October 2005

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) just weighed in on the Alito nomination, saying his record "raises serious questions about whether he will be steadfast in protecting our most fundamental rights."

Still, she remained neutral, saying the nomination "must initiate a thoughtful and deliberate process of closely examining and scrutinizing Judge Alito's record to determine whether he merits a seat on the highest court in the nation."

Clinton voted against John Roberts last month because, she said at the time, she didn't believe he "presented his views with enough clarity and specificity for me to in good conscience cast a vote on his behalf." In one sign that she'd apply the same standard to Samuel Alito, Clinton urged Pres. Bush and Alito to be "forthcoming" during the confirmation process.

Sen. Olympia Snowe (ME), a pro-choice GOPer who openly lobbied Pres. Bush to nominate a female successor to Sandra Day O'Connor, today showed a strong grasp on the Senate nomination process. But Snowe gave few, if any, clues on how she feels about Bush's nomination of conservative judge Samuel Alito to the High Court.

"Today the Senate again takes up its 'consent' role as expressed under the 'advice and consent' clause of the Constitution. The task before the Senate Judiciary Committee is to thoroughly and independently evaluate Judge Alito's qualifications, and I am confident that will occur under Chairman Specter's leadership. I will evaluate Judge Alito based on his lengthy record including all of his opinions, scholarship, judicial methodology and philosophy," Snowe said in a statement.

"As the Senate begins considering this nomination, I will be in close contact with my Senate colleagues, including our group of fourteen senators who brokered the compromise earlier this year to move us past a deadlock on judicial nominees."

A quick survey of what key bloggers are writing re: Alito this a.m. Look for more in today's "Blogometer":

Hugh Hewitt, who supported Miers to the point of angering some fellow conservatives, is back on the same page with them: "Judge Alito is a great nominee, and as a result a great political battle lies ahead." Hewitt writes, "the best way to preempt a filibuster" is for the 9 GOPers "thought lukewarm or hostile to the constitutional option to announce" that they will vote for it if Dems "attempt a filibuster based upon ideology." Sen Lindsey Graham (R-SC) has already done so; he posts Senate contact info for the other 8.

Blogs for Bush's Matt Margolis, who was lukewarm on Miers, has already put together a banner reading "Confirm Alito Coalition, Est. October 31, 2005."

Alito's Casey dissent is already the hot topic many expected it would be. If you want to know whicht talking points the lefty bloggers are working off, for many it's CAP's Think Progress, which posts Alito oppo under the header "Samuel Alito's America," summarized with headers such as "ALITO WOULD OVERTURN ROE V. WADE," "ALITO WOULD ALLOW RACE-BASED DISCRIMINATION," and "ALITO HOSTILE TOWARD IMMIGRANTS."

And liberal Patridiot Watch points out that if Alito is confirmed, he'll be the 2nd Trenton, NJ native (the other is Scalia) on the Court -- not to mention one in a line of NJ GOPers to be appointed by Bush (including Whitman, Chertoff and Bernanke). [BILL BEUTLER]

Senate Min. Leader Harry Reid on Alito: "Conservative activists forced Miers to withdraw from consideration because she was not radical enough for them. Now the Senate needs to find out if the man replacing Miers is too radical for the American people."

We're seeing a pattern already. Senate Dems are not touching Alito, the person, but attacking the process.

Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS), who had emerged as one of the staunchest critics of Harriet Miers, is taking a more positive approach to Samuel Alito today, noting the judge's "impressive legal credentials" and "broad legal experience."

"I commend the president and congratulate Judge Alito on this nomination, and I look forward to the upcoming confirmation hearing, during which members of the Judiciary Committee will have a robust and, I hope, civil dialogue with the nominee about the meaning of the Constitution and the role of the courts in American life," Brownback, a Judiciary Committee member, said in a statement.

Minutes before Bush announced Samuel Alito's announcement, Dems fired off a statement saying Alito is "often referred to as 'Judge Scalito' because of his adherence to Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia's right-wing judicial philosophy. While serving as a U.S. Attorney, Alito failed to obtain a key conviction, releasing nearly two dozen mobsters back into society. Based on his Third Circuit opinions, Alito has established himself as a potential foe to immigrants, reproductive rights, and civil liberties."

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY), the ranking member of the Judiciary subcommittee on the courts, released the following statement on Pres. Bush's nomination of Judge Samuel Alito for the position of Supreme Court Associate Justice:

"It is sad that the president felt he had to pick a nominee likely to divide America instead of choosing a nominee in the mold of Sandra Day O'Connor, who would unify us. This controversial nominee, who would make the Court less diverse and far more conservative, will get very careful scrutiny from the Senate and from the American people."

The Senate Maj. Leader on Alito: "This morning, President Bush nominated Judge Sam Alito as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. With this selection, the president has chosen a proven nominee that meets the highest standards of excellence."

For history's sake, here's what Frist said of Harriet Miers on the day she was nominated: "Ms. Miers is honest and hard working and understands the importance of judicial restraint and the limited role of a judge to interpret the law and not legislate from the bench."

... or so AP is reporting right now. Samuel Alito is reportedly the person who will be standing by Pres. Bush's side at 8am this morning. Our over/under on SEN confirmation for this SCOTUS nominee opens at 63...

Seems like half the field was in Iowa this week...

"The bulk of this investigation is over."

But refuses to say what parts of the investigation aren't over.

"It's important the witnesses that come before a grand jury, especially the witnesses...who may be under investigation, tell the complete truth."

"To be frank, Mr. Libby gave the FBI a compelling story. What he told the FBI was that he was at the end of a long chain of phone calls...[that]...Mr. Russert told him that 'all the reporters know' that Ms. Plame worked at the CIA? So he took this information and passed it along to other reporters."

"He was at the beginning at the chain of the phone calls. He lied about it afterwards, under oath and repeatedly."

"He told the FBI that when he passed the information on to reporters, he didn't know whether it was true...just passing gossip from one reporter to another. It would be a compelling story, if only it were true...Mr. Libby discussed the information at least a half a dozen times before he spoke to Mr. Russert."

"Mr. Libby was telling Mr. Fleischer something on Monday that he said he learned on Thursday."

"This is a country that takes its law seriously."

"Mr. Libby has informed me that he is resigning to fight the charges brought against him. I have accepted his decision with deep regret."

"Scooter Libby is one of the most capable and talented individuals I have ever known. He has given many years of his life to public service and has served our nation tirelessly and with great distinction."

"In our system of government an accused person is presumed innocent until a contrary finding is made by a jury after an opportunity to answer the charges and a full airing of the facts. Mr. Libby is entitled to that opportunity."

"Because this is a pending legal proceeding, in fairness to all those involved, it would be inappropriate for me to comment on the charges or on any facts relating to the proceeding."

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) "It is stunning to see someone so close to the President and Vice President indicted for lying to a grand jury and trying to cover up a national security leak."

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY): "Today's indictment charging that Lewis Libby willfully interfered with the investigation into the possible exposure of a CIA agent's identity raises serious national security concerns. Taking such action for political purposes is simply reprehensible and should never be tolerated."

Rep. Jack Kingston (R-GA): "Mr. Libby's resignation is appropriate. The court can now decide the facts of the case. An indictment is not a statement of guilt, but simply outlines the case for the prosecutor. Keep in mind that we have not heard Mr. Libby's side of this story."
."

Whence Novak?

Who was the State Dept. official who Libby set to the task of learning about Plame and Wilson? (Says Josh Marshall: "Hint: Look at the org chart at the State Department and whose purview the State Dept intel shop, INR, falls under."

We did -- it'd be the Sec/State and the Dep. Sec/State directly.

No sense that anyone in the White House, from Cheney on down, knew that Plame's status at the CIA was covert.

From the indictment: "On or about July 10 or July 11, 2003, LIBBY spoke to a senior official in the White House ("Official A") who advised LIBBY of a conversation Official A had earlier that week with columnist Robert Novak in which Wilson's wife was discussed as a CIA employee involved in Wilson's trip. LIBBY was advised by Official A that Novak would be writing a story about Wilson's wife."

UPDATE: We are being facetious. Thanks to those of you who wrote in to suggest "Karl Rove."

Five count indictment against I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, for giving false testimony to a grand jury, a felony; obstruction of justice; and perjury.

2 counts of perjury; 2 counts of obstruction.

From a Washington Post chat with Jim VandeHei: "Here is what I can report on Rove front: Rove provided the special prosecutor something in recent days that gave in the words of one person close to him "pause" about charging Rove. The Rove team anticipates the special prosecutor will make a decision within weeks, not months."

A source close to Rove confirms that, in discussions with Fitzgerald, Rove's attorney provided new information that "gave him pause."

WH Press Secretary Scott McLellan told reporters this a.m. that Bush would not name his new SCOTUS choice today.

The name we hear from just about everone is Alito.

From Robert Luskin, Rove's attorney: "The Special Counsel has advised Mr. Rove that he has made no decision about whether or not to bring charges and that Mr. Rove's status has not changed. Mr. Rove will continue to cooperate fully with the Special Counsel's efforts to complete the investigation. We are confident that when the Special Counsel finishes his work, he will conclude that Mr. Rove has done nothing wrong."

The grand jury meets today at 9:00 a.m. We expect an announcement from the prosecutor around 2:00 pm.

The Washington Post's Carol Leonnig said on Fox News Channel that Fitzgerald will present his indictment to a magistrate around 11:30 a.m.

At 2, he'll head down the block to the DoJ headquarters to give a press conference. At the same time, he'll release his report on the case on his web site.

ABC's George Stephanopoulos reports that if a member of the White House staff is indicted, President Bush will speak on it this afternoon.

The White House plans today to present a package of rescissions and budget re-allocation package to Congress this afternoon, according to Republican sources.

The package contains about $17 billion for Katrina rebuilding. No new funding -- just re-allocation and rescission requests. [MARC AMBINDER]

From ABC's The Note: Per ABC News' Karen Travers, before leaving for VA, Bush was seen in the Oval Office talking with Vice President Cheney, Andy Card, Karl Rove, and Dan Bartlett.

More from Travers: "The President was definitely in a good mood -- he came out and did a quick head fake (basketball player like move -- very Allen Iverson head fake especially for someone with a bum knee) as if he would come talk to us and then went the other way and started smiling and sort of laughing. He then pretended not to hear us shouting (Reagan ear cup thing)."

A source close to the selection process will make a final decision about a Supreme Court nominee this weekend and plans to introduce nominee on Monday or Tuesday. Names that allies are pushing this a.m: Judge Samuel Alito and Judge Michael McConnell. [MARC AMBINDER]

Here are some excerpts from IN Sen. Evan Bayh's speech as prepared for delivery on Saturday, 10/29 at the New Hampshire Democratic Party's Jefferson-Jackson dinner.

"Let me begin with some good news: in three years, the Bush era will be over. Gone. Finished. Forever."

"We live today in a truly transformational time. It's a time of unrelenting change and challenge ...What has this President done to help us meet these challenges? I could say nothing, but that would be too generous. We are less prepared today for the challenges of the 21st Century than the day President Bush took office. And that's inexcusable. America can do better."

"Together, we must chart a course to Restore the Promise of America ... How do we do that? It begins with leadership -- leadership based on four values at the heart of America's Promise. Unity, Opportunity, Real Security and Accountability."

Pres. Bush's lifting of the Davis-Bacon exemption in Katrina-affected communities was done in part to avoid the political embarrassment of a GOP-sponsored resolution demanding documentation related to the decision from being reported out of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee yesterday.

Here's the scuttle:

Sources say that Judge Priscilla Owen of the 5th circuit, Judge Michael McConnell of the , J. Harvie Wilkinson of the 4th circuit, Judge Edith Jones of the 5th circuit and Judge Edith Clement of the 5th circuit and Judge Karen Williams of the 4th circuit had interviews with Bush. Alice Batchelder was also reportedly vetted, though some Republicans in Michigan expressed discomfort with her for reasons unrelated to her jurisprudence.

A Republican ally of the White House lists these names: "Luttig, Alito, Owen, McConnell, Wiliams. JR Brown."

The AP's list includes Judge Sam Alito of the 3rd circuit, Judge Emilio Garza of the 5th circuit, A.G. Alberto Gonzales, Jones, Judge Michael Luttig of the 4th circuit, McConnell, Ex-SG Ted Olson, Thompson, Wilkinson, Owen, Miguel Estrada, Clement, Judge Janice Rogers Brown of the DC circuit, Batchelder of the sixth circuit, Williams, Chief Justice Maura Corrigan of the Michigan Supreme Court, DC lawyer Maureen Mahoney.

National Review's Adler has Williams, Batchelder, Sykes, Corrigan, Alito, Olson, McConnell, Judge Consuelo Callahan, Justice Raoul Cantero of Fla, Judge Jeff Sutton of the 6th circuit and Mahoney.

Real Clear Politics has its own short list.

National Review's Lopez: "For the second time in two weeks someone serious has said the name "Chris Cox" for Scotus to me."

More reporting from today's Hotline:
One Bush aide acknowledged that Miers vetting had been rushed and left out much of what's been discovered by the press since the announcement. Senior admin. officials were slow to more widely distribute what information it did have, leaving officials tasked with selling her nomination in the dark. Other WH officials and even some of her supporters did not evince confidence when publicly discussing her qualifications. But Miers was upbeat and had privately indicated to White House officials that she was willing to stick to her guns through the hearings. One White House official working on her confirmation: "Did she have the votes in the Senate today? Yes. Would she have the votes after a hearing where it didn't matter how well prepared she was -- her inability to talk about, answer questions, that we knew would be asked (led the White House) question whether it would stay that way." [MARC AMBINDER]

Original reporting from today's Hotline:
"The tipping point came within the past several days. GOP Senators privately communicated to WH CoS Andy Card that unless they had access to hard evidence that Miers was conversant in constitutional issues, there was no way she would be confirmed. Her performance in private meetings was weak, at best, these senators told Card. Throughout the day yesterday, says a senior Senate aide, there were "conversations throughout the day at the staff level." Late yesterday, Senate Maj. Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) called Card and told him in no uncertain terms that Miers would probably not be confirmed. An aide: "He provided frank assessment of situation in the Senate. [The] lay of land on committee." After that call, according to White House sources, Bush and Card met privately with Miers, and they decided jointly that preserving WH privilege on documents was too important a principle to risk. Miers officially informed Bush at 8:30 pm ET. As late as 8 p.m., one White House aide said the WH counsel's office was rushing to finish a revision to the Senate Judiciary Committee questionnaire. (It arrived after 11:00 pm ET). Word began to spread through conservative Washington last night. The White House office of political affairs notified allies at about 8:30 a.m ET this morning but swore them to secrecy until the White House released the President's statement. [MARC AMBINDER]

Harriet Miers' revised questionnaire, courtesy of SCOTUSblog.

