Wonkette

* Reliable Source: Sen. Kennedy will make his first appearance on “The Daily Show” tomorrow night. . . “The Sentinel,” the “first big-budget drama in a while set in the nation’s capital,” opens Friday. [WP]
* Under the Dome: Moran brothers jump at the chance to represent for DeLay. . . Rep. Dennis Kucinich runs out of his office to help the victim of traffic accident. . . Melissa Fitzgerald, of “West Wing” fame, is hosting a fundraiser for City Council candidate Robert Gordon. . . Press release from Sen. Reid refers to Rob Portman as Bob. [The Hill]
* Inside the Beