of what's different in 2004 vs. 2000. LINK

Tamara Lush of the St. Pete Times writes that poll workers — and training them — "might be the most-overlooked of all the potential problems facing Florida's election system." LINK

The South Florida Sun-Sentinel's Tania Valdemoro reported Saturday that Miami-Dade election data from the 2002 gubernatorial primary that had been presumed lost was found by elections officials on Friday. LINK

ABC News Vote 2004: the Senate:The AP's Christopher Wills Notes Barack "Obama left the Democratic National Convention carrying expectations that could overwhelm a veteran politician, let alone someone still trying to win his first term in the Senate." LINK

In his comments to this AP reporter, Obama asserts he can handle the pressure.

The Miami Herald 's Beth Reinhard and Marc Caputo look at the science of media buying that the contenders for outgoing Senator Bob Graham's seat are using to target voters. LINK

Bob Mahlburg of the Orlando Sentinel previews the Democratic candidates' debate between former state education commissioner Betty Castor, Rep. Peter Deutsch, and Miami-Dade County Mayor Alex Penelas. The latest Mason-Dixon poll shows Castor leading the field with 37 percent, Deutsch with 21 percent, and Penelas with 10 percent. The Republican candidates debate on TV Aug. 10. LINK

On Sunday, Marc Caputo profiled GOP Senate candidate Mel Martinez — "a red-meat conservative through and through." LINK

Today's the registration deadline to vote in Florida's Aug. 31 primary. LINK

"U.S. Senate hopeful Erskine Bowles told a crowd at a Rocky Mount restaurant Saturday morning that he will fight trade agreements with other countries unless more is done to protect North Carolina business," according to George Chidi of the North Carolina Rocky Mountain Telegram. LINK

Nader-Camejo '04:Kit Seelye of the New York Times blows the lid off the fact that the anti-Nader effort has taken huge leaps forward in terms of sophistication and organization. Ex-Nader Raider and former congressman from Connecticut Toby Moffett and others "from labor and feminist organizations spent their time at the Democratic convention coordinating six or eight anti-Nader groups." Under the name United Progressives for Victory the new group is using 527 money to fund their efforts — and they've even conducted a Greenberg poll! And former Gore/Dean associate Roy Neel is working to identify the 2.8 million people who voted for Mr. Nader in 2000. Read on, to find out what Ralph says about "ego": LINK

The St. Paul Pioneer Press reports "life in the Nader campaign isn't easy" as supporters are met with some hostility in their efforts to collect 2,000 signatures to put their candidate on the ballot in Minnesota. LINK

The California Peace and Freedom Party failed to endorse Ralph Nader as their presidential candidate over the weekend. Instead, the group of 80-thousand nominated jailed American Indian activist Leonard Peltier. LINK

Nader's place on the Minnesota ballot seems "assured," according to Jim Ragsdale of the Pioneer Press. LINK

The politics of the CIA leak:The Washington Post reports "Secretary of State Colin L. Powell testified July 16 before a federal grand jury in Washington, State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said Sunday, responding to a Newsweek report that Powell was questioned on a leak to the media about the identify of a covert CIA agent." LINK

The politics of immigration:The Washington Times features a special report from a month-long investigation reports today on the illegal alien numbers in the U.S. They came based on rumors of amnesty: LINK

They hide right under the noses of immigration and border patrol officials: LINK

Fugitive teams are under staffed and under funded: LINK

The investigation "found that a shortage of detention space and lack of manpower force federal authorities to regularly release illegal aliens back on the streets of America — and often to ignore requests to pick up illegals in the custody of state and local officials." LINK

Politics:The New Hampshire Union Leader reacts to moves intended to explore taking away the state's first-primary status. LINK

Georgia voter turnout is among the lowest in the nation, and has been since the 1800s, writes the Atlanta Journal Constitution's Matthew Quinn. LINK

Weekend must-reads:The New York Times ' Steven Greenhouse on Sunday looked at the somewhat less-than-unified House of Labor, working for John Kerry. LINK

On Sunday, David Broder was lukewarm — at best — on Kerry's acceptance speech. LINK

On Saturday, the Washington Post 's Dale Russakoff and Blaine Harden wrote up the reactions of undecided voters in Pennsylvania, Oregon, and Florida who watched Kerry's speech on Thursday. The verdict? Some were only mildly more enthusiastic than Broder.LINK

On Sunday, the New York Times ' Adam Nagourney and Robin Toner detailed President Bush's plans for August — to spend the weeks leading up to his own nominating convention laying out both his accomplishments and a second-term agenda — and to take the shine off of Senator Kerry's portrayal of his time in Vietnam. Given the comments from Karl Rove and Matt Dowd, expect Kerry's "lost 20 years" to be a prominent theme — along with the "negative" messages Democrats espoused at their convention in Boston.LINK

Time magazine's Matt Cooper and John Dickerson previewed President Bush's plans for the next four weeks before the Republican National Convention, Noting that Bush plans to campaign a great deal with Senator McCain, so much that "It may very well look like he's running with the wrong white-haired, balding guy." They also preview Bush's "new agenda" that is aimed squarely at the minority of undecided voters who may determine the election. LINK

Newsweek's Howard Fineman and Tamara Lipper also preview the month of August for the Bush and Kerry campaigns. In the last paragraph, Fineman and Lipper give more details on the Bush's long interview taped with Dr. Phil this week. The interview was "limited to parenting and, as one of White House adviser says, he generates "very high numbers," especially among women. The interview will air in September." LINK

Aboard the bus on Sunday, the Washington Post 's Dan Balz and David Broder looked at what's at stake in the battleground states, Noting that advisers from both campaigns agree that neither side has a clear advantage in them. LINK

In Sunday's Boston Globe , Ann Kornblut took a look at the list of possible contenders for 2008 — including Republican Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. LINK

TODAY'S SCHEDULE (all times ET):— 9:00 am: Senator John Edwards attends a "Believe in America" rally at James L. Knight Theater, Miami, Fla.— 9:45 am: Off-camera gaggle by White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan— 10:00 am: The Commerce Department releases construction spending figures for June— 10:30 am: Senator John Kerry participates in a conversation with fire fighters and first responders at the Grand Rapids Fire Department, Grand Rapids, Mich.— 10:35 am: President Bush meets with his Cabinet at the White House— 11:00 am: Asa Hutchinson, Homeland Security undersecretary, gives the keynote address a the Heritage Foundation's forum on "Foreign Students and Homeland Security: Issues and Answers"— 11:00 am: The Central Labor Council announces a rally during the Republican National Convention to oppose President Bush's labor policies, New York, N.Y.— 1:00 pm: Vice President Cheney speaks at a rally for the troops at NORTHCOM, Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado Springs, Colo.— 1:00 pm: On-camera briefing by Press Secretary McClellan— 1:20 pm: Senator Edwards makes a front porch visit in Orlando, Fla.— 1:15 pm: Senator Kerry attends a "Believe in America" rally, Grand Rapids, Mich.— 3:30 pm: Secretary of State Colin Powell speaks at the Middle East peace initiative business council internship program for Middle Eastern women, Washington, D.C.— 7:00 pm: Senator Edwards attends a Southern Christian Leadership Conference in Jacksonville, Fla.— 7:00 pm: Vice President Cheney speaks at a reception for Congressman Randy Neugabauer at Lubbock Memorial Civic Center, Lubbock, Texas.— 8:15 pm: Senator Kerry attends a "Believe in America" rally, Milwaukee, Wis.