From today's Hotline:

Below are the major developments over the past weeks that, bit by bit, helped derail the Miers nomination:

-- 10/3: National Review writer David Frum is one of the first to oppose the Miers nomination, calling it "an unforced error" on his blog (NRO, 10/3).

-- 10/3: Contributors to ConfirmThem.com, a 527/blog designed to drum up support for President Bush's judicial nominees largely turn against her, and it soon becomes a clearinghouse of mostly anti-Miers sentiment.

-- 10/3: Rush Limbaugh sharply questions VP Dick Cheney on his show about Miers, and expresses skepticism towards the nomination. Conservative talker Laura Ingraham also opposes her nomination, and Sean Hannity is notably lukewarm about Miers.

-- 10/5: Columnist George Will, writes piece titled "Can This Nomination Be Justified?" In it he argues "it is not important that she be confirmed" and "it might be very important that she not be."

-- 10/11: Miers tells Bush in a '97 birthday card that he was "the best governor ever -- deserving of great respect!" In another personal note to Bush, "she hoped" that Jenna and Barbara "recognize their parents are cool" and that Texas "was blessed" with him as governor.

MORE

One name we're hearing a lot this morning (including from a White House official) is appeals court judge Michael McConnell, who is based in Utah.

And a White House official tells the Hotline that Bush will not nominate anyone today but would not rule out tomorrow.

Another Republican said he hopes Bush nominates a staunch conservative in time for VA Gov voters to notice...

There'll be more in today's Hotline, but White House advisers say that the President will nominate a new replacement for O'Connor as early as late today or tomorrow, and by the middle of next week at the latest. [MARC AMBINDER]

Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald's spokesman is telling reporters that there will be no announcement today.

Also -- Bill Beutler is keeping a close watch on the blogs. (Nothing from the "Harriet Miers" blog just yet. See today's Hotline for a complete wrap of the morning's news, along with original reporting on just what the heck happened.

Miers: "The confirmation process presents a burden for the White House and our staff and is not in the best interest for our country."

Here's what Bush says: "Today, I have reluctantly accepted Harriet Miers' decision to withdraw her nomination to the Supreme Court of the United States."

"I nominated Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court because of her extraordinary legal experience, her character, and her conservative judicial philosophy. Throughout her career, she has gained the respect and admiration of her fellow attorneys. She has earned a reputation for fairness and total integrity. She has been a leader and a pioneer in the American legal profession. She has worked in important positions in state and local government and in the bar. And for the last five years, she has served with distinction and honor in critical positions in the Executive Branch."

1. Why isn't President Bush getting more flack from his base for the Bernanke appointment?

2. Will Mike McGavick's entrance in the WA Senate race (following last minute, in-person consultations in DC) finally give the NRSC a positive talking point to tout its recruiting efforts?

3. Aside from Tuesday's Cheney/Libby "notes" blockbuster in the New York Times -- clearly a damage prevention leak from one party involved -- will the Washington Post (and reporters Pincus, VandeHei, Leonning) get the credit they deserve for behing ahead of the curve on the Plame investigation story?

4. Will GOPers and Dems stop asking if Raw Story's scoops are true?

5. Why did the WH cave so quickly on Davis-Bacon?

6. What's this we hear about the President's plans to devote his SOTU to health care, immigration/border security and propose major tax reform? [MARC AMBINDER]

From his hospital bed, Steve Clemons (whose bona fides were endorsed by Howard Fineman) updates his post. Indictment targets notified. Presser 10/27 or 10/28.

From the Los Angeles Times: "One grand juror was overheard telling another juror, 'See you Friday,' suggesting the possibility that the grand jury would continue to meet up to the last minute."

The Washington Post's Jim VandeHei, who has some of the best sources in Washington, hinted on Hardball that Fitzgerald's meeting with Hogan today did not involve extending the grand jury.

And Time's Mike Allen, who also has some of the best sources in Washington, strongly hinted that WH folks had been indicted, and that we'd learn about them soon.

BTW: the Senate Judiciary Committee has yet to receive its updated questionnaire from nominee Harriet Miers We're told it'll get to them around 11 p.m. ET. Said NY Sen. Chuck Schumer in a statement at 8:45 pm: "This is another in a series of disappointments. The Miers nomination is suffering from a serious bout of delay, distraction, and disorganization and needs a dramatic turnaround."

Lede One. "Rep. Tom DeLay failed to comply with House requirements that he disclose all contributions to a defense fund that pays his legal bills, the Texas Republican acknowledged to House officials."

That makes it sound like DeLay was caught doing something naughty.

Lede two: "Rep. Tom DeLay has notified House officials that he failed to disclose all contributions to his legal defense fund as required by congressional rules."

That makes it sound like DeLay discovered his error and pre-emptively notified "House officials" about it.

Which is what apparently happened.

CongressDailyPM reports that the Senate GOP's attempt to increase domestic oil production through building new refineries was defeated 9-9 in the Environment and Public Works committee as Sen. Lincoln Chafee (R-RI) voted with Dems and ranking member James Jeffords (I-VT).

We'll see if Chafee, facing a tough re-election fight (including a primary challenge from Cranston Mayor Stephen Laffey), can effectively use his image as an outsider within the GOP to stave off his Dem opponents, who will certainly try and tie him to the Bush admin, in this decidedly blue state. {REID WILSON]

It's the first of many websites like this. The Iowa Republican Party tweaks the national political ambitions of Gov. Tom Vilsack (D) in a new website launched today.

TravelingTom.com accuses Vilsack of ignoring Iowa's economy while galivanting across the country collecting cash for a presidential bid.

By our count, Vilsack has visited MA, NJ, NY, CO, GA, CA and -- yes -- NH within the past year. He's also been to DC numerous times, most recently for DLC/DGA fundraisers. [MARC AMBINDER]

Sen. Judiciary Cmte. chair Arlen Specter (R-PA) asked Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers on Monday to detail her views on governments' powers in wartime, writing in a letter that such answers are critical because of her close relationship with the President.

The Cmte. released the letter today.

Among the questions:

Josh Marshall has a one-sentence tease on his blog: "White House to fold on Davis-Bacon?"

Yes. On 11/8.

According to several sources, including an administration official, a group of GOP lawmakers has conveyed to the White House their concern about the ongoing suspension of Davis-Bacon "prevailing wage" rules in the gulf coast region.

Those lawmakers hinted to the White House that they would sign on to Democratic efforts to overturn the suspension unless the White House agreed to reinstate the rule by the end of the year. Lawmakers met this morning at the White House with Chief of Staff Andrew Card. Today, the White House capitulated.

Many of the lawmakers have ties to labor; others say that there's no evidence that the suspension has helped to lower costs.

An official announcement is forthcoming from the Department of Labor.[MARC AMBINDER]

That's the subject of today's Hotline spotlight.

Here's a brief excerpt: "It speaks volumes when a VA GOPer would rather appear with Rudy Giuliani than Pres. Bush. But that's exactly what Jerry Kilgore is doing this week, welcoming the liberal NYer (see TrashGate '99) to Norfolk today while avoiding Bush's visit to the same town 10/28. But more broadly, we ask, what becomes of the GOP's fundraising machine if (say it with us now, "and that's a big if") two top 'raisers (Cheney/Rove) join a third moneyman, Tom DeLay, on Indictment Island? Cheney, who has headlined 13 fundraisers for House incumbents in '05, appears likely to avoid such a fate, but we can't imagine a potential "unindicted co-conspirator" would be embraced in swing districts next fall. Just ask Al Gore."

Below, see our list of the 13 House members Cheney has helped. (He'll be up to 16 by the end of the week.) And check out Chris Cillizza's list of Rove fundraisers on The Fix.

Hot off the presses: VT. Lt. Gov. Brian Dubie (R) says "I plan to continue serving as Vermont's Lt. Governor."

More Dubie: "First, I considered my commitment to making Vermont a state where Vermonters can live in safety and security, where our children can receive a good education and where they can find a good job, without leaving their home state. I believe I can do most to honor this commitment by continuing to serve as Lt. Governor."

Second, I have concluded that in light of my responsibilities as a father and husband, it would be very difficult for me to campaign for the US Senate, to serve as Lt. Governor, and to be the father that I want to be -- all at the same time."

Is Dubie's denial another NRSC recruiting failure? That depends. Many Republicans in DC believe that VT Gov. Jim Douglas (R) is the only Republican who'd have a real chance at beating Indepdendent Bernie Sanders in the general. Douglas refused that race a while ago. So Senate GOPers tried to get Dubie in the race (as did WH CoS Andy Card.) Other VT GOPers want Dubie to run for Sanders' house seat, but that prospect is unlikely.

Dubie's departure means that wealthy software magnate Richard Tarrant will likely get the GOP nomination. In early Oct., he wrote a $550K check to an exploratory account. [MARC AMBINDER]

NBC News reminds us that Miers' revised questionnaire is due to the Senate Judiciary Committee today.

Special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald is at work this morning. And the grand jury commences at 9:00 a.m.

The buzz enamanating from the White House and from Republicans this morning is softer than last night, when the internal scuttlebutt was that a major White House figure -- perhaps in the Vice President's office -- had been notified about a pending indictment.

A sign of the times: indictment talk was the currency of conversation last night at the Republican National Committee fundraiser. [MARC AMBINDER]

CBS News reports that indictments are expected tomorrow. So does the Financial Times.

Roll Call's Mary Ann Akers reports that P. Fitzgerald was seen at Patton Boggs LLP today, meeting with Rove's lawyer.

The Los Angeles Times has a scoop that points to one possible outcome.

"As his investigation nears a conclusion, special prosecutor Patrick J. Fitzgerald has returned his attention to White House adviser Karl Rove, interviewing a Rove colleague with detailed questions about contacts that President Bush's close aide had with reporters in the days leading up to the outing of a covert CIA officer."

"Fitzgerald has also dispatched FBI agents to comb the CIA agent's residential neighborhood in Washington, asking neighbors again whether they were aware -- before her name appeared in a syndicated column -- that the agent, Valerie Plame, worked for the CIA."

And Reuters interviews one of the neighbors.

The blogs are buzzing with posts from un-named insiders that at least two folks have been sent target letters. Or that Fitzgerald will seek an extension.

WH CoS Andy Card cancelled a planned appearance tonight at a fundraiser for the WI GOP in Milwaukee. WH Pol. Dir. Sara Taylor will fill in.

Democrat Steve Clemons is smart and has good Washington sources.

So check out his inlking of what's to come:

"An uber-insider source has just reported the following to TWN: 1. 1-5 indictments are being issued. The source feels that it will be towards the higher end. 2. The targets of indictment have already received their letters. 3. The indictments will be sealed indictments and "filed" tomorrow. 4. A press conference is being scheduled for Thursday."

Not to be overly snarky, but a good signal of whether President Bush is committed to seeing Harriet Miers through the hearings will come tonight when he addresses 250 Republican National Committee donors in Washington.

Will he stand fully behind Miers? Will he mention her by name? What will the donors do?

Republicans say tonight's event will raise more than $1 million for the party. RNC chairman Ken Mehlman will introduce Bush. The evening's entertainment is provided by The Right Touch. And we've been assured they've been fully vetted. [MARC AMBINDER]

UPDATE: Bush did speak of Miers. Here's Mark Silva's take from the pool report: "I've had a chance to name two good people to the US Supreme Court..." He names Roberts, and draws applause. He names Miers, and the hall is silent at first, but after more Miers talk, applause."

"There must be confidentiality in the White House," he says of the Democratic request for documents - that's "the red line," he says.

Ex-AFL-CIO political director/ex ACT CEO Steve Rosenthal will soon announce the formation of a new Dem. pol. consulting firm called The Organizing Group along with veteran field strategist Tom Lindenfeld.

Per an e-mail: "The firm will specialize in grassroots voter mobilization for progressive organizations, (a limited number of) candidates and ballot initiatives."

The O.G. will also work with labor unions in states to help strengthen their operations there.

Rosenthal has allies on both sides of the AFL-CIO/CTW split and the O.G. plans to work with unions from both groups. {MARC AMBINDER]

As y'all know, the New York Times reports today that Cheney and Libby discussed Valerie Plame in June of 2003.

Here's what the Associated Press tacked on to its catch-up story without elaboration:

The VP "has said little in public about what he knew." In September of 2003, he told NBC "he did not know Wilson or who sent him on a trip to Niger to check into intelligence -- later deemed unreliable -- that Iraq may have been seeking to buy uranium there." Cheney: "I don't know who sent Joe Wilson."

So which is it? [MARC AMBINDER]

Fresh from a visit to the Texas border, Sen. Maj. Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) will today announce plans to bring to the floor next February a strong border security bill.

An aide says Frist's own mark will serve as a "base" for the Senate's myriad other immigration reform measures, like Kennedy-McCain, Cornyn-Kyl, and (soon), Hagel-whoever.

Frist writes to his VolPAC list today: "We need comprehensive reform that protects not only our national security ... but the interests of our economy. And by that, I don't mean amnesty. Let me be clear: I oppose amnesty . . . individuals who violate America's laws should NOT be rewarded for illegal behavior."

