July 2009

Instead of our usual count down of five House stories, check out our latest ranking of the top 15 House rankings. You'll find them here.

Here are the scheduled guests for the Sunday public affairs shows and other weekend programs:

SUNDAY:

Meet the Press hosts NEC dir. Lawrence Summers, Washington Post's Dan Balz, author Haynes Johnson, DLC Chair/ex-Rep. Harold Ford Jr. and ex-Rep. J.C. Watts (R-OK).

Face the Nation hosts Summers and a roundtable with Washington Post's Bob Woodward, New York Times' David Brooks and syndicated columnist Kathleen Parker.

This Week hosts Treas. Sec. Tim Geithner and ex-Fed Chair Alan Greenspan. The roundtable is author/columnist Michelle Malkin, Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Cynthia Tucker, Bloomberg's Al Hunt and Wall Street Journal's Jerry Seib.

Fox News Sunday hosts House Ways & Means Cmte Chair Charlie Rangel (D-NY), Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) and Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN). The power player is Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL).

State of the Union hosts Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and WH Council of Economic Advisers Chair Christina Romer (see below for guests on SOTU's Reliable Sources segment).

See other weekend shows after the jump.

(MAURA O'BRIEN)

"Nightly News," "World News" and "Evening News" all led with the WH beer summit.

Health care reform took a backseat on TV last night, as the WH "beer summit" with Henry Louis Gates and Sgt. James Crowley dominated the airwaves.

Among those who weighed in on the meeting:

FNC's Goler, on the beer summit: "I'm unimpressed. ... We had hoped for more. The president, as I said, had called this a teachable moment, but by many accounts over the two-week process of this controversy, lessons have already been learned" ("Special Report," 7/30).

CNN's Crowley, on the WH: "As far as they hope, this thing has moved on, as far as they're concerned. What they wanted to do was sort of launch Gates and Crowley off into their own universe and then move on, because, at this point, the president, despite all of the calls for having sort of national forums on race and racial profiling, he -- he just -- you know, we have -- we have the economy out there. We have health care out there. And they really have been knocked off their message since he jumped into it in the news conference" ("AC 360," 7/30).

CNN's Lothian: "The interesting thing about this, the White House really been pushing this meeting, but in the end, the media was kept about 40 feet back from the actual table. Didn't have a chance to ask any questions or hear anything about what's going on. So, you know, interesting, that it's a teachable moment, but we weren't able to really hear what that teachable moment was."

Lothian, on how many beers were consumed: "I mean, certainly, I don't think anybody wanted to get drunk at that event, because that would not have been a good image. So I doubt that they were imbibing too much around the table" ("Lou Dobbs Tonight," 7/30).

NBC's Guthrie: "Both men brought family members with them today, who got a tour of the White House. At one point, actually, the two groups ran into each other, merged, and then toured together" ("Nightly News," NBC, 7/30).

Journalist Stephen Smith: "With all due respect, let's call it what it is, a complete waste of time, something that has dragged on for entirely too long. It's been eight days that we've been talking about this non-story" ("Hardball," MSNBC, 7/30).

Dem strategist Paul Begala: "I think, I might have my history wrong, but I think Jimmy Carter brokered the Middle East peace deal between Egypt and Israel over Jell-O shooters at Hooters" ("Situation Room," CNN, 7/30).

After the jump, see more on the WH beer summit, an interview with MN Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) and the latest on the health care debate.

(MAURA O'BRIEN)

No grand statements here about race in America or lessons learned. Per the pool report, Pres. Obama and Vice President Biden shared a brew today with Sgt. James Crowley and Harvard Prof. Henry Louis "Skip" Gates, Jr. And that's about all we know of their conversation.

It was, alas, only a photo op. The pool had no opportunity to ask questions as we were roped off about 50 feet from the group. The big surprise: Vice President Joe Biden was at the table with the men. POTUS invited him to join the group this afternoon. Clockwise, they sat around the round, white table in this order: Obama, Crowley, Gates, Biden. The men were drinking beer from clear glass mugs and munching on peanuts and pretzels served in small silver bowls. The beers:

POTUS: Bud Light
VPOTUS: Bucklers
Gates: Sam Adams Light
Crowley: Blue Moon

In the 30 seconds your pool was out there, Sgt. Crowley was doing most of the talking. Gates appeared to be leaning in, listening intently. At one point, POTUS laughed heartily.

Gates and Crowley wore dark suits. POTUS and VPOTUS were in white shirts, jackets off. POTUS had his sleeves rolled up.

Both Gates and Crowley brought their families to the White House and they toured the East Wing together before the sit-down. Gates brough his kids, fiance and father. Crowley brought his wife and kids. The men met POTUS in the Oval Office before moving out into the Rose Garden.

During the sit-down, the family members were given a tour of the West Wing.

Per Mimi Hall/USA TODAY

Looking to boost his national profile as he ponders a '12 WH bid, MN Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) set his sights on Pres. Obama in a keynote speech today at the RNC's summer meeting in San Diego, criticizing the Dem for spending excessively, growing the federal deficit and pushing a health care reform "scheme."

"In the eyes of many, President Obama is cool, cool, cool," Pawlenty said in his half-hour lunchtime address to nat'l GOPers. "But the American people are figuring out he is wrong, wrong, wrong."

Pawlenty -- who was named vice-chair of the RGA on 7/27 -- is one of several GOPers including ex-MA Gov. Mitt Romney (R), ex-AR Gov. Mike Huckabee (R) and LA Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) jockeying early for the party's WH '12 nod. Pawlenty, who decided not to risk a possibly tough '10 re-election bid in MN to turn his attention instead to national issues, suggested Obama is looking less like a change agent and more like a traditional tax-and-spend Dem.

"With all due respect, Mr. President, if we're out of money, stop spending it," Pawlenty said. "In the war on spending, President Obama is a pacifist."

Describing the Obama's admin.'s health care plan as tantamount to saying "we're going to control costs by spending more," Pawlenty told nat'l GOPers, "That's like saying we're going to balance the checkbook by writing more checks. It ain't gonna work."

"This is a scheme that would make Bernie Madoff blush," he added.

Even as he attempts to tamp down speculation that he has his sights set on a POTUS bid, Pawlenty's address was clearly intended to continue his introduction to a nat'l audience. He defined himself as a Sam's Club Republican, highlighting his blue-collar roots and fiscal conservatism while calling for GOPers to be "more than just the critics-in-chief."

"As Republicans, we've already had our fall," he said, adding that the GOP needs to get over its "political post-traumatic stress disorder" and be a party that offers "positive and optimistic solutions."

He did, however, offer the crowd plenty of red meat. "The only thing growing faster than the federal government's deficit is Chris Matthews' man-crush on Barack Obama," he said, to cheers and applause.

At times, Pawlenty sounded like a cross between a WH '08-er and a WH '12-er, reprising themes his fellow GOPers hit often during the '08 campaign. "We all remember President Obama was a community organizer in his previous life," he said, adding that GOPers need to remind Obama that "the federal government is not our definition of community."

And in a line that could have been lifted straight from Sen. John McCain's '08 stump speech, Pawlenty warned that "pretty speeches don't intimidate tyrants or thugs" and that "it is weakness that tempts our enemies."

Hari Sevugan, the DNC's nat'l press sec, said Pawlenty's speech offered "a perfect example of why Republicans are no longer relevant as a Party."

"Instead of offering solutions to the problems they themselves made, Republicans like Pawlenty spend all of their time trying to appeal to the worst instincts of the far right wing by chastising Democrats who are making real and substantive progress on behalf of the American people," Sevugan said. "Whether it was his naked partisan delay in seating Senator (Al) Franken, his draconian cuts to funding Minnesota's schools and health care system or his willingness today to toss out patently false partisan bombs at a party convention, Tim Pawlenty is proving himself to be nothing more than the far right wing ideologue Rush Limbaugh and the party elders hoped he would be."

MN GOP Chair Tony Sutton, who was also in San Diego, told On Call in a phone interview that he was "very pleased by the feedback" he had gotten about Pawlenty from fellow GOPers at the meeting. He said the speech gave Pawlenty the opportunity to show voters nationally that he is a "strong, firm, principled leader" who brings with him a "Midwestern sensibility" about being fiscally responsible.

"He comes across in a way that can appeal to a lot of people," Sutton added.

Asked about Pawlenty's future plans, Sutton said, "I think he'll be traveling the country, and people will get to know him."

"Beyond that, if things develop, they develop," he said.

(FELICIA SONMEZ)

Ailing Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA) is one of 16 people who will receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's hightest honor for a civilian, the WH announced today.

Other honorees, per the AP, include:

* tennis legend Billie Jean King

* retired Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa

* Race for the Cure founder Nancy Brinker

* physicist Stephen Hawking

* civil rights activist Rev. Joseph Lowery

* actors Sidney Poitier and Chita Rivera

Former Rep. Jack Kemp, who died in May, and gay rights activist Harvey Milk, who was assassinated in '78, will receive posthumous awards.

There's little suspense remaining in the confirmation of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the nation's highest court; the numbers are on her side. But the most important lingering question is: by what margin will the Senate approve her?

Having a rocky summer over health-care reform, the Obama admin. could use a win -- and preferably one in which they run up the score. But thus far, as Senate Maj. Leader Harry Reid and Senate Judiciary Cmte Chair Pat Leahy (D-VT) noted yesterday, the GOP has been less willing to support Sotomayor than expected -- Sen. Lamar Alexander's (R-TN) surprising offer of support today notwithstanding.

Meanwhile, it isn't safe to assume that Reid will be able to hold his caucus together. Some red-state Dems, particularly after the NRA said it was going to include the Sotomayor vote on its scorecards, have been hesitant to commit to supporting her.

Here are On Call's picks for the GOP senators most likely to flip:

1. Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH): Gregg won't seek re-election in '10, and he has shown significant deference to Obama's appointees (he was, after all, Obama's pick to head the Commerce Dept., for a short while).

2. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ): Nearly 30% of AZ's population is Hispanic, and McCain's BFF, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), was the only Senate Judiciary Republican to break with this party. But McCain is also feeling some heat on the right; Minutemen co-founder Chris Simcox is planning a primary challenge.

3. Sen. Kit Bond (R-MO): A spokesperson for the retiring Bond said that he is inclined to support Sotomayor. But Bond helped lead the charge against State Dept. legal adviser Harold Koh over concerns that Koh might supplant American law with transnational law based on his past writings. Sotomayor's beliefs about how or if judges should consider foreign or international law was a major GOP theme during her confirmation hearings.

4. Sen. George Voinovich (R-OH): Guns won't be an issue for the retiring Voinovich, who helped Dems shoot down the Thune amendment, which would have lifted some restrictions on bringing concealed weapons over state lines. Voinovich doesn't have many GOP friends right now, either, after he said 7/27 that the party was "being taken over by Southerners." But Voinovich also voted against Solicitor Gen. Elena Kagan, who some think might be Obama's next SCOTUS choice, back in March.

5. Sen. John Ensign (R-NV): A longshot, but the beleaguered Ensign has a little more than three years to rehabilitate his reputation before his re-election bid. Where to start: his conservative base, or the 25%-and-growing Hispanic population of his home state?

On the Dem side, several members haven't weighed in with a decision, though most are expected to back their president's pick. Still a couple could buck the party to keep the faith with their conservative home states:

1. Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE): The pro-life Benator continues to hedge on Sotomayor. He has voted in favor of each of Obama's exec. branch nominees -- though he said he could not support Dawn Johnsen to lead DoJ's Office of Legal Counsel because of her previous work for NARAL. The GOP in his home state thinks he's going to support Sotomayor and has already started hitting him for it. "Washington Ben has his mind made up," NE GOP Chair Mark Fahleson said in a statement today, "but Nebraska Ben isn't willing to share his decision with us until the eleventh hour."

2. Sen. Mark Begich (D-AK): Begich strongly supports gun rights, and he told Jess Brady of Roll Call that he has yet to make up his mind on Sotomayor, despite a 45-minute meeting back on 6/24 that he described at the time as a "pleasant and focused discussion." The NRA's scorecard could be weighing heavily on the freshman's mind.

(STEVEN SHEPARD)

As the House prepares for a five-week break, bloggers are musing about the potential affect of the recess on the health care reform debate that's polarizing an already divided Congress and causing a schism within the Dem caucus.

Liberal bloggers aren't too upset about the policy concessions that Blue Dog Dems on the House Energy & Commerce Committee extracted from Chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) in exchange for their support of the health care bill. The New Republic's Jonathan Cohn analyzed the compromise deal and concluded that "most of the bill's core elements seem to be intact, including the public insurance option." But lefty bloggers are unhappy that the Blue Dogs succeeded in delaying a full floor vote until after the August recess.

AMERICAblog's Joe Sudbay fumed: "The Blue Dogs consider this a great victory. Of course, the biggest beneficiaries are House Republicans and the insurance industry who wanted a delay."

Indeed, conservative bloggers believe that the August recess will weaken congressional support for the House bill. "This means that members will have time to study the legislation before voting," writes Power Line's Paul Mirengoff. "And because they will be hearing from their constituents during the August recess, some members may actually take advantage of their study time."

Hot Air's Ed Morrissey predicts that congressmen returning home to their districts will find that "the ground has shifted considerably" in the health care debate.

"Moderates will face more conservative constituents, but even more traditionally liberal districts are going to look at hundred of billions of dollars in increased deficits with some skepticism," Morrissey writes. "When Congress reconvenes, expect the moderates to have even more pull -- and for the split between Democratic leadership and its rank-and-file to widen."

Not every liberal blogger believes that the August recess will damage the prospects for health reform. While admitting that he is "not thrilled that the House put off the floor vote," Open Left's Mike Lux contends that it is "not a disaster for us." He describes the month-long break as "a test for those of us who believe in serious health care reform."

He writes: "The battle over who wins the organizing and message fight in the August recess -- grassroots reformers or the astroturf insurance lobby in league with right wingers everywhere -- will decide the fate of health care reform, pure and simple."

(Blogometer's IAN FAERSTEIN)

Though Dems rule Congress, there's one universe in which GOPers still reign: Twitter.

Earlier today, TweetCongress (a private site that tracks Cong. Twitter usage) added the 100th GOPer -- Sen. Richard Lugar (R-IN) -- to its list giving the party a commanding 44-tweeter majority over the Dems.

So far GOPers dominate the site's Most Followed, Most Active and Most Conversational lists, compiled using algorithims that track just how much time Cong. tweeters are spending communicating through the service.

It's not all bad news for tweeting Dems, though. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) still sits atop the TweetCongress list of Most Political tweeters. How does he do it? With a steady stream of riveting tweets like this one:

@SenJeffMerkley: "Senator Merkley took to the floor today to address the dangers of playing politics with health care reform: http://tinyurl.com/lqx9r2"

(EVAN McMORRIS-SANTORO)

Atlantic Media political director Ron Brownstein writes for National Journal today that Pres. Obama's "public support is reverting to boundaries familiar from last November's election," according to a new Allstate/NJ national poll.

As his job approval rating soared during his first months in office, Obama's support surged beyond the coalition that elected him with nearly 53 percent of the vote. In a wide array of surveys, he recorded elevated support not only in groups that favored him last year -- such as Hispanics, college-educated white women and young people -- but also in several that resisted him, particularly seniors, working-class whites and college-educated white men.

But amid frustration over the pace of economic recovery and ideologically polarizing struggles with congressional Republicans, polls such as the latest Allstate/National Journal Heartland Monitor have found those gains largely evaporated, especially among groups that were initially skeptical of him. Obama's job approval rating, both overall and among key demographic groups, is converging with his share of the vote from last November.

On the one hand, that pattern testifies to the solidity of Obama's core coalition, even amid six months of frenetic legislative activity and a recession that has continued to punish the American economy. On the other, it shows that his initial course has failed to convert many voters who gave him a second look after preferring John McCain last year.

Brownstein notes that fluctuations in approval are not unusual for presidents -- Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton saw their first-term approval ratings "skid below 40 percent before recovering for decisive re-election victories." And he writes that "Obama still receives elevated marks from Americans on most measures of personal leadership, like strength and empathy, and he's skillfully attracted support for his agenda from institutional interests, like drug companies and utilities, usually aligned with the GOP."

But the president's overall approval rating has eroded over the past month. In the Heartland Monitor poll, for instance, it slipped from 61% in April to 56% in early July.

Read on.

Late in Sonia Sotomayor's week-long confirmation hearings, the NRA announced that it would formally oppose her and that the group would include senators' votes for and against Pres. Obama's first SCOTUS appointee in its next election year rankings.

While the caution could have factored into the Senate Judiciary Cmte's nearly partyline vote -- all but one Republican voted against Sotomayor -- it's worth noting that three of the six GOPers to back the judge thus far were endorsed by the NRA in their most recent campaigns.

* Sen. Lamar Alexander is NRA 'A'-rated and was endorsed in '08 against Dem Robert Tuke in TN.

* Sen. Lindsey Graham was rated 'A' and endorsed by the NRA in '08 against Bob Conley in SC.

* Sen. Mel Martinez was rated 'A' and endorsed by the NRA in '04 against Betty Castor in FL. (Martinez is not running for re-election in '10.)

And one newly-minted Dem, who served his almost five full terms as a Republican, has also received the NRA's support in the past:

* Sen. Arlen Specter was rated 'A' and endorsed by the NRA in '04 against Joseph Hoeffel in PA.

So does the NRA endorsement -- long-coveted in conservative states -- still have the influence it once did?

And also meriting a mention ... The other three GOP senators who have said they'll support Sotomayor have not received the NRA's praise in recent years:

* The NRA gave Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME) a 'C+' in '06 and did not endorse her for election.

* The NRA gave Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) a 'C+' in '08 and did not endorse her for election.

* The NRA gave Sen. Dick Lugar (R-IN) a 'D+ in '06 and did not endorse him for election.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN), the third ranking GOPer in the Senate, announced today that he is breaking with party leaders to support Judge Sonia Sotomayor's appointment to the nation's highest court.

He said that he is backing Pres. Obama's first appointee to the SCOTUS even though he differs with her rulings in gun cases.

"Even though Judge Sotomayor's political and judicial philosophy may be different than mine, especially regarding Second Amendments rights, I will vote to confirm her because she is well qualified by experience, temperament, character and intellect to serve," Alexander said in a speech on the Senate floor, reports the AP.

Alexander becomes the sixth Republican to endorsed the president's pick. He follows Sens. Susan Collins (ME), Olympia Snowe (ME), Lindsey Graham (SC), Dick Lugar (IN) and Mel Martinez (FL).

Ailing Sens. Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA) and Robert Byrd (D-WV) are not expected to make it to Washington for the vote. If the remaining members vote along party lines, which remains to be seen as at least a couple Dems -- notably Ben Nelson (NE) and Mark Begich (AK) -- have indicated they're undecided, the final vote would be 64-34.

John Roberts was confirmed as chief justice in '05 by a vote of 78-22. The '06 vote for Samuel Alito was tighter, 58-42, following a failed filibuster attempt.

Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO), never shy and unassuming in her Twitter posts, breaks down the health care debate this morning:

When I say stability & ins regulation, I'm talking about pre existing conditions/better access to ins/ consumer protection/affordability 8:30 AM 7/30

Do those wanting to turn people away from emergcy rooms who don't have ins really mean it? They're sayin have to die cuz u dont have ins? 8:30 AM 7/30

People shouldn't forget secret tax increase they have every year: increased health ins costs to pay for uninsured care thru emergency rooms. 8:30 AM 7/30

My priorities for healthcare reform: reduce costs/provide stability, better job of regulating insurance companies, reduce the deficit. 7:30 AM 7/30

"World News," "Nightly News" and "Evening News" all led with the new H1N1 vaccine guidelines.

Once again, health care dominated last night's TV coverage, this time focusing on the House compromise.

House Min. Leader John Boehner discussed health care in the "Situation Room" 7/29.

Boehner, on Pres. Obama denying that health care reform will be a gov't "takeover": "The facts just aren't there. It's clear in the legislation that after five years, you can't go out and buy a private health insurance policy. You have to go to one of the government exchanges. ... It's in the bill. ... It also says that after five years, all employer-provided health care, provided under ERISA, would have to have an approval from the Department of Labor and the health care choices czar, to make sure that the employer-provided plan meets appropriate federal standards. You can go through this one after another after another. And if you look at the public option, it's there. It's going to compete with the private sector."

More: "But it's pretty clear to most of us that it will undercut the private sector, not provide more competition, driving the private sector out of the market and leaving people with only one option -- and that's the government plan."

Boehner, on the House bill: "It's 1,018 pages. That ought to be enough to tell you that this is a giant government bureaucracy that's going to drive up the cost of health care, drive up the cost of ... health insurance, deny millions of Americans their choice of doctor and eventually lead to rationing health care in America. This is not the kind of plan that Americans want. ... There are 53 new boards, agencies and commissions and agencies set up in this bill."

Boehner, on the prospects for a bipartisan bill: "Listen, I don't know what's going to happen over the next three or four months. But I believe that it's time to hit the reset button. Let's scrap this plan. Let's sit down in a bipartisan way and let's build on the current system, which is the envy of the world" (CNN, 7/29).

Rep. Jim Matheson (D-UT) stopped by "Your World" 7/29.

Matheson, on why he didn't go along with the compromise: "While some progress was made on the bill, I still have some just fundamental concerns about the structure of the bill and what they're talking about. I am not comfortable with the public plan, the way it has been set up. I think there are different ways to go about doing this. The Senate Finance Committee bill, for example, offers a different way of doing it with state-based co-ops. I just think we need to talk about some different ideas about how we structure this."

Matheson, on whether the co-op idea has been raised among Blue Dogs: "That's what we're trying to work through. But I think it merits consideration. It gets it out of the hands of Washington, D.C., and out of the government, quite frankly. ... At each state level, there would be a nonprofit co-op, just like we have now in the state of Washington and the state of Wisconsin. I think that is a model we ought to take a look at."

Matheson, on whether Obama has reason to feel confident on health care: "He has stayed out of giving specifics on what he really wants. ... I think what he says he wants for sure is, he wants to make sure we that actually control future costs. And we have got comfortable the bill just that. I don't think he's come out with a specific plan. And, to me, what he's looking -- well, I'm not here to speak for him" (FNC, 7/29).

After the jump, see more on the House health care compromise, as well as interviews with LA Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) and CA Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R).

(MAURA O'BRIEN)

A month after the MN Supreme Court unanimously declared Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) the winner of the SEN contest, Franken has been at work drafting his first piece of legislation -- a bill providing service dogs to wounded vets -- while MN Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) has been making his own waves on the nat'l scene.

But where does that leave the other player in the state's longest-running political drama, ex-Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN)?

Coleman had been widely considered to be eyeing a bid for Pawlenty's seat when it's up for grabs in '10 -- and given that he'd likely face a steep fundraising battle and a primary field already littered with candidates, many thought a Coleman announcement would come sooner rather than later.

But in response to reports that Coleman may not in fact be entertaining a GOV bid, Coleman spokesperson Tom Erickson said his boss will not announce a decision until Mar. or Apr. next year.

With the MN GOP's nominating convention set for late April/early May, Coleman may not have the luxury of time. MN GOP chair Tony Sutton recently told the St. Paul Pioneer Press that the candidate the party will eventually endorse is likely in the race "right now or certainly by the end of this year."

Asked why Coleman set such a long timeline, Erickson told On Call today that the main factor for Coleman was "the fact that he's been running nonstop for the past two-and-a-half years."

"He just wanted some time," Erickson said, noting that Coleman is "trying to figure out in the immediate short term" what his plans will be.

Until then, Erickson said, Coleman's focus will be on "sitting back and enjoying life."

(FELICIA SONMEZ)

Pres. Obama stroked the influential House Blue Dog Democrats today in a statement urging Congress to continue to push a health care reform bill through key House and Senate committees:

"I want to thank the members of both the Senate and House of Representatives for continuing their work on health reform to provide more stability and security for Americans who have insurance, and quality, affordable coverage for those who don't. I'm especially grateful that so many members, including some Blue Dogs on the Energy and Commerce Committee, are working so hard to find common ground. Those efforts are extraordinarily constructive in strengthening this legislation and bringing down its cost."

The Blue Dogs -- many of the group's 52 members have expressed serious concerns about the roughly $1T cost of a plan -- have worked strenuously to slow the review process. The hope for many is that lawmakers will find a way to lower the cost of such a package without raising taxes. Their efforts, meanwhile, have strained the Dem caucus -- with Republicans, powerless in number, egging them on, and progressives urging that they get with the program.

And today, even as Obama praised the Blue Dogs -- 32 of whom represent districts Sen. John McCain won in '08 -- the members suggested that they aren't yet on board with any plan, despite reports that one could make it through the critical House Energy and Commerce Cmte before the weekend, and before the House goes on recess. There are eight Blue Dogs in the committee; their 'no' votes could stall the bill, and leaders have been working to ameliorate their concerns to expedite passage.

Even if a committee vote is scheduled, a full floor vote has been postponed until at least September.

And Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (D-SD), Blue Dog co-chair for administration, issued a statement a few moments ago cautioning that assumptions about the broader caucus' support for a bill is premature:

"The Blue Dogs have been successful in ensuring the House will have time to assess the committee products on health care reform, both in the House and the Senate, as there will be no vote on the House floor before August.

"Blue Dogs believe fundamental reform of our health care system is needed to control rising health care costs, increase quality and value, and improve access to coverage and care. Comprehensive health care reform must be deficit-neutral and bend the cost curve in the long run. We also believe health care reform must preserve patient choice of provider and maintain competition within the marketplace.

"Progress has been and will continue to be difficult, but getting it right is more important than getting it done right away or working on artificial timetables. Before the full House considers a bill, the Blue Dog Coalition will assess the scoring by the Congressional Budget Office and ensure it appropriately reflects the principles we have articulated. While it appears ongoing negotiations at the committee level have yielded a number of important concessions in the direction of our principles, many Blue Dogs remain concerned with various aspects of the bill draft. We remain committed to being a positive and productive influence in the process and improving the bill even further, including through the amendment process in committee.

"The 52-member Blue Dog Coalition has not taken a group position on the draft health care legislation that is working through the committee process. Today's announcement signifies that the committee process is moving forward. The committee will work its will, but the broader coalition has not ratified any agreements related to the draft legislation."

With lawmakers laser-focused on health care negotiations, CongressDaily is reporting that labor-backed EFCA, which would make it easier for unions to organize, appears to be on the "back burner" -- potentially through the end of '09.

Senate efforts to compromise on a watered-down version of the Employee Free Choice Act have been put firmly on the chamber's back burner -- perhaps for the rest of the year -- as senators, aides and lobbyists focus on health care and other legislation, participants said.

"We're not doing anything right now," Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, said of talks he has led among a group of Democrats since it became clear in late March that a more ambitious "card check" bill to help unions organize could not win 60 Senate votes.

"We've got the healthcare bill; we've got appropriations bills, and we're lacking two senators that we need right now," Harkin said in an interview. "Nothing is happening on that right now."

Harkin and other senators and aides involved in discussions on the union organizing bill said the group has not met in two weeks and has no plans to talk again before the August recess.

The group includes Harkin and Democratic Sens. Mark Pryor of Arkansas, Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, Sherrod Brown of Ohio, Thomas Carper of Delaware and Charles Schumer of New York.

Senators involved said the pause is due not to an impasse but to scheduling issues and the heavy focus on healthcare reform by all stakeholders.

Read on.

The NRCC today announced 13 congressional candidates who have reached certain fundraising and staff thresholds and have therefore earned "On the Radar" status in the committee's Young Guns program, the national training program for individuals running in open seats or challenging incumbent Dems. The NRCC is not endorsing these candidates yet but has committed to providing them with critical early guidance and support.

"The NRCC is committed to working with Republican challengers who meet the rigorous goals of the Young Guns program in order to make sure they have all the resources they need for victory," said NRCC chairman Pete Sessions. "With all that these candidates have accomplished in just a few short months, I am confident that each of them will be successful in their effort to replace the Washington Democrats who have rubber-stamped Nancy Pelosi's reckless anti-jobs agenda."

They are:

Van Tran (CA-47)

Steve Pearce (NM-02)

Steve Stivers (OH-15)

Vaughn Ward (ID-01)

Frank Guinta (NH-01)

Adam Kinzinger (IL-11)

Andy Harris (MD-01)

Cory Gardner (CO-04)

Martha Roby (AL-02)

Charles Djou (HI-01)

Steve Chabot (OH-01)

Dennis Ross (FL-12)

Rep. Louis Gohmert (R-TX) quietly signed on yesterday to the so-called "birther bill" sponsored by first-term Rep. Bill Posey (R-FL). Gohmert, who did not release a statement announcing the move, is the 10th GOP member to co-sponsor the bill, which would require presidential candidates to present a birth certificate.

Dems believe the bill represents the fringe right's efforts to highlight Pres. Obama's heritage and race by questioning the place of his birth, repeatedly confirmed and reconfirmed by officials as HI. Still the debate rages on as fodder for cable TV and as conservatives struggle to find their footing in policy debates.

Pollster.com's Mark Blumenthal alerts us to this must-watch clip of the day. Jimmy Fallon and Sean "Diddy" Combs slow-jamming on Pres. Obama's numbers.

"Rasmussen has clout, but I have my doubts ... "

No surprise here, but Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson (R-TX) will officially announce her '10 campaign for governor next month. She spoke with TX radio host Mark Davis of News Talk 820 WBAP earlier today, and Davis provided the news via Twitter:

KBH will announce for Gov in Aug, come out of Senate in Oct or Nov, meanwhile the Sotomayor vote and anti-Obamacare stance help her w/TX GOP 10:45 AM 7/29

Hutchinson is, of course, challenging the incumbent GOP Gov. Rick Perry in a March primary that's sure to be a barnburner. Between them, the candidates have about $20M in the bank for the fight. Expect this to be one of the most-watched races of the cycle.

The write-up of the interview with Davis can be read here.

The DNC is launching a new ad campaign against members of the Republican leadership, criticizing them for supporting Bush administration policies that sank the nation's economy and for opposing the Obama WH-backed $787B economic stimulus package. The ads -- TV and radio -- target Sens. Mitch McConnell (KY) and Jon Kyl (AZ) and Reps. John Boehner (OH), Eric Cantor (VA) and Mike Pence (IN).

The TV ad, dubbed "Broke It," will air on cable and in DC. The campaign will also include local radio ads and press events.

"Republicans supported the policies that sank our economy into the worst recession in nearly a century and have refused to work with President Obama to turn things around," said DNC communications director Brad Woodhouse in a statement. "They followed Rush Limbaugh and played politics with the Recovery Act - and now that it is showing signs of progress - they are distorting the truth about its success so no one will notice that they were the ones who got it wrong before and who are getting it wrong now. In each of these states there are real projects, providing and saving real jobs and laying a foundation for long-term economic growth. The Republican leadership may not want to admit the truth because it will expose their own mistakes and hypocrisy, but we're not going to hesitate setting the record straight."

The DNC will host press conferences in the members' states this week in advance of the congressional recess highlighting the Recovery Act's successes.

"World News" led with the race to develop an H1N1 virus vaccine. "Evening News" led with the investigation into Dr. Conrad Murray's role in Michael Jackson's death. "Nightly News" led with the H1N1 vaccine.

Health care reform dominated last night's TV coverage.

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) went on "Hannity" 7/28 p.m.

McCain, on whether Blue Dog Dems will continue to hold out on reform: "Traditionally and historically they bark but they don't bite. And in the case of other bills such as climate change, the speaker peels off enough of them in order to win and gives the other ones a free pass so I'm not confident that the Blue Dogs will hold fast. In fact, I think it's very likely they cave."

McCain, on the three GOPers and three Dems currently working together on reform, including a possible co-op option: "I think it's incrementalism. ... I don't know exactly what is going on among those six Republicans and Democrats, but I know that if they do away with the so-called government option that's not going to make a lot of the liberal Democrats very happy. So we'll have to wait and see" (FNC, 7/28).

After the jump, more on health care, as well as comments on the state of the GOP and an interview with ex-Sec/State Colin Powell.

(RACHELLE DOUILLARD-PROULX)

Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC) offers what has to be THE line thus far of the politically-charged health care reform debate. She cautioned today on the House floor that the Republican plan, unlike the Dems' proposal, "is pro-life because it will not put seniors in a position of being put to death by their government."

Left-leaning Media Matters is circulating the clip.

State GOP and Dem party sources tell the Des Moines Register that they'll hold the '10 presidential caucuses on a Saturday afternoon, an effort to draw more people -- and a test run, officials say, for the '12 first-in-the-nation presidential nominating contest. Usually, the caucuses are held on a weekday evening, and many people have work and family responsibilities that prevent them from participating.

A possible drawback in setting Saturday for the caucuses: Jewish voters who observe the Sabbath.

The date and time: 1/23/10, 1 PM.

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, a Dem candidate for governor of CA in '10, today Tweets:

Introducing resolution today in support of Obama's health care reform. Public plan must be part of it. Tell your Sen -- http://tr.im/ugpX

So is Newsom the first local official to make a pitch via resolution for the president's push for health care reform? And more importantly, isn't Newsom, vying with state AG Jerry Brown, for the Dem nomination for governor, using the issue to make an appeal to the progressive wing of the party? Interesting strategy, given the perilous status of the reform right now in Washington. But a sign that Newsom is looking to gain traction against Brown in the primary.

With a full Senate vote on Sonia Sotomayor's SCOTUS appointment imminent, members are starting to weigh in with their votes. And we'll have more later about which GOP senators might break with the party to back Sotomayor and likewise which conservative Dems might think twice about backing the judge, especially given the NRA's warning last week that the vote will be included in its ratings. But here today is a decision from Sen. David Vitter (R-LA), who is up for re-election in '10:

Vitter: I continue to have very serious concerns about Judge Sotomayor and cannot vote for her confirmation. More at http://blog.davidvitter.com

Per NJ's The Ninth Justice blog, Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) said today that the full Senate will consider Sonia Sotomayor's appointment to the SCOTUS late next week -- and definitely before recess begins 8/7.

Along largely partisan lines, the Senate Judiciary Cmte backed SCOTUS appointee Sonia Sotomayor, Pres. Obama's first high court pick, this morning by a 13-6 vote.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) was the only Republican to support Sotomayor. The Senate cmte's Dems voted unanimously for the Bronx native.

The full Senate will vote next, but with the Dems' 60-vote majority, Sotomayor's confirmation is all but a done deal. She will be the first individual of Hispanic heritage to sit on the SCOTUS.

Yet again, new developments in the investigation into Michael Jackson's death were covered extensively on TV. When Jackson wasn't the focus, SCOTUS nominee Sonia Sotomayor was discussed, with health care and ex-AK Gov. Sarah Palin's (R) resignation discussed as well.

"World News" led with new home sales rising 11%. "Evening News" led with the 911 call leading to Henry Louis Gates' arrest. "Nightly News" led with a study linking obesity to high health care costs.

Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) made his first TV appearance on "Your World" since announcing he'll be voting against Sotomayor's nomination.

Sessions, on why he's voting no: "The reason is that I believe her speeches evidence an activist mentality, or a view that judges can allow their personal views and politics to influence decisions. ... And I'm sorry to say I have reached that conclusion. But I do believe that we need to be sure anyone who sits on the Supreme Court of the United States is committed to following the law as it is written and finding facts as they exist."

Sessions, on how many "no votes" Sotomayor may ultimately get: "I don't know. I see maybe Senator Grassley announced today that he would oppose the nomination. So, maybe all ... Republicans but one, perhaps, on the Judiciary Committee have indicated their opposition to the nomination. She has a lot of the votes in the Judiciary Committee."

After the jump, more from Sessions, as well as the continuing health care discussion and Palin's decision to step down.

(RACHELLE DOUILLARD-PROULX)

Saying he has "enjoyed two Hall of Fame worthy careers," Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) bid a peaceful farewell this afternoon to Sen. Jim Bunning (R-KY), who called McConnell "a control freak" earlier this year. McConnell, for his part, had withheld an endorsement of his homestate colleague, a once celebrated baseball pitcher.

But today, with Bunning announcing his retirement in a grudging statement accusing GOP leaders of withholding fundraising help, McConnell opted for restraint. And he emphasized that the decision was Bunning's alone.

"Jim has enjoyed two Hall of Fame worthy careers, and I am honored to have worked by his side in the Senate for the past several years," McConnell said. "His steadfast focus on serving the people of the commonwealth has been as unwavering as his conservative ideals. Kentucky is a far better place because of his service. While he may have decided not to run for reelection, I am confident that he will continue to be a valued member of our conference and contribute in meaningful ways for years to come."

Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), who chairs the NRSC, also thanked Bunning, 77, for his work and suggested the party is well-positioned to hold the seat.

"For over 20 years, Senator Jim Bunning has been a principled leader in Congress who has served his state and its people well," Cornyn said. "He has always been a leader who has put Kentucky first. Jim's long record of fiscal conservatism rings particularly strong at a time when America stands at a crossroads between those who want to grow the size of government and saddle future generations with an unfathomable debt, and those like Jim Bunning who have long been committed to protecting America's taxpayers.

"With regard to the 2010 election, the Democrats are facing a divisive primary between candidates who support growing the size of government and increasing spending in Washington. Republicans stand well-positioned to keep this seat in the Republican column."

KY Secretary of State Trey Grayson, 37, is a potential GOP contender.

Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) said today that the Senate Armed Services Cmte will hold hearings this fall with military leaders about 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell,' reports The Detroit News' Deb Price.

Levin, the committee's chairman, told Price: "They are timely. They will bring up to date some of the thinking of the people who are in the military, the leaders."

Read on.

Americans United for Change unveiled a new radio ad today urging Mainers to push Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME) to vote for health care reform. Snowe, who sits on the Senate Finance Cmte, which is considering a bill, could provide a critical push for the legislation. The WH and congressional leadership are looking for some bipartisan support for the bill, and they'll likely have better luck in the Senate than in the House, where Republicans are more unified against an initiative.

The Snowe ad called 'ACT' debuted on radio stations across the state today and follows an AUC spot running nationally that criticizes the GOP's efforts to stall reform.

Listen to the Snowe ad here.

Sen. Jim Bunning (R-KY) announced today that he will not run for re-election next year, ending a feud with his own party leaders, who, he argued, did "everything in their power" get him to step aside.

His statement reflected that friction:

I have the same conservative principles in 2009 as I had when I was first elected to Congress in 1986. Over the past twenty-two years I have always done what I thought was right for Kentucky even if that meant taking positions that were not popular with the media or even leaders of my own party. Speaking out against bailouts and wasteful spending supported by the Republican leadership in the Senate and a Republican President last year angered many of my colleagues in my own party, but I didn't run for public office for fame or public acclaim. When I cast a vote I think about how it will affect my grandchildren and the next generation of Kentuckians, not my next election or invitation to a D.C. cocktail party. The people of Kentucky know where I stand and I am honored that they have continued to send me back to Congress to represent them each time I have run for the House and Senate.

Unfortunately, running for office is not just about the issues. To win a general election, a candidate has to be able to raise millions of dollars to get the message out to voters. Over the past year, some of the leaders of the Republican Party in the Senate have done everything in their power to dry up my fundraising. The simple fact is that I have not raised the funds necessary to run an effective campaign for the U.S. Senate. For this reason, I will not be a candidate for re-election in 2010.

This was a difficult decision because I feel like my work in the Senate is more important now than ever. As I finish out my term, Kentuckians should know that I will continue to be a strong voice against the domestic policies pushed by the White House and Congress that - if enacted - will put this country on the path to socialism.

I will continue to do everything in my power to ensure that the United States remains true to the principles that have made this country a beacon of freedom and economic opportunity for so many. My hope has always been that my grandchildren and all Kentuckians have the same opportunities that I had growing up in Northern Kentucky many years ago. My fear is that the debt that this Congress and Administration is placing on future generations of Americans will lower the standard of living for all Kentuckians in the future if they are not stopped.

While I am confident that this seat in the U.S. Senate will stay in Republican hands, I have no plans to endorse a candidate in the Republican primary. Like many others in Kentucky, I look forward to seeing where each of the candidates stands on the important issues and I hope a strong conservative wins the primary. The Republican Party needs more people with strong principles and convictions that can stand up to the temptations of political power that have engulfed so many of our leaders after they arrive inside the beltway.

Finally, I would like to thank the many friends and supporters that have encouraged me to seek a third term in the Senate. Without the friendship, guidance, and support of so many over the years I never would have had the privilege to represent Kentucky in the House and Senate. Mary and I feel so blessed to have so many good friends and such a strong family. We have spent many years in the public eye and we look forward to spending more time with our children and grandchildren. Thank you and God bless.

When the Senate Judiciary Cmte meets tomorrow morning to vote for Judge Sonia Sotomayor's SCOTUS nomination, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) could find himself as the lone GOP affirmative vote.

Ranking Member Jeff Sessions (R-AL) used a USA Today op-ed today to announce his opposition, and Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) told the Des Moines Register this afternoon that he will also vote no. Grassley has never voted against a SCOTUS nominee in his 29 years in the Senate, though he has only voted on two Dem nominees in that time -- Justices Stephen Breyer and Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

While Graham has said he will vote for Sotomayor, Senate Min. Whip Jon Kyl and Sens. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and John Cornyn (R-TX) announced last week they would vote against Sotomayor.

The announcements today from Sessions and Grassley leave Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) as the lone GOPer yet to publicly announce his intentions. A Coburn spokesperson did not immediately return a call for comment.

Sessions cited Sotomayor's "attempt to rebrand her previously stated judicial approach" as reason for his opposition.

"I don't believe that Judge Sotomayor has the deep-rooted convictions necessary to resist the siren call of judicial activism," Sessions wrote. "She has evoked its mantra too often. As someone who cares deeply about our great heritage of law, I must withhold my consent."

Grassley, meanwhile, said he had regrets about voting for ex-Justice David Souter, whom Sotomayor would replace on the high court. Souter was appointed by George H.W. Bush in 1990 and was confirmed, 90-9, with all GOPers voting in favor. But he was often referred to as a "stealth justice" who voted far more often with the court's liberal bloc than most observers had predicted.

"I can say my vote for him is probably the only vote for 11 or 12 Supreme Court justices that has come back to haunt me from time to time," Grassley told the Register's Tom Beaumont. "I think Judge Sotomayor's very lukewarm answer that she gave me left me with the same pit in my stomach I had as a result of my vote for Souter."

The Judiciary Cmte's vote will take place tomorrow morning at 10 a.m.

(STEVEN SHEPARD)

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) announced today that the Senate Armed Services Committee hold a hearing this fall about "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT).

Gillibrand, potentially facing a tough primary battle against Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), is working to woo more liberal members of her party in the run-up to the '10 contest. Railing against a policy that prevents gay men and women from serving openly in the military could be a rallying point for Gillibrand as she aims to connect with voters, or it could be viewed as a plainly political ploy.

"This policy is wrong for our national security and wrong for the moral foundation upon which our country was founded," Gillibrand said in a statement. "I thank Chairman Levin for agreeing to hold this important hearing. Numerous military leaders are telling us that the times have changed. 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' is an unfair, outdated measure that violates the civil rights of some of our bravest, most heroic men and women. By repealing this policy, we will increase America's strength - both militarily and morally."

Her release cites a Gallup poll indicating that 69% of Americans favor military service by openly gay men and women and notes a report from the Center for American Progress released last month indicating that since Pres. Obama took office, 265 men and women have been dismissed from the Armed Forces because of DADT.

Approximately 13K service members have been discharged for their sexual orientation since '93, when the policy was first instituted, according to the Gillibrand release.

Sarah Palin bid adieu last night to the AK governorship, but she left no doubt that she would seek to secure her place at the forefront of conservative American politics. This was no bury-the-hatchet, on-to-other-things speech. Palin offered a full-throated attack on the media, strongly urging reporters not to bother her successor's children.

"You represent what could and should be a respected and honest profession, that could and should be a cornerstone of our democracy," she said. "Democracy depends on you, and that is why our troops are willing to die for you. So how about in honor of the American soldier you quit making things up?"

And this challenge: "Our new governor has a very nice family too, so leave his kids alone."

Palin, who exits 18 months before the end of her term, offered no hints yesterday about her future plans, but she aimed without question to rally the faithful as she railed against "government largesse" and "anti-hunting, anti-Second Amendment circuses from Hollywood."

"With this decision, now I will be able to fight even harder for you, for what is right and for the truth," Palin said. "And I have never felt you need a title to do that."

She will give a speech 8/8 at the Ronald Reagan library in CA. What follows for her remains unclear.

Will she take the time to dig into policy matters so she could discuss issues in a meaningful way during a potential presidential bid? Write for op-ed pages and quietly raise money for her PAC? Or will the tabloid fodder -- the feuds with Levi Johnston (the father of her grandson) and David Letterman and ex-staffers to Sen. John McCain's '08 presidential bid -- continue to dog her?

Does she reach out beyond the 40% of Americans who maintain a favorable view of her, according to a recent Washington Post/ABC News, and how? Or as more centrist Republicans -- including Mitt Romney and Gov. Tim Pawlenty (MN) -- work to raise their national profiles in possible preparation for a '12 run, does Palin secure her place in the hearts of the conservative GOP base and not worry about wooing moderate voters?

She sounded ever the warrior yesterday, so a great change in persona, tone and agenda seems unlikely.

Pres. Obama will appear in Bristol, VA, Wednesday for a town hall meeting about health care. But he won't be joined in this rural community in the southwestern corner of the Commonwealth by the Dem running for governor, state Sen. Creigh Deeds of Bath County.

A spokesman for Deeds tells our Evan McMorris-Santoro that the Dem will be at an event in Northern Virginia that day, and he notes that the president's visit to Bristol is an official WH happening. It's worth noting, though, that this is the second Obama event in VA that Deeds has missed since winning the party's nomination 6/9 -- and both have focused on health care reform.

Obama and Gov. Tim Kaine (D) are scheduled to appear with Deeds in McLean 8/6 for a "Rally for Virginia." It will be the president's first time stumping for the newly-minted Dem nom.

Deeds is vying with Republican Bob McDonnell for the state's top job. McDonnell was state AG until resigning earlier this year to run fulltime for governor.

Americans United for Change is airing a new TV ad in the DC market slamming the GOP for trying to stall health care reform in order to kill it.

Narrator: "In fact for 15 years, it's hardly moved at all. Meanwhile premiums have gone up 3 times faster than wages, health insurance profits have soared and 14,000 Americans lose their health insurance everyday. Now the Republicans say Congress should slow down? That's because when something goes slow enough it's easy to kill it dead in its tracks."

Full script of "Snail" is available after the jump.

