WHAT'S BREWING
The 9/11 Commission's chairmen -- Kean and Hamilton -- considered probing the Pentagon and the FAA for "possible deception." And " ... that their panel was too soft in questioning former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani - and that the 20-month investigation may have suffered for it." Also: some on the cmte wanted to include Israel as a "root cause" of terrorist grievance. The NYT says the Pentagon's IG has largely cleared its agency.
Re: Iraq. Thomas Friedman wants an exit strategy. Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-NE) wants the US to start a phased redeployment from Iraq within six months. The NYT writes on Clinton, Lieberman and the War.
The Quorum Report's Harvey Kronberg summarizes the new Texas map: " In a nutshell, today's decision from three-judge federal panel gives all of Webb County to Congresman Henry Cuellar in the 28th Congressional District; shores up Hispanics in Congressman Henry Bonilla's district with South San Antonio; squeezes the southern boundary on Congressman Lloyd Doggett's "fajita strip" 25th Congressional District north, giving him a Central Texas district dominated by Travis County; pushes a number of new Hill County counties into Congressman Lamar Smith's 21st Congressional District; and settles up the balance by giving a number of South Texas counties to Ruben Hinojosa in the 15th Congressional District."
"By late Wednesday night, it was clear to vote counters in both parties that Frist was short of cloture. “It became obvious that the Democrats were not going to step up. They were going to hide behind confusing the issue,” said one senior Republican aide." The Hotline tick-tocks the death of the Trifecta bill.
Smaller deficit projection from the CBO, but....weaker than expected job growth and a spike in the unemployment rate.
Channeling Charlie Cook, the Washington Times worries about an electoral rout for the GOP. For National Journal subscribers, here's a link to Cook's "Gathering Storm" column.
From the NGA meeting: Tom Vilsack's great uncle is buried in SC. >>> Did you know that SC's Hispanic population had the third fastest growth rate in the country? >>> Mike Huckabee, at a "Celebration for Classic Marriage," says he hopes the word "marriage" still means something.
Is this the story that gets Jon Ralston to face off with John DiStaso? "Gov. John Lynch and the state's two congressmen oppose a U.S. Senate proposal that could force the Seabrook Station and Vermont Yankee nuclear power plants to become storage facilities for spent nuclear fuel while postponing a permanent storage facility in Nevada."
Landis, after failing test two, is no longer considered the champ in France.
'06 SENATE RACES
Ex-Clinton comm.dir/current DLC comm. dir. Tammy Sun is in CT helping Joe Lieberman's team deal with national press. >>> Also: Meet Tom Swan. >>> Lieberman is calm, nervous and low-key. >>> Lieberman is more popular nationally with Republicans than Democrats. >>> Bienart defends Joe in the latest TNR.
An RNC poll taken last week gives Bob Corker (R) a 15 point lead over Harold Ford (D) in a head-to-head match up. Corker scored 53.5 percent of the survey. Ford did not score higher than the Democratic candidate in a generic R v. D question. The poll shows Ford strong around Memphis and Corker stronger elsewhere else; on Iraq, the poll found that the "finish the job" message is farily popular. Meanwhile, the DSCC noted that Sen. Maj. Leader Bill Frist called Ford "oustanding," noting that the race presented two "outstanding candidates" with real, party-inflected differences.
This ain't as crazy as it sounds, but.... "Montana researchers' vision of honeybees swarming across a field to detect landmines in Afghanistan or roadside bombs in Iraq may get a $5 million boost after Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont., included the funding in a Defense Department spending bill."
PA: A Morning Call/Muhlenberg College poll shows Santorum within four. Democrats (and even some Republicans) cast doubt on the numbers, which don't track with other public and private surveys. Dems figure out that six Santorum staff members and an intern helped collect signatures for Romanelli (G).
VA: The Washington Post on the (im)maturity of the VA Senate race. >>> The DSCC passes over James Webb, for now.
FL: It's not polite to ask Katherine Harris to withdraw from the race when she's in the room.
'06 GOVERNORS RACES
CA: Dems (Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and the guy who literally built the DNC headquarters building, Haim Saban) endorse Schwarzenegger
MI: Thanks, headline writers: "Devos Talks About Several Issues." (He opposes embyonic stem cell research.)
MN: Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R-MN) is in line to become the next RGA chair. Which two presidential hopefuls have been heavily courting him? We're just asking....
NV: The GOP gubernatorial candidates had money on their minds in their first debate.
No Dixie Chicks in Des Moines on 8/24.
'06 HOUSE RACES
GA 04: McKinney blasts Johnson's new ad; Johnson's up 13 in Insider Adv. poll;
MI 07: Walberg files FEC complaints about Schwarz
PA 12: Murtha challenger Diana Irey gets a mention in Bob Novak's weekend notebook column.
PA 06: Lois Murphy (D) has made public an internal poll that shows her tied or slightly ahead of Rep. Jim Gerlach (R).
CROSSING OUR TRANSOM
August 8: CT: Lieberman (D/I-CT) v. Lamont (D-Bloggers); MI (Bouchard v. Butler) and MI-07 GOP primary; Also: CO-07 Dem primary and primaries in MO. And the GA 04 run-off. Hotline On Call has real-time results and analysis.
POTUS: in Wisconsin on Wednesday.
Sen. John McCain has a packed August schedule: he's in IA for the state fair and campaigning beginning the 15th; on the 16th, he's in Council Bluffs; he then travels to Louisiana. And then on 7/17, he appears in Virginia for a fundraiser with (cough) Sen. Goerge Allen. He's in SC later that day for a fundraising for Adjutant General Stan Spears. He's also in SC in 8/19. He campaigns for Sen. Mike DeWine on 8/20 and 8/21.
It's not on his public schedule, but we hear that IA Gov. Tom Vilsack (D-IA) will attend the AFl-CIO's executive committee meeting this Sunday in Chicago. He's a guest at a reception for the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers.
RedState relaunches Monday.
CHEW ON THIS
Considering how many problems the Lieberman campaign has experienced in this primary, why are any of us so sure they even have the correct number of petition sigs they need to qualify as an indie?
Will Cuban legends be more accurate than Jeanne Dixon?
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that report on the 9/11 commission is horsesh*t and a red herring. the damn commission went easy on the white house.