More: "You have my promise to push for stricter enforcement." [MARC AMBINDER]

First the National Journal's Insiders' poll... representing the "insiders' -- and now Sean Hannity, representing "talk radio" -- labels VA Sen. George Allen the frontrunner to win the 2008 GOP presidential nomination.

An important take-away lesson from what you'll read below: ALLEN SPENDS A LOT OF TIME ON CONSERVATIVE TALK RADIO. And that WILL matter, come 2007 and 2008. (It matters now because fundraisers see it. And money in the GOP chases frontrunners...)

Hannity: "As of today, I think you will be the nominee of the Republican Party in 2008...."

A listener writes: "Allen demurred noting that he was running for re-election in 2006, but he did identify three key issues he's focusing on that people have discussed with him in his travels around the country: illegal immigration, judges, and spending. Hannity also tried to talk Allen into picking former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani as his running mate, but Allen wouldn't bite saying there are many excellent people in the Republican Party." [MARC AMBINDER]

Reports over the weekend suggested that the White House is quietly consulting trusted conservatives about who the President should nominate if Harriett Miers withdraws.

First -- these trusted conservatives somehow leaked word to the untrusted media.

Second -- so far as we can tell, if White House officials -- be they members of the political staff, the counsel's office, the office of strategic initiatives, the press office, or the office of public liaison -- are talking openly about a post-Miers nomination, they are doing it without the authority and approval of senior White House officials.

No doubt the White House has contigency plans. White House officials are aware that the Senate might deny Miers the nomination, in which case Bush has a menu of other, previously vetted choices. But White House officials believe she will be confirmed, and we've not recieved any indication just yet that the President wants to withdraw the nomination before the Senate hearings. [MARC AMBINDER]

Picture it. After New Hampshire. 2000. A frontrunning candidate gets his gourd handed to him by a "maverick" Sen. from Arizona. He looks at the triumverate -- Karl, Joe, Karen -- and decides he needs to right the ship. So he elevates longtime friend and finance chair Don Evans to be the first among equals. The candidate rolls on through South Carolina and wins the nomination.

If there is turnover in the White House, and if President Bush decides that he needs a trusted enforcer with credibility to get his administration back on track, insiders believe that Evans could be his first choice. In fact, Evans was seen entering the White House in the quiet of a late afternoon last week, and he's has already consulted with top Republican officials on potential damage control.

Evans departure from the administration in late 2004 was voluntarily; his family desperately wanted more time with him. But he's in Washington frequently as pres. of the Financial Services Forum. Evans is beloved by long-time Bushies in the White House, he is respected by Democrats and Republicans on the Hill, and even he maintains solid relations with the media.

If indictments push Rove or Libby out of the White House, and if CoS Andy Card either leaves or replaces John Snow at Treasury, another potential addition to the WH staff (culled from a variety of sources) are ex-RNC chair/nominee sherpa Ed Gillespie, though he has told friends he would not want the job. RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman will probably stay at the committee in part because Republicans believe his most effective influence on the Bush legacy will be a muscular GOP field and political operation in 2006 and 2008.

USTR/Ex-Rep. Rob Portman would be another top candidate. Bush trusts him, and he has solid relationships with most of the key power centers in Washington.

Other names mentioned as potential senior staff replacements: Karen Hughes, Marc Racicot, Clay Johnson, Josh Bolten, Maria Cino, Jim Dyke, Joe Hagin, Terry Nelson, Mark Wallace, Jack Oliver [MARC AMBINDER]

Treas. Sec. John Snow plans to announce a nominee to replace retiring Fed. Chairman Alan Greenspan at a White House press conference today at 1 p.m, an administration official tells the Hotline. [REID WILSON]

Amid reports of acrimonious, depressing conference calls and public silence from purported allies, interest groups aligned with the White House have plans to more actively sell the Miers nomination.

The proximal target is the Republican base. The ultimate targets are Republican Senators. The White House and its friends will publicly tout Miers and her credentials. In less public conversations and through pressure from the base, they hope to convince the Senators of one of several propositions:

(a) that voting against Miers would be parlous for the Republican Party

(b) that voting against Miers conflates conservative elite anger with conservative voter anger, in part because the real GOP base doesn't dislike Miers and would view a "nay" as a slap in the face to the president

(c) that voting against Miers would be parlous for their presidential ambitions, in that the Bush political and fundraising team would not forget such a blatant departure from the president's wishes now -- and certainly not forget after 2006, when these presidential aspirants begin to staff up and raise money.

See below for what specific groups will do. [MARC AMBINDER]

We're reading the green tea leaves today as we tally up all the '08 hopefuls' campaign cttes, PACs and other accounts. Barely a weekend goes by where Bayh's not raising money. Plus -- just how well does DeLay's legal and communications teams work together? Card cancels a fundraiser, but Cheney does two of them. And Miers 1.0 and 2.0 are already outmoded. Version 3.0 seems to be: murder boards, murder boards, murder boards.

The Democrats' Senate campaign arm once again outraised its Republican counterpart this quarter.

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee brought in $8.7 million since the end of May. But the DS also outspent the National Republican Senatorial Committee, reporting nearly $5 million in disbursements. The DS started the quarter with $15.9 million on hand and ends it with $19 million.

The NRSC raised $7.3 million and ended the quarter with $9.4 million, having spent about $3.2 million. They've accumulated more than $28.2 million since the beginning of the year. The DSCC has raised more than $32 million.

The National Republican Campaign Committee maintained the bigger bank account this quarter, ending the fundraising period with $17.7 million. It raised $12.6 million.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee took in $9 million, spent some, and ended the quarter with $11.3 million on hand.

Said the NRCC's Carl Forti in a press release, "With double the cash sitting in the bank at this point compared to the 2004 cycle, House Republicans remain well ahead of their Democrat counterparts in the money race one year from Election Day."

"This is the best off-year we've ever had," says Bill Burton, the D-Trip's communications director. "In fact, we right now have raised more money in the first 9 months of the year than we did in all of 2003."

It's also worth noting, as The Hill did earlier this week, that the Dems Frontline program outraised the NRCC's ROMP. [MARC AMBINDER]

Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH) was one of 47 winners of the multi-state Powerball lottery, netting him a cool $850K before taxes.

"Isn't there some saying about how being budget chair is like winning the lottery? Guess this time its true," his spokesperson, Erin Rath, tells the Hotline.

Jokes abound. Could he use the money to help pay off the bridge to nowhere?

And a Democrat wag adds: why does the chair of the Senate budget committee feel compelled to play the lottery? Not confident in the direction of the economy?

For somehow making a mugshot not look like a mugshot. (We know he had nothing to do with it, but, well, he's a useful proxy for the DeLay communications operation.)

Earlier this afternoon the House GOP held the first meet-and-greet session with conservative political bloggers, which they dubbed "Blogger Row." While the main reason for the event was conservative angst over congressional spending, the freewheeling conversation naturally drifted, and naturally toward angst over the Harriet Miers nomination. [WILLIAM BEUTLER]

From today's Hotline:

Some members of the DNC Primary Calendar Commission plan to circulate a formal proposal guarding IA and NH's first-in-the-nation stati and add two-to-four caucuses eight days after Iowa, according to commission members. The plan was developed in light of the commission's vote in Oct. to add at least two states to the "pre-window," when IA and NH have traditionally held their caucus and primary. One draft of the plan calls for IA to hold its precinct caucuses on Jan. 14 and for NH to hold its primary on Jan. 29. On Jan. 22, eight days after Iowa, several states would hold caucuses. The plan would also keep the seven days after NH free of events. [MARC AMBINDER and CHUCK TODD]

Not every Republican with national political aspirations is damning the President. And yet..

"I'd stand with President Bush if his approval rating was 2 percent," [MN Gov. Tim] Pawlenty said. "I won't abandon my leader just because times are tough." From today's Star-Tribune.

In nationalized midterm elections, images matter. (Remember the juxtaposition of Sen. Max Cleland and Osama Bin Laden?)

Republicans in Congress -- even those who love and respect Rep. Tom DeLay -- realize that his appearance before a judge tomorrow in Texas will be accompanied by the standard accoutrements of criminal procedure, including a mug shot.

Even if DeLay is acquitted, it will be hard for Republicans to stomach the mug shot and it will be harder for Democrats not to overuse the picture in campaigns.

So the damage to DeLay's chances are re-assuming the post of majority leader are, in the eyes of even some of his allies, not too high. [MARC AMBINDER]

Here's an updated summary of the '06 Senate candidate campaigns' third quarter filing to the Federal Election Commission. [QUINN MCCORD]

And the wait goes on and on and on and on... though enquiring minds want to know whether or not the person "directly familar" with what Karl Rove saw during his grand jury testimony shares a brain with some guy in the WH sporting the title of dep. WH CoS? But we digress...

Today's "Spotlight" contains some potential news: the likely dates for the 2008 IA Caucus and NH Primary. As the DNC primary calendar commission debates its final recommendation for the 2008 calendar, word is leaking out about format and dates and we've got the scoop.

Also of note: Anyone else noticing how convenient the timing is for the Bush trip to CA just as Arnold needs a way to act all hot-and-bothered about the nat'l GOP? ... Why isn't their a hard money account that Bill Frist actively raises money to? ... All this and our usual smorgasbord of '05 and '06 updates coming in about an hour. [CHUCK TODD]

Maybe it's just the alliteration, but "conservative crack-up" is one of those phrases that makes a comeback whenever the GOP falls on hard times -- and if you follow the online chatter, it's not hard to think its ubiquitous among armchair liberal commentators. But is it more common than it used to be? [WILLIAM BEUTLER]

Columnist/ex-Talon news reporter/man about town Jeff Gannon can soon add "author" to his list of titles.

"It is the book that so many have urged me to write for many months now," he says in an e-mail to us. But he wouldn't divulge any other details. The title "has yet to be determined."

"I'm working on the content right now," he says. "I'm sure there are people who had hoped I'd never write about this."

So when Wonkette's "Dog Days" comes out in January, we'll have two books for our bedtable... [MARC AMBINDER]

When we saw this blog post asserting that VA Gov. Mark Warner was finished campaigning for candidate Tim Kaine, we did not make too much of it. After all Warner just on the campaign trail with Kainein NoVA on Monday and the two are slated to join forces again tomorrow in SW VA. But when some GOP officials started circulating the post to the media, we thought we'd check it out.

"Nothing could be further from the truth," says Warner political adviser Mame Reiley. She said that Warner is with Kaine "lock, stock and barrel" and that Warner had actually recently asked his staff to "carve out some more time" on his schedule so that he can spend more time with his preferred successor.

So why this rumor? Because GOPers are "petrified at [Warner's] impact on the race," says Reiley. [JONATHAN MARTIN]

Some Democrats off the Hill were taken by surprise when the House suddenly recessed this afternoon. Leaders were headed to the White House. Could it be a signal that bad news was looming?

Probably not -- the meeting was added to schedules this morning, and it's billed by sources as a summit where Bush will talk with them about Miers, Katrina, budgets, and more. And if you think about it, when was the last time when Bush met with his Congressional leadership team?

Check out the dope sheet at the Diageo/Hotline poll website.

Here's a list of folks who have either testified or have been interviewed by Patrick Fitzgerald. To repeat: the list below is of those who have been interviewed by officials in connection with the case. Inclusion does not necessarily indicate that the listed person has testified under oath.

From today's Hotline:
Corruption is a word on everyone's minds today The nat'l component of the Diageo/Hotline poll (conducted by Financial Dynamics) shows that the immediate effects are apparent, but the '06 effects are not.
-- Asked which is more likely to be corrupt, a plurality (24%) said fed elected officials (i.e. Congress), trailed by appointeds (20%), local officials (18%) and state officials (13%). While that is not shocking, consider - when the question is asked with Wall Street vs. Congress, GOPers say Wall Street (40%) whereas Dems say Congress.
-- DeLay's FAV rating is 15% overall, compared to a 44% UNFAV. Even among GOPers, he has a net negative rating by 2%.
-- Despite the low approval job rating of Congress (29%), 31% will still re-elect their member of Congress, whereas 28% would consider change and only 19% will vote to replace. Could the outcome of Fitzgerald's probe combined with the ongoing Abramoff mess start to erode this "what about your own member of Congress" opinion?

Full dope sheet coming later.

The Hull family of Illinois has an instinct for generating interesting copy about money.

Our attention was drawn recently to a mini-kerfluffle in Rhode Island. Jennifer Lawless, a Brown assist prof. who is challenging Rep. James Langevin in the Dem primary, received campaign contributions from two of her students.

One of them is Courtney Hull, class of 2006, son of Blair Hull, who ran unsuccesfully for Senate from IL in '04. We're not bringing her father into this... Hull did, telling a reporter that her father came to class and found Lawless "awesome."

What makes this story more fun for us is that the intrepid reporter who scoured the FEC files to break it is the Brown Daily Herald's Ben Leubsdorf, son of Dallas Morning News ace Carl Leubsdorf. [MARC AMBINDER]

From today's Hotline:

Here's a list of folks who have either testified or have been interviewed by Patrick Fitzgerald (or by FBI agents) in connection with the Plame probe. Please send us omissions and additions and expansions. Anonymity is guaranteed. To repeat: the list below is of those who have been interviewed by officials in connection with the case. Inclusion does not necessarily indicate that the listed person has testified under oath.

Early on, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's endorsement of the OH redistricting proposal has been cast as an attempt by the gov. to re-establish his nonpartisan, reformist credentials amid complaints back home that CA Prop. 77 is a power grab by the GOP. Since the initiative in OH is backed by labor and other Dem-leaning folks, his support for the OH proposal might provide that PR boost on the left coast.

But the endorsement is also noteworthy because Schwarzenegger has described OH as his home-away-from-home. He owns property there and hosts his annual bodybuilding expo in Columbus, so his popularity there is based on more than just celebrity. That's why in 2004, the Bush camp had Schwarzenegger stump for him in the purple Buckeye State, rather than in solid blue CA.