(photo: Alaskareport.com)

AK Gov. Sarah Palin exits public office Sunday evening to chart a new chapter in her political career after a whirlwind two-and-half year tour that saw her rise from small-town mayor to gov to GOP VP contender, and only the second woman ever to run on a nat'l ticket. As everyone knows, though, her departure is no finale. She will likely remain one of the most watched figures in America.

A Washington Post/ABC News survey released today showed that 53% of Americans view Palin negatively and 40% see her in positive terms, her lowest rating in the survey since she debuted as Sen. John McCain's running mate.

It will be fascinating to see if she can shake the ethics questions that have dogged her admin. and recast herself. Will she take on an issue -- children with disabilities has been one frequently suggested -- that provides an outlet for broad outreach and speaking and might help her morph into a less polarizing figure. Or does she find a way to keep connected to that 40% of folks who dig her no matter the drubbing she takes in the press?

Either way, we'll all be watching. Meanwhile, LG Sean Parnell (R) will be sworn in Sunday, too, at an annual picnic hosted by the governor in Fairbanks. And expect Palin to get the farewell address she so desired but was denied at the end of the '08 contest.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

How much capital is Pres. Obama willing to spend on the VA and NJ GOV contests into the fall, especially if the debate over health care reform drags on? VA now looks like a better bet for his party than NJ, where Dem Gov. Jon Corzine's poll numbers continue to lag. But the Commonwealth is no guarantee; the battle between ex-AG Bob McDonnell (R) and state Sen. Creigh Deeds (D) remains a draw. Though the groundwork Obama put in motion there last year could certainly help Deeds.

So as Obama heads to VA early next month for his first event with Deeds, I wonder: How many times will we see Obama with Deeds in the fall? And will he cut an ad for the VA state senator from rural Bath County?

An invitation:

Jennifer --

All eyes are on Virginia.

On Thursday, August 6th, I will be proud to stand with President Obama and Governor Kaine at a "Rally for Virginia."

Will you rally with us and help make sure we keep our Commonwealth blue?

Click here to RSVP to attend the "Rally for Virginia."

Here are the details:

Thursday, August 6, 2009

5:00 pm

Hilton McLean Tysons Corner
7920 Jones Branch Drive
McLean, VA 22101

Thank you for everything you do, and I hope to see you on Thursday.

Creigh

Finally, the Obama press machine that we've come to know makes an appearance!

A few minutes ago the WH released a short statement about the president's conversation today with Henry Louis Gates, Jr.:

The President called and connected with Professor Gates at 3:15 this afternoon. They had a positive discussion during which the President told Gates about his call with Sgt. Crowley and statement to the media. The President also invited Gates to join him with Sgt. Crowley at the White House in the near future.

So Obama has talked to Cambridge police Sgt. James Crowley. Apologized? Probably not. Worth noting that the WH did not send a readout of Obama's call with Crowley. And now, he's also talked to Gates. And, true-to-form, the administration is working to craft a major media moment -- worthy of Oprah even -- for both men to explore the motivations behind their actions and words. If it happens, wow. It'll be like nothing we've seen coming out of the WH. Ever.

Obama certainly stepped on his health care message during his press conference the other night when he said the Cambridge police officers "acted stupidly" by arresting Gates in his own home for disorderly conduct. But if Crowley and Gates agree to show up together for more than a photo opportunity with the president -- to discuss head on with any frankness what happened -- Obama would have taken a botched remark and turned it completely in his favor. Such a dialogue could add in a meaningful way to the conversation about race in this country.

"I could have calibrated those words differently," Obama said today during a rare appearance in the WH press room, adding that he didn't intend to malign Crowley. He called the episode a "teachable moment."

And politically, no doubt, Obama wants to put to rest all the buzzing -- from the Rush Limbaugh right, in particular -- that he's stoked the race talk to distract from the tenuous position of his health reform efforts.

Let's see how this play's out.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

House Race Hotline editor Tim Sahd takes a look each Friday at the top House stories of the week. This week, we're focusing on the special election in NY-23, a race that saw tons of action in the last several days.

4. GOPers Get Their Woman

The local GOP set 7/22 as the deadline to select a nominee in the special to replace Army Sec. nominee/Rep. John McHugh (R), and as the days leading up to that date counted down, Assemb. DeDe Scozzafava (R) looked like the frontrunner. But considering her liberal views on social issues, and the fact that financier Matt Doheny (R) had already raised $800K for the contest, the issue was in doubt.

But at the end of the day, county chairs chose Scozzafava unanimously 7/22.

3. Conservatives Won't Back Scozzafava, But Indies Will

But while the local party seems very happy with their choice -- even Doheny actively backed Scozzafava after the decision was made -- local Conservatives are a different matter. In NY, candidates run on different lines, and it's typical to see GOPers garner the Conservative line, and Dems typically run on the Working Families Party line. The Independence Party vote is usually up for grabs. In the '08 general election, McHugh garnered 9K votes on the Conservative line, and 13K more on the Independence line. In a tight race, 21K votes will make a huge difference.

Are expensive!

Should the recession-era president be vacationing at a tony Martha's Vineyard spot that'll cost $35K-$50K per week? The Vineyard Gazette, always a fun read, has the details of Pres Obama's visit to Blue Heron Farm.

The Obama WH released a statement a few moments ago from Pres. George H.W. Bush marking the anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act:

"I congratulate President Obama for taking some time today to remember the 19th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. There is no place in our society for prejudice of any kind, yet it was not that long ago when Americans with disabilities were often not given equal rights and opportunities. Whether the cause was ignorance or indifference, it was not acceptable. We can all take pride in how much the ADA has accomplished, which is evident every time you attend a sporting event, ride the subway, or go to work. Yet, there is always more to be done, which is why it's good not only to celebrate our successes, but to look forward at what still must be done. As long as we never forget that every life is a miracle and each person has something to contribute, we will finish the job."

Here are the scheduled guests for the Sunday public affairs shows and other weekend programs:

SUNDAY:

Meet the Press hosts Sec/State Hillary Clinton.

Face the Nation Obama sr. adviser David Axelrod, Rep. Jim Cooper (D-TN), LA Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) and author Douglas Brinkley.

This Week hosts Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND) and Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC), and a roundtable with New York Times's David Brooks, Huffington Post's Arianna Huffington, New York Times' Paul Krugman and Washington Post's George Will.

Fox News Sunday hosts WH press sec. Robert Gibbs and Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ).

State of the Union hosts Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Min. Leader Mitch McConnell, Axelrod, Dem strategist Paul Begala and GOP strategist Alex Castellanos (see below for guests on SOTU's Reliable Sources segment).

See other weekend shows after the jump.

RACHELLE DOUILLARD-PROULX

Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX) and Orrin Hatch (R-UT) announced today that they will vote against Judge Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation to the SCOTUS.

During his three decades in the Senate, Hatch has backed every nominee before him, no matter the party affiliation of the president who appointed him or her. Meanwhile, Cornyn, who hails from a state with a large Hispanic population (36%), issued a lengthy statement explaining that while he views Sotomayor's temperment as appropriate and her rulings have been "generally in the mainstream, several of her decisions demonstrated the kind of liberal judicial activism that has steered the court in the wrong direction over the last few years."

Cornyn also cited the past filibuster of Miguel Estrada, Pres. Bush's federal court pick who, if he'd been confirmed, was widely viewed to have been a contender for appointment to the nation's highest court.

"I remain deeply frustrated by the treatment of Miguel Estrada for the DC Court of Appeals," Cornyn said. "He was filibustered seven times and refused an up-or-down vote - because many Senators shared my view that - had he been confirmed - he could have been the first Hispanic nominated to serve on our nation's highest Court. Instead, that honor goes to the nominee we have before us - Judge Sonia Sotomayor."

Hatch said he will oppose Sotomayor with a "heavy heart." He said he tried to leave politics aside in making his assessment, noting that he instead focused on Sotomayor's record.

"In truth, I wish President Obama had chosen a Hispanic nominee that all Senators could support," Hatch said. "I believe it would have done a great deal for our great country. Although Judge Sotomayor has a compelling life story and dedication to public service, her statements and record were too much at odds with the principles about the judiciary in which I deeply believe."

Full statements are available after the jump.

The latest installation of the Allstate/National Journal Heartland Monitor national poll, conducted earlier this month, indicates that Pres. Obama's approval rating has slipped since the spring and that half the nation believes the country is on the wrong track.

Obama earned a strong or somewhat favorable rating from 56% of those surveyed between 7/5 and 7/12, compared with his 61% review in mid April. Meanwhile, 50% of Americans believe the country is on the wrong track, up 8 points from the April Heartland Monitor poll.

Still, as the economy continues to struggle, and the president hits his first bumps in pushing favored but also polarizing policies, such as sweeping health care reform, a vast majority of those polled, 87%, registered an overwhelming faith in America as the "land of opportunity."

"Most Americans continue to believe that their fate is in their own hands," said Atlantic Media political director Ron Brownstein during an event this morning at the Watergate.

Of the 1,200 adults surveyed, 54% said they have more opportunity to get ahead than did their parents, 18% said they have less opportunity and 26% said they have about the same opportunity. Interestingly, though, when respondents were asked about the opportunities their children will have when they reach their age, just 31% said more and 36% said less, while 29% said about the same.

"Americans do view this recession as a game changer," said Edward J. Reilly CEO of FD Americas, which conducted the poll.

The poll asked if the actions of the Obama administration will increase opportunity for "people like you to get ahead," and 40% said yes. But 30% said decreased opportunities will result, and 23% said the work of the WH will have no impact.

Meanwhile, those who think that the economy is on the wrong track have decreased slightly, from 55% to 52% since April. And two thirds of Americans, 67%, believe that they will get ahead financially in the next five years.

The poll has a margin of error of +/-2.8 percent.

National Journal's Will Englund spoke with respondents across the country to learn more about what they're facing and how they view the work of the Obama team thus far. He also delved deeper into another poll finding -- that African Americans and Hispanics are more optimistic about their opportunities than whites.

Click the link above for more. And note that Allstate and NJ will conduct two more polls this year as part of the four-part series exploring how Americans view their opportunities and challenges during the nation's economic downturn.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

"World News" led with Pres. Obama's reaction to Henry Louis Gates' arrest and hosted Obama. "Evening News" and "Nightly News" also led with Obama's reaction to Gates.

ABC's Terry Moran spent the day with Obama in OH 7/22, and parts of his interview aired on "World News" 7/23 p.m.

Obama, on whether he's "betting the presidency" on reform: "No. ... No, I think that's how [the press] would like to dramatize these issues so that the stories get on TV."

Obama, on whether Americans use "too much" health care: "I think that we don't get the right health care in the right circumstances. The real issue is, are we getting the best value for the money we're already spending, and the answer is no" (ABC, 7/23).

The rest of the interview aired on "Nightline."

Obama, on Reid announcing that a bill won't pass before the Aug. recess:: "Given the progress that I'm seeing made, as long as everybody is working steadily, as fast as they can and particularly the Senate Finance Committee, which I think is the committee that a lot of folks are waiting for. If that gets done before the August recess, I feel pretty good, because what happens then is we always knew the House and the Senate bills wouldn't match up."

After the jump, more from Obama, as well as other health care news.

(RACHELLE DOUILLARD-PROULX)

Dueling guest posts about EFCA -- in jeopardy or not, already dead? -- and if the recent move to drop the "card check" provision of the legislation will be enough to resuscitate the measure. Or will it simply yield to other more priority legislative matters, health care chief among them?

Thoughts from advocates of opposing organizations (in full after the jump):

By Katie Packer of the Workforce Fairness Institute

According to recent news reports, a group of six Democratic Senators led by Tom Harkin has drafted a so-called "compromise" on the Employee 'Forced' Choice Act (EFCA). This "compromise" allegedly drops Big Labor's demand to replace secret ballot union elections with a card check process. The "compromise" does not change anything about the other equally dangerous part of EFCA - mandatory, binding arbitration that would be devastating to small businesses and workers.

Voters should not be fooled: union bosses have made it clear that they intend to reinsert card check into the bill at the first opportunity. But even the so-called "compromise" has provisions that would undermine the ability of workers to make informed decisions about unionization.

Current labor law protects the rights of employees to form unions and bargain collectively for work contracts. But more and more in recent years, employees have exercised their right to reject unionization. This is often a pocketbook decision: for many, the benefits of union membership do not justify the cost of dues. Now, labor bosses are looking for new ways to force workers into unions.

By Kimberly Freeman of American Rights at Work

Once again, the Workforce Fairness Institute and its Big Business allies are manufacturing facades in their opposition to the Employee Free Choice Act. Claiming to care about workers' rights, they are merely using the same tired arguments to distract lawmakers and the public from their real agenda - holding on to their grip of power for as long as possible. We shouldn't let their misleading claims and doomsday scenarios fool us. In these tough times, the Employee Free Choice Act is essential to restoring the balance and opportunities necessary to help workers get ahead.

With a President and majority of Congress committed to standing up for workers' rights and creating an economy that works for everyone, we are confident that there will be strong labor law reform this year. As with any piece of legislation, the details of the Employee Free Choice Act will be ironed out through many steps in the process. Yet with the added support from 73 percent of the public, we are optimistic that we can pass the strongest labor reforms in years based on three solid principles.

Workers must fundamentally have a free choice and a fair path to form a union. The bill's majority sign-up provision is the best way for workers to have the right to choose a voice at their workplace. And despite what corporate special interests repeatedly allege, the Employee Free Choice Act will not deny workers the right to a secret ballot union election. The anti-union crowd wants to distract everyone from the truth: that the measure allows workers, not their bosses, to make the choice in how they form a union.

Just after a deadline set by NY-23 Dems had passed for candidates to announce their interest in the seat, state Sen. Darrel Aubertine (D) announced he would not run. In many ways, he was considered the favorite for the nod. Many county chairs hinted earlier this week that they'd support him if he ran.

Because of his conservative stands on abortion and gay marriage, he was considered one of the top candidates for Dems to put up in a seat that has a GOP advantage in registration. But don't be fooled by registration numbers; Pres. Obama took it by a narrow margin in '08, making this a key swing seat.

Because of his attractive profile, the NRCC began airing TV ads in the CD today -- before he decided to not make the race -- blasting Aubertine for voting for higher spending in the legislature. But Aubertine spokesperson Drew Mangione said the attacks didn't influence Aubertine's decision not to run. Mangione, in an interview with Politico: "The Republican ads are nothing more than proof they're more interested in vilifying him than serving the people."

So now NY-23 Dems will look to another candidate to attempt to pick up this very winnable seat. Several candidates have already submitted their resumes to Dems, but ex-US Atty/ex-Sen. Moynihan aide Daniel French (D) and atty Brian McGrath (D) -- who has already polled the race -- are two names that stick out.

GOPers selected Assemb. DeDe Scozzafava (R) as their nominee 7/22.

(TIM SAHD)

During a campaign stop in West New York, NJ today, ex-U.S. Atty Chris Christie (R) was asked by reporters if Gov. Jon Corzine (D) should "take a bullet for the party" and bow out of the GOV race because of the Dems arrested on federal corruption charges today. "I can't see this day in a political context," Christie said according to PolitickerNJ.com. "This matter [started] while I was at the U.S. Attorney's office, and as I found out this morning while it was culminating, I can only think of it in terms of what it means in a law enforcement perspective. There will be others who can judge this politically."

One thing Christie was willing to judge was whether his fellow GOPer, Assemb. Daniel Van Pelt, who was arrested today, should stay in office. No, Christie said in a statement, "Van Pelt has failed the people he was elected to serve and has violated their trust. He has no other choice but to resign immediately and allow the people of Ocean County to elect an official who will put the people before personal self-interest."

Corzine also tried for a zero-tolerance message. Department of Community Affairs Commissioner Joseph Doria, a Corzine cabinet member whose home was searched by the feds, resigned at the gov.'s request today. Through his office, Corzine said: "Any corruption is unacceptable -- anywhere, anytime, by anybody. The scale of corruption we're seeing as this unfolds is simply outrageous and cannot be tolerated."

Corzine campaign spokesperson Elisabeth Smith added in a statement: "While this tragedy of public corruption unfolds, the Governor remains focused on addressing the issues of urgent and immediate concern to New Jersey families: creating new jobs, expanding access to health care, improving education and making investments in New Jersey's future."

Still, in a week when Christie picked corruption-busting, Monmouth Co. Sheriff Kim Guadagno (R) as his LG, he couldn't have asked for better timing.

[SEAN J. MILLER]

Six months into his presidency, Pres. Obama is hitting his first bumps. With polls showing an uphill climb on healthcare reform and his overall approval ratings lower than those of George W. Bush at the same point in his presidency, Obama is facing his first struggles political challenges in pushing his policies on the Hill.

To the rest of the world, however, Obama -- and the U.S. -- could hardly be faring better.

That's the verdict of the Pew Research Center's latest Global Attitudes Survey, which measures public opinion on a raft of issues in 24 countries and the Palestinian territories. The study's main finding is that confidence in Pres. Obama has improved the U.S. image "markedly in most parts of the world."

Among the survey's findings:

* The most notable increase in views of the U.S. occurred in Indonesia, where roughly eight of 10 respondents said they were aware that Obama lived there as a child. Indonesia's favorable ratings of the U.S. "nearly doubled" in the past year, to 63% in '09 from 37% in '08.

* In most of the countries surveyed, majorities or pluralities said that Obama's election "led them to have a more favorable view" of the U.S. Four years ago, there was no country in which a majority or plurality said as much of Bush's re-election.

* Among most of the majority-Muslim countries surveyed, views of the U.S. have improved. But America's favorability ratings among Muslims remain below 50% in all but two countries polled (Indonesia and Nigeria).

* Israel stands out as the only country where public confidence is lower for Obama than it was for Bush (56% for Obama in '09 vs. 57% for Bush in '07).

In general, the poll finds, positive views of the U.S. "are being driven much more by personal confidence in Obama than by opinions about his specific policies."

(FELICIA SONMEZ)

The CT GOP beats up on Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT) via this new Web site, Calling Chris Dodd. Hits include: AIG, his lackluster in-state fundraising, and his sweetheart home loan.

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) announced today that it has filed a complaint with the House Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) against Rep. Eric Cantor (R-VA), requesting an investigation into the National Council for a New America. NCNA was created earlier this year by a team of GOP lawmakers as an effort to seek public input about recasting and rebuilding the struggling Republican Party.

CREW is asserting that the group should not be run out of Cantor's office because it has exclusively political purposes.

Melanie Sloan, CREW's executive director, stated, "Applying the old adage: if it walks like a duck and talks like a duck, it probably is a duck, NCNA looks political and Rep. Cantor and the group's other members talk about it in political terms so it must be a political organization." Sloan continued, "The real reason Rep. Cantor is disingenuously claiming the group is a policy organization is to leave American taxpayers footing NCNA's bills. The Office of Congressional Ethics should make it perfectly clear: lawmakers are free to create political organizations, but they can't use our money to pay for them."

When Cantor's office first announced the group in April, he described it as not Republican-only. It was, he wrote, "a caucus of Congressional leaders gathering the expertise of national leaders and doers. We hope that will form the foundation of a concerted, policy-based forum to listen to, partner with, and empower the American people with ideas and solutions that speak directly to the needs of our great nation. This forum will engage in a conversation with America that seeks to remove ideological filters, addresses the realities we are confronting, and speaks to the challenges our citizens are facing."

Read the CREW complaint here. A Cantor spokeswoman has not yet responded to a request for comment.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Today in Shaker Heights, OH, advocating for health care reform ... Will this be Pres. Obama's "Read my lips ... " moment:

That is why I have pledged that I will not sign health insurance reform that adds even one dime to our deficit over the next decade. And I mean it. We have estimated that two-thirds of the cost of reform to bring health care security to every American can be paid for by reallocating money that is simply being wasted in federal health care programs.

Obama said he wants reform passed by the end of this year -- and suggests it's fine if Congress pushes his original August deadline. He also knocks the GOP, including the RNC chairman, Michael Steele, for working to "stall" efforts:

We have never been closer to achieving quality, affordable health care for all Americans. But at the same time, there are those who seek to delay and defeat reform. I've heard that one Republican strategist told his party that even though they may want to compromise, it's better politics to "go for the kill." Another Republican senator said that defeating health reform is about "breaking" me - when it's really the American people who are being broken by rising health care costs and declining coverage. And the Republican Party chair, seeking to stall our efforts, recently went so far as to say that health insurance reform was happening "too soon."

I thought that was a little odd. We've been talking about health reform since the days of Harry Truman, and he's saying reform is coming too soon. Too soon?

I don't think it's too soon for the families who've seen their premiums rise faster than wages year after year.

It's not too soon for the businesses forced to drop coverage or shed workers because of mounting health care expenses.

It's not too soon for taxpayers asked to close widening deficits that stem from rising health care costs, costs that threaten to leave our children with a mountain of debt.

Reform may be coming too soon for some in Washington, but it's not soon enough for the American people.

Full text of his prepared remarks is available after the jump.

The DNC is airing a new ad on national and DC cable over the next two-and-a-half weeks cautioning that if Congress fails to pass health care reform, premiums will rise and insurance companies will deny citizens appropriate coverage. It spells out a universe of higher co-payments and out of pocket expenses and families faced with paying the mortgage or health care.

In keeping with Pres. Obama's pitch during last night's press conference and again today in his event in Cleveland, the ad is called, 'The Cost of Doing Nothing.'

A female narrator intones over photos of Rush Limbaugh, RNC chief Michael Steele, Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC): "Tell Republicans the cost of doing nothing is just too high."

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

The Chamber of Commerce threw it's considerable heft behind Judge Sonia Sotomayor today, endorsing her appointment to the SCOTUS after evaluating her judicial scholarship, temperment and understanding of business and economic issues, according to a statement.

"Consistent with her recent testimony, we expect Judge Sotomayor to engage in fair and evenhanded application of the laws affecting American businesses," said Thomas J. Donohue, U.S. Chamber president and CEO. "Through several years of experience as a law firm partner representing business interests, Judge Sotomayor has spent time considering the litigation environment from our point of view. With her unique experience as both a trial and appellate judge, Judge Sotomayor has seen firsthand the tremendous burdens that our legal system places on businesses."

Since 1987, the Chamber -- which as the world's largest business federation represents 3M companies and organizations -- has endorsed the nominations of Chief Justice John Roberts and Associate Justices Samuel Alito, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Steven Breyer, David Souter and Clarence Thomas.

Meanwhile, in a not surprising but still interesting turn, the NRA announced today that it will score senators' votes for and against Sotomayor, a move that will contribute to the group's annual grades of lawmakers. While the Chamber's support, which conveys the business community's seal of approval, might free some moderate GOPers to back Sotomayor, the NRA's decision is a caution to Republicans and conservative Dems in states where gun owners are a powerful voting bloc.

The NRA announced last week that it would oppose Sotomayor's appointment.

