We kinda love everything about this story from channel 9 last night. The immediate invocation of Osama bin Laden (complete with the hilarious image of him rooting through the White House trash), the ex-con garbage man doing his “civic duty,” the outrage and shock from the anchors, it’s classic local news. And it even features a brief, wordless cameo appearance from Ms. Katherine Harris. Enjoy. MORE »

• Josh Bolten “is expected to press President Bush to assemble new economic and Congressional relations teams and overhaul the management of the West Wing.” John Snow rumored to be on his way out. [NYT]
• Senate approves lobbying restrictions by vote of 90 to 8; activists are disappointed. [WP, NYT, W$J, USAT, LAT]
• Jack Abramoff is sentenced to 70 months in jail in Florida fraud case. [WP, NYT]
• Republicans could alienate Hispanic voting bloc with stance on immigration; topic is front and center as Bush meets with Vicente Fox. [NYT, NYT, WP]
• Administration will impose fuel standards on SUVs, minivans, and pickups, but environmentalists are unsatisfied. [W$J]
• Bush tells Iraqis, “It’s about time you get a unity government going.” [WP]

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* Bush will reaffirm strategy of preemption: “When the consequences of an attack with WMD are potentially so devastating, we cannot afford to stand idly by as grave dangers materialize.” [WP, NYT]
* Concern about Iraq pushes Bush’s approval rating to 37% in NBC/WSJ poll; only 32% have positive view of Democrats. [WSJ]
* Ethics package proposed by House Republicans includes limits on 527 groups. [WP, NYT]
* Dubai Ports World to sell American port operations to “an unrelated U.S. buyer.” [WP, NYT]
* Talk of censure and impeachment used to rally Republican voters. [NYT]
* Michael Brown ignored plans and circumvented Michael Chertoff during Katrina response, House report concludes. [WP]
* Bush nominates family friend to head FDA as Plan B threatens to stall vote. [NYT]
* Rep. Katherine Harris will drop $10m on her senate bid. [NYT]
* Rep. James Moran Jr. (D-Va.) says Gore should run in 2008. [WP]

* Gonzales testifies for seven hours about warrentless eavesdropping; defends legality of program but largely avoids providing specifics. Gonzales: “Think about the reaction, the public reaction that has arisen in some quarters about this program. If the president had authorized domestic surveillance as well, even though we’re talking about al Qaeda-to-al Qaeda, I think the reaction would have been twice as great. And so there was a judgment made that this was the appropriate line to draw in ensuring the security of our country and the protection of the privacy interests of Americans.” [WP, NYT, USAT, WT]
* Bush proposes $2.77t budget that would cut funds from most federal agencies while increasing military funding by 7%; deficit would be record $423b. The “patchwork of generosity and austerity reflects the priorities of Bush, who has defined his administration’s central goal as combating terrorist threats.” [WP, NYT, NYT, USAT, WT]
* Budget could be “risky election-year strategy” for Republican lawmakers. Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.): “Politically, the right thing to do this year is also the popular thing to do, and that is to cut spending.” [LAT, NYT, USAT]
* Budget predictions depend on tax overhaul, an end to the war in Iraq, and no new funds for the Gulf Coast. [WP, NYT, USAT, USAT]
* Republicans lack unity over eavesdropping issue. Sen. Specter (R-Pa.): “I think they are seeing concerns in a lot of directions from all segments: Democrats and Republicans in all shades of the political spectrum.” [WP]

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* House Republicans elect Ohio Rep. John Boehner as majority leader, signaling break from status quo. Boehner: “The members wanted to make a big decision, and they did. . . We must act swiftly to restore the trust between Congress and the American people.” [WP, NYT, LAT, USAT, WT, W$J]
* Election of Boehner heralds his comeback and shows a “cry of concern by an entrenched Republican majority”; Boehner “tapped into members’ election-year anxieties about the GOP’s scandal-scuffed leadership.” [WP, WP, NYT]
* Administration seeks $120b for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. [WP, NYT, USAT]
* Democrats attack Republican rhetoric at hearing on security threats; insist on more oversight. Sen. John Rockefeller (D-W.V.): “I am deeply troubled by what I see as the administration’s continued effort to selectively release intelligence information that supports its policy or political agenda while withholding equally pertinent information that does not do that.” [WP, WP, NYT, USAT, WT]

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