It'll be interesting to see how big of a splash his endorsement has in OH in the coming weeks. If redistricting were to pass in both OH and CA this November (and based on the polling in CA, that's certainly no given), fledgling efforts in other states (like FL) will no doubt pick up steam. [MIKE MEMOLI]

We posted a squib last night based on a White House press list that had the administration seeming to withdraw a nomination of Mark Mckinnon's to the Broadcasting Board of Governors.

Turns out that the nomination line was merely shifted.... sort of a WH paper shuffle that is part of the normal conduct of nomination business. So there's no back story. He's still a nominee. We send our apologies to Mr. McKinnon for the misinterpretation and we congratulate him on his nomination.

Not because we know anything (we don't) or because we want to seed any rumint (we don't), but... what happens if the ABA rates Miers as "qualified" sted. "well qualified?"

Does it matter? Should it matter? We do know it's something the White House has thought about. So your comments are most welcome on the matter.

Keyest item:

Harriet Miers, in 1989, answered "yes" to a questioned posed by a Texas pro-life group about her willingness to support a human life amendment to the constitution that would ban abortion except for cases where the life of the mother was at stake.

Key items:

She "...pursued two cases, one on behalf of a prisoner, and the other on behalf of a social security claimant, all the way to the Supreme Court of the Unied States, which denied certioari." (26)

The SCOTUS cases: Bush v. Jones (re: the 12th amendment/Cheney residence controversy), a court appointed attorney in Popeko V. US (the defendent, convicted of counterfeiting, appealed his habeas claim. Writ was denied.); and in Ware v. Schweiker (she rep'd an indigent mother whose Social Security benefits were denied)

"...I have identified eight cases that were tried to verdict. I was lead counsel or sole counsel in four, lead local counsel in one, and associate counsel in three." (27)

In civil litigation, Miers says her cases routinely touched on constitutional principles, including the 14th amendment, the 12th amendment, the 7th amendment and a "media client" that "encompassed many First Amendment issues that were never litigated, including libel. For instance, I would often consult on prepublication review of articles and issues related to reporters' sources of information." (48) [MARC AMBINDER]

Ex-TN Sen. Fred Thompson will headline a fundraiser for IA Rep/Gov. candidate Jim Nussle (R) on Nov. 12 in Cedar Rapids. [CHUCK TODD]

Here is an argument, made by an influential Republican 10/17, suggesting the field of competitive house seats might not be as small as the NRCC spins it.

1. The "model" as the NRCC sees it suggests that only 20-25 seats are in play. That model is time-tested and makes sense in the current political environment. But the environment changes -- and it's certainly changing, the model looses its mooring. With a presidential approval rating stagnant, with the generic ballot tilting anywhere between five and twelve points away from Republicans, with overall Congressional (read: incumbent) approval ratings in the basement, it's a safe bet that the model needs revising.

2. 527s, particularly on the Dem side, could easily take a ho-hum race and throttle it forward. (CO Rep. Marilyn Musgrave came within a hair's breadth of losing in '04 thanks to 527s, and there are dozens of marginal GOP seats where the right 527 pitch/money/boots on the ground could shift the terrain a few points, thus endangering it.) 527s won't get involved until the end of the cycle, so a bunch of seats that look safe in May of '06 could be less so in Oct. of '06.

3. The parties continue to recruit. If anyone can expand the field in a year, it's DCCC chair Rahm Emanel (D-IL), who has connections to -- or has raised money for -- someone in just about every even potentially competitive district in the country. [MARC AMBINDER]

Are we missing a backstory here?

From the White House: A nomination withdrawn.

Mark McKinnon, of Texas, to be a Member of the Broadcasting

Board of Governors for a term expiring August 13, 2008, vice Joaquin

F. Blaya, term expired, which was sent to the Senate on September 6,

2005.

Update:

We posted a squib last night based on a White House press list that had the administration seeming to withdraw a nomination of Mark Mckinnon's to the Broadcasting Board of Governors.

Turns out that the nomination line was merely shifted.... sort of a WH paper shuffle that is part of the normal conduct of nomination business. So there's no back story. He's still a nominee. We send our apologies to Mr. McKinnon for the misinterpretation and we congratulate him on his nomination.

We hear that Progress for America, the main Republican 527 selling the Miers nomination, is spending about $10K to whip up support among those readers of conservative websites and blogs.

PFA is placing banner ads on at least 20 of the high-trafficked conservative websites and on National Review Online, the Weekly Standard Online, and the Washington Times Online.

The ads link to a provocative quiz about Miers. (Did you know that Clarence Thomas was a "liberal activist" in college?) [MARC AMBINDER]

Mighty labor's political muscles may yet flex in tandem.

The AFL-CIO has agreed to allow former member unions -- those who left to form the Change To Win coalition -- to rejoined with state federations and central labor councils. The means to that end are "Solidarity Charters," which AFl-CIO president John Sweeney described in a letter today, excerpts of which are below. A few key issues remain, including how much the formerly affiliated unions will have to pay per head per local labor council. Says one official of a CTW union, "We'll certainly pay when we're working together with them on 'projects' -- be they political, etc"

Democrats shuddered a bit this summer when the AFL-CIO broke up in part because two labor federations meant two separate political programs. On a local level, that problem is now (mostly) solved. [MARC AMBINDER]

CA Dems are split on the merits of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenneger's Prop 77 redistricting initiative, but that hasn't stopped them from opposing it. But in the left-blogosphere, there's a bit less cohesion. Markos Moulitsas, founder of the heavily-trafficked community blog Daily Kos, kicked up a bit of consternation over the weekend by declaring his intention to vote for it. [WILLIAM BEUTLER]

As LG Tim Kaine (D) continues to hit back on ex-AG Jerry Kilgore's (R) death penalty ads and as Kilgore continues to try and keep the issue front-and-center, real life has started to intrude upon what is -- with less than 30 days remaining -- becoming the campaign's defining issue. [JONATHAN MARTIN]

Being a GOP governor/08 hopeful allows prospective candidates the freedom freedom to artfully and carefully suggest that maybe, just maybe, the party in DC needs an outsider to run as its candidate in 2008. Just see Gov. Mike Huckabee (R-AR)'s comments in Iowa last week.

By the same token, being a gov. lets the hopefuls avoid answering questions about how they'd vote on a particularly thorny federal bill or nominee.

Gov. Mitt Romney (R-MA) has decided to take a gamble and use that freedom to speak decisively on the nomination of Harriet Miers. In doing so, he goes further than any GOP Senator thinking of running, and he becomes the first pres. candidate to directly challenge the President's decision.

Notice how, in his comments below, he speaks to the chief hope of conservatives inside Washington: that it's necessary and crucial to have an open debate over conservative judicial principles.

But will the Bush (fundraising/political) remember this? Can a self-funder like Romney, who can put more skin in the game, get away it?
Read on... [MARC AMBINDER]

Not a bad weekend for Republicans -- Plame uncertainties aside. Consider:

1. A fresh wave of stories suggesting the House GOP caucus is seriously considering spending cuts. The RSC ascends because, in Flake's words, the caucus fears an election and doesn't want to alienate them. And five whole days before DeLay goes to court.

2. Evidence that the NJ Gov and VA Gov races are starting to trend in the Republicans' direction. Corzine is being dragged down by the corruption overtones and perhaps by anti-incumbent sentiment. Kaine had a sketchy week; his campaign acts like Kilgore moved the chains with those devastating, perhaps even distasteful, ads on the death penalty.

3. Another, relatively peaceful election in Iraq came and went, even if we -- and the Iraqis -- don't know whether the new constitution is a good thing or a recipe for regional wars.

4. A Miers strategy that scores high on technique. Smart White House: they deliberately gave insider details (A "twenty person" team, a reigion-less focus on character and competence and biography), to the scribes to fill up space. The result: the WH has a press-certified nomination strategy, and the conservative doubters haven't found anything new to complain about. A weird editorial from Rush suggests he'll stop stoking the embers of infighting for now. [MARC AMBINDER]

Here's the latest NRSC ad slamming RI Sen. candidate/Linc Chafee challenger Steve Laffey:

"The strange adventures of Steve Laffey..."

"Mayor Laffey's administration spent tax dollars to sound-proof his office. Laffey spent thousands on spy cameras . . . to spy on employees."

"Bizarre! ... .but the joke's on us."

"Laffey gave Cranston the highest property taxes in Rhode Island. Laffey raised taxes twice . . . .and he admits he may do it again."

"Tax and Spend Steve Laffey . . . . Nobody's laughing now. ANNCR: The National Republican Senatorial Committee is responsible for the content of this ad."

Update: this ProJo story suggests that Chafee needs all the help he can get. He raised only $287K last quarter -- fourth of the four candidates running, and extremely poor for an endangered incumbent.

The baby panda's official name is Tai Shan, which means "peaceful mountain."

Influentual conservative activist Paul Weyrich has a pessimistic take on the '06 elections. From his perspective, "The 2006 election will be the so-called sixth-year itch election. Parties in the White House for six of eight years typically get clobbered in the sixth year Congressional elections. Unless Republicans defy history, this next election for them will not likely be pretty."

An occasional Monday feature wrapping everything you need to know about the weekend's news.

1. Fitzgerald apparently knows who Novak's original source was.
2. Rove/Libby will probably resign ASAP if indicted.
3. Miller might have other sources who told her about "Valerie Flame." The New York Times newsroom remains anxious and war-weary.
4. Libby's "aspens turning" letter wasn't well-received by Miller; Tate allegedly did his darndest to figure out what Miller would testify to ahead of time.
5. Two sitting Texas judges, Nathan Hecht and Ed Kincaide, apparently told a conference call of conservative activists that Miers would overturn Roe.
6. The WH inauguarates a "new" campaign for Miers this week; she's a well-qualified trailblaizer who influenced policy. No mention of religion. Miers meets on the Hill today with Democrats Schumer and Boxer.
7. Rice says "No" to an '08 run; Mrs. Cheney says "No" to an '08 run for her husband.

Judy Miller writes about the case here. And the New York Times investigates it, here.

And we still don't really know much more than we already did.

From today's Hotline:

As many as a dozen cities are preparing 2008 presidential convention bids, sources in both parties tell The Hotline. Republicans and Democrats and city officials in New Orleans had initiatied conversations with top RNC and DNC convention advisers before Hurricane Katrina. Those conversations have obviously not resumed post-Katrina, but sources inside the parties say that the Gulf Coast has acquired such a symbolic cachet that they remain open to the possibility of accepting late bids, or even a hybrid bid that would bring both conventions to a rebuilt city. One Republican familiar with the process: "It's not likely, but if it's viable, it'd definitely be considered."

Other cities who have communicated interest to the RNC: Anaheim, CA, Minneapolis-St.Paul, MN, Nashville, TN, New York, NY, Tampa, FL, and Miami, FL. Sources say Tampa has been the most aggresive so far. On the Dem side, "A limited number of American cities have the capacity and infastructure" to host, but only Denver has expressed serious interest so far, according to a source. [MARC AMBINDER]

Much more after the jump...

This just ran on the AP wire, with an Albany dateline -- a big blow to attorney Ed Cox's Senate hopes. "Gov. George Pataki threw his political muscle on Friday behind Jeanine Pirro's bid for the GOP nomination to challenge Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's re-election campaign next year."

"The Pataki endorsement of the Westchester County district attorney came as Pirro faced increasing questions over why her more than two-month-old Senate campaign hasn't generated more steam and as Clinton reported raising a hefty $5 million from July-September."

"The Republican governor's action was a blow to Cox, a son-in-law of the late President Richard Nixon, who has been battling Pirro for the GOP Senate nomination."

"There was no immediate comment Friday from Cox."

Because it wouldn't fit in your action-packed Hotline.

Each Friday, we'll run the upcoming weekend travel for various WH '08 candidates. If we're missing something, let us know.

From a press release: "Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell's campaign for the GOP nomination for governor was endorsed today by one of the U.S. Senate's most outspoken conservatives, Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas. The endorsement added to Blackwell's impressive support from Republican leaders across the nation, and accentuated his lead in recent public opinion polls."

"Ken Blackwell will lead Ohio with integrity," Brownback said. "He will be a strong advocate for Ohio's families and will protect the rights of the unborn. His leadership on Ohio's Issue 1 last fall was key in the national effort to protect traditional marriage, another important issue."

Sen. Clinton's campaign account raised $5.2m in the quarter from a record 70,052 individual donors. It's the largest number of contributions ever to the campaign in any quarter; Approx. 95% of the contributions were $100 or less. Going into the fourth quarter of the year before the election, Clinton has nearly $14m on hand.

Democratic fundraisers who speak with the New York Senator's tight circle of advisers guesstimate that Clinton's campaign intends to raise as much as $70m for the re-election campaign and spend about $40m of it -- leaving them with a nice, $30m cushion should any other, eh, opportunities present themselves. Folks who actually know such things poo-pooh any specific plans so far in advance. [MARC AMBINDER]

Was that Gov. Mitt Romney on Laura Ingraham's radio program this morning? E-mail us if you have details!

High Fidelity was on TV yesterday, and the opening dovetailed nicely with something we'd seen earlier in the day:

Rob: "What came first? The music or the misery? People worry about kids playing with guns and watching violent videos, we're scared that some sort of culture of violence is taking them over. But nobody worries about kids listening to thousands -- literally thousands -- of songs about broken hearts and rejection and pain and misery and loss. Did I listen to pop music because I was miserable, or was I miserable because I listened to pop music?" [REID WILSON]

Anybody following the VA GOV race -- and with now-daily stories in the Post, who isn't? -- knows that ex-AG Jerry Kilgore (R) dropped what UVA pundit Larry Sabato called "two nuclear bombs" earlier this week. Kilgore went up on TV with new ads featuring the relatives of murder victims expressing unease about LG Tim Kaine (D) because of his opposition to the death penalty. Kaine has responded with an ad of his own where he looks into the camera and solemnly pledges to uphold VA's capital punishment laws and has deployed Dem county prosecutors from NOVA to vouch for this pledge.