AK Gov. Sarah Palin (R), in her final week on the job, tweets about the latest ethics charges against her, that she may have created a state fund to pay her legal expenses:

Legal Fees Fund trustee's press conf yest set record straight w/facts/truth re:recent complaint;read transcript in case press chooses not toabout 9:30 AM EDT from TwitterBerry

judge investigation,destroy integrity of process&strip rights;Abuse WILL cont til leaks/friv filers r held accntble&press reports accuratelyabout 9:30 AM EDT from TwitterBerry

This wk saw add'l violation of law:filer of friv ethics complaint leaks confidential documents out of context 2 create false headlines, pre-about 9:30 AM EDT from TwitterBerry

Personal Anthem

Detroit Down" & "Rollin": "Aint gonna shut my mouth/I know there's got to be a few hundred million more like me/just trying to keep it free" about 1:30 AM EDT from TwitterBerry

Awesome AK night sensing summer already winding down w/fireweed near full bloom;finally sitting down to pen;listening to Big & Rich "Shuttin about 12:30 AM EDT from TwitterBerry

(EVAN McMORRIS-SANTORO)

The Las Vegas Sun is reporting that embattled Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) is losing his chief of staff, John Lopez. Lopez has worked for him since the 1990s.

Once a rising Republican star with an eye on the '12 presidential contest, Ensign is working to keep his job after admitting to an affair with a campaign staffer -- and after news reports indicated that his parents paid the woman and her husband, an Ensign Senate staffer, $96K.

Is Lopez's departure a sign of even tougher times ahead for the senator?

"World News" led with Pres. Obama's health care push. "Evening News" led with the H1N1 virus vaccine. "Nightly News" led with Obama's health care push.

Obama's 7/22 p.m. press conference was the focus of TV coverage last night, with pundits and pols weighing in on whether it was successful.

The Hill's Stoddard: "What I thought he was going to do tonight was get up and embrace a pay for, an actual specific payment plan to offset the costs of a reform plan and tell Democrats directly in the Congress this is what I think is the best fix. You're with me or you're against me. Show some leadership and really kind of come to the table as he's been promising to do for months. He made a reference to the fact that he still thinks his payment is the best ... so he did not actually back a specific plan" ("O'Reilly Factor," FNC, 7/22).

CNN's Borger, on what was learned from Obama about health care that wasn't known pre-press conference: "Not much, really. I don't think he moved the needle very much at all. ... He did reiterate his support for a cap on deductions for wealthy Americans as a way to pay for health care reform, but that is something that has received absolutely no traction on Capitol Hill. So his method of paying for health reform is not something that members of Congress like. So not moving the needle" ("Situation Room," 7/22).

Independent Women's Forum's Michelle Bernard: "I think everybody missed the point. If we were going to say whether or not there was a net positive or a net negative, it was barely a net positive. He's charismatic, he is articulate, everybody likes him, you want
this presidency to succeed. But, whatever the point was, it was lost in the details and the popularity wasn't enough to make the big sell tonight" ("Hardball," MSNBC, 7/22).

After the jump, more on the press conference, as well as a Sonia Sotomayor update and a reaction to the recent gun ruling.

(RACHELLE DOUILLARD-PROULX)

During the fifth press conference of his young presidency, Pres Obama made a pitch for health care reform this evening as a critical element of his broader efforts to restore the nation's economic well-being, and he pushed back against the suggestions of GOP lawmakers that a plan would bankrupt the nation and compromise coverage.

In some ways, however, Obama's arguments lacked the "fierce urgency of now" fire for which he's known. He avoided personal anecdotes or mentions of a named citizen, living in the nation's heartland, who is struggling with prescription drug costs or lacks coverage altogether.

And he seemed to bend a bit in citing a deadline for passage of the bill. August now reflects a tentative deadline, replaced by a call for action by the end of the year. If the debate bleeds into '10, however, politics will trump policy-making as the midterms approach, and the president will likely not find critical consensus among the more conservative members of the Dem caucus.

Still, Obama's approach fell into three key categories: doing nothing is not an option, the cost of a package will not add to the deficit and changes to the system will leave critical decisions to doctors and patients, not insurers.

Obama said he was frustrated by some of the "misinformation" coming from Republicans. He said doing nothing will result in doubled health care costs over the next decade.

"The debt and the deficit are deep concerns of mine," he said. "I am very concerned about federal spending ... but in order for us to do more we're not only going to have to eliminate waste in the system ... we're also going to have to change health care."

He added: "We inherited a (sic) enormous deficit. ... We have not reduced it as much as we need to ... but health care reform is not going to add to that deficit. It's designed to lower it."

Obama said he cannot guarantee that there will be no changes in the health care delivery system under his plan. But he suggested that patients will no longer be held hostage by the fee payment schedule mandated by insurance companies and that doctors will make the decisions about care.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

After earlier this week promising to slow down its process, the NY-23 GOP did today exactly what it promised to do weeks ago: pick a nominee to replace Army Sec.-nominee John McHugh (R). And the choice of the CD's 11 county chairs: moderate Assemb. DeDe Scozzafava (R). She beat out the up-and-coming candidacy of financier Matt Doheny (R), who dumped $500K of his own cash into the campaign and raised $300K from outside contributors for the race. Doheny congratulated Scozzafava in a statement shortly after the GOP made its choice.

That's important, because some elements of the GOP haven't been so welcoming of the socially liberal Scozzafava. She's pro-choice and voted for NY's same-sex marriage bill in the legislature. In the past, she has earned the liberal Working Families Party line, and Conservative Party chair Mike Long told Hotline a few weeks ago that Scozzafava's support of the gay marriage bill would eliminate her from consideration for his party's support in the special.

But she appears to be more conservative on the fiscal side, as she would've opposed the cap-and-trade bill -- legislation that McHugh voted for.

Pres. Obama's key task tonight, as he's framing it in his opening remarks, is to stress "the consequences of inaction" on his health care package, to tie the nation's struggling economy to the fate of the nation's 47M uninsured.

So let me be clear: if we do not control these costs, we will not be able to control our deficit. If we do not reform health care, your premiums and out-of-pocket costs will continue to skyrocket. If we do not act, 14,000 Americans will continue to lose their health insurance every single day. These are the consequences of inaction. These are the stakes of the debate we're having right now.

Also tickles the funny bone.

According to an online poll conducted by TIME, Jon Stewart is the nation's most trusted newscaster. The magazine asks the question in the wake of Walter Cronkite's death.

With 44% of the vote, Stewart blows away the field, which includes Katie Couric, Brian Williams and Charlie Gibson. Check it out.

Live here in five minutes.

It's Pres. Obama's fifth conference, and his fourth in primetime.

This weekend will mark Hillary Clinton's first visit to NBC's "Meet the Press" since signing on as secretary of state. She'll be on for the full hour.

Per the show's site:

"She'll go one-on-one with David Gregory about her role in the Obama administration and the many hot spots around the globe: Nuclear threats in Iran and North Korea; Fighting terrorism in Afghanistan and Pakistan; the continuing war in Iraq; her trip this week to India and Thailand; and upcoming talks with China."

The DNC has released a new TV ad in SC knocking Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) for trying to "kill" health care reform. The ad, titled "No Plan at All," will air on cable news stations in Greenville (DeMint's hometown) and Columbia, as well as in DC.

The ad highlights GOP efforts to thwart passage of a package. DeMint suggested, and affirmed again today, that he believes health care will be Pres. Obama's "Waterloo."

"The politicization of health care reform by Senator Jim DeMint and Republicans is a desperate and shameful ploy by the 'Party of NO' to score a political win on the backs of struggling American families and small businesses," said the DNC's Brad Woodhouse. "What's worse is that this strategy originates from the same Republican Party who ignored health care reform for the past eight years, letting costs spiral out of control while protecting their special interest friends."

SC Gov. Mark Sanford is taking off for a vacation that'll be less controversial than his last overseas sojourn. This time, Sanford is traveling with his wife and four sons, not visiting his Argentine mistress. He has also notified state officials -- and the public -- in advance of his general whereabouts -- an undisclosed European destination.

The trip is a long-planned family vacation, according to the AP.

But Sanford won't depart without taking some heat. Carol Fowler, chairwoman of the SC Democratic Party, issued a statement knocking Sanford for taking "unlimited paid time off."

"Mark Sanford gets still another vacation--two weeks in Europe with his family, leaving behind a state that is desperate for leadership to solve a host of problems," she said. "He's lucky. Most South Carolinians don't have unlimited paid time off. They can't just leave their jobs for days at a time whenever they want to, no matter what urgent family issues they're struggling to manage. Of course, most South Carolinians are also expected to actually accomplish something when they are on the job."

Judge Sonia Sotomayor is well on her way to Senate confirmation, but Dems' push to run up the score suffered a setback today when Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS), who supported Sotomayor's '98 appointment to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, told the Senate that he would vote against her nomination to the SCOTUS.

"A nomination to one of the federal circuit courts of appeals is not the same as a nomination to the court of last resort," Cochran said on the Senate floor. "If confirmed, there would be no higher court to deter Judge Sotomayor from making decisions that would become the binding law of the land."

Cochran joins Sen. Bob Bennett (R-UT) as the second GOPer who voted for Sotomayor 11 years ago who won't support her this time around.

Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME), Dick Lugar (R-IN) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME) voted for Sotomayor 11 years ago and said they would again. Sen. Arlen Specter (PA) also voted for her in '98, and he has said that he will this year, though he has since bolted the GOP.

Sens. Judd Gregg (R-NH) and Orrin Hatch (R-UT) supported Sotomayor 11 years ago, but they have yet to publicly announce how they will vote this time.

Among current members, Sens. Sam Brownback (R-KS), Mike Enzi (R-WY), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX), Jim Inhofe (R-OK), Jon Kyl (R-AZ), John McCain (R-AZ), Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Pat Roberts (R-KS), Jeff Sessions (R-AL) and Richard Shelby (R-AL) all voted against Sotomayor in '98. Brownback, Inhofe, Kyl, McConnell and Roberts have each said they will again vote no.

(STEVEN SHEPARD)

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), who predicted during Judge Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation hearings that she would win confirmation if she didn't have a "meltdown," announced today that he will vote for her.

"I understand the path of least resistance" would be to vote 'no,' he said during a floor speech a few moments ago, "but I feel compelled to vote 'yes.'"

Graham becomes the fifth Republican to support Sotomayor, Pres. Obama's first appointee to the nation's highest court. Sotomayor, who would be the first Hispanic justice, sailed through last week's hearings relatively unscathed. And Republican lawmakers weighing the political consequences of voting for Obama's pick must also consider how women and Hispanics will view their vote. Sotomayor, if confirmed, will be just the third woman on the court.

"I do believe that elections have consequences," Graham said today, adding "... I choose to vote for Sotomayor because I believe she is well qualified ... one of the most qualified nominees to be selected for the Supreme Court of the United States in decades."

One of seven Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Cmte., Graham said Sotomayor "has an outstanding background as a lawyer."

"I believe that she follows precedent, that she has not been an activist judge," he said.

He added: "Her record of academic achievement is extraordinary."

(STEVEN SHEPARD)

One GOPer's rationale for why health care reform must be stopped:

Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT): "Was on Imus radio show this morning talking about how terrible the Democrat health care bill will be for Americans." 7/22, 11:25 AM

Hatch: "Even Imus couldn't defend it - that means it really is bad." 11:25 AM

(EVAN McMORRIS-SANTORO)

Ex-Rep. Rob Simmons (R-CT), a candidate for SEN, is promoting a new campaign fundraising gimmick. For $5, voters can take the incumbent -- Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT) -- with them wherever they go. A reminder, Simmons' campaign Web site indicates, "of the special interest cronyism we'll finally be rid of in November 2010."

Simmons: Introducing @PocketDodd -- now you too can have Connecticut's Senior Senator in your back pocket: http://tr.im/pocketdoddabout 2 hours ago from TweetDeck

(EVAN McMORRIS-SANTORO)

Despite switching parties to gain advantage in '10, Sen. Arlen Specter (D-PA) has lost his lead over likely GOP challenger Pat Toomey, according to a survey released today by Quinnipiac Univ.

The Q poll shows the candidates deadlocked in a general election contest, with 45% for Specter and 44% for Toomey, the ex-pres. of the conservative Club for Growth. Perhaps even more surprisingly, voters said, 49% to 40%, that Specter, elected in '80 as a GOPer, does not deserve another term.

NH businessman Fred Tausch will not run for NH SEN, or any political office in '10, the Union Leader reported this a.m.

"World News" led with the stock market rally. "Evening News" led with the health care fight and hosted Pres. Obama. "Nightly News" led with CA's budget crisis.

Obama sat down with CBS' Katie Couric at the WH for an interview that aired on "Evening News" 7/21 p.m.

Obama, on whether he and the Blue Dog Dems made any progress "working out their differences": "I think, rightly, a number of these so-called Blue Dog Democrats, more conservative Democrats, were concerned that not enough had been done on reducing costs. It's the same concern that I share, and I think that we're moving in the direction where, at the end of the day, by the time we have a bill on the floor, we will be able to say unequivocally that this is going to bend the cost kevin so that health care inflation is reduced."

Obama, on whether it'll add to the deficit: "It will not add to the receive it is. I will not sign a bill that adds to the deficit. Period."

Obama, on whether there's "flexibility" on this Aug. deadline: "I want to keep the pressure on because we're making steady progress, people are working hard. I just met with these House Democrats and they were in there for three hours. ... I understand that the Senate Finance Committee is meeting three times today. That kind of work is going to produce good results. ... So I want to put the pressure on, but ultimately the test is, is this a bill that I think is going to be better for the American people or not? And if it's not, we'll keep at it."

More Obama: "If I'm not happy with the end product, I will not sign a bill."

After the jump, more from the interview, as well as other healthcare discussion.

(RACHELLE DOUILLARD-PROULX)

One more argument can now be put to rest in the wake of the MN SEN contest: Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) doesn't hate puppies.

In a Minneapolis Star Tribune op-ed over the weekend, Franken announced plans for his first piece of legislation in the U.S. Senate: a pilot program providing service dogs for wounded veterans. According to the op-ed, the program would "help train a statistically significant number of dogs to measure the benefits to veterans with physical and emotional wounds." The idea for the plan, Franken noted, came from a meeting with Iraq vet Luis Carlos Montalvan and his golden retriever, "Tuesday," at an inaugural event in DC. Montalvan, an ex-intel. officer who survived an assassination attempt in '05 and now suffers from severe PTSD, told Franken that he couldn't have made it to the inauguration without Tuesday.

According to Franken spokesperson Jess McIntosh, the service dogs would be trained by nonprofits and would be provided to both mentally and physically injured vets. Franken visited one such nonprofit, Hearing and Service Dogs of Minnesota, after his meeting with Montalvan.

Before his Senate days, Franken took several trips to entertain U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan on USO tours, an experience he makes a point of noting in his op-ed.

McIntosh said that over the course of the protracted election contest and recount, among other matters, Franken researched military issues and the needs of wounded vets.

She noted that Franken, a "major dog lover," was dealt a blow during the SEN campaign by the death of his eight-year-old black lab, Kirby, from bone cancer. Franken "still calls it the worst day of the campaign," McIntosh said. But McIntosh added that the service dog program "wasn't something he'd talked about" or started researching until he met with Montalvan in Jan.

Franken has not provided a dollar-figure for the program (the program aims to place at least 200 dogs). But as concerns over the cost of health care reform dominate debate in Washington and the problem of the nation's struggling economy looms large, how does he intend to justify the price tag?

"We're talking about veterans," McIntosh said. "We're talking about the people to whom we owe the most." She added that furry friends offer therapeutic benefits and ultimately curb some medical costs, allowing the program to pay for itself.

(FELICIA SONMEZ)

Oftentimes, candidates for office don't weigh in on issues or appointments, noting that they're not yet in office. But Fl Gov. Charlie Crist (R), a candidate for SEN engaged in a primary for the nom, weighed in today against Judge Sonia Sotomayor's appointment to the SCOTUS. An effort, no doubt, to woo the base in his GOP fight against Marco Rubio, the former state House speaker. He mentions her position on gun cases, in particular.

Here's Crist:

"As Governor, I have had the honor of appointing dozens of judges, in both the appellate and trial courts. Selecting a judge, particularly to a supreme court, is one of the weightiest and most important decisions any elected executive can make."

"While I have not had the opportunity to meet personally with Judge Sotomayor--a crucial step in the selection process--I have reviewed and reflected upon her testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee, and come to the conclusion that I cannot support her appointment to the United States Supreme Court. Judge Sotomayor is worthy of respect for her many accomplishments and her remarkable story of success. However, I have strong concerns that Judge Sotomayor would not strictly and objectively construe the constitution and lacks respect for the fundamental right to keep and bear arms. For these reasons, I cannot support her appointment to the highest court in the land."

(photo: National Journal's Rick Bloom)

Continuing his campaign-style push for health care reform, Pres. Obama today urged against efforts by some members of Congress to stall passage of a bill extending coverage to some of the uninsured. Make no mistake, Obama said during a Rose Garden ceremony, "we are closer than ever before to the reform that the American people need, and we're going to get the job done."

So I understand that some will try to delay action until the special interests can kill it, while others will simply focus on scoring political points. We've done that before. And we can choose to follow that playbook again, and then we'll never get over the goal line, and we'll face an even greater crisis in the years to come. That's one path we can travel.

Or, we can come together and insist that this time it will be different. We can choose action over inaction. We can choose progress over the politics of the moment. We can build on the extraordinary common ground that's been forged, and we can do the hard work needed to finally pass the health insurance reform that the American people deserve.

Full remarks available after the jump.

Debating the substance, location and frequency of debates is a common point of friction between rival campaigns. And the VA GOV contest is no different. Only there are fewer than four months left in the contest, and the candidates, who ran against one another in the '05 battle for state AG, have yet to meet.

State Sen. Creigh Deeds, the Dem candidate for governor of VA, spoke with On Call today about his support in the African American community, debating Republican rival Bob McDonnell, EFCA, cap and trade and the state's transportation woes. We also asked Deeds if he expects Pres. Obama to campaign for him in the Commonwealth. Read on.

@thehotline: "first let's set the stage. Where are you tweeting from? And with what?"

@creighdeeds: "i'm tweeting from richmond. sitting at my computer."

@thehotline: "any music playing in the background?"

@creighdeeds: "ipod is in the suitcase in my room. sadly, no music today"

@thehotline: "Earlier 2day, your camp agreed to debate @BobMcDonnell 10x as he has asked. B4, your camp said you wanted 3 or 4. What changed?"

@creighdeeds: "nothing changed. we had some time to review requests. want to make sure all parts of the commonwealth get to hear from us."

@thehotline: "Have formal negotiations over a debate schedule begun btwn the 2 camps?"

@creighdeeds: "we're looking forward to debating. we've talked to community orgs and news outlets across virginia to set them up."

@thehotline: "Ystrday, Sheila Johnson endorsed McDonnell. Today, some are saying your having trble connecting with African Americans. True?"

@creighdeeds: "Got strong support all over VA, in all communities during primary. Proud to get early support of Sens Marsh, Lucas, Miller othrs"

@thehotline: "But you didn't win a lot of African American support in the p'mary. Are you working to build more support there? If so, how?"

@creighdeeds: "we had strong support in primary. reaching out to all Virginians. Dems are united. the difference in Nov is stark."

@thehotline: "OK, let's talk about some of your recent proposals. GOP says your and McDonnell's econ plans are "carbon copies." Your take?"

@creighdeeds: "i cut more taxes for sm biz, beef up gov's opp fund, don't pass the buck to LG. Bob was against govs opp fund bf he was for it ... under my plan: you create a job, you get a tax cut. bob can't say that."

@thehotline: "How important is that Gov's Opp Fund, really? Isn't Kaine sitting on more than $10M right now?"

@creighdeeds: "Govs opp fund is important tool to bring jobs to VA. i wrote law that put it in the code."

@thehotline: "Should Kaine be spending that $$?"

@creighdeeds: "fund exists for gov to use when he has opportunity to bring jobs to VA. needs to be spent on the right projects."

@thehotline: "on to Transpo. McDonnell says he wants to pvtize ABC stores and build toll rds to pay 4 transpo. Do you support those ideas?"

@creighdeeds: "i support more pub-priv partnerships. VA is leader in that. Prblm w/ bob's plan is that he takes $ from schools to pay for rds...privatization of ABC shd be explrd. it'd produce 1-time cash surplus. but uncertn future revenues. Need comprehensive rd plan"

@thehotline: "Can you rationally tell VAins they're going to get expensive new trans prjcts w/o a tax increase?"

@creighdeeds: "We have to work tgthr to produce bipartisan transpo soln. Our econ future depends on it. My plan saves $ from performance rvws."

@thehotline: "some politics Qs. GOP has continued to push you on nat'l issues. Ur postions on: Cap&Trade, EFCA, health care pub option, pls."

@creighdeeds: "EFCA:Bob is grandstanding. Issue belongs in Congrs. I'll work w/ Va. deleg. to make sure businesses and secret ballot protected."

@creighdeeds: "Captrade: another serious issue. Need to address climate change, but during recession don't need higher energy costs...Boucher did good work improving House bill. Hope Senate does more to protect VA jobs."

@creighdeeds: "Gov can do a lot to improve hc. that's why my econ plan improves health ins. in VA, provides emergency HC loans to unemployed."

@thehotline: "In '05, you ran ads attacking McDonnell's positions on abortion and stem cell research. Should we expect similar ads this year?"

@creighdeeds: "We're gonna run a positive campaign, focused on the issues important to VAins. There's a big diff b/w me & Bob on those issues."

@thehotline: "last 2. First, How many visits from Obama are you asking for? 1, 2, 10, more?"

@creighdeeds: "Obama called me after primary victory. We look forward to seeing him in VA in next 105 days."

@thehotline: "Well, that's not really what we asked, but OK we're out of time. Last one -- What's your favorite restaurant in VA?"

@creighdeeds: "Pam's Kitchen. In my house in Bath County. Thanks for having me."

(EVAN McMORRIS-SANTORO)

Roll Call is reporting that Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV) returned to the Capitol this week after an extended illness that required six weeks of hospitalization. Byrd, 91, is the nation's longest-serving Senator. He was released on 6/30 but had not been didn't return to the Senate for votes until today, writes Roll Call.

Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) announced today that she'll vote to confirm Judge Sonia Sotomayor, becoming the fourth GOPer to declare support for Pres. Obama's SCOTUS pick. In doing so, Collins follows GOP Sens. Richard Lugar (IN) , Mel Martinez (FL) and Olympia Snowe (ME).

"World News" led with the recent dip in Pres. Obama's approval ratings. "Evening News" and "Nightly News" both led with the search for captured U.S. soldier Bowe Bergdahl in Afghanistan.

Obama sat down with PBS' Lehrer for a newsmaker interview that aired on "NewsHour" 7/20 p.m.

The main topic of the conversation centered around the fight for a new health care plan.

Obama, on his interpretation of the dip in his poll numbers with regard to health care: "It means that what we're doing is hard and the truth is, I feel pretty good about the fact that our polls have held up under extraordinarily difficult circumstances. I think we may have set a very high bar for ourselves. Normally at 59 percent, folks would say, 'We'll take it.'"

More Obama: "On health care in particular, there's a reason why this hasn't been done in 50 years and that is because this is a big, complex situation. ... The congressional process, people are always a little suspicious of. I'm confident, though, that in the end, any bill I sign is going to make more people secure in their health care and it's going to drive down costs over the long term."

Obama, on whether he's still confident something will be passed by Aug. recess: "I think this is actually a good example of where the focus tends to be on what we haven't gotten done yet rather than what we've done. We have three out of the five committees that have jurisdiction over this thing have already passed a bill. We've got support from the American Medical Association, so the nation's doctors have said we are supportive of the president's approach."

After the jump, more from Obama's interview, as well as pol reaction to health care reform and an interview with Sec/State Hillary Clinton.

