Election Recycling: Kerry's Ability to Toss Footballs Impeded Edition
• Rice'stestimony may be released to end political fallout; Commission members unanimously want her to testify in public. [ WP and NYT ]
•Gas prices at record highs,Kerryoutlines plan to reduce gas prices by pressing nations to increase production, suspending U.S. reserves, and reiterating the need to switch to clean energy sources; Some Congressional Republicans concur; Prices likely to climb. [ WP and LAT ]
• CheneysaysKerry'srecord is pro-tax and inconsistent: "To get a clearer picture of what the first hundred days of aKerryadministration would look like, we can start by reviewing his last 7,000 days in Washington;"Kerryargues the administration is changing the topic: "What's really interesting is that with each attack, this administration is building up the truth deficit to go along with the jobs deficit, and the fiscal deficit, and their international-intelligence-gathering credibility deficit." [ WP and NYT ]
•New USAT/CNN/Gallup Poll: Bush,51 percent,Kerry,47 percent; 53 percent say administration is "covering up something" about pre-9/11 intel; 67 percent say attacks could not be prevented. [ USAT and USAT ]
• BushTV spots appear to have spurred "remarkable turnaround" in battleground states. [ USAT ]
•Politicians to spend $25 million in online ads this year; "There's still the air war, and the ground war, but now there's the cyber-war," said an expert. [ LAT ]
• Kerryhas learned how to photo op. "Since so much of the campaign today involves visual imagery, this is a very important step," said political scientist. "I always wanted to play Phil Donahue,"Kerryjokes. [ LAT ]
• Kerryon MTV tonight: "I'm fascinated by rap and hip-hop. I think there's a lot of poetry in it. There's a lot of anger. A lot of social energy in it. I think you better listen to it pretty carefully." [ NYT and BG ]
• Kerry'ssurgery will curtail his ability to pick up babies, toss footballs, and "vigorously" shake hands for a few weeks; health described as excellent. [ WP and NYT ]
• Kerry'schief of staff,David McKean,is a distant cousin, alter ego, and significant player.Douglas Brinkley: "He's the most intensely loyal personJohn Kerryhas working with him who can deal with the nitty-gritty ugly realities of fierce partisan politics. If there's a problem that needs to be solved,Johnturns toDavid."[WP ]
• Edwardsruns for #2. "If he's offered V.P., he takes it. If he's not offered it, it's important that he campaign for the ticket. Then ifKerryis elected, he can't run for president for eight years, so he becomes a player in aKerryadministration. IfKerryis defeated, he forms a research firm of some sort and starts running for president in '08," said a political scientist. [ NYT ]
•In battleground of Dubuque, Iowa, where everyone knows a soldier, the issue is war and peace;Bushaccidently sent the same form letter of condolence twice to one family. [ WP ]
•New ad by the Media Fund is a populist attack onBush.[ LAT ]
•Massachusetts bans gay marriage, allows civil unions. [ WP and WT ]
•FEC may ask for refund fromSharpton,who outspent personal limits. [ NYT and USAT ]
[One night with me, baby. . . REUTERS/Jason Reed ]