What we are wondering three days after Kilgore went up with "a political punch that everyone saw coming," as Robert Barnes put it in yesterday's Post, is where is Tommy Whitt? Whitt, for those not following the race super-closely, is the closest thing Kaine has in this cycle to what Gov. Mark Warner (D) had with Mudcat Saunders in '01. He is the Sheriff of a county in Jerry Kilgore's native Southwest VA, and, like Kilgore, he has the accent to prove it. Kaine has earlier used Whitt to praise his record on crime and to hit Kilgore for not more aggressively addressing VA's rural meth problem in 6/05 and 9/05 radio spots. If anytime cries out for giving Sheriff Whitt his TV debut, wouldn't it be to have him stand with Kaine now, extolling Kaine's law and order credentials and sending a message -- in an accent familiar and assuring to many downstate VA'ians -- that this Dem is not "soft on crime?" [JONATHAN MARTIN]

The sense of anticipation in regards to the Fitzgerald investigation appears to be near-all-consuming for official Washington and therefore just too big to pass up for "Spotlight." So, we're playing the "what if" game...

In other news: Are you aware of how far ahead the RNC is of the DNC in their '08 convention planning? Then again, is that really a surprise? Cities in the hunt: Miami, Denver, Anaheim, Twin Cities, Nashville and, of course, New Orleans. ... Interesting how both Huckabee and Bayh had similar over-arching messages while in IA yesterday. In a phrase, it's apparently: "Can't we all just get along?" ... Tim Kaine "successfully" created a Day 3 story on the death penalty with his reporter conf. call yesterday. ... And it's not often one gets to read about SEN candidates "dropping acid."

Looking for Vegas-like House race entertainment without the Vegas-like prices? Then travel to the biggest little city in the world, Reno, NV, and the rest of NV 03. Dawn Gibbons (R) officially announced yesterday she will seek her husband's congressional seat, while her husband, Rep. Jim Gibbons (R), runs for GOV. She is the third entrant in what is expected to be a heated primary that will also include Sec/State Dean Heller and Assemb. Sharron Angle. There are already strong political forces at play in this race: The NV first lady, Dema Guinn, has openly criticized Dawn Gibbons for running -- because the posts of Rep. and First Lady are too time-consuming to hold both, she says. Much more after the jump. [MOLLY NORTON]

VA Gov. Mark Warner (D) spent Wednesday in Northern CA meeting privately with Dems. He's en route from San Francisco to Richmond at this writing. From Last Call.

There is an organized effort by some Republicans to derail Harriet Miers' nomination by pressuring allies of the White House to drop their support.

Republican activists opposed to the nomination are circulating e-mails from prominent Federalist Society members who remain confounded by the White House. Miers, of course, has never been a member of the Federalist Society; in Texas in 1990, she called too "politically charged" -- while acknowledging her membership in something called the Progressive Voter League and suggesting that membership in the NAACP would be ok.

They are also pressing journalists to write about alleged Federalist Society discontent with Miers. This group of Republicans includes staffers for at least one Republican member of the Judiciary Committee.

Sources close to the White House and sympathetic to Miers have said that Miers viewed herself as too independent to join any professional legal group that would telegraph her views on particular disputes. Others, including close administration advisers, have suggested that Miers was not comfortable with the young Fed. Soc. members in the White House counsel's office.

Miers' defenders point out that there are five associate counsels who are Fed. Soc. members at the present time. These sources are passing around a speech that Miers' gave earlier this year where she praised for the legal group.

We recieved a tip this morning that Leonard Leo, on leave as executive vice president of the society, had begun to harbor doubts about Miers' confirmability, and had begun to share those views with the White House. Leo, through an associate, said the notion that he's had second thoughts was "absolutely false" and said that he supports Miers because he knows her personally and because of her philosophy of judicial restraint.

We do know that many Republican lawyers close to Leo, including Fed. Soc. members, want the White House to show them something that would comfort them about Miers' core judicial principles.

An e-mail circulated to Republicans today by the Republican National Committee concludes that "the bottom line is, in 1989, the Federalist Society was not as well known as it is today. Harriet Miers said in testimony that there was a perception in Dallas at the time that the organization was political in nature. Since that time she has come to know the incredibly positive impact this professional organization of lawyers has had on the debate about Constitutional and legal theory, and is proud to have participated in Federalist Society events."

Gene Meyer, the Federalist Society's president, said in a brief interview that the group does not take official positions on the nomination. Characterizing the contrasting views of Miers generally, Meyer said that Federalist Society lawyers "frequently have spirited debates and discussions, not only outside the organization, but inside of it as well."

He would not address the topic further.

A side note: The Federalist Society's annual convention begins 11/10. The theme: "originalism." [MARC AMBINDER]

Let's stipulate that Sen. Maj. Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) has handled the politics of his stock sale investigation poorly -- that he has been a little sloppy in his public statements about what amount of stock he knew he had and when, and that if he had, in April of '05, let the press know (even in the form of a quiet gift to a favored reporter) that he was liquidating his stocks, he might be in a better position.

But the facts so far seem to bear out his contention that he did nothing improper. [MARC AMBINDER]

Well, obviously.

WH Pooler Geoff Earle of the New York Post writes of the teleconference: "The soldiers, nine U.S. men and one U.S. woman, plus an Iraqi, had been tipped off in advance about the questions in the highly scripted event. Allison Barber, deputy assistant to the Secretary of Defense for internal communication, could be heard asking one soldier before the start of the event, "Who are we going to give that [question] to?"

Let's be clear: we are in NO way making fun of our brave men and women overseas.

But we have to agree with the Washington Post's Jim VandeHei, who called that live presidential telebriefing with troops in Tikrit just "bizarre."

VandeiHei: "It seemed very staged."

That it did, from the president's questions to some of the troops's answers to the moment when the President "recognized" a soldier who he had seen in New York. ("Where you there when I came to New York? Thought you looked familiar.")

One cute moment: A soldier told Bush, "I really like you Mr. President."

But mostly, awkward, stilted exchanges. CNN, MSNBC and Fox News Channel carried it live. We think the Daily Show will have a month's worth of fodder.

It's a bit early for an '06 campaign committee memo war, but the Hotline loves the entertainment, if nothing else.

First, NRSC exec. Dir. Mark Stephens, in response to all those news articles blasting the committee for purported recruiting failures, begins: "Frankly, some of these stories are shortsighted, incomplete and ignore political common sense." Stephens argues that the GOP majority is safe on the grounds that incumbents usually get re-elected, and the GOP has only 1 open seat (in red TN) compared to 3-4 for the Dems (MD, MN, VT, maybe NJ), each of which has a "Tier One" GOPer running.

Newsweek's Howard Fineman, who covered (better than just about anyone) Texas Gov. George W. Bush's sophisticated pre-primary courtship of the Republican base, wrote in a web column today that the nomination of Harriet Miers was the "final insult" to religious conservatives long accustomed to being the wallflower of the party.

Fineman:

"Supply-siders -- This is the one faction that the president has yet to disappoint in a major way. He pushed through two major tax cuts, and is pushing more -- targeted ones -- in the wake of Katrina. Deep in their collective memory bank, Bush and Rove remember what happened when Daddy moved his lips and raised taxes. But now that the son has been reelected, will he move his lips, too?"

He may have written too quickly. Check out the reactions from supply-siders to the trial balloons issuing from the president's tax reform panel this week.

In public statements on 10/11, the panel suggested that it favored freeing up about $100B to pay for a universally-desired fix to the Alternative Minimum Tax. They'd do it by capping the very popular mortgage interest deduction at a limit less than the current $1M for first home buyers.

Here's one reaction from a big conservative free-market group, in an e-mail statement:

"A preliminary analysis by the Free Enterprise Fund of the publicly available information indicates the panel is set to recommend a massive tax hike on the U.S. middle class to pay for tax relief on upper-income elites, particularly those who live in high-tax states like New York and California."

When setting up the panel -- and note that it's an adivsory "panel" and not a precedent-setting "commission" -- The White House set expectations quite high, though they disappointed conservatives who believe that tax cuts spur growth -- and thus drive revenue to the Treasury -- by insisting that the panel's recommendation be revenue neutral. [MARC AMBINDER]

What you missed on RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman's call with conservative bloggers. (And forgive small errors in instantaneous transcription, please.)

Mehlman laid out the case for Miers -- much of it was similar to his introduction on a call with conservative leaders last Thursday.

"There is no more important reason other than the the war on terror that I support this president in the kind of people he names to the courts."

"What you have in Harriet Miers is both the character and the philosophy in my judgement that make an excellent Supreme Court justice."

On terrorism, noting her role in key Admin. decisions: "Clearly, there are going to be some cases where she may have to think about recusing herself, but that's only in the short term."

More, including Q and As, after the jump. [MARC AMBINDER]

Like the debate over Anita Hill, the discussion surrounding Miers' qualifications has been riddled with accusations of sexism. Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter's recent comments that Miers' critics had put together "one of the toughest lynch mobs" he had ever seen, effectively set the stage for an interesting gender-bender sequel.

Like 1992, when the Senate Committee tore into Hill, questions for Miers are expected to come fast and furious and Senators are already warning that their "not going to hold back." Moreover, the unusual scenario of both parties laying on criticism has Ganging Up v. Woman written all over it (and we know how that ends). Social conservative groups are reportedly expected to submit questions for Miers similar to law school exams, aimed at testing her knowledge of legal doctrines. The hope of course, is to make her cry -- or at least withdraw.

But unless it's on Oprah, women don't like watching other women cry. Hill's testimony in front of the all-male, all-white Judiciary Committee inspired outrage among women who showed up in droves a year later to rectify Hill's treatment. Today the unease about Miers -- with its "whiff of sexism," its tinge of a slandering campaign, and a flurry of women's groups already clamoring to her defense -- could make '05 'the Year of the Woman' Again.

In an election that many thought would be about Saddam Hussein, one woman and her appearance before the Judiciary Committee carried more weight then Oprah's Wildest Dreams season. History has a way of repeating itself, and I'm sure that fact alone has some senators rethinking their role in the mob. [NORA MCALVANAH]

According to the Associated Press, here are two things Al Gore says about the prospects of a 2008 presidential campaign.

1. "I have absolutely no plans and no expectations of ever being a candidate again."

2. "I don't completely rule out some future interest, but I don't expect to have that."

The word that's normally used to rule stuff out is "never."

Count us confused.

There's an "eye of the storm" feel today nationally as many await more "drips" re: Miers and something substantial re: Fitzgerald. As is our custom, when a big story is in limbo, time to "Spotlight" something else. That something else today is Paul Hackett, OH SEN and the chink in the Senate Dem recruiting armor: the abundance of primaries.

Also of note: New polling statewide in NY SEN/GOV as well as CityWide. ... How negative will things get in VA GOV? ... Is Christie Vilsack really a draw in NH? ... Finally, you know it's a great day to "Hotline" when we get to feature both a ME SEN and MA SEN in the same issue. [CHUCK TODD]

At 2:30 p.m., RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman hosts a conference call today with conservative bloggers to talk about the Miers' nomination. And he'll take their questions. This is a sign that the RNC is taking the blogosphere more seriously. And look for other, subtle changes to the party's web strategy in the days to come.

Is it just us or is there already a storyline developing about 'who's to blame for Miers'"? And if so, is WH CoS Andrew Card about to be on the wrong end of this blame game?

This scenario holds Card responsible for pushing President Bush to select Miers, for pushing her through the vetting process secretly, inartfully, and incompletely, and for screwing up the outreach to conservatives.

Republicans close to the process have marveled at how the White House seems to be chasing information about Miers it reads in the press, rather than framing it. "It's as if," one adviser who is sympathetic to Miers told The Hotline today, "they don't know anything about her."

Update: Newsweek's Howard Fineman speaks of a civil war between the potential Fitzgerald indictees (Rove, Libby) and Card, who reps the interests of the Bush family.

Read on...

The secret stuff (which is bolded in the full entry) is that Rove first spoke to Dobson on Saturday and told him that Miers was high on the short list. And second, that several prominent prospects had taken themsevles out of contention.

This clearly will raise other questions -- clearly, if what Rove told Dobson is true (and we're reading the implication correctly), the president was not choosing from his ideal field of candidates -- and it dovetails with scuttlebutt that other potential nominees asked not to be considered.

According to Dobson: "Karl Rove has now given me permission to go public with our conversation."

Here's the full transcript. Highlights below.

Here's the latest breaking news from National Journal special correspondent Murray Waas: "In two appearances before the federal grand jury investigating the leak of a covert CIA operative's name, Lewis (Scooter) Libby, the chief of staff to Vice President Cheney, did not disclose a crucial conversation that he had with New York Times reporter Judith Miller in June 2003 about the operative, Valerie Plame, according to sources with firsthand knowledge of his sworn testimony."

"Libby also did not disclose the June 23 conversation when he was twice interviewed by FBI agents working on the Plame leak investigation, the sources said."

"The new revelations regarding Libby come as Fitzgerald has indicated that he is wrapping up his investigation and making final decisions as to whether criminal charges will be brought in the case."

We received a fax that's a little weird: Leo Giacometto, who served as Sen. Conrad Burns' CoS from 1995-1999, is hosting a "NASCAR Fundraiser" for Sen. Max Baucus in Atlanta, GA on 10/30. For a requested contribution of $2,500, participants get a breakfast at the Ritz-Carlton in Buckhead and then spend the day at the Atlanta Motor Speedway.

But this isn't as puzzling as it might sound: Giacometto heads up Gage LLC, a lobbying firm in DC. Like many former Senate staffers, he's turned corporate and leveraged his connections with his former boss and with Baucus. According to the Helena Independent-Record, Giacometto's specialty is telecom legislation; Burns chairs the Commerce Ctte's subcommittee on the subject. And Baucus, as ranking member of the finance ctte, has long been a key player in national telecom policy.

So what's next? David Castagnetti raising money for Burns?

And how will this look in a few months, when Baucus (presumably) raises money for a Dem who wants to defeat Burns?

Refresh your On Call repeatedly this afternoon.... Dr. James Dobson's folks tell us they're going to send out excerpts from his pre-taped radio broadcast in a few hours. Dobson has promised to share more about what Karl Rove told him in confidence....