(RACHELLE DOUILLARD-PROULX)

Judge Sonia Sotomayor responded to written questions from five GOPers on the Senate Judiciary Cmte today, but she rarely expanded on the details provided during last week's confirmation hearings. And two GOP senators -- Lindsey Graham (SC) and Orrin Hatch (UT) -- apparently declined to take the opportunity to pose additional questions.

Judiciary Cmte ranking member Jeff Sessions (R-AL) posed the most questions, asking for Sotomayor to elaborate about her efforts for the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund (PRLDEF), particularly concerning that group's work in abortion-rights cases. But in nearly every instance, Sotomayor said she knew little of the fund's activities while she was on the board.

"As a member of the board of the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund, I did not write, edit, or approve briefs drafted by the organization's staff lawyers," she wrote.

"While the board was responsible for ensuring that the broad areas of litigation were consistent with the mission statement of the Fund, the board did not review the briefs in cases selected by the staff lawyers, nor the individual arguments made by those lawyers in briefs filed on behalf of the Fund. Because I was not involved in the drafting or editing of this brief, I cannot speak to the good faith legal basis for the arguments raised in the brief. The Board assumed that the attorneys would comply with Rule 3.1 of the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct (or analogous state rules) and Rule 11 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, each of which requires that an attorney's argument be supported by existing law or a "good faith" argument for extending, modifying, or reversing existing law, or a similar standard."

NC Sec/State Elaine Marshall (D) is seriously considering a run for NC SEN and plans to make her final announcement about a run against in the fall. In an exclusive interview with On Call, she said the key to her decision was money.

"Let's face it, it's hard to run a campaign in North Carolina," Marshall said. "You can't do it without some outside money. So these are the things I'm assessing."

Marshall said she expected a serious bid against Sen. Richard Burr (R) race would require "in the ballpark" of $15M, the same amount now-Sen. Kay Hagan (D) spent in '08 to defeat ex-Sen. Elizabeth Dole (R). She said she's about to make her second trip to DC this year to meet with nat'l party officials and donors to "test the waters" on a run.

The DSCC is enlisting Chicago's most famous funny men and ladies in the cmte's quest for cash:

Kelly Ayotte (R), who resigned as NH AG last week to run for SEN, today filed candidate cmte papers.

Her statement:

"Today I filed the necessary paperwork with the Federal Elections Commission (FEC) in order to form a candidate committee for the United States Senate. This is the next step in the legal process as I explore my potential candidacy for the race in 2010.

"In the weeks and months to come, I look forward to traveling the state and meeting with citizens to discuss the critical issues that are facing New Hampshire and America."

Pres. Obama welcomed astronauts Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Buzz Aldrin to the WH today to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission and man's first steps on the moon.

"The country continues to draw inspiration from what you've done," Obama said. "I should note, just personally, I grew up in Hawaii, as many of you know, and I still recall sitting on my grandfather's shoulders when those capsules would land in the middle of the Pacific and they'd get brought back and we'd go out and we'd pretend like they could see us as we were waving at folks coming home. And I remember waving American flags and my grandfather telling me that the Apollo mission was an example of how Americans can do anything they put their minds to."

The president also plugged the role NASA, at the center of funding battles in recent years, has played in "sparking the innovation, the drive, the entrepreneurship, the creativity back here on Earth."

"And I think it's very important for us to constantly remember that NASA was not only about feeding our curiosity, that sense of wonder, but also had extraordinary practical applications," he said. "And one of the things that I've committed to doing as President is making sure that math and science are cool again, and that we once again keep the goal by 2020 of having the highest college graduation rates of any country on Earth, especially in the maths and science fields."

Obama's full remarks are available after the jump.

Sheila Crump Johnson, co-founder of Black Entertainment Television, a Middleburg business owner and philanthropist endorsed ex-AG Bob McDonnell (R) in his campaign for VA GOV.

Johnson has been loyal previously to Dem pols. She has given a whopping $409,489 to Gov. Tim Kaine (D) over the last several years in cash and in-kind contributions that were event and transportation-related, according to the non partisan Virginia Public Access Project. She also contributed $3,850 to Kaine's inaugural cmte and $201,538 to his Moving Virginia Forward PAC. Johnson was also a big booster of Barack Obama's WH campaign.

The DSCC today announced it raised $12.8M in the second quarter of '09 and has $7.9M in the bank.

The DSCC spent $12.1M this quarter, including significant debt payments, according to a release; the DSCC paid more than $9M in debt since last year's election.

In June alone, the DSCC raised $6.2M and spent $2.3M. By comparison, the NRSC raised $3.4M in June and has $4.3M in the bank.

"Americans want President Obama to have partners in the Senate, not obstructionists," said DSCC executive director J.B. Poersch. "Our supporters are motivated every time they see Republicans in Washington washing their hands of any responsibility to deal with the economy. Democrats grow increasingly committed to protecting and growing our majority whenever Republicans stand in the way of progress, which is now at every turn."

The NRSC announced that it raised $3.4M in June and has $4.3M in the bank. For the first six months of '09, the committee raised $20.1M. It has no debt.

"Over the last six months, the NRSC has generated 40,000 new donors from across the country which is evidence of the growing enthusiasm we are seeing for Senate Republicans and the growing concern over the direction Senate Democrats are leading our country," said Brian Walsh, the NRSC's communications director, in an email. "Our grassroots supporters recognize that the Senate is the firewall for stopping the type of out of control spending and ballooning deficits we've seen in this period of complete Democrat power in Washington. Recruiting and fundraising are Chairman Cornyn's top priorities at the NRSC and on both counts, he's pleased with the progress we're seeing this first half of the year."

Rep. Mark Kirk (R-IL), who is serving his fifth term in the House, announced today that he will indeed run for the Senate seat vacated by Sen. Roland Burris (D-IL) and held previously by Pres. Obama.

Kirk told WLS Radio in Chicago that he aims to "restore ethics and integrity to Illinois government."

The GOP has high hopes for Kirk, who represents Chicago's northern suburbs. After the tumult surrounding Gov. Rod Blagojevich's ouster and the Burris appointment, the Dems are surely wounded in IL. Expect the GOP to fight hard for Kirk in this Dem stronghold.

The Dem contenders include state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias and Merchandise Mart CEO Chris Kennedy, son of Robert F. Kennedy.

The RNC is airing a new TV ad in targeted markets that criticizes Pres. Obama for massive spending programs, health care included, that will leave the next generation with massive debt.

Narrator: "They've loaned Barack Obama their future, without even knowing it. Trillions for rushed government bailouts and takeovers, banks, the auto industry. The biggest spending spree in our nation's history. ... The next big ticket item? A risky experiment with our health care."

The ad will run in markets in AR, NV and ND. Full script is available after the jump.

Republican Kelly Ayotte is building a team for her '10 SEN bid.

The Nashua Telegraph wrote this weekend that Rob Varsalone, a respected GOP operative who was a strategist for Craig Benson's '02 GOV campaign and has worked as an adviser to the RNC and NH GOP, has signed on as Ayotte's camp mgr. While Ayotte and Varsalone are veterans of Benson's admin. and close friends, Varsalone, who has spent the last few years working for a State Dept-funded NGO in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan, is living overseas. He is expected to return to the states in early '10 and will likely sign on to Ayotte's team then as a strategist. But sources say he isn't taking the top camp. job.

Sources tell me that internal talks for the camp mgr. position seem to be focused on Brooks Kochvar, who ran then-Sen. Gordon Smith's (R-OR) unsuccessful '08 re-election effort. One NH political veteran said that in picking someone who hails from outside the Granite State, Ayotte would avoid alienating any one faction of the state GOP, whose leaders each have their most trusted operatives.

Ayotte was endorsed last week by ex-Gov. Steve Merrill (R). A nice pick-up should she face a contested GOP primary, which is looking likely; wealthy businessman Fred Tausch has declared his interest, and others, including atty Ovide Lamontagne, may run.

The left-leaning Daily Kos released a survey last week showing that Ayotte would run even with Dem Rep. Paul Hodes, a two-term congressman; in a head-to-head match, Ayotte barely leads, 39% to Hodes' 38%.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

With a Web bio that describes them as "cultural icons in the health care debate," Harry and Louise -- the ad campaign couple who helped sink Clinton era reform and are featured in a new TV spot -- have found their way to Twitter. Just in time for Congress' knock down, drag out debate over Pres. Obama's health care package.

Real or faux site? You decide.

Here are a few of their Tweets:

Take the American Marketing Association Weekly Poll at www.ama.org, it's about us!10:11 AM 7/20

Louise, here's our National Journal Article http://bit.ly/cESxt 7/17

The Washington Examiner calls us iconic! http://tinyurl.com/kwts4o 7/17

We were talked about on NPR http://tinyurl.com/kwgojq8:35 AM 7/17

Look Harry, they're expecting our return! http://tinyurl.com/m6f7nw8:34 AM 7/17

Dear @candorville, just wanted you to know we are alive and well, not, in fact, dead 7/13

(photo: Hoover Institution Archives)

Walter Cronkite, "CBS Evening News" veteran and one of the first "celebrity anchormen," died last night at his home in NY. His son cited complications of dementia.

The tributes:

NYT: "Such plain-spoken grace that he was called the most trusted man in America."

Washington Post: "Viewers found in Cronkite someone they could not only trust and depend upon; they could take comfort from him."

LA Times: He "exhibited a masterful, disciplined stewardship that helped television news come of age. He was arguably the most respected and recognizable media figure of his time."

Apollo 11 Commander Neil Armstrong: "For a news analyst and reporter of the happenings of the day to be successful, he or she needs three things: accuracy, timeliness, and the trust of the audience. Many are fortunate to have the first two. The trust of the audience must be earned. Walter Cronkite seemed to enjoy the highest of ratings. He had a passion for human space exploration, an enthusiasm that was contagious, and the trust of his audience. He will be missed."

CBS News: "Known for his steady and straightforward delivery, his trim moustache, and his iconic sign-off line -'That's the way it is' - Cronkite dominated the television news industry during one of the most volatile periods of American history."

Pres. Obama: "In an industry of icons, Walter set the standard by which all others have been judged. He was there through wars and riots, marches and milestones, calmly telling us what we needed to know. And through it all, he never lost the integrity he gained growing up in the heartland. ... A voice of certainty in an uncertain world."

The work: The assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. Vietnam. The moon landing. Watergate. Three mile island. And this moment, indelibly etched into American history, marked a critical juncture in the newsman's relationship with his viewers:

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Pres. Obama will hold another primetime presser; it will be his fifth formal press conference, and it was indeed announced via Twitter.

White House: You heard it here first: Primetime presidential news conference at the White House, Wed. 7/22 @ 9PM EDT
4:18 PM 7/16

Now that Judge Sonia Sotomayor's SCOTUS confirmation hearings have concluded, the key looming questions are: When will a vote be scheduled? And how many GOPers will support her?

With announcements today by Sens. Dick Lugar (R-IN), Mel Martínez (R-FL) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME) that they will support Sotomayor's nomination in the full Senate, and Senate Judiciary Cmte Ranking Member Jeff Sessions (R-AL) ruling out a filibuster yesterday, Sotomayor's confirmation is a virtual certainty.

But the timeline of a vote remains somewhat hazy, however. Senate Judiciary Cmte Chair Pat Leahy (D-VT) set a cmte meeting for 7/21 at 10 a.m. to vote on the nomination, but Sessions has indicated that the GOP will invoke cmte rules that allow the vote to be postponed for no more than a week -- which means the cmte will vote by 7/28.

Pres. Obama and Senate Dems said they wanted the full Senate to vote on Sotomayor by the Aug. recess -- set for 8/7 -- and Senate GOPers indicated yesterday that they would allow a vote on that timeline.

So how many votes will Sotomayor get? The New York Times reported today that GOP aides expect one to three of their cmte members to back Sotomayor when the panel ultimately votes.

Over the course of their tenures, the seven GOPers on the Judiciary Cmte have never voted against a SCOTUS nominee -- though only Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Orrin Hatch (R-UT) were serving in the Senate when the most recent Dem nominees, Justice Stephen Breyer and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, were considered. Grassley and Hatch have voted "yes" in all 11 SCOTUS confirmation votes they have cast in their Senate careers, though it's worth noting that 9 of the 11 nominations were made by GOP presidents.

As a result, Grassley and Hatch have been pegged as possible "yes" votes on Sotomayor, though both expressed reservations about Sotomayor in statements to reporters yesterday.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) is another possible -- possibly even likely -- "yes." He said 7/13 during his opening statement, "I don't know how I'm gonna vote, but my inclination is, elections matter. ... The question for me is have you earned the right to be here and if I give you this robe to put you on the Supreme Court, do I believe, at the end of the day, that you will do what you think is best, that you have courage, and that you will be fair. Come Thursday, I think I'll know more about that. Good luck."

Graham stopped just short of saying he'd vote for her during yesterday's hearing, and a phone call to his office today was not immediately returned.

Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) is from a state with a large Hispanic population and, as NRSC chair for the '10 cycle, will be running candidates in other states with large Hispanic populations, like FL Gov. Charlie Crist. But, in an interview with National Journal's Kirk Victor that runs in the latest edition of the magazine, he dismissed the implication that opposition to Sotomayor, the first Latina appointee, would be seen as a hostile act toward Hispanic voters.

"Hispanics do not engage in groupthink," Cornyn said. "What I think they expect -- and what I have said this nominee deserves, and really what every nominee deserves, is to be treated with respect. ... I am not too concerned about alienating Hispanics."

In the full Senate, while Min. Leader Mitch McConnell will make a floor speech on 7/20 to announce his opposition to Sotomayor's nomination, other moderate GOPers are expected to join the three who announced their support today. Barring any unforeseen developments, Sotomayor could sail to confirmation with 65 votes or more.

(STEVEN SHEPARD)

For a candidate who needs to court those moderate and swing voters, and even Dems, who backed Pres. Obama's '08 bid, VA GOP GOV nom Bob McDonnell probably wouldn't want to be tagged to the group that maligned the war record of another Sen. John F. Kerry (D-MA) in '04.

But the VA Dem Party issued a release today suggesting that McDonnell has taken $100K so far from members of the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, the group that aired ads against Kerry in '04 that criticized his service in Vietnam and subsequent anti-war activism.

Veteran Bob Perry and wife, Doylene, gave $25K each to McDonnell, according to the non-partisan Virginia Public Access Project, which tracks campaign donations. The Perrys live in TX. Paul Singer, another Swiftboater, also donated $50K (see here and here) to McDonnell. Singer lives in NY.

The Dem Party is pitching the donations to McDonnell as the "Bush smear machine" in action.

The Swift Boat Veterans group played a key role in shaping public opinion of Kerry, as famous for his Vietnam service as for throwing away his medals in protest. But the group has been inactive since '04 -- though many members remain conservative stalwarts, activists and donors.

McDonnell spokesman Tucker Martin dismissed the Dems' release as simple posturing.

"So, to sum up, the Democratic Party of Virginia put their time and energy today into noting that Bob McDonnell is the Republican nominee for Governor. Wow," Martin said in an email. "The wasted man hours that went into this press release should be listed as an-kind contribution to our campaign."

Jared Leopold, a spokesman for Dem state Sen. Creigh Deeds' GOV campaign, fired back in an email to On Call: "We're glad to see Bob McDonnell admit something that he tries to hide in his ads: He is the Republican candidate for Governor."

It remains unclear, though, if linking a GOP candidate to George W. Bush will carry the same negative connotation this year and in '10 as it did in '08. And with VA a rich shade of purple following Obama's win over Sen. John McCain, McDonnell is going to want to be perceived as his own man, not a scion of the same machine that created and preserved Bush.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Health Care for America Now (HCAN) and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) launched an $800K TV ad campaign today pushing members in nine states to support health care legislation. Their pitch is that the bill "will lower costs, expand coverage, and keep the insurance companies honest. The ads support legislation that would allow people to keep the insurance they have now or choose from a range of plans, including a new public health insurance option."

HCAN is the nation's largest health care campaign. AFSCME, one of the leading members of HCAN, has 1.6M members.

The ad -- dubbed "What If ... " -- is running for five days starting today in districts represented by Reps. Bart Gordon (D-TN), Bart Stupak (D-MI), Mike Ross (AR-04), John Barrow (D-GA), Baron Hill (D-IN), Zachary Space (D-OH), and Charlie Melancon (D-LA). The ad will also air statewide in ND beginning Monday, and AFSCME is sponsoring a version of the ad in CA.

"We can't be any clearer than this - Congress must act now," said AFSCME International president Gerald W. McEntee in a statement. "Health care reform cannot wait. America's families can't wait. This is the moment to end the despair of millions of Americans who are unable to access the affordable healthcare they need.''

SC Gov. Mark Sanford's (R) comm. dir. Joel Sawyer said today he's leaving for an unspecified private-sector job, effective 8/5, The State newspaper reports.

Sawyer said his decision to leave his $65K-a-year job had nothing to do with Sanford's recent six-day disappearance and the gov's s subsequent disclosure of an affair with an Argentine woman.

"I want to be crystal clear that my departure is purely about what's best for me and my family on a personal and financial level," Sawyer said in a statement. "I wish Mark and the rest of my talented and dedicated colleagues the best."

Here are the scheduled guests for the Sunday public affairs shows and other weekend programs:

SUNDAY:

Meet the Press hosts HHS Sec. Kathleen Sebelius and Senate Min. Leader Mitch McConnell. The roundtable features Wall Street Journal's Paul Gigot, CNBC's John Harwood, NPR's Michele Norris and author Richard Wolffe.

Face the Nation hosts Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-NY) and RNC Chair Michael Steele.

This Week will be pre-empted for the British Open.

Fox News Sunday hosts OMB dir. Peter Orszag, Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH) and Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin. The Power Player of the Week is chief WH photographer Pete Souza.

State of the Union hosts Orszag, Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Jeff Sessions (R-AL), and the Rev. Jesse Jackson (see below for guests on SOTU's Reliable Sources segment).

See other weekend shows after the jump.

(MAURA O'BRIEN)

VP Biden headlined a VA GOV fundraiser last p.m. in Richmond for state Sen. Creigh Deeds (D). The Deeds camp isn't releasing the amount raised but attendees paid a minimum of $1K/person to attend.

Here's a snippet of the pool report, written by Jim Nolan of the Richmond Times-Dispatch:

"Two things I won't do -- is wear funny hats or change my brand," Biden recalled. "The thing I love about this guy (Deeds) is he has never changed his brand." Telling the donors that he loves them "even more since we won the state," Biden asked them to go a step further for Deeds: "I ask you as a personal favor -- break your neck for this man. Because you've got something really going here." Biden says he'll return to campaign for Deeds. "This is the real deal. .. I without any reservation whatsoever, am proud to associate myself with Creigh."

Full report is available after the jump.

As first reported early this morning by Evan McMorris Santoro, AK Gov. Sarah Palin (R) promised to let loose via Twitter when she leaves office 7/26.

Palin: elected is replaceable;Ak WILL progress! + side benefit=10 dys til less politically correct twitters fly frm my fingertps outside State site 4 AM ET 7/16

This morning, Sen. Dick Lugar (R-IN) became the first GOPer to commit to backing SCOTUS nominee Sonia Sotomayor.

Lugar in a statement:

"I have listened to the testimony of Judge Sonia Sotomayor before the Senate Judiciary Committee, carefully reviewed her public service record, and reviewed recommendations from Indiana constituents and colleagues here in the Senate. Judge Sotomayor is clearly qualified to serve on the Supreme Court and she has demonstrated a judicial temperament during her week-long nomination hearing. Judge Sotomayor has had a distinguished career of public service. She is well regarded in the legal community and by her peers. I will vote to confirm Judge Sonia Sotomayor's nomination to serve as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States."

Not surprising, given Lugar's support for Pres. Obama's diplomatic approach during the '08 WH campaign and all the early talk that Lugar might be considered for an Obama Cabinet job.

Senate Maj. Leader Harry Reid joined the chorus of nat'l Dems backing Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) over likely '10 primary opponent Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY).

In a statement distributed by Gillibrand's camp, Reid called Gillibrand a "rising star in the Democratic caucus."

In what appears to be an effort at outreach to female voters in particular, Reid emphasized Gillibrand's "innovative children-first agenda to ensure safe, chemical free drinking water and baby products, make quality child care more affordable, and improve access to treatment for families with children suffering from autism."

"I am endorsing Senator Gillibrand's campaign because she is a rising star in our caucus," Reid said. "As a working mother with two young children, Kirsten brings unique perspective to the challenging issues we are debating in Congress. In just six month, Kirsten has introduced a number of new and innovative legislative approaches to the problems many families face."

Gillibrand, who was endorsed earlier this week by Howard Dean, in turn called Reid "a valuable advisor to me."

"On every issue from health care to our economic recovery, Leader Reid is providing wise counsel and guidance to our caucus," she said. "Under his leadership, we are moving forward on President Obama's agenda to create jobs and repair our broken health care system. I look forward to working closely with him in the months and years to come."

Gillibrand's team cast Reid's support as part of a "growing number of progressive leaders and organizations" backing Gillibrand. Gillibrand, appointed by NY Gov. David Paterson (D) to fill Hillary Clinton's seat earlier this year, must prove to NYC residents that she's liberal enough to represent them -- and Maloney, who represents the East Side of Manhattan and parts of Queens, already has a relationship with many of these voters.

The Gillibrand release also notes that over the past several weeks, 11 of Gillibrand's Dem colleagues in NY's congressional delebation have endorsed her, "along with more than a dozen labor unions and progressive organizations from NARAL to New York's teachers, and more than 50 Democratic County Chairs."

And in case Reid's message about Gillibrand's advocacy for women doesn't come through loud and clear, the newly-minted senator introduced a resolution today commemorating the 25th anniversary of Geraldine Ferraro's history-making nomination as VP.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

It's still early in the cycle, so it's difficult to tell how each campaign is progressing. But that only adds importance to each campaign's quarterly FEC reports, which were due 7/15. These reports give us an inkling of which race may turn into blockbusters, and which ones may turn into duds. Here are some interesting tidbits we found while combing through hundreds of reports:

Incumbents: Staying Power?

Both sides are doing a better job on incumbent protection than they did in the 1stQ. The NRCC's 10 "Patriots" (10 vulnerable incumbents) raised an average of $309K this Q -- that's an 82% increase from those Reps. in the 1stQ. Meanwhile, among the broader group of 42 Dems in the DCCC's "Frontline" program, the average take increased around $20K from the 1stQ.

Still, several incumbents got outraised, including Dan Lungren (R-CA 03), Mary Bono Mack (R-CA 45), Loretta Sanchez (D-CA 47), Bill Young (R-FL 10), John Murtha (D-PA 12) and John Hall (D-NY 19). Freshmen seem to be on the top of their games, though, as none were outraised.

Democratic and Republican Insiders disagreed this week about whether outgoing AK GOP Gov. Sarah Palin would be more of an asset or a liability campaigning for Republicans "in competitive 2010 races."

A solid majority of Democratic Insiders said Palin would be more of a liability, while a smaller majority of Republicans thought she would be an asset.

The GOP responses were probably the most intriguing because they reflect two ongoing debates with in the party. One, of course, is over Palin herself and her future in the party; many Republicans see her as a force, others almost hold her in contempt. The other argument focuses on whether Republicans are more likely to win elections by turning out the base or attracting independents and even a few disgruntled Democrats. Palin, who is practically a rock star to the party base but remains a polarizing figure for many non-Republicans, seems to embody that discussion. Still, she remains one of the most intriguing politicians of the day.

As one GOP insider put it: "Just like the movie with Cameron Diaz, there's just something about Sarah. Don't ask me to explain it, though."

Meanwhile, when it comes to paying for health care reform, Democratic and Republican Insiders were generally on the same page in assessing the political downsides of some of the tax options that are being discussed. Pluralities of both agreed that the most politically risky option would be to generate revenue by limiting the tax break on itemized deductions. At the same time, Democrats and Republicans concurred that the least politically risky option would be to limit the tax benefit for wealthy individuals with employer-sponsored health plans.

Not surprisingly, a sizable share of Democratic Insiders thought that limiting the tax benefit for so-called "Cadillac" plans--many of which have been negotiated by their allies in organized labor for union members--was also a non-starter. As one Democratic Insider predicted, "Telling people they can 'keep their plan if they like it,' then taxing them for doing that, will backfire."

For all the results and comments in this week's Insiders Poll, click here.

(National Journal's JAMES A. BARNES)

Pres. Obama, addressing the NAACP in New York this evening as part of the group's centennial celebration, suggested that even as the nation celebrates the progress of race relations and the expansion of economic and educational opportunities for all Americans that "too many barriers still remain."

Obama said it is time for the country to shape "a better destiny." His speech folded the goals of his young administration into a broader view of the civil rights work that's left to do.

If John Lewis could brave Billy clubs to cross a bridge, then I know young people today can do their part to lift up our communities.

If Emmet Till's uncle Mose Wright could summon the courage to testify against the men who killed his nephew, I know we can be better fathers and brothers, mothers and sisters in our own families.

If three civil rights workers in Mississippi - black and white, Christian and Jew, city-born and country-bred - could lay down their lives in freedom's cause, I know we can come together to face down the challenges of our own time. We can fix our schools, heal our sick, and rescue our youth from violence and despair.

More after the jump.

(New Haven firefighter Frank Ricci testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee; photo, National Journal's Rick Bloom)

Seated at the same witness table where Judge Sonia Sotomayor spent the past three and a half days, New Haven (CT) firemen Frank Ricci and Ben Vargas put human faces on what has been a major GOP theme of Sotomayor's SCOTUS confirmation hearings this week: her ruling that the city acted within the law when it threw out promotion-test results because no African-Americans passed.

Ricci read his opening statement, using his finger to guide him through the text, presumably a strategy for managing the dyslexia that he said made it necessary to spend months preparing for the exam. He said he was a "virtual absentee father and husband" during that time.

In his moving statement, Ricci said that the firefighters who "deserved" promotions were denied them -- both by the city and the Sotomayor-joined panel of the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals. "We sought basic fairness and even handed enforcement of the laws -- something all Americans believe in," Ricci said.

Vargas, who like Sotomayor is of Puerto Rican ancestry, said he was "proud of the heritage and background" that he and Sotomayor shared, but that "he was shocked when I was not rewarded" for his test score. "Americans want those who are the most knowledgeable and qualified to do the task," Vargas said. "Racial identity should not be placed above these considerations."

Both Ricci and Vargas, who appeared in full New Haven FD uniform, garnered a great deal of sympathy, incidentally, from the members of the cmte. Sotomayor had also said under questioning 7/14 that she felt empathy for those who weren't promoted, though she stood by her decision.

Other Sidebars

The day began with the resumption of the second round of questioning of Sotomayor. Senate Min. Whip Jon Kyl led things off with a discussion of her ruling in Ricci, but, again, it was Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) who stole the show.

Graham talked about a number of issues, but he said he drew the conclusion that Sotomayor's judicial record was "not radical, by any means." But her speeches, he said, were "disturbing" to conservatives.

And at the end of his time, he returned to Sotomayor's now-infamous "wise Latina" remark. "To those who may be bothered by that, what do you say?" he asked.

"I regret that I have offended some people," Sotomayor said. "I believe that my life demonstrates that that was not my intent to leave the impression that some of taken from my words."

"You know what, Judge?" Graham replied, coming close to endorsing her nomination. "I agree with you. Good luck."

The GOP members requested a third round of questioning but covered little new ground during that time, with many of them using the opportunity to assure Sotomayor that she was nearing the end of a long, grueling week. "We may be in about the 25th mile in the marathon," Kyl told her at the outset of his third round, suggesting that he might have "empathy" for her.

Amicus Curiae

When Sotomayor was dismissed, the cmte began hearing from five panels of outside witnesses. The first panel was comprised of two officials of the American Bar Assn, who testified about their unanimous report that classified her as "very qualified" to serve on the court.

The second panel contained not only Ricci and Vargas, but also NYC Mayor Mike Bloomberg (I) and New York Co. (Manhattan) DA Robert Morgenthau (D), who testified on behalf of Sotomayor's nomination. "I strongly believe she should be supported by Republicans, Democrats and independents -- and I should know, because I've been all three," Bloomberg joked in his statement.

The third panel included ex-FBI Dir. Louis Freeh, who served with Sotomayor on the U.S. District Court bench, Nat'l Fraternal Order of Police Pres. Chuck Canterbury and David Cone, who as a member of the Kansas City Royals and a leader in the MLBPA, was involved in the labor dispute that Sotomayor helped end in '95.

On that panel, ex-NRA Pres. Sandy Froman argued against Sotomayor's confirmation. Ranking Member Jeff Sessions (R-AL) used her testimony as an opportunity to reveal that the NRA today officially announced its opposition to Sotomayor's confirmation.

Order To Appear

Senate Judiciary Cmte Chair Pat Leahy (D-VT) told reporters that he hoped to hold a cmte vote on the nomination on 7/21. But GOPers are likely to balk at that timeline; any cmte member can delay a vote for up to a week.

Still, Sessions said he "would not support" a filibuster of her nomination, and he "looked forward" to a final Senate vote before the Senate begins its Aug. recess, which is set for 8/7.

(STEVEN SHEPARD)

Undaunted by a new poll showing his visit could have a limited impact, Pres. Obama literally rolled up his sleeves today in NJ, delivering speeches touting his health care reform agenda and his continued support for Gov. Jon Corzine (D). "You decided it's time for change," Obama told a loud crowd of some 17K in Holmdel, NJ. "If you stand with us, if you reelect Jon Corzine there's nothing that's going to stop us New Jersey from getting health care reform done."

The president, back on the trail supporting a candidate for the first time since being sworn in, mentioned the five Jersey City police officers who were shot in the line of duty this morning, and then talked up his support for Corzine. "He's been tested by the worst recession in half a century," Obama said, adding that the recession was precipitated by a "do nothing attitude" that has "plagued our politics for decades."

"That's not the kind of leader Jon Corzine is," Obama said. "This is a man who is here because he cares about what is right in New Jersey." Minutes earlier, Obama delivered similar remarks to a funder for the gov.'s camp and the New Jersey Democratic State Committee (over a $1M raised was the early word from the Corzine camp).

The RNC announced today that it raised more than $8M in June and has $23.7M in the bank. Since January, with the exception of May, the GOP has consistently outraised the the DNC -- despite having Pres. Obama's selected leader -- Gov. Tim Kaine -- in the chairman job and Organizing for America (and its 13M strong email list) in-house.

For the RNC, the average donor contribution in June was $35, according to a party statement. The party received more than 231K contributions, which the release indicates sets an RNC record for the number of contributions in an off-election year June.

"The RNC had another month of strong fundraising," RNC chairman Michael S. Steele said in a statement. "We are thankful to the hundreds of thousands of Americans who have contributed to the financial success of our Party. We have important campaigns this year and are able to be fully engaged through the generosity of our donors."

No word yet from the DNC about its May numbers.

Pres. Obama, appearing at a luncheon fundraiser today for NJ Gov. Jon Corzine (D), stressed that Corzine, struggling in his '09 re-elect effort, is the first Garden State leader in 60 years to reduce the size of government.

Republicans are working to pitch Corzine as a typical tax and spend Dem.

Here's Obama, at the Robert B. Meyner Reception Center in Holmdel:

Like many of us in public life today, Jon is a leader who's been called to govern at some extraordinary times. He's been tested by the worst recession in half a century -- a recession that was caused by years of recklessness and irresponsibility, and obviously had a disproportionate impact here in New Jersey, given the closeness of the financial sector to the state.

Part of the crisis was caused by the same small thinking that's plagued our politics for decades -- the kind of thinking that says we can afford to tinker around with big problems, put off tough decisions, defer the big challenges, tell people only what they want to hear.

That's not the kind of leader Jon Corzine is. He didn't run for this office on the promise that change would be easy, and he certainly has not avoided what is hard. This isn't somebody who's here because of some special interest or political machine -- he's here because he cares about what happens to the people of New Jersey.

Polls show Corzine trailing Republican Chris Christie by as much as 12 points. Corzine's team is hoping to ride Obama's popularity to more cash and better numbers. The president is also appearing with Corzine at a large rally at the PNC Bank Arts Center.

Obama's full remarks, provided by the WH, are available after the jump.

Testifying this afternoon in the confirmation hearings of SCOTUS appointee Sonia Sotomayor are some of the New Haven firefighters involved in the Ricci v. DeStefano case. They are, of course, witnesses for the GOP.

In the Ricci case, a group of white and Hispanic firefighters sued the city, claiming discrimination when they weren't granted job promotions for passing a promotion test; the test was rejected because black firefighters did not fare as well.

Firefighter Frank Ricci, at the center of the storm, told the Senate Judiciary Committee that those who took the exam had "an equal opportunity to succeed as individuals, and we were all provided a road map to prepare for the exam."

"When your house is on fire or your life is in jeopardy there are no time for do overs," he added.

Watch their testimony -- a compelling moment in an otherwise dullish week -- via C-SPAN.

In this week's episode of the Hotline Podcast, polling editor Matthew Gottlieb examines the latest Diageo/Hotline poll numbers with help from Blogometer editor Ian Faerstein and staff writer Evan McMorris-Santoro.

The Diageo/Hotline Poll of 800 registered voters conducted by FD from 7/9-13 found that the percentage of American voters who approve of the job Pres. Obama is doing has dropped nine points to 56%. The previous Diageo/ Hotline Poll, conducted 6/4-7, found that 65% of voters approved of his performance.

Click here to listen.

Add to Mitt Romney's solid PAC fundraising numbers this new poll from Gallup showing that he leads a hypothetical field of '12 contenders.

Mitt Romney's Free and Strong America PAC reported raising $1.6M in the first six months of '09. Contributions to state and federal candidates in this off-election year totaled $74,274, according to a release.

The PAC started this year with $337,976 in the bank. After expenditures, the PAC ended June with $841,568 in CoH.

The federal PAC's contributions include: $5K each to Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC), House GOP Whip Eric Cantor, Rep. Roy Blunt (R-MO) who is running for SEN, and Jim Tedisco who ran unsuccessfully in the NY-20 special election earlier this year.

The PAC also contributed $1K each to the "Undaunted Dozen," a group of House GOPers targeted by the DCCC for their votes against the economic stimulus bill.

Romney's group gave $6,800 to Chris Christie's (R) NJ GOV campaign, and $5K each to VA GOV candidate Bob McDonnell (R), VA LG Bill Bolling (R), VA AG candidate Ken Cuccinelli (R), and VA House of Delegates candidate Barbara Comstock, a very visible Romney surrogate during the WH'08 campaign.

So Romney has raised more than twice that of AK Gov. Sarah Palin (R) -- who raised $733K -- from the start of this year. And his efforts to seed campaigns in VA and NJ, the headline contests of '09, illustrate his interest in wooing officeholders and activists as he keeps the fires burning for '12. Romney's team might like to downplay his interest in another WH bid, but his active speech and appearances schedule and fundraising and gifting efforts indicate otherwise. And with other top GOP WH contenders self-destructing, Romney is emerging as the party's most sensible, experienced, responsible and business-friendly contender.

But then again, three years is a very, very long time.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

I reported yesterday that the RGA created a PAC last month to bolster Bob McDonnell's VA gubernatorial campaign and to hit his rival, Dem state Sen. Creigh Deeds. The PAC is called VA Common Sense, resembling the DGA's Common Sense VA, a PAC that aired ads knocking McDonnell during the primary.

I asked the McDonnell campaign and the RGA for more information about the new organization. McDonnell's team referred me to the RGA. And the RGA's Mike Schrimpf emailed this short response:

"VA Common Sense has been dormant since it was created on June 15th, and it remains dormant today."

The PAC was created just six days after the Dem primary vote so it seems someone intended to use it for the general. And if it's dormant now, will it be throughout the fall contest? Schrimpf did not respond to my follow-up question.

So far, the DGA has channeled $3M through Common Sense VA. We'll see if the fall campaign will be conducted, at least in part, via dueling PACs.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Bloomberg's Margaret Carlson nails the gender bias evident in the Senate's probing of SCOTUS appointee Sonia Sotomayor:

Hillary Clinton and Sonia Sotomayor have risen to the top of their professions being the best students in the class, homework always done, notebooks neat and conduct impeccable. They share the perils of their ascension: The world remains white and male and ready to put a high female achiever back in her place if given half a chance.

Read on.

Harry and Louise, the couple that made a name for themselves pitching a health care message on television back in the 1990s, have returned and will hit the airwaves this weekend with a new ad urging more cooperation and less politics in the push to the finish line on health care reform.

The two are scheduled to appear at a news conference at 11 a.m. today with Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., and other senators who sit on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. Dodd called the news conference to thank the people and organizations that are supporting the health reform bill that the committee approved Wednesday.

(National Journal's MARILYN WERBER SERAFINI, reporting for NJ's Under the Influence blog)

"World News," "Evening News" and "Nightly News" each led with Pres. Obama's health care fight, and featured interviews with Obama.

Obama sat down with the three broadcast nets to discuss his health care plan.

Obama sat down with MSNBC's Dr. Nancy Snyderman for an interview that aired on "Dr. Nancy" 7/15.

Obama, on whether he's concerned his health care message got "derailed" while he was out of the country: "Obviously, when I'm in the country, I am able to communicate a little more directly to the American people, and when I'm not, those who want to defend the status quo are getting their message out more effectively.

More Obama: "Congress, overall, has been making extraordinary progress. We are closer than we've ever been to fundamental reforms that provide people choice, make health care affordable, and solve some of these long-term structural problems that inhibit quality care. So I'm optimistic, but I also understand this is a big deal, a big issue."

Obama, on what the health care plan will require from the American people: "The American people have to recognize that there's no such thing as a free lunch. Right? So we can't just provide care to everybody that has no cost whatsoever, you don't end up having to make any decisions. So, obviously, we've got to have a system that controls costs, gives people choices, but makes sure that we're getting a good bang for the buck. And we've got to have the American people doing something about their own care" (MSNBC, 7/15).

After the jump, more of Obama's interviews, as well as reaction to Sonia Sotomayor's second say of questioning.

(RACHELLE DOUILLARD-PROULX)

Howard Dean endorsed Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) via a video released this evening. In the seven-minute policy conversation cum commercial -- Dean and Gillibrand cover ground from health care to "card check" to same sex marriage -- Dean attempts to convey his progressive seal of approval to Gillibrand, who represented a moderate upstate district in the House before being tapped to fill Hillary Clinton's Senate seat.

Gillibrand backers are hoping the Dean endorsement will sway some of those more liberal voters who might be inclined to back Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) in '10

"I'll tell you one very quick story about Kirsten Gillibrand," Dean says in the release. "She was elected in 2006, and I spent four years in Washington - and a lot of people in Washington say a lot of things and usually don't do anything about it. She came in about two and a half years ago when she was a representative and told me when I was chairman of the DNC that she wanted to do something for women through the Women's Leadership Forum. And I thought to myself, this is really great, but I'll bet it'll never happen.

"She's the only person in four years that came to me, made a promise, and then brought six of her women colleagues in the House then, to raise money for the Democratic National Committee so we could have this big majority in the House and this big majority in the Senate. And today, she's satisfied me that she knows how to use that majority in order to get things done. So I'm pleased to endorse Kirsten Gillibrand for the United States Senate for her re-election."

A costly Dem primary contest is something party leaders -- and the WH -- would like to avoid. After all, in NY a primary battle could run well into the tens of millions, potentially hampering party efforts to raise cash for a general election fight and providing the GOP with an advantage -- a weakened Dem nom. After the shenanigans around the appointment to Clinton's seat, the Dems can ill-afford a messy feud between two well-respected women. They're likely going to get one anyway, despite Dean's effort today to show potential Maloney backers -- read city dwellers -- that they have a friend in Gillibrand.

It's a longshot, perhaps, but the NRSC has its sights on NY. All they need now is a viable candidate.

One other thought ... Gillibrand could actually provide a common cause for Dean and the Obama WH, notoriously chilly to the former DNC leader.

Yet another thought ... Dean's endorsement pits him against his WH'04 campaign guru, Joe Trippi, who has signed up to run Maloney's SEN campaign.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

When testimony resumed this morning in Judge Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation hearing, the focus moved to Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), who was balancing his political role as NRSC Chair against his position as a sen. from a state with a large Hispanic population.

Cornyn led off by dismissing the notion that the party might consider a filibuster of her nomination. "That's not going to happen to you if I have anything to say about it," he said. "You will get that up-or-down vote on the Senate floor."

But, with the remainder of his 30-minute questioning period, he hit on each of the main GOP themes, though he was notably less combative that some of his colleagues. He started off by questioning her "wise Latina" speech before moving to abortion rights and her ruling in Ricci v. DeStefano. He also tried to paint her as a "liberal" based on her work for the board of the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund (PRLDEF).

When he addressed Ricci, TV cameras showed members of the New Haven (CT) Fire Dept. seated in the gallery.

Following the hearing, Cornyn said that Sotomayor "is a very charming and obviously very intelligent individual," but that he has concerns about her objectivity and positions. He said he saw a difference between Sotomayor's testimony and her past speeches and court rulings.

As NRSC chair for the '10 cycle, however, Cornyn is not only leading a party reeling from recent widespread losses, but he is also running a variety of candidates across the ideological spectrum. Conservative candidates will be relying on the GOP base for support -- and would not necessarily want to be seen as rubberstamping Pres. Obama's first nom to the nation's highest court. But moderate GOPers, particularly those from states with large Hispanic populations (Gov. Charlie Crist, for instance, who is running for SEN in FL), may be afraid of turning off that bloc of voters.

Other Sidebars

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) shaped his questions around two hot-button issues: abortion and gun rights. He started by condemning the anti-abortion protestors who have interrupted the hearings for their tactics, but later pushed Sotomayor on late-term abortion and other difficult issues.

Meanwhile, when asked about rights to self-defense, Sotomayor cited a hypothetical in which she were to obtain a gun to shoot Coburn.

Coburn responded, seemingly referencing the Cuban character Ricky Ricardo from "I Love Lucy," "You'll have lots of 'splainin' to do."

Just before 4 p.m., the second round of questioning began, with Judiciary Cmte Ranking Member Jeff Sessions (R-AL) once again emerging as Sotomayor's sharpest critic on the panel.

Sessions grilled Sotomayor for her recent gun-rights ruling in Maloney v. Cuomo, consideration of foreign law in deliberations and role as chair of PRLDEF's litigation cmte.

Sens. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) also questioned Sotomayor for the GOP, but they were more measured in their criticism.

Gaffe Of The Day

Newly-minted Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) began his first-round questioning by recalling that Sotomayor said she was motivated to become a prosecutor by watching the "Perry Mason" TV series. He noted that the Los Angeles DA, Hamilton Berger, lost all but one case, in the history of the show.

At the end of his questioning, he asked Sotomayor if she remembered which case Berger lost. When she was unable to answer his question, he said, "Didn't the White House prepare you for that?"

Order To Appear

Senate Judiciary Cmte Chair Pat Leahy (D-VT) said the cmte would resume the second round of questioning at 9:30 tomorrow morning. After each sen. has had the opportunity to question Sotomayor for up to 20 minutes, she will be dismissed. The panel will then begin hearing from the other witnesses invited by both the majority and minority.

(STEVEN SHEPARD)

(WH photo, Pete Souza)

Per a WH statement, Pres. Obama congratulated Rep.-elect Judy Chu, who won a special election last night in CA-32:

The President called Representative-elect Judy Chu to congratulate her on her victory in last night's special election in California. The President told her that he is looking forward to working with her in Congress, especially when it comes to reforming our health care system and lowering health care costs for all Americans. The President also congratulated her on being the first Chinese American woman elected to Congress and told her that he admired the way she ran her campaign.

Earlier today, sources told CongressDaily's Erin McPike that ex-state House Speaker Marco Rubio (R) "has been calling around to top Republican donors and activists in the state to discuss the idea of switching from the Senate primary" against Gov. Charlie Crist (R) "into the open-seat race for attorney general, where a serious" GOP candidate "has yet to emerge."

Rubio responded to the story via Twitter:

@MarcoRubio: "Maybe they misunderstood what I meant by "going back to tally" 7/15, 4:02 PM

(Tally, is of course, Tallahassee, to which he mentions off-handedly in an earlier Tweet he was driving. And Gen Xers will recognize that he's employing a classic LL Cool J song to make his point.)

Later, Rubio spokesperson Alex Burgos said via email: "Speaker Rubio is an active candidate for U.S. Senate. As he wraps up a full day of campaigning in the Florida Panhandle, he looks forward to continuing his Senate campaign in Miami tomorrow and in Jacksonville on Friday."

Asked if Rubio is considering a switch to the AG race, Burgos said: "He is squarely focused on winning this campaign for Senate."

Rubio camp officials say that the candidate has been getting calls from GOPers across the state urging him to switch races, but they characterized that as "nothing new."

So Rubio never offered a Shermanesque statement denying that he's considering the switch, and his camp kept all the talk of the SEN run squarely in the here and now (or the immediate future). If he is considering exiting the SEN race, Rubio's not telling. Not yet anyway.

(EVAN McMORRIS-SANTORO)

A K Streeter sent me a copy of an invitation to a July 21 dinner and fundraiser for Rep. Pete Stark, D-Calif., chair of the House Ways & Means health subcommittee.

The fundraiser's lead sponsor is the American Occupational Therapy political action committee, and the event is co-sponsored by the American Podiatric Medical Association PAC, the American Dietetic Association PAC, and the American Speech - Language-Hearing Association PAC. These are all groups that have a stake in health care reform.
"Probably not the best timing for this," the person noted in reference to the fact that the House Ways & Means Committee is to begin marking up the House Democrat's massive health care reform overhaul legislation later this week.

See the invitation here.

Stark's press secretary couldn't reached for comment.

(National Journal's BARA VAIDA, writing for the Under the Influence blog)

Howard Dean, the former DNC chairman and VT governor, will endorse Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) as she girds herself for a contentious '10 primary battle against Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY). An announcement is "expected soon," according to a Gillibrand staffer. Stay tuned.

I reported earlier that the RGA has created a new PAC -- VA Common Sense -- to advocate for ex-AG Bob McDonnell's (R) GOV bid. The group, whose name resembles Common Sense VA, the org. created by the DGA to hammer McDonnell, will also oppose state Sen. Creigh Deeds (D), according to information provided by the non partisan Virginia Public Access Project.

No response yet to my inquiry about how much the RGA will funnel through the group; the DGA contribute $3M during the Dem primary cycle to help cast McDonnell as against the interests of working Virginians.

But I took a look back at what the RGA and McDonnell folks had to say about the DGA's Common Sense VA when it was launched in March.