Incoming RGA chair Mitt Romney joins FL Gov. Jeb Bush at the 2005 Florida Governors Forum in Miami on 11/4. The topic: "Natural Disaster Preparedness."

The roundtable itself is closed press, but there's a press conference following the meeting at the National Hurricane Ctr.

Since it's sponsored by the RGA, you can bet there'll be some fundraising. And expect Gov. Romney to try and meet with top GOP activists and donors in South Florida. [MARC AMBINDER]

Democrat Wesley Clark just announced some new travel plans this week in Alabama, Southern Virginia and Arkansas, where he'll appear Friday with Bill Clinton.

"General Clark brings a much needed credible voice to the party on
National Security issues and the values of patriotism and standing up for the common good. And he can take this message to parts of the
country that most national Democrats cannot," spins Clark spokesman
Erick Mullen in a statement.

Perennial Dem rising star/CT AG Dick Blumenthal decided against a 2006 gubernatorial bid, his office said Monday. Current Gov. Jodi Rell (R) has among the highest approval ratings in the country. Two Dems in the race so far: New Haven Mayor John Destefano and Stamford Mayor Dannel Malloy. The AP reports that Rell could announce her plans as early as Friday.

There's no bigger "keeper" issue of The Hotline, than the first one after a holiday weekend. Today's is no exception. The "Spotlight" delves into whether the nat'l mood of anti-incumbency and anti-gov't corruption explains Corzine's recent woes in NJ GOV. We have a ton of new numbers out of NJ, btw.

Other weekend "don't misses": Mike Murphy uniting his ex-client and current client in CA. ... Casey's gigantic 3rdQ in PA SEN ... the VA GOV debate nobody watched in DC ... BTW, do the Kilgore folks know something re: Plame that we don't by deciding to announce a Karl Rove campaign event? [CHUCK TODD]

More third quarter fundraising totals are trickling in. Ex-AZ Dem chair Jim Pederson said he raised more than 700K -- that's in less than three weeks. Most contributors gave less than $90, according to the campaign. (The wealthy Pederson expects to -- at some point -- write himself a check for more than $800K.) Incumbent Sen. John Kyl raised more than 800K through the quarter; he has a healthy $4.5M on hand. Observers expect the race to be among the most expensive in AZ history.

In Pennsylvania, Dems are touting their candidate's on-paper victory this quarter; PA Treas. Bob Casey took in $2M compared to Sen. Rick Santorum's $1.7M. But Casey has more time to attend fundraisers than Santorum, and Santorum has a two-to-one cash-on-hand advantage. Even Dems don't expect Santorum to be underfunded in '06, but they say his 3Q number may be a sign that Republican fundraisers don't want to contribute money to a race they don't see as winnable.

In Arkansas, gubernatorial candidate/ex-Clinton SSA official Bill Halter (D) announced a $500K haul a week after he formed his exploratory ctte. The other Dem in the race, AG Mike Beebe, plans to release his Q3 totals later this week, according to the AP. Beebe has more than $1M in the bank.

WSJ ed board member John Fund had this to say on Hugh Hewitt's radio program:

"[W]e are going to see six or seven surprises come down the road the next few days, about Harriet Miers. Now all of them are sustainable individually. The problem is because the White House was completely unprepared for this, they're doing a disservice to you and her supporters."

"Harriet Miers was in charge of the vetting process for the Supreme Court nominee[.] Since she ended up being picked herself, please explain to me exactly how much vetting was done, who did the vetting, and to what extent the vetting that was done on her was different, or the same as it would have been for any other nominee? You need to get the answers to those questions, because I have to tell you. I have gotten information on the vetting that was done with her. And frankly, it doesn't past muster for even a district court appointment."

BTW: Fund was much more supportive of Miers last week than he is now.

Former BC04 webmaster Patrick Ruffini has been hired as the new eCampaign director at the Republican National Committee. This is a smart hire for the RNC. The RNC has been criticized by conservative bloggers for engaging in half-hearted outreach.

Ruffini knows these guys and gals and they know (and like, and respect) him, and his mere presence along gives bloggers a conduit to the RNC -- and it gives the RNC a credible conduit to bloggers.

BTW: Ruffini is pro-Miers. And he's handed the reins of his popular straw poll to Hugh Hewitt.

From an item on his website: "When I started this thing back up again eleven months ago, little did I know how successful it would become. And this blog is only a tiny part of the larger story. It would have been easy for the blogosphere to take a breather after 2004, with the big question answered. But instead, it just kept on growing and growing. Today, it's becoming the essential medium for interacting with the news, just as the Web has become the indispensable medium for getting involved with politics and campaigns."

Ruffini was dep. dir. of online communications at the RNC 'till 6/03, when he joined BC04. [MARC AMBINDER]

As we told you here first last week. Dr. James Dobson plans to shed light on his pre-nomination phone conversation with Karl Rove. The time: on his radio program Wednesday and Thursday. Do not expect him to speak out before then. Sources inside the Focus on the Family empire say that only Dobson and his chief political lieutenant, Tom Minnery, are privy to the information.

The WH takes exception to last Friday's Washington Times report that officials were so weirded out by Demo praise for Miers that they tried to schedule drop-bys with Dem Senators in the evening. A WH official this a.m. tells us that's simply untrue. [MARC AMBINDER]

Conservatives of all stripes dominated the Sunday talk shows. And while, nothing groundbreaking was suggested on any of the shows, this one quote from Robertson, according to a transcript of CNN's "Late Edition," was surely startling to us when we read it:

"The elimination of Roe v. Wade won't stop abortion. Abortion's a private decision. But I just think it shouldn't be federalized."

That's right, Robertson said "abortion is a private decision." Enjoy your 3-day weekend. But be sure to check back for sporadic updates. [CHUCK TODD]

The president this afternoon withdrew the nomination of "Timothy Elliott Flanigan, of Virginia, to be Deputy Attorney." Flanigan worked in the White House under ex-WH counsel Al Gonzales and helped formulate the administration's policy on detainee interrogation. He's also a former associate of indicted GOP lobbyist Jack Abramoff. A vote on his nomination had been delayed after Democrats asked for a second hearing to question him some more.

The AP reports that the decision was Flanigan's.

Here's what we came across while perusing the RNC website this afternoon.

A rather pessimistic fundraising flash ad:

"15 GOP Senators

232 GOP House Members

21 GOP Governors

Could All Be Lost In 2006 Without Your Help"

DONATE: Support The RNC Today

Anybody want to venture a guess which Dem Sen. attended last night's Bill Buckley Bash celebrating National Review's 50th birthday?

A: Joementum.

(We won't tell the netroots.)

NRCC Chairman/Rep. Tom Reynolds (R-NY) sent an eleven page memo to the House GOP conference this a.m. urging them not to worry: their control of the House and their prospects for 2006 are in good shape.

Reynolds is cautious: "At the same time, we are entertaining into a sixth-year midterm against historical odds....Current national polling shows approval ratings for President Bush and Congress to be down."

Look no further than the 4th item in Wake-Up Call this a.m. for the inspiration for today's "Spotlight": How Dems are attempting to take advantage of what's turning into a Conservative meltdown over Miers.

BTW, isn't it interesting how the media is so comfortably taking up the conservative cause on this? When was the last time the MSM seemed so open to allowing so many conservatives on the tube to voice their ideological preferences without dissent? [We know, writing something like this is akin to throwing raw meat in a cage of pitbulls.]

Other stories of note coming in today's issue: FL GOV Dem field is shrinking ... To say Harry Reid is "tepid" about Jack Carter's NV SEN prospects is an insult to the word "tepid" ... Who's having more trouble with their own lawyer this a.m.? Karl Rove or Tom DeLay? Both Republicans seem to be having problems keeping their attys "on message." [CHUCK TODD]

Did the "sources" who gave the Washington Post an account of Harriet Miers's conversation with Sen. Pat Leahy about what Larry King would call the "da greats" of SCOTUS history give the correct context?

Here's what the Post says: "In an initial chat with Miers, according to several people with knowledge of the exchange, Leahy asked her to name her favorite Supreme Court justices. Miers responded with 'Warren"' -- which led Leahy to ask her whether she meant former Chief Justice Earl Warren, a liberal icon, or former Chief Justice Warren Burger, a conservative who voted for Roe v. Wade. Miers said she meant Warren Burger, the sources said."

WH sources are, not surprisingly, disputing the context. For one thing, a source says Leahy interrupted Miers after she said the first name "Warren" -- she was not nervously conflating a first name with a last name as an interpretation of the Post account suggests. Secondly, the source says that Miers mentioned other names, too. Thirdly, another source says that Miers meant to praise Burger's court administration skills. [MARC AMBINDER]

Our colleagues at CongressDaily cooked up a neat chart about rookies on the SCOTUS bench.

Here's the first graph: "Harriet Miers' lack of judicial experience is not unique among Supreme Court nominees. The late Chief Justice William Rehnquist had been a Phoenix lawyer and assistant attorney general before President Nixon nominated him to the court in 1971. Other justices who had never wielded a gavel include a former Republican governor of California (Chief Justice Earl Warren), several attorneys general (most recently Justice Tom Clark) and an SEC chairman (Justice William O. Douglas)."

One of the more intriguing questions to come to light in the wake of the Miers nomination is what bit of info Dr. James Dobson was given to temper his concerns. Dobson has hinted that it speaks to the heart of the matter -- Miers's core view of the court. But he won't say what it is. That has provoked, as Chuck Todd notes below, pointed questions from Democrats who wonder why Dobson seems to have access to information about Miers that the rest of us -- or them, as constitutional actors who will reject or confirm her nomination -- do not.

One Democratic Senator has decided to take the question to the next level. CO Sen. Ken Salazar (D), a frequent and often caustic critic of his fellow Coloradan, said today that if the White House revealed info about Miers to "groups" -- meaning, clearly, Dobson -- it may have waived claims to executive privilege that Miers, as White House counsel, is covered under. (Sorry to end that sentence with a preposition.) [MARC AMBINDER]

What I've learned from today's Hotline:

-- If Miers goes to the Senate floor, she will be confirmed. Withdrawal is the only chance unhappy conservatives have to stop this. Someone ought to call Doug Ginsberg, the last Republican SCOTUS withdrawal we can think of and find out how "withdrawal" takes place.

-- The only WH '08 GOP candidate who can really take advantage of this conservative split is George Allen. As the one mainstream conservative on the fence, he could really become a grassroots conservative hero (and basically bury Sam Brownback and Bill Frist) if he came out in opposition with something along the lines of: "Harriet Miers may turn out to be a great conservative justice, but conservatives aren't interested in hiding their ideology anymore; that's not what the American electorate has said the past three election cycles. So I'll oppose her for simply being too stealth." It would send the signal that he would nominate Borks and Scalias, music to the conservative grassroots' ears. More after the jump. [CHUCK TODD]

The questions. Paul Weyrich's up first. He asks whether Miers bowed to pressure when, as a member of the Dallas City Council, she voted to raise taxes. One of the participants responded that she would not bow to pressure on the court.

One participant pointed out that Ken Starr supported Miers. (Of course, he also supported O'Connor, originally.)

Pastor Rick Warren, author of the Purpose Driven Life, also supported Miers.

An activist asked about Miers' position on gay adoption; an organizer mentions that Miers did not endorse the repeal of sodomy laws on the now famous Dallas gay rights questionnaire.

The call ended at 4:15 pm ET. [MARC AMBINDER]

For a call designed to buck up prominent grasstops conservatives, James Dobson didn't seem very decisive. According to someone who listened to the call, Dobson said that "Harriet Miers will be a great justice on the United States Supreme Court. I'm not absolutely positive of that..."

More Dobson: "I know the church she goes to and what her history is in terms of her owb faith commitment. That means a whole lot to me. Am I absolutely positive? No. I don't know that you can be. Rocky Mountain News said that 'Dobson admits doubts.' You bet I do. But I believe the President has done the right thing."

Dr. Richard Land:, president of the Southern Baptist Convention "I think this is a brilliant nomination and I think it will be confirmed based on the way she rules on cases over the next decade."

WH pol. dir. Sara Taylor boiled down the argument to: look at the president's track record. Trust him. RNC chair Ken Mehlman echoed that assessment, pointing to Bush's record of appointing appelate judges like Janice Rogers Brown.

Also speaking: Dr. Richard Land, Jay Sekulow, Chuck Colson and Leonard Leo. [MARC AMBINDER]

According to the Washington Post today, WH nominee mgr. Ed Gillespie hinted to a group of Hill conservatives that opposition to Harriet Miers "has a whiff of sexism" which caused outrage from some of the participants in the meeting. Regardless of Gillespie's true meaning, the role of women in politics is still being defined, and it will be interesting to see if either real whiffs of sexism, or fake whiffs of sexism used for political spin are present as more women are nominated to positions of power.

It's an effective piece of political spin -- whether it's true or not -- to be able to accuse those who oppose female nominees of sexism. It may be unfair, but it will still be a dynamic to look out for during the Miers nomination and even an '08 WH bid by HRC. [MOLLY CHAPMAN NORTON]

It's somewhat surprising that the Fairfax Chamber of Commerce's PAC decided to endorse ex-AG Jerry Kilgore. That's in part because the audience in the Chamber-sponsored debate last month seemed to be pro Tim Kaine. And Kaine has aggresively courted the NoVa business community that helped elect of its own, Mark Warner, four years ago. Perhaps this means that Kilgore's aggresively anti-tax stumping is paying off, and it certainly lends credibility to his transportation proposals for NoVa. [MARC AMBINDER]

The frontrunners in the MN SEN race have released their 3rdQ fundraising figures. Rep. Mark Kennedy (R) raised $800K for the 3rdQ, up from his $750K take in the 2ndQ, while Hennepin Co. Atty. Amy Klobuchar (D) raised $500K, down from about $650K in the 2ndQ. In CoH, Kennedy has brought himself from a deficit of about $150K relative to Klobuchar, and now leads her approx. $1.5M to $1.4M. It looks like that EMILY's List money won't be arriving a moment too soon.

'04 MN-06 nominee/child safety advocate Patty Wetterling (D) raised about $410K in the 2ndQ, so it will be interesting to see whether her fundraising has increased or also diminished during the 3rdQ. The CW over the past few months has been that Klobuchar is wrapping up the DFL establishment support for the race, so it would be surprising if she didn't increase her fundraising lead over Wetterling during the 3rdQ. Of course, it wasn't Wetterling's fundraising that was her biggest problem in the 2ndQ. By outspending Klobuchar over 3-1 in that period she left herself with only 1/3 of Klobuchar's CoH. Has Wetterling scaled back her expenses or is she still burning through cash as quickly as she brings it in (as was the case last Q)? [QUINN MCCORD]

The AP reports that Karl Rove will testify at the "11th hour" before Patrick Fitzgerald's grand jury. Fitzgerald notified Rove that his testimony could be used against him, which the AP interprets as a sign that Fitzgerald may be looking to indict the deputy chief of staff. The news follows a day of lefty blog spec that dozens of WH officials would be indicted, soonest.

Rove atty. Robert Luskin told CNN that Fitzgerald had not sent Rove a target letter and that Rove's testimony was entirely voluntary.

Just days after Sen. John McCain hinted that beleaguered Ohio Gov. Bob Taft (R)should step down, he endorsed one of the three Republicans aiming to succeed him: current Sec/stateKen Blackwell. Was this a way for McCain to say, hey, Blackwell is the cleanest of the three? Another example of his conservative positioning for WH 08?

From the Blackwell campaign's release: "Ohioans need Ken Blackwell's clear thinking, straight talk and strong leadership at the top of the ticket," said Senator McCain. "His agenda for limited government, economic development and job creation will put Ohio back on a winning path."

Hotline Blogometer writer William Beutler passes along Daily Kos's endorsement of Rep. Sherrod Brown for OH Sen. Provided Brown runs... Provided Hackett runs against him.

MA Gov. Mitt Romney is in DC today. He's having lunch with temp. maj. leader Roy Blunt (R-MO) and chief deputy whip Eric Cantor (R-VA.) And yes, that was DNC chair Howard Dean going into Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's office this morning. [MARC AMBINDER]

Playing off a post from yesterday, the "Spotlight" is asking what can be learned nationally from the upheaval that's taking place in various mayor's races in '05.

Also of note: How big of a lead is Santorum and the NRSC going to allow Casey to get before paid media begins? What's Romney waiting for? Is he worried about being a lame duck MA GOV? Could a Karen Hughes earnings story be coming at a worst time for a WH fighting "cronyism" charges? Is today the day we have to bring back a "DeLay Indictment" section? See you at 11:40! [CHUCK TODD]

ABC News' The Note today reports that RNC chairman Ken Mehlman, surely a glutton for punishment, has an afternoon conference call with social conservative activists. We asked a few prominent anti-Miers conservative bloggers whether they'd been on the receiving end of some RNC/Mehlman love, and they said "no."

That's a bit surprising. The official GOP has traditionally treated the conservative blogosphere as a peripheral extension of the party, not as a fully-vested component of the base. So in situations like these, when the party's base isn't on the same page, it assumes that normal outreach to coalitions will seep down to the bloggers. For the most part -- aside from a few e-mails from party types to Cornerites, there is little contact.(Progress for America does a better job, we are told, at blogger outreach.) That might be something the RNC wants to rethink, especially since blog agitas is getting MSM attention and seems to be fueling, rather than simply reflecting, doubts. Is this the moment when the GOP "netroots" finally comes into its own?[MARC AMBINDER]

From the White House: "President Bush will host the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall at the White House for a lunch and a dinner on November 2, 2005. This will be the Duchess of Cornwall's first foreign travel representing the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom is one of America's closest friends and allies, and is a leading partner in the cause of freedom."

Another day, another Union-Leader editorial criticizing Pres. Bush. Yesterday, the editors of the New Hampshire Union-Leader, widely read by Granite State voters and '08 wannabes alike, came out against Harriet Miers. Today, the edit board questions the president's commitment to fiscal conservatism. [JOHN MERCURIO]

Eat your hearts out, Rob Reiner and Martin Sheen. Howard Dean's moving up in the world. We hear Dean partied past midnight today with Mick Jagger at a tony DC hotspot (such as it is). Sources say Dean, following a dinner at Bobby Van's Steakhouse (the gov/chairman/doctor had tuna), showed up at Cafe Milano in Georgetown, where he had a planned rendezvous with the aging rocker, developer/moneyman Herb Miller and a small group of friends. It wasn't exactly Voodoo Lounge. But not bad, for a Wednesday. [JOHN MERCURIO]

Interesting item on the President's schedule tomorrow:

11:40 am THE PRESIDENT participates in a tribute to National Review Magazine and William F. Buckley, Jr.

EEOB - Room 450, The White House

OPEN PRESS

We assume he's been told about this.

As promised, I will try to highlight "wisdom before it's conventional" after thoroughly perusing each day's Hotline. Some thoughts after devouring today's issue:

-- Change is in the air: The single most overlooked item in today's issue has to be the Cleveland mayor's race. Incumbent Jane Campbell not only was forced into a runoff but didn't even finish first yesterday. She's not alone. Incumbent mayors from mid-to-large-sized cities have been taking it on the chin this year. See Los Angeles (incumbent lost), St. Paul (incumbent losing), Minneapolis (incumbent in trouble), St. Pete (incumbent in trouble) and Detroit (incumbent losing). Why does this matter? More after the jump. [CHUCK TODD]

Rep. Sherrod Brown's(D-OH) apparent decision to run for SEN certainly puts '05 OH-02 nominee Paul Hackett (D) in an awkward position. By publicly reconsidering the race just as Hackett was announcing, Brown leaves the Iraq war vet with a difficult choice. Will Hackett force a primary with the well-funded Brown or risk losing face by withdrawing less than a week after he entered the race? Given that Hackett was scrappy enough to contest the uphill OH-02 special earlier this year, he may well embrace the challenge of a fierce SEN primary contest. Normally, the liberal blogosphere would have no problem with a Brown SEN candidacy, but Hackett is a particular favorite of theirs, and many of them may resent the embarrassing position in which Brown has placed Hackett. How actively would the liberal blog fundraising apparatus tout Hackett in a primary against a more established Dem? Ironically, wouldn't Brown, with an ADA rating of 95%/100% in the last Congress, be a more reliable liberal vote than the self-described "conservative" Dem Hackett? BTW: we hear that folks close to OH Dem Gov candidate Ted Strickland think he has a better shot if Brown, not Hackett is a ticket-mate. Does that somehow factor in? [QUINN MCCORD]

Some observers wonder why prominent evangelicals tend be more inclined to give Harriet Miers the benefit of their concerns than non-evangelicals?

One reason may be that they personally identify with her religious journey.

Miers, raised a Catholic, was born again in the late 1970s or early 1980s. James Dobson says he trusts Miers because (a) he trusts the President, (b) Miers is a committed evangelical and (c) some other bit of information he was told by WH folks but refuses to share. Chuck Colson, a famously redeemed evangelical, was an early endorser. So was Marvin Olasky, who grew up Jewish and accepted Christ as an adult. So did Jay Sekulow. It's not a Catholic vs. Protestant thing, certainly; The Federalist Society's Leonard Leo is a Miers partisan who served as the Bush-Cheney campaign's principle Catholic strategist. [MARC AMBINDER]

National Review Cornerite/NY Post pundit John Podhoretz broaches the subject less gingerly.

While Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) is one of the most vulnerable Dems up for re-election this year, she may benefit from an unusually strong GOP field. While that may sound counterintuitive, Washington State's late primary (the third Tuesday in September) would leave the winner of a GOP primary just seven weeks to run against Cantwell alone. [REID WILSON]

The Hotline has learned that ex-VA Gov/Richmond Mayor Doug Wilder told a major VA paper today that his endorsement in the AG's race would be determined in large measure by what each of the candidates, state Del. Bob McDonnell (R) and state Sen. Creigh Deeds (D), tells him is their position on one of Wilder's signature achievements as governor -- the commonwealth's '93 restriction on handgun purchases to one per month. [JONATHAN MARTIN]

From a television ad airing now on behalf of St. Petersburg, FL mayoral candidate Ed Helm:

Announcer: "Despite rising crime and murder rates, Rick Baker ignored the city while helping run George Bush's campaign. Under Baker the murder rate went up 36%. Under Baker the violent crime rate is nearly four times the national average. We need a mayor focused on St. Petersburg. We need Ed Helm. As mayor, Ed Helm will fully fund the police. As mayor, Ed Helm will make our city safer. On November 8, elect Ed Helm mayor."

From today's Hotline: WH nominee mgr. Ed Gillespie faced a grilling from conservative movement leaders this a.m. at Grover Norquist's Wednesday meeting in DC over Harriet Miers. Gillespie declined to place the substance of the exchanges on the record but discussed them with reporters as he departed. Gillespie acknowledged the worries he heard inside, saying "I know there are some conservatives out there who are concerned." One questioner went so far as to tell Gillespie that "the trust was broken" between Bush and his base, but Gillespie, in recalling the moment later, dismissed the charges, saying that Miers "own's remarks" refute the premise that the president failed to live up to his campaign promises. More Gillespie: "The president has nominated put someone on the bench who will apply the laws rather than make the laws." [MARC AMBINDER]

Dr. James Dobson devoted his thirty minute radio broadcast today to a full and forthright defense of SCOTUS nominee Harriett Miers. Dobson: "I know that our listeners are confused and not sure about Harriet Miers," he said, "and want to know why I have come out, initially at least, in favor of her nomination and what I know that maybe they don't know."

Dobson has strongly hinted that WH Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove and others have told him that Miers favors overturning Roe v. Wade, but he has not shared the details of these conversations. [MARC AMBINDER]

The bloggers at the left-leaning Center for American Progress have put together a short video mocking Pres. Bush and his SCOTUS nominee/friend Harriet Miers. Hint: It's to the tune of "Thank You for Being a Friend." You're forgiven if you feel like you're watching the opening credits of "Golden Girls." [JOHN MERCURIO]

The "Spotlight" is easy this a.m. While it's clear Brownback and Coburn are very squeamish re: Miers, what about those other senators thinking about '08? Does the Miers vote become a 2008 GOP primary litmus test? Frist and McCain appear to be pro-Miers, Allen's on the fence. Is this how he shows distance from the WH? Remember, George Will's most recent praise-worthy WH '08 column was on... Allen.

Also of note today: How will Harry Reid stop Jack Carter from challenging John Ensign? Why isn't more attention being paid to Evan Bayh's idea for Iraq updates? Is the Dem Party so dead in the O.C., that their best candidate finished in single digits in the CA 48 special? [CHUCK TODD]

The drumbeat for Senate GOPers to reject Harriet Miers' nomination grew louder this morning as two leading conservative voices, columnist George Will and the New Hampshire Union-Leader, came out against her. [JOHN MERCURIO]

Minuteman founder Jim Gilchrist did it. He prevented Republican John Campbell from nabbing 50% and avoiding a Dec. runoff in the CA 48 special to replace SEC Chair Chris Cox. Campbell nabbed 46%, the more moderate GOPer Marilyn Brewer was a VERY distant second with 17%, followed by Gilchrist at 14% and Democrat Steve Young (no, not the ex-49er, but this CA 48er) with 9%. Campbell, Gilchrist and Young will all meet in the runoff since Gilchrist ran on a third party line. Results after the jump. [CHUCK TODD]

Family Research Council president Tony Perkins writes in his Washington Update e-mail today about Harriet Miers' purported courting of the gay community during her run for Dallas city council in 1989. Says Perkings: "

I have a concern that Miss Miers was helping to legitimize the drive of homosexual organizations for power and influence over our public policies.

Sen. George Allen (R-VA) makes a second trip to New Hampshire in two weeks. NH GOPers sent around an invitation to join Allen at the home of Phil and Anne Caparso on 10/15 in Strathan. Best of all, it's free. So if no fundraising in involved in a NH trip, it kind of makes you wonder why one even keep ups the facade of not yet having decided to explore a presidential run. [MARC AMBINDER]

Q: Are you still a conservative?

Bush: Am I what?

(From the presidential news conference) [NORA MCALVANAH]

From today's Hotline: Progress for America is about to gin up a 500K ad campaign to promote Miers. The spot is entitled "Trailblazer." It's a national cable buy. The ad will begin airing either tonight or Wednesday, depending on when enough ad time can be secured. It will air at least through Friday. PFA will supplement the buy with a 20-state "grassroots" effort, including e-mails.

Steve Schmidt, the affable Cheney aide who helmed the WH SCOTUS press operation, has departed the White House for a three-week assignment in Iraq. He'll be the administration's eyes and ears on the ground. [MARC AMBINDER]

Time.com has more on that gay issue questionnaire Miers filled out. They're billing it as an exclusive, for some reason.

'02 nominee Peter Cianchette's (R) decision to withdraw from the ME GOV race is something of a minor blow for the GOP. While it was in no imminent danger of becoming a toss-up race, some GOPers hoped that ME's economic troubles might open the door for a serious challenge to Gov. John Baldacci (D), and Cianchette was considered the strongest of the announced candidates. [QUINN MCCORD]

Less than a day after Ten Commandments Judge Roy Moore kicked off his '06 primary challenge to AL Gov. Bob Riley (R), Moore's rivals have launched a blog to "stop" him. The blog can be found at http://stoproy.blogspot.com. Today, it features a quote from a recent interview Moore gave the Birmingham News, in which he said, "We've got a war going on and most Christians are asleep. .. I'll let you know if I decide to run ... There are things to consider. Politics hasn't always exactly been kind to me." "Roy hasn't always exactly been kind to politics, either, bloggers write. "And we're not exactly going to be kind to Roy. After all, there's "a war going on." [JOHN MERCURIO]

Be sure to check out John McCain's odd call for OH Gov. Bob Taft's resignation. He stops just short. But what intrigues me more is the idea that McCain v. Bob Taft harkens back to another Republican that a guy named Taft once feuded with: Teddy Roosevelt. McCain calls Teddy R. his political hero. Could the ghost of Teddy (using McCain) once again be haunting a Taft? [CHUCK TODD]

SCOTUS nominee Harriet Miers, AL Gov. Bob Riley, and Marilyn Brewer, a moderate GOPer in today's CA48 special, all feel a tad unloved today from their party's right flank. They're all GOP loyalists, to be sure, whose years of party loyalty have helped them rise to varied posts of power. But today, each faces their own fight with their party's brazen right, challenging their ideological purity and status as "one of us." Check out today's "Spotlight" for our take on the fight on the right. [JOHN MERCURIO]

His response is quite detailed and obviously reflects a lot of thought. (Bush spoke knowledgably about the "H5-N1" virus... name-dropping Tony Fauci...treatment options "there's a spray"...)

The government's response to the threat of the flu is arguably more important than the hullaballoo over a Supreme Court nominee. Let's see how -- and where -- the press plays these comments.

Bush: "There is a divide in our country when it comes to wealth. You can't divorce bridging divides from economic vitality. (Huh?) You can't divorce bridging divides from ownership. (?) I think there's something so powerfully healing about a society in which more and more people have ownership. Education is a vital part of bridging divides."

The ABC News correspondent notes that Bush presided over the largest expansion of the federal government. Bush: "We're are war." And he reminded Moran that the budget he submitted to the Congress reduces non-security discretionary spending. BTW: it's hard to make a political argument in favor of anything involving the words "non-security discretionary spending." Hence the problem not only with the conservative elite in DC, but elsewhere in the country. Seeing lots of figures go up... and only one figure going down... probably doesn't cut it.

Has Bush ever discussed abortion with Miers? "I have no litmus test. That's also something I've consistently said. What matters to me is her judicial philosophy."

A follow-up: "Have you never discussed abortion with her?" Bush: "In my interviews with any judge, I have never asked about abortion."

MSNBC's O'Donnell presses. But did you ever talk about with her?

Bush doesn't remember that he ever did.

A reporter asks: of all the folks out there, is Harriett Miers the most qualified?

Bush: "Yes, or else I wouldn't have put her on." He then describes her credentials. "She's an enormously accomplished person and is incredibly bright." And "She knows what I'm looking for...."

More:

I know her well enough for her to be able to say that she's not going to change....I picked the best person I could find."

Who else looks forward to Mike Allen's triumphant return to the WH press core during?

The President sounds and looks very tired.

"Will not legislate from the bench" -- That is Bush’s new favorite phrase, I think. It's his judicial adaptation of 'rout out the evildoers and bring them to justice' or 'soft bigotry of low expectations."

"Over the past three decades, Harriet Miers has built a stellar record of accomplishment in the law." More Bush: "She shares my philosophy that judges should strictly interpret the laws."

As I type, I'm distracted by the President's background. The American flags waiving in the background are fluttering.

More meat for the base: he asks Congress for "real cuts" in non-security spending and said he would call for "deep cuts" in mandatory programs. The "private sector" will save New Orleans, etc.

What do Roy Moore, Jim Gilchrist and Harriet Miers all have in common? You'll find out in today's "Spotlight" but needless to say they are all players in this ongoing battle for purity inside the Republican Party.

Also of note from today's issue: October is turning into the single busiest month for WH '08 travel. Sam Brownback will travel to IA and NH in a 72-hour span this month. And despite the 2nd indictment, look for just one DeLay story today but an entire special section devoted to Miers. [CHUCK TODD]

The WH and allies blanketed television in their Miers offensive. Dan Bartlett was on all the morning shows this a.m. Last night, Nicolle Devenish was on "Hardball," James Dobson was putting his trust in the president on "Special Report" while Newt Gingrich was defending her on "O'Reilly Factor" and Mary Matalin stopped by "Hannity & Colmes." Meanwhile, FNC contributor Bill Kristol was no where to be seen. [EMILY GOODIN]

The White House decided it was time for the President to speak directly to the folks. So, at 10:30 a.m. in the Rose Garden, he will hold a press conference. The networks and the cablers will take it live.

At around the same time as she donated money to Al Gore and Democrats, Harriet Miers tentatively expressed support for the concept of gay rights. But when it came to specifics, she balked. According to the Associated Press, "went on record favoring equal civil rights for gays when she ran for Dallas city council, and she said the city had a responsibility to pay for AIDS education and patient services."

But...

Because I believe The Hotline's job is to deliver "wisdom before it's conventional," I'm going to attempt each day to note what I believe are the 3 or 4 pieces of news in The Hotline that have potentially changed the so-called "C.W." [CHUCK TODD]

Who is the first GOP Senator to denounce Miers? (Tepid statements notwithstanding...) and who is the first commentator to make the argument that Bush's choice was politically brilliant because Miers (a) confuses the heck out of Democrats (b) will likely be confirmed and (c) will have the opportunity to rule "favorably" on abortion cases before 2006, thus allowing Bush's enormous investment of his political capital to mature? [MARC AMBINDER]

Now, for money laundering.

However.

It appears as if Ronnie Earle and Co. used a separate grand jury to re-indict DeLay using the same set of facts to arrive at a different charge. The problem: the Texas law Earle used to indict DeLay the first time seems not to have been in effect when DeLay allegedly entered into his conspiracy. See this brutal read-thru from the Austin American-Statesman.

The solution: fashion a conspiracy charge alleging money laundering.

Here's Delay's response, in a statement to the Hotline: "Ronnie Earle has stooped to a new low with his brand of prosecutorial abuse. He is trying to pull the legal equivalent of a 'do-over' since he knows very well that the charges he brought against me last week are totally manufactured and illegitimate."

Close observers of New York state politics know Bob Congel and the clout of his Pyramind Companies. Congel is a big macher in GOP circles; A Bush pioneer, he has the ear of influential appropriating GOpers like AK Rep. Don Young. Congel has been at war with Syracuse Mayor Matt Driscoll, a Democrat up for re-election this year, over Congel's plans to expand a local mall and continue to develop an high-tech, environmentally friendly retail and business complex called DestinyUSA. Congel believes the development is owed a thirty-year tax break under a complex 2002 ordinance passed to spur economic development. Driscoll and the city council have balked. They rejected Congel's first proposal and remain skittish. Lots of money, jobs, and perhaps Driscoll's political future is at stake. Hence the war. And now, a controversial ad. [MARC AMBINDER]

The Office of Management and Budget today rescinded a post-Katrina reg that allowed government procurment and relief officials to spend as much as $250K on govermment credit cards without pre-approval. As of now, the limit is $2,500. Spending more requires OMB honchos' signature. OMB deputy dir. Clay Johnson announced the rule change here. [MARC AMBINDER]

Ex-Alabama Supreme Court Justice Roy Moore kickstarted his much-awaited bid for AL Gov. today. We'd bet the RGA is a little upset that he officially announced before Gov. Bob Riley did. That primary is early enough (June 6). Republicans in Washington hope to tamp down excitement over the guy by subjecting him, well, issues other than his strong support for displaying 10 Commandments. Here's his just-off-the-staging server website. Our colleague at the Atlantic, Joshua Green, wrote the only piece on Moore you ever need to read.

Here's the latest round of RNC talking points. The stress is on favorable reaction from conservatives -- Dobson's "oustanding" adjective is put high up -- and on her political contributions to Republicans. [MARC AMBINDER]

From Focus On The Family's James Dobson: "We welcome the president's nomination of Harriet Miers to the U.S. Supreme Court. He pledged emphatically during his campaign to appoint judges who will interpret the law rather than create it. He also promised to select competent judges who will 'not use the bench to write social policy.

From the folks at Creative Response Concepts:

According to Kyleen Wright at Texans for Life, Harriet Miers gave $150 to the organization -- then known as Texans United for Life -- in 1989. Miers was a bronze patron for their annual dinner in which Henry Hyde was the keynote speaker. She was listed in the program as a bronze sponsor. [MARC AMBINDER]

Rush Limbaugh: ""The key line of criticism right now is focusing on the fact -- the cronyism, that she is simply a crony, that Bush is using this opportunity to reward a loyal supporter of his...."

Although ex-VA Gov/Richmond Mayor Doug Wilder is remaining mum on any gubernatorial endorsement until after the third and final debate this Sunday between LG Tim Kaine and ex-AG Jerry Kilgore, a source close to the nation's first and only elected black governor told The Hotline earlier today that Wilder would make an announcement tomorrow regarding "statewide politics this year." Asked if the announcement would pertain to one of VA's two down-ticket races (LG and AG), the source said "probably." [JONATHAN MARTIN]

So businessman Josh Rales (D) is in the MD SEN race now. With all due respect to Rales, Allan Lichtman, Lise Van Susteren, etc., when was the last time MD elected anyone statewide who had never before served in public office? MD Dem primary voters may well be the most pro-"experience" electorate in the country. [QUINN MCCORD]

As of 2:11 pm, it seems that CNN's Kyra Phillips still mistakes Exodus International," which is an evangelical ministry focused on "reparing" homosexual orientations, for "Exodus Ministries," which is a prison rehabiliation ministry. Miers was counsel to the latter -- the prison one -- not the former. WH press sec. Scott McClellan was pressed on this point early in the briefing, and he was quick to correct the record. That said, earlier in the day recieved an e-mail from a prominent conservative helping the administration that alerted us to her work for the "ex-gay" ministry. The confusion was not therefore limited to the press. [MARC AMBINDER]

Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE): "It appears the President has made a sound choice in Harriet Miers. From every indication it seems that she has the qualifications and experience to serve on the Supreme Court. Based on her background and experience, if confirmed, she would undoubtedly bring a new perspective and balance to the Court."

Over on Marvin Olasky's World blog, a fascinating series of posts based on an interview with one Nathan Hecht (a TX Supreme Court Judge now), who is "very close friends" with Miers and even "dated" her "some." Hecht says Miers belonged to a "fundamentalist" church back in Dallas and has views on abortion that evangelicals will be very comfortable with. For more blog reaction, check out The Blogometer. [MARC AMBINDER]

[MARC AMBINDER] -- As he speaks about Harriet Miers, Sen. Harry Reid is effusive. He particularly likes the fact that she is a trial lawyer, like him. I'm "very happy that we have someone like her." He seems very upbeat about the chances that he'll vote for her but refuses to say definitively whether he'll vote for him. True to form, Reid also likes Miers because she's "personable...and answers her phone when you call." And Reid is a guy who likes his calls answered. Reid says "it speaks well" of Miers that she contributed to Al Gore. As he does this, Miers' facial reaction noticably hardens.

[JOSH KRAUSHAAR] -- Rush: "The early line is focusing on cronyism... she is simply a crony, Bush is using this opportunity to reward someone loyal to him...Mr. Vice President, frankly this surprises me...the desire among the president's supporters out there... to change the direction of this court...has disappointed some of them...There has to be some knowledge on your part that there's some disappointment out there." More to come...

[JOHN MERCURIO] -- Onto the list of reasons that conservatives are reacting tepidly to the Miers nom, we toss this nugget: With all due respect, isn't she a little ... well, old? Didn't WH aides cite age as a reason Bush chose the 50-year-old John Roberts over the 57-year-old Edith Clement? Well, Harriet Miers is 60. If one of Bush's top goals here was to reshape the High Court "for decades to come," why not nominate someone younger?

"While Ms. Miers has not previously served as a judge, legal expertise, wisdom and fairness are not traits exclusive to those currently on the bench. President Bush has an outstanding track record of nominating fair-minded men and women who fairly adjudicate cases based upon the Constitution and the law and do not superimpose their personal views to amend the Constitution by judicial decree."

[MARC AMBINDER] -- At the White House press briefing this p.m., queries to Scott McClellan focused mainly on the "cronyism" question -- that word was mentioned numerous times -- and why the conservative base appears to be skittish. His response: "Look at her record. Her record is one of being a trailblaizer in the legal profession." Etc. A big WH talking point appears to be the preference expressed by Rehnquist and others that the court would be well-served by an experienced litigator who hadn't served as a judge or justice. Also: "Sen. Harry Reid made some very positive comments about Harriet Miers.

[MARC AMBINDER] -- It may not be all that confusing. The President is clearly walking over hot coals right now. And with this pick, he's asked the base: "Will you walk with me?" The GOP base trusts the President. The president trusts Harriet Miers. The White House bets that the transitive property of trust will apply. The first president Bush did not know David Souter all that well; President Bush knows Miers better than he knows Al Gonzales, Condi Rice or even Vice President Cheney.

[CHUCK TODD] -- When it rains it pours. A slew of potential "Spotlights" today but we're going with the obvious: Harriet Miers. Did the WH make the calculation that they wanted to find a Court nominee who could breeze through the process? Harry Reid's qualified "support" for her is giving Senate Dems heartburn this a.m.

Also worthy of a "Spotlight" on a less busy news day: GOP recruiting problems (Edgar, Hoeven, Capito all say no to '06); the DNC's decision to allow two diverse, yet small states, into the IA-NH calendar space; Tom Tancredo cutting TV ads for the anti-immigration candidate in CA 48; and apparently Tom DeLay is still in the news...

And considering all the great new features we've debuted in the last few weeks (including "On Call," a new WH '08 TV tracking service and "Hotline Monday Morning") we couldn't have been blamed if we decided to do a "Spotlight" on ourselves. But even we don't have an ego that big...

Since it's clear this "internet" thing is no longer a fad, we thought we'd become the umpteenth member of the so-called MSM to debut a blog. The purpose of "Hotline On Call" is to give our readers a place to go for breaking news and analysis at all hours of the day. You've come to rely on Hotline for updates four times a day, so why not 40 times a day? Ok, maybe not 40 times a day. But if you are in search of instant political news and instant analysis, "Hotline On Call" is the place. Obviously, we will allow comments, so feel free to share your opinions, criticisms and, most importantly, effusive praise.