RGA exec. dir. Nick Ayers criticized Dems for creating a "shadow organization" that he said is funded by labor and designed to increase union influence. He said at the time that the RGA is donating directly to McDonnell in a "transparent and respectful way."

"It's two very distinct tactics," Ayers added.

McDonnell's spokesman, Tucker Martin, said of Common Sense VA: "This is an outside group attempting to scare voters and employing negative politics."

The DGA, meanwhile, is getting a good chuckle out of the name game the RGA appears to be playing with the new group.

"So the first thing Haley Barbour does as chair of the RGA is copy our playbook?" said Emily DeRose, DGA comm. dir., in an email to On Call. "We're flattered, but at some point the RGA and Bob McDonnell will have to get some ideas of their own."

Of course Barbour recently replaced disgraced SC Gov. Mark Sanford in the RGA's top job.

I'll post the RGA and McDonnell team comments when/if I get them.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Labor rejoices. AFL-CIO president John Sweeney applauds a Senate committee's passage of a health care reform bill earlier today, and after the jump, a statement from SEIU chief Andy Stern:

Working Americans can breathe a sigh of relief over today's passage of health care reform by the Senate, Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP) committee. This legislation is crucially important to working families. Health care reform cannot wait. We must not fail to fix our broken health care system.

Too many families are at their wits end, struggling with high health care costs, job loss and stagnating wages. This legislation demands shared responsibility so families are less burdened. It will make health care more affordable by controlling costs and improving quality.
And most importantly, it will provide coverage for all and help reduce the ranks of the uninsured and underinsured.

Senator Chris Dodd and Chairman Kennedy's hard work and dedication have put forth a bill that moves us one step closer to the finish line. We are truly moving toward a historic moment when Americans will finally have access to quality, affordable health care.

The RGA has registered a new PAC in VA to support the association's work for GOP gubernatorial candidate Bob McDonnell. The name of the new group, however, sounds awfully familiar. It's called VA Common Sense PAC. And it reminds, not by accident, of Common Sense VA, the group the DGA used during the party's primary contest to spend some $3M on ads framing McDonnell as out of touch with Virginians. Fear was that the Dems would beat up on each other and emerge wounded and penniless from the early battle without having the resources to shape public perception of McDonnell, who served as state AG.

With state Sen. Creigh Deeds having secured the Dem nomination, it seems the RGA is looking to piggyback on the Dems somewhat successful use of Common Sense VA. The RGA's VA Common Sense is registered to Treasurer Michael Adams and is listed at Stonepoint Court in Alexandria, according to the non partisan Virginia Public Access Project. It's goal, as listed with VPAP, is to support McDonnell and oppose Deeds.

A spokeswoman for the DGA said she is not sure what role Common Sense VA will play in the general election or if it will sunset.

More to come on the new GOP group.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Repeating his oft-stated plans to launch a SEN bid soon, Rep. Joe Sestak (D-PA) told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review yesterday that he plans to file paperwork within weeks.

"There is absolutely no doubt that I am running," Sestak said, adding that he's staffing key campaign positions.

Sestak will challenge newly-minted Dem Sen. Arlen Specter, as the incumbent seeks his sixth term. Sestak was in Pittsburgh yesterday for his 67-county tour of PA. He has visited 51 counties and intends to swing through the remaining counties by 7/20.

Sestak plans to report $4.2M in the bank later this week and told the paper he has raised more than $1M in the 2nd Q of '09.

Meanwhile, earlier this week, the NRSC endorsed ex-Club for Growth leader Pat Toomey in his bid for the GOP nomination. Toomey's challenge was one factor in Specter's decision to switch parties.

"Congressman Pat Toomey's life experience and public service make him uniquely qualified to serve Pennsylvanians in the U.S. Senate," Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), chairman of the NRSC, said in a statement. "Through hard work and self-reliance, Pat Toomey has successfully represented a Democrat-leaning district and accomplished much in his private sector endeavors. Congressman Toomey is a vigorous and determined advocate for the people of Pennsylvania, and he is clearly guided by principles instead of political opportunism."

Since announcing his candidacy in mid-April, Toomey has raised $1.6M from more than 15K donors; he has $1.1M on hand, according to a release issued Monday.

Along party lines, the Senate HELP Cmte voted 13-10 to pass a $600B measure "that would expand coverage to nearly all Americans by requiring individuals get insurance and employers to contribute to the cost," according to the AP. The bill was approved without the cmte's chair, Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA), a chief crusader for expanded coverage, who's being treated for brain cancer.

In a statement he addressed to his fellow HELP members today, Kennedy said the cmte's Russell Senate room was the same room in which his two brothers announced their WH campaigns. "They strived, as I have tried to do, for a fairer and more just America - a nation where every American could share fully in the promise of quality health care," he said.

More: "As you vote today, know that I am with you in heart and mind and soul, and I wish very much that I could be with you in person."

Organizing for America (OFA) is airing a new 30-second TV ad featuring five Americans who lack comprehensive health care coverage. The spot aims to push Pres. Obama's on-the-rails health care policy proposal through Congress at a critical juncture in negotiations.

The ad -- dubbed "It's Time" -- will run on national and DC cable as well as on local stations in AR, IN, FL, LA, ME, ND, NE and OH, an effort to target those states' lawmakers.

"World News" led with the emergency landing of a Southwest plane. "Evening News" and "Nightly News" led with Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation hearings.

Sotomayor's hearings dominated news coverage last night, with pundits rating her performance, and the likelihood she'll still be confirmed.

Case Western law prof. Jonathan Adler: "I think any day in which she doesn't make a major gaffe or there's no real stumble is a good day for her. I think the strategy is to play defense, to be very careful and deliberate in her answers, and to not do anything that would cause what Senator Graham referred to as a meltdown. And I think, as long as that's what happens in the hearings, she'll get through."

Univ. of CA Berkeley law school prof. Maria Blanco, in response: "I was very impressed with her knowledge of the law. I think that, even in the last exchange, where she was pressed on her 'wise Latina' comment, she did a good job of basically stepping away from it and saying that perhaps she understood how others might find that unacceptable, so I thought she did very well today" ("NewsHour," PBS, 7/14).

After the jump, more on Sotomayor, as well as the second half of Pres. Obama's CNN interview.

(RACHELLE DOUILLARD-PROULX)

In a special election that was anything but special, Board of Equalization chair Judy Chu (D) defeated distant relative and Monterey Park Councilor Betty Tom Chu (R) 62-33% in voting last p.m. J. Chu will occupy Labor Sec. Hilda Solis' (D) east L.A.-based seat in Congress. Dems now hold a 256-178 lead in the House, with 1 vacancy.

Turnout was light, as nearly 25K voters -- or 10% of registered voters -- turned out in the summer special.

Dems outnumber GOPers here by a 52-22% score, so the result was no surprise. All of the drama happened in the 5/19 primary, when J. Chu outlasted state Sen. Gil Cedillo (D) and ex-cong. aide Emanuel Pleitez to reach the runoff against B. Chu, who took fourth place with 10% in the jungle primary. CA law stipulates that the top finishers from each party move to a runoff if neither candidate surpasses 50%.

But the end result has been a foregone conclusion since 5/19. In addition to the huge registration advantage, the Dem had an even bigger cash advantage; she raised over $1.3M for the race, while the GOPer did not raise the enough money to file a report.

J. Chu fought long odds to win this seat. Despite landing support from many traditional Dem groups, and even from Solis' family, the CD is 63% Hispanic, and just 18% Asian.

(TIM SAHD)

Pres. Obama threw out the ceremonial first pitch at tonight's MLB All-Star Game in St. Louis. Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols was on the receiving end of the president's toss -- and let's just say he offered a helping hand. (The NYT dubbed Obama's lob "wobbly." Ouch.)

One more thing ... Hey, I don't know, Joe Biden, I think Obama and Pujols look like a winning duo ... Just saying.

We'll see if the NL or AL comes out on top. In the meantime -- taking a broader editor's point of personal privilege -- Go Redbirds!

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

National Journal's Rick Bloom graciously shares his view of the second day of SCOTUS appointee Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation hearings:

Less than a week after disappointing fundraising numbers changed the conventional wisdom about his FL SEN bid, ex-state House Speaker Marco Rubio (R) said he's still in the fight against Gov. Charlie Crist (R). And he's in it to win it.

"Just give me time," Rubio told On Call. "If I double it next time around, people will be talking about this differently."

During the second day of her SCOTUS confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Cmte, Judge Sonia Sotomayor was grilled by GOP sens. for her statement about her Latina heritage.

While decisions in racial-preference and gun-rights cases were widely cited, the most dramatic moments came when Ranking Member Jeff Sessions (R-AL) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) pressed her about her '01 speech in which she said she hoped that "a wise Latina woman, with the richness of her experiences, would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life."

Sessions contrasted her opening statement, in which she pledged "fidelity to the law," with her past speeches. "Had you been saying that with clarity over the last decade or 15 years," he said, "we'd have a lot fewer problems today."

Sotomayor said her remark had been misconstrued, and she pointed to her judicial record as proof.

"My record shows that at no point or time have I ever permitted my personal views or sympathies to influence an outcome in a case," she said.

But the major fireworks came roughly six hours later, when Graham, who was notable for being the only GOPer to indicate he could vote for Sotomayor in his opening statement yesterday, touched on a litany of issues in a line of questioning that was by turns folksy and combative.

"You have these speeches that just blow me away," Graham said early on during his 30 min. period. "Don't become a speechwriter if this law thing doesn't work out."

Graham spoke in a frustrated tone. "The one thing I've tried to impress upon you -- through jokes and being serious," he said, "is the consequences of these words and the world in which we live."

At one point, Graham fished around his surface space on the dais to quote the "wise Latina" passage directly but said he could not find it. He then asked Sotomayor, "Do you remember it?"

She smiled and said, softly, "Yes."

"Ok, say it to me," he replied.

Sotomayor sat silently for more than five seconds, before Graham located the paper with the quote and read it to her.

Pres. Obama will throw out the ceremonial first pitch tonight in the MLB All-Star Game, held at Busch Stadium in St. Louis. Obama might be the most talented politician of the day, and of a generation, but in St. Louis there's only one main man, and they call him El Hombre.

So while Official Washington might be watching Obama, the lefty, to see if he makes it over the plate, I'm looking more forward to Albert Pujols' performance. He is -- as Redbird fans know -- THE best player in baseball today. And with all due respect, I'd be quaking in my Nikes, if I were Obama, to touch a baseball anywhere near Pujols (who has never batted less than .314).

Pujols is expected to be behind the plate to receive Obama's toss.

"He says he wants to warm up before," Pujols told the AP yesterday. "So I'm just going to tell him, 'Just lob it up there and don't try to be a perfect throw.'"

"Obviously it's an honor to catch the first pitch from the president, as our leader," he added. "Tomorrow I think it's going to get to me. As a little boy when I was my son's age, I would never have thought I was going to be on this stage."

WH Press Secretary Robert Gibbs provided few details today about Obama's pitch prep during the press gaggle on Air Force One en route to MI.

Gibbs: He's just been throwing a little bit with -- I think he threw some last night some with Reggie (Love). He recalls fondly that the last time he did this was, as you all may know, in 2005 at the American League Championship Series. And it was the game in which -- we were all there watching and basically the White Sox were about to go down 2-0 in the series. Then they had a crazy pitch, a guy got to first base, the inning kept going, and they didn't lose again in the playoffs. They won the next four in the Championship Series and won four straight in the --

Q (Inaudible) White Sox --

Gibbs: I would say there's a very small scintilla of the game in which he's proud to have been a part of, yes.

Even the ever-cool Obama has to be nervous about his All-Star appearance. At least Pujols won't have a bat in hand when the president tosses the ball.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Pres. Obama is in MI today -- Macomb County -- to announce a $10B investment in two-year community colleges. The heart of the nation's auto industry, MI has struggled mightily during the nation's recession, suffering the highest unemployment rate in the country, 14.1% in May.

Relatedly, Obama cited the work his administration has done to revive the failing domestic auto industry, and to resuscitate GM and Chrysler, in particular:

But even with this positive news, the hard truth is that some of the jobs that have been lost in the auto industry and elsewhere won't be coming back. They are casualties of a changing economy. And that only underscores the importance of generating new businesses and industries to replace the ones we've lost, and of preparing our workers to fill the jobs they create. For even before this recession hit, we were faced with an economy that was simply not creating or sustaining enough new, well-paying jobs.

Now is the time to change all that. What we face is far more than a passing crisis. It is a transformative moment. And in this moment we must do what other generations have done. It is not the time to shrink from the challenges we face or defer tough decisions. That's what Washington has done for decades, and it's exactly what I ran for president to change. Now is the time to build a firmer, stronger foundation for growth that will not only withstand future economic storms, but that will help us thrive and compete in a global economy. To build that foundation, we must slow the growth of health care costs that are driving us into debt, make the tough choices necessary to bring down deficits, and create the jobs of the future in growing industries, including a new clean energy economy. But we also must ensure that we are educating and preparing our people for those jobs.

Obama also reminded voters that he inherited this recession, which, he underscored today, has lasted 20 months. Full text of his prepared remarks is available after the jump.

RNC Chairman Michael Steele jokes that he'll woo people of color to the GOP with "fried chicken and potato salad." The Huffington Post first scored the clip of Steele's interview at the Young Republicans convention in Indianapolis.

The State evaluated emails and phone records from the period when SC Gov. Mark Sanford (R) went missing and found that his office couldn't locate him. Sanford's chief of staff called his cell phone 15 times, but the governor never pick up. Meanwhile, the records also showed that Sanford declined a dinner invitation from a company looking to expand its business in SC. Sanford was, of course, in Argentina visiting his mistress.

GOP gubernatorial candidate Bob McDonnell's team hit Dem rival Creigh Deeds today for claiming a fundraising advantage over the last filing period even though Deeds received about $1M in national and interest group money.

McDonnell, we should note, didn't take RNC or RGA money between 5/28 and 6/30, but he has taken cash from them in the past -- $1.5M from the RNC and $1.95M from the RGA. So his overall advantage in money on hand can be at least partially attributed to these contributions.

Just an aside.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Bob McDonnell, the GOP candidate for VA governor, trailed his Dem rival in furndraising for the last month-long filing period, but having sailed to the nomination without a fight, McDonnell has been able to squirrel away more money and heads into the general flush with cash.

The McDonnell campaign has almost $5M on hand as of 6/30, the end of the last reporting period. That's nearly double the amount reported by Dem state Sen. Creigh Deeds' team.

McDonnell raised approximately $1.8M between 5/28 and 6/30 from 3,452 donors -- with 2,181 donors who contributed $100 or less. Seventy-five percent of McDonnell's donors are from the Commonwealth.

Neither the RNC nor the RGA funneled money to McDonnell during that period.

"Our campaign enters the final four months of the race in a strong financial position to carry our positive message of new jobs and more opportunities to every region of the state," said McDonnell campaign manager Phil Cox. "Despite the fact that we were on television for over half of the period, we maintain a nearly 2 to 1 cash on hand advantage over our opponent. ... Today's report is a further demonstration of the broad appeal, and growing momentum, of our campaign. Virginians are rallying around Bob McDonnell's positive message."

Deeds announced yesterday that he raised $3.4M in June and has $2.7M on hand. But his most recent total was bolstered by contributions from the DGA ($400K), SEIU ($100K) and AFSCME ($500K).

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Sonia Sotomayor said today that the 1973 SCOTUS ruling in the abortion rights case Roe v. Wade is "settled law." She also said that decision was upheld in the 1992 ruling in Planned Parenthood v. Casey.

"Casey reaffirmed the holding in Roe," she said, responding to questions from Sen. Herb Kohl (D-WI). "That is the Supreme Court's settled interpretation of what the court holding is and it's reaffirmance of it."

Over the course of her long career, Sotomayor has not ruled in an abortion-related matter. This marks her first public affirmation for support of the precedent set in the landmark case.

It's worth noting that Norma McCorvey, known as "Jane Roe" in the SCOTUS case, was arrested yesterday in Washington for disrupting Sotomayor's hearing. In recent years, McCorvey, 61, has become an abortion protester.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

The RGA has launched a new TV ad criticizing NJ Gov. Jon Corzine (D), in a tough fight for re-election this fall, for raising taxes.

The ad, dubbed "Watch what he does, not what he says," will run statewide on cable and on network TV in Philly and NYC. It's also up on radio, sources say.

A Quinnipiac University poll released today, meanwhile, shows Corzine trailing GOP rival Chris Christie, 53% - 41% among likely voters. In a 6/10 Quinnipiac survey, Christie, the former federal prosecutor, held a 10 point lead. Independent voters are helping Christie. The latest poll indicates that Corzine leads 76% - 19% among likely Dem voters, while Christie leads 89% - 7% among Republicans and 64% - 28% among independent voters.

Pres. Obama will headline a large rally for Corzine Thursday at the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, an effort to get a much-needed boost from the popular president, who proved a draw in '08 for moderate voters.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

"World News," "Evening News" and "Nightly News" each led with Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation hearings.

Sotomayor's confirmation hearings were the talk of TV last night.

Robert Bork sat down with CNN's Brown for an interview that aired on "Campbell Brown" 7/13 p.m.

Bork, on whether Sotomayor's "wise Latina woman" comment automatically disqualify her from the SCOTUS: "Yes, I would say it should except for the fact that we don't disqualify other people for similar remarks. I don't think what she said is consistent with the job of a judge. On the other hand, the woods are full of people out there who are making remarks which are not consistent with their role as judges. So she's not uniquely political."

More Bork: "She is political, I think, and I think Republicans are not going to be happy with her when she's on the bench. But I don't think that one remark, although she said it several times, I don't think that will prove to be disqualifying, nor do I think it should unless we're enforcing stricter standards that we have been enforcing."

Bork, on how Sotomayor will change the current court with regards to abortion, gun control and affirmative action: "Not much. ... I don't think her replacement of [David] Souter does anything except ensure a liberal vote past the time when Souter would have retired in any event. They're going to change the court today, but it will entrench a liberal bloc on the court."

After the jump, more on Sotomayor, as well as Pres. Obama's interview with CNN's Cooper in Ghana.

(RACHELLE DOUILLARD-PROULX)

Pres. Obama, speaking tomorrow in MI about the economy, will be greeted by a full-page ad in the Macomb Daily suggesting that passage of the union-backed Employee Free Choice Act will harm the state's sputtering economy. It's paid for by Americans for Jobs Security.

Text: "Mr. President, Michigan has lost enough jobs. Michigan can't afford the Employee 'Forced' Choice Act. Will you stand with workers and small business owners and stand up to big labor bosses against this job killing legislation?"

Click the link above to view the ad.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

As Pres. Obama turns his attention to boosting U.S. troop presence in Afghanistan, a bipartisan group of congressional women is highlighting the plight of that nation's mothers and children.

Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues members and Women's Policy, Inc. will join Obama administration officials and Afghan health experts today to discuss maternal health in Afghanistan and the issues involving safe pregnancy and delivery.

According to UNICEF, Afghanistan has the second highest maternal mortality rate in the world after Sierra Leone.

Participants in the lunch briefing, held in the Cannon House Office Building, include: Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Judy Biggert (R-IL), Co-Chairs, International Women's Issues Task Force; Reps. Lois Capps (D-CA) and Kay Granger (R-TX), Co-Chairs, Women's Health Task Force; Reps. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) and Mary Fallin (R-OK), Caucus Co-Chairs; Reps. Gwen Moore (D-WI) and Kay Granger, Caucus Vice-Chairs; and Reps. Susan Davis (D-CA) and Mary Bono Mack (R-CA).

In Afghanistan, 1 in 8 women die in childbirth. In the United States, that figure is 1 in 4,800. UNICEF asserts that 80% of maternal deaths could be prevented if women had access to primary care and basic obstetrics.

The briefing is made possible through a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

If you're on the Hill, take some time to stop into the panel. Noon to 2 p.m.

National Journal photographer extraordinaire Liz Lynch shares her pics of the first day of SCOTUS appointee Sonia Sotomayor's hearings:

More after the jump.

AK Gov. Sarah Palin's (R) PAC raised $733K during the first half of '09, according to reports filed with the FEC today and the Washington Post, which first reported the story.

So despite the critical press coverage after the '08 cycle, Palin was able to raise money. But that was before announcing her exit from the state's top job. It will be interesting to see how she manages in the final six months of the year.

Much has been made in advance of the confirmation hearings of SCOTUS appointee Sonia Sotomayor about the importance of race in her historic nomination. She would be, of course, the first Hispanic to sit on the nation's highest court. Likewise, with Hispanic voters an ever growing and important political constituency for both parties, lawmakers must consider how their questions to her might be interpreted by this voting bloc. Latino voters backed Barack Obama over John McCain in the '08 presidential contest by a margin of more than two-to-one. Bringing them back to the fold will be critical for Republicans' as they work to revive their influence at the national level.

But the Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Cmte., their national aspirations aside, might be less concerned with how their approaches to Sotomayor are viewed by Hispanics. Just two of the seven GOP members hail from a state with an Hispanic population above the national average of 15.1%, according to Census data.

Take a look:

Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX)
TX's Hispanic population: 36%

Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ)
AZ's Hispanic population: 29.6%

BUT ...

Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT)
UT's Hispanic population: 11.6%

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK)
OK's Hispanic population: 7.2%

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA)
IA's Hispanic population: 4%

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC)
SC's Hispanic population: 3.8%

Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL)
AL's Hispanic population: 2.7%

The GOP is not expected to dwell on the merits of Sotomayor's Puerto Rican roots and up-from-the-bootstraps story. Biography, as an overarching theme of the hearings, is a key part of the Dems' agenda in selling her appointment. It will be interesting to see how many of the GOP members ultimately back Sotomayor; only Graham today suggested he might vote for her. Should a partyline vote against her emerge, these Census numbers -- in addition no doubt to the political implications of an endorsement for Obama's first SCOTUS pick -- might provide one explanation.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

Sports analogies are always popular in the halls of Congress and on the campaign trail, and ever since SCOTUS CJ John Roberts famously compared himself to a baseball umpire during his confirmation hearings, they have a new place in the review of judicial nominees.

The Roberts metaphor was mentioned several times today, and generally speaking, the sports talk was frequent. Perhaps it marked a tribute to SCOTUS appointee Sonia Sotomayor's role in ending the baseball strike of '95. But all the chatter about balls and strikes also reinforced the decidedly male nature of the Senate Judiciary Cmte., which includes two women among 19 members.

Here's a taste:

Ranking Member Jeff Sessions (R-AL): "Such an approach to judging means that the umpire calling the game is not neutral, but instead feels empowered to favor one team over the other."

Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI), citing some landmark cases that expanded individual rights: "These momentous decisions were not simply the result of an umpire calling balls and strikes."

Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX): "To borrow a football analogy, a lower court judge is like the quarterback who executes the plays -- not the coach who calls the plays."

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA): "... I do not believe that Supreme Court justices are merely umpires calling balls and strikes. Rather I believe that they make the decisions of individuals who bring to the court their own experiences and philosophies."

(STEVEN SHEPARD)

After a stunning win 6/9 in the VA GOV primary, state Sen. Creigh Deeds (D) raised approx. $3.4M during the fundraising period ending 6/30.

The period ran from 5/28-6/30. During that time, Deeds received collected cash from 2,500 donors, 68% of whom contributed less than $100, according to the campaign. He also benefited from gifts from AFSCME ($500K), the DGA ($400K) and the SEIU ($100K).

A spokesman for GOP nominee Bob McDonnell said his team will release their latest fundraising information tomorrow.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

With two simple words -- "I do" -- Judge Sonia Sotomayor's week-long odyssey through the Senate Judiciary Cmte began today, as she was sworn in for her SCOTUS confirmation hearing.

But the tone of the hearing was set by the 19 Sens. -- 12 Dems and 7 GOPers -- who spoke earlier in the day. Sotomayor sat patiently facing the dais throughout their speeches. She placed her palms down on the table in front of her. And she did not speak. Under the witness table, her broken ankle was elevated.

Dems praised her judicial record and touted her life's journey as an American story, while GOPers criticized her speeches, specifically her remark that a Latina woman would have better judgment than a white man, and past rulings.

Judiciary Cmte Chair Pat Leahy (D-VT) called the hearing to order two minutes before 10 a.m., and after a brief statement, cmte members delivered 10-minute speeches, alternating between parties according to seniority.

As provided by the WH, here is SCOTUS appointee Sonia Sotomayor's prepared statement to the Senate Judiciary Committee:

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I also want to thank Senators Schumer and Gillibrand for that kind introduction.

In recent weeks, I have had the privilege and pleasure of meeting eighty-nine gracious Senators, including all the members of this Committee. I thank you for the time you have spent with me. Our meetings have given me an illuminating tour of the fifty states and invaluable insights into the American people.

There are countless family members, friends, mentors, colleagues, and clerks who have done so much over the years to make this day possible. I am deeply appreciative for their love and support. I want to make one special note of thanks to my mom. I am here today because of her aspirations and sacrifices for both my brother Juan and me. Mom, I love that we are sharing this together. I am very grateful to the President and humbled to be here today as a nominee to the United States Supreme Court.

The progression of my life has been uniquely American. My parents left Puerto Rico during World War II. I grew up in modest circumstances in a Bronx housing project. My father, a factory worker with a third grade education, passed away when I was nine years old.

The conservative blogosphere's coverage of the Sonia Sotomayor confirmation hearings has been relatively subdued thus far. The biggest reason is that most righty bloggers believe that Sotomayor's confirmation is inevitable; some are predicting that she'll receive as many as 75 votes. In fact, influential blogger Erick Erickson is explicitly urging his readers to "ignore" the Sotomayor hearings and instead focus their energies on political battles where the outcome is still in doubt, such as cap-and-trade and health care.

That said, conservative bloggers still believe that GOPers have something to gain from these hearings. The Heritage Foundation's Brian Darling argues that "this hearing will be an important teaching moment in history where conservative strict constructionist philosophy is explained to the American people in easy to undersand terms." Similarly, The American Spectator's W. James Antle, III argues that GOP senators "should [have] at least have two objectives in these hearings: 1.) Highlight the less popular aspects of a liberal judicial philosophy and 2.) Make political points about the discriminatory impact of Title VII."

So while conservative bloggers don't think that Sotomayor can be stopped, they still want GOP senators to aggressively (albeit respectfully) question her about her views. A few of them also want to see a lot of "nay" votes. RedState's hogan warns that conservatives "are watching this hearing particularly closely...to see whether Republicans are on the right road -- whether they have an ounce of core beliefs that can serve to provide backbone and a will to fight."

(IAN FAERSTEIN)

Our tweeps began voicing their thoughts on the confirmation hearings for SCOTUS appointee Sonia Sotomayor this a.m. Interestingly, mostly GOPers were tweeting:

Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX): "Sotomayor hearing has begun" 7/13, 10:05 AM

Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT): "Here's the essay I referred to in my opening statement on the role of the Constitution in Supreme Court nominations. http://is.gd/1xh1r" 7/13, 12:56 PM

GA GOV cand/GA Insurance Commis. John Oxendine (R): "The Sotomayor hearings have begun. She deserves a fair hearing. However, I have serious concerns about her speeches and writings." 7/13, 1:01 PM

Hatch: "Email me your question for Judge Sotomayor at askjudgesotomayor@hatchforsenate.com." 7/13, 1:36 PM

Meanwhile ...

Live From Claire's Brain

Amid intensifying debate over the prospect of a second stimulus, Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) stated her position via Twitter over the weekend:

McCaskill: "I do not support a second stimulus." 7/11, 10:52 AM

McCaskill then tweeted a pair of follow-ups about two hours later:

McCaskill: "I believe the first stimulus has helped. No one said it would work magic in 3 mos.Said at the time most of the jobs will be created in 2010." 7/11, 1:00 PM

McCaskill: "Now must give it more time. In the meantime, both R's and D's need to break some very bad spending habits, like earmarks & contracting waste" 7/11, 1:02 PM

WOTT provides a carefully selected slice of tweets written by political leaders, ex-politicians and candidates for office nationwide. Hotline subscribers can read the best overnight tweets in our AM edition.

Follow Hotline on Twitter: twitter.com/thehotline.

On Call aside: all tweets are reproduced exactly as they appeared.

(FELICIA SONMEZ)

Andy McKenna, chairman of the IL GOP, will not run for Barack Obama's onetime Senate seat, clearing the way for Rep. Mark Kirk (R-IL) to pursue an uncontested bid for the nomination.

"As Party Chairman my goal has been to build Party unity," McKenna said in a statement released today by the state party. "Mark Kirk and I met last evening as part of an ongoing discussion about the U. S. Senate race. I reassured Mark that if he chooses to be a candidate, I will not oppose him."

Kirk, serving his fifth term, vacillated late last week about a run. He was in and then out and then possibly in again, with the caveat that he would not run if McKenna decided to give it a go.

Kirk is widely viewed as the GOP's best hope to seize a seat now held by Sen. Roland Burris (D-IL), ex.-Gov. Rod Blagojevich's tainted pick for the job.

Dems likely to run: Merchandise Mart CEO Chris Kennedy, son of Robert F. Kennedy, and state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

The NYT is reporting that Dr. Regina Benjamin, an Alabama family physician, will be nominated as the U.S. surgeon general, according to administration officials. Pres. Obama will announce his selection officially at a Rose Garden ceremony this a.m.

Per the paper:

An African-American, Dr. Benjamin is nationally known for establishing a rural health clinic in Bayou La Batre, Ala. -- a small shrimping village along the Gulf Coast. Hurricana Katrina destroyed the clinic in 2005, and then when it was rebuilt, the clinic burned down on the eve of re-opening.

In 2002, she became the president of the Alabama Medical Association, making her the first African-American woman to be president of a state medical society in the United States. In September, she was one of 25 recipients of the $500,000 "genius awards," awarded by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

She completed her residency in family medicine at the Medical Center of Central Georgia. She is a graduate of Xavier University, Morehouse School of Medicine and the University of Alabama School of Medicine.

Benjamin's bio, as provided by the WH, is available after the jump.

"Unless you have a complete meltdown, you're going to get confirmed."

-- Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), speaking at the opening session of SCOTUS appointee Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation hearings

(Getty Images photo)

SI.com reported yesterday that Pres. Obama, who will throw out the first pitch of tomorrow's All-Star Game at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, will join Fox Sports announcers Joe Buck and Tim McCarver in the booth sometime between the third and fifth innings.

Obama, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush and Jimmy Carter will also be featured in a seven-minute video address to be aired during the pregame ceremony. The video will honor 30 Americans whom Major League Baseball and People magazine have recognized for service to their communities.

Watch them here, courtesy of the Washington Post.

(AFP photo)

Pope Benedict XVI speaks today with Pres. Obama and FLOTUS Michelle Obama. The two men had a "wide-ranging discussion," according to published reports, but few details were provided.

U.S. News and World Report notes that the pope and the president "used the event to send separate messages from a global stage."

In one politically charged gesture, the pope handed Obama a Vatican booklet on bioethics that condemns embryonic stem cell research and abortion rights, both of which the president supports. "I'll have something to read on the plane," Obama, who flew to Ghana after the meeting, joked to the pope.

Obama used the forum to get his own messages out, stressing areas of common ground between his administration and the Roman Catholic Church. Even on the divisive issue of abortion, for instance, the pope's press secretary said Obama "reiterated his commitment to reducing the incidence of abortion" during the meeting.

Read on.

And have a good weekend!

After much 'Will he? Or won't he?' speculation this afternoon about GOP Rep. Mark Kirk's desire to run for Senate in IL, Kirk said in an email to The Hotline that he was "still talking to Andy. We are trying to avoid a primary."

The "Andy" he references is IL GOP Chair Andy McKenna, who has made serious signals in recent days of his intention to run. When asked if this means that he may ultimately forgo a run, Kirk replied: "I will run if Andy does not."

If Kirk does bow out it would be a blow to the NRSC, which had seen a solid week of recruiting success. Kirk not only brings a moderate profile and a suburban Chicago base but also a substantial warchest. Additionally, the NRSC had publicly mocked the Dems for their recruiting troubles for Pres. Obama's old seat.

Even so, the fact that Kirk's campaign roll-out has been so poorly managed suggests that his team and his own skill set will need a major upgrade if he does ultimately pull the trigger on a SEN race.

(AMY WALTER)

A spokesman for Rep. Mark Kirk (R-IL) now says the congressman is indeed pondering a bid for Senate -- despite an earlier Washington Post report indicating that he wouldn't run.

So, er, maybe we'll wait for an actual announcement. Speculation run amok.

FL GOV candidate Alex Sink (D) narrowly outraised GOP rival Bill McCollum in the second Q, $1.28M to $1.05M (his total includes in-kind contributions), according to both campaigns.

Sink, the state CFO, has so far raised $2.4M for her '10 camp. Sink ended the Q with $2.1M+ in CoH.

Both Sink and McCollum, the state AG, announced their candidacies midway through the filing period. Sink, however, rolled over some money from her CFO campaign coffers.

The McCollum camp's total take for the period is $1.037,154.56 with an additional $22,123.49 of in-kind contributions.

Per her camp, Sink received support from 3,402 individuals who gave an average of $243. Sink took in 1,310 online donations for a total of $209K. Also, 92% of contributors were from FLians.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

House Race Hotline editor Tim Sahd takes a look each Friday at the top five House stories of the week. Here are this week's big newsmakers, brought to you by Friday House Cleaning.

5. Dem Fundraising: Sign Of The Himes

GOPers have been on a roll in recruiting, but while Dems may find themselves on the defense this cycle, their incumbents will have one advantage over GOPers: fundraising. And Rep. Jim Himes' (D-CT 04) 2ndQ take of $520K should be a loud warning that Dems will not lay down. Full numbers are due out next Weds., but most Dems are expected to continue to post solid numbers.

Very few Dems had lackluster 1stQ fundraising numbers, and those that did (expressly, NH-01's Carol Shea-Porter) needed to use the 2ndQ to catch up. But Shea-Porter's an exception, and not the rule, and there will be few Dems who are vulnerable in '10 because of poor fundraising.

Hillary Clinton exuded her inner Henny Youngman today during a town hall meeting at the State Department.

"I have not been throwing sharp elbows," she cracked, alluding to her broken elbow. Watch the full routine above.

The Washington Post reported earlier this week that Rep. Mark Kirk (R-IL) would run for the Senate seat formerly held by Barack Obama and now occupied by retiring Sen. Roland Burris (D-IL). But apparently Kirk has changed his mind, the paper is reporting this afternoon. Or had he never decided affirmatively?

Either way, with Kirk, the strongest possible GOP contender, out of the mix, Dems can breathe a temporary, at least, sigh of relief. The likely GOP nom becomes state party chairman Andy McKenna.

Dems possibly in play: state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias and Merchandise Mart CEO Chris Kennedy, son of Robert F. Kennedy.

Sen. Roland Burris (D-IL) issued a statement this afternoon making official his decision, leaked yesterday, not to run in '10. But not without noting that he has been elected to statewide office in IL four times, serving three terms as comptroller and one term as state AG. And a lack of money, he says, was the chief impediment this go round.

Or something.

The statement:

"Serving in public life is not easy, but it is a noble and rewarding calling.

"Life is about choices. Make no mistake that I love serving in the United States Senate. I love serving the people of Illinois. But in making this decision I was called to choose between spending my time raising funds, or spending my time raising issues for my state. I believe that the business of the people of Illinois should always come first." "And so today, I have returned to the place where my political journey began back in 1978, back to the South Side of Chicago, back to my community and my constituency to announce that I will not be a candidate in the 2010 election, and that I will not run for the United States Senate." "I have been a member of the Senate for seven months now, and I have seen firsthand that my colleagues are thoughtful, dedicated, and loyal Americans - Democrats and Republicans alike.

"The Obama Administration and the Democrat-led Congress is bringing transformational change to this nation, and it is an exciting time to be in public service - more exciting and more filled with hope and possibility than at any time I can remember." "I made a decision as a young man to get involved in public life, never imagining I would have the great honor to serve this state and this country for as long as I have. Now it is your turn. Now it is your turn to decide how you will serve your community."

Here are the scheduled guests for the Sunday public affairs shows and other weekend programs:

SUNDAY:

Meet the Press hosts Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY), GOP strategist Karen Hughes, NBC's Andrea Mitchell, Dem strategist Bob Shrum and Politico's Roger Simon.

Face the Nation hosts Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL).

This Week hosts Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ), and a roundtable with Dem strategist Donna Brazile, ABC News' Sam Donaldson, ABC News' Cokie Roberts, Washington Post's George Will and Washington Post's Bob Woodward.

Fox News Sunday hosts Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) and House Min. Whip Eric Cantor, and a panel discussion with Laura Ingraham, NPR's Mara Liasson, Weekly Standard's Bill Kristol and NPR's Juan Williams. The Power Player is Capitol Visitor Center's Terrie Rouse.

State of the Union hosts Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH), Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN), Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND), GOP strategist Mary Matalin, Dem strategist James Carville. The "Last Word" goes to Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-PA).

See other weekend shows after the jump.

(RACHELLE DOUILLARD-PROULX)

A CNN/ORC survey released today indicates that a plurality of the public wants to see SCOTUS appointee Sonia Sotomayor confirmed by the Senate:

Vote in favor of Sotomayor 47%
Not vote in favor 40%
No opinion 13%

The poll shows a partisan divide -- seven in 10 Dems support Sotomayor's confirmation, Independents are split, and nearly two of three Republicans oppose her.

The poll of 1,026 adults was conducted 6/26-28.

CNN compares Sotomayor's reviews with those of her predecessors, as charted by CNN/USAToday/Gallup. She rates higher than Harriet Miers and Robert Bork, whose appointments were doomed, but lower than John Roberts, Samuel Alito, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Clarence Thomas.

Sotomayor's hearings begin Monday, of course.

Did Pres. Obama ogle a young woman during an event in Rome yesterday? Matt Drudge seemed to think so, as he posted an incriminating photo of the president -- with French President Nicolas Sarkozy smirking at his side -- at the top of his Web site all day (and it's still up this a.m.). But ABC News has video of the moment, and it seems to show Obama watching the teenager's feet to see that she safely climbed a staircase. You be the judge.

"World News" led with the H1N1 flu summit. "Evening News" led with GM's reemergence from bankruptcy. "Nightly News" led with the IL grave resellings.

The CIA possibly misleading Congress was the big story on TV last night, with pols discussing it across the nets.

Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA), on why he signed the letter to CIA dir. Leon Panetta: "This isn't really about Nancy Pelosi. As a member of the intelligence committee, what I am concerned about is I want to make sure that the CIA is open and honest with you. And clearly, members, Republican and Democrats alike, have complained that they have not been. Not just the CIA, but other aspects of the intelligence community. It's our duty and our right and our responsibility as members of Congress to insist that the CIA is open and honest with us. And clearly, they have not been, not just in the last eight years, but going back 30, 40 years."

Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA), in response: "I think if we want to have an investigation on specifics, on a specific failure, a criminal investigation, I look forward to it. I want to see it. What I'm concerned about ... is about the speaker. It is about a vague statement that they lie to us all the time, not that there was a program from 2001 that was never briefed in Congress. ... There were hundreds or thousands of programs that were never told to us that happened" ("Lou Dobbs Tonight," CNN, 7/9).

Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL): "This is serious. To not tell the United States Congress deliberately -- this wasn't an oversight, this wasn't an accident. There was a decision made at the very top levels not to tell the Congress about a very serious operation."

After the jump, more on the CIA, as well as new details on the Sen. John Ensign (R) affair, and Sen. Roland Burris' (D-IL) decision not to run for re-election.

(RACHELLE DOUILLARD-PROULX)

National Journal's Jim Barnes writes for this week's magazine about AK Gov. Sarah Palin's undeniable connection with the GOP's grassroots. She's leaving her state's top job, but she remains in the hearts of conservatives in key early states.

Here's a snippet of Barnes' piece:

Unconventional or nor, most successful runs for the White House go thought Iowa and New Hampshire and GOP activists there seem ready to welcome outgoing Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin into the fray if she decides to seek the party's presidential nomination in 2012. She remains very popular at the grassroots, particularly in Iowa. Some believe that as their most charismatic candidate, Palin may be the best person to nominate to go up against President Barack Obama.

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee captured the caucuses last year and may be favored there should he run again in 2012, but if he does he'll have to do so without one key supporter from 2008: former state Rep. Carmine Boal, who co-chaired the [Iowa] Legislators for Huckabee Advisory Committee during the 2008 caucuses, has strong ties to social issue conservatives and said she'd back Palin if she runs, even if Huckabee runs.

Give it a read.

The Chicago Sun-Times is reporting that embattled Sen. Roland Burris (D-IL) will not run in '10. He will announce officially 7/10 via a statement. Burris has only raised $20K for a campaign, according to FEC papers to be filed next week, the paper reports.

Burris was, of course, appointed by ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) on his way out the door.

With AG Lisa Madigan's (D) announcement 7/8 that she won't run for the seat, the top possible Dem contenders are Chris Kennedy (Robert F. Kennedy's son) and state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias. For GOPers, Rep. Mark Kirk is the frontrunner.

Burris has never been embraced by the Dem establishment in DC, whose members were loath to seat him, believing the move would validate Blagojevich's leadership. Since then, however, we learned that Burris had a conversation with Blagojevich's brother in advance of his appointment about giving him a donation. And it's not clear if he did or did not mislead an IL House panel investigating Blagojevich in the pay-to-play scandal surrounding Barack Obama's seat.

So, bottom line is that Burris' exit is hardly surprising. And it's mighty fine news for Dems, who wanted him out anyway. Burris will at least leave DC with another resume line to add to his granite mausoleum.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

What if someone in the GOP moved to put a definitive end to the bloodletting?

What if that someone, with his big mouth and even bigger audience, urged lawmakers whose personal shenanigans have hamstrung an already foundering party to step down?

What if talk-o-matic Rush Limbaugh used that microphone to help his party drop-kick the GOP members whose adulterous ways have robbed Republicans of their family values platform and sucked up any airtime that could be used for promoting a policy agenda or bucking the WH's drive for sweeping and expensive health care and energy reform?

Maybe it's time for Rush -- the only GOPer with a following these days -- to do his part to start to lay the groundwork for the party to rebuild -- instead of using his platform to throw the 'R' bomb at SCOTUS nominee Sonia Sotomayor. Because with Sens. John Ensign (affair with a campaign staffer) and David Vitter (appearance on the DC madam's list) and Gov. Mark Sanford ("crossed lines" with multiple women) still in office, distraction is ruling the day for the party.

GOPers may be in the minority in the House and Senate, but they have a majority share these days of the hypocrisy that always hangs over DC and nat'l politics.

-- Ensign, we learn today, tried to pay off his mistress and her family to the tune of $96K, and his atty attempted to cast the cash as a sign of the senator's "generosity."

-- In SC, Sanford is digging in after a censure vote earlier this week, and his survival is widely believed to be a result of the party's reluctance to turn the state over to his young, hapless LG -- not a sign of their faith in Sanford's leadership.

-- And Vitter is up for re-election in '10, after years as a punch line for his use of an escort service.

Isn't it time for GOPers to press the "restart" button? To say there's no tolerance in the party of Ronald Reagan, in this era of rising unemployment and economic instability, for those lawmakers whose personal problems are forcing a chronic distraction from the pressing issues of the day.

But let's be frank. There's no one but Rush to make that plea. The GOPers lack not just a Barack Obama; they don't even have a Bill Clinton or a Ted Kennedy. RNC Chair Michael Steele forfeited his influence several missteps ago. And Sens. John McCain and Mitch McConnell and House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) lack the wide public embrace of the hotheaded radio host.

Sure, it's asking a lot for Rush to rail against his own. But he's done it before. When Rush didn't like George W. Bush's immigration reform proposal because he felt it compromised the party's principles, he was a key voice against it. Someone needs to lead the charge now.

And Rush certainly relishes his role in driving the conversation. So why not steer it in an unpredictable direction? Instead of looking the other way, he could use the foibles and failings of these three men to help the party recast itself as responsible and action-oriented, a pitch that could be used in the run up to the '10 midterms.

It might hurt at first, as Sanford would say. But someone needs to push for a clean slate for a party in crisis. And, after all, he could render the left stunned in the process.

(JENNIFER SKALKA)

FL Gov. Charlie Crist (R) raised a formidable $4.3M for his SEN bid for the quarter ending 6/30, his campaign announced today. GOPer Marco Rubio, the former FL House speaker who is also running, raised just $340K during the same time period.

"I am humbled by the support that I am receiving from the people of Florida and around the country," Crist said. "I take their support seriously and continue to work every day to honor the trust and confidence they have placed in me."

Crist announced his SEN bid in mid-May, so he didn't start fundraising until halfway through the quarter. In a release, his camp bragged that if you do the math, he has raised an average of $86K/day since then.

Crist camp co-chair/ex-Sen. Connie Mack weighed in: "Clearly Governor Crist's record of cutting taxes, fighting for Florida's students and fighting for the safety, rights and freedoms of all Floridians is resonating with people across the state and around the nation."

The total could spell doom for Rubio, regarded as an up-and-comer but who has ruffled some feathers for trying to buck Crist, the establishment's pick. Crist has the backing of the NRSC, among other high-profile GOP sens, including John McCain (AZ), Mitch McConnell (KY), Lindsey Graham (SC), Mel Martinez (FL) and Lamar Alexander (TN).

Rubio spokesman Alex Burgos said his candidate isn't intimidated by Crist's fundraising prowess.

"Charlie Crist will need to spend every last cent trying to convince voters that his support for wasteful stimulus spending, cap-and-trade schemes, tax increases and liberal judges are acceptable Republican practices," Burgos said in an email.

Politico's Glenn Thrush has a statement from Sen. John Ensign's (R-NV) atty explaining that the gifts to his mistress and her relatives ($96K in '08) were merely a sign of the senator's "generosity."

In April 2008, Senator John Ensign's parents each made gifts to Doug Hampton, Cindy Hampton, and two of their children in the form of a check totaling $96,000. Each gift was limited to $12,000. The payments were made as gifts, accepted as gifts and complied with tax rules governing gifts.

After the Senator told his parents about the affair, his parents decided to make the gifts out of concern for the well-being of long-time family friends during a difficult time. The gifts are consistent with a pattern of generosity by the Ensign family to the Hamptons and others.

None of the gifts came from campaign or official funds nor were they related to any campaign or official duties. Senator Ensign has complied with all applicable laws and Senate ethics rules.

Paul Coggins

Fish & Richardson P.C.

Counsel for Senator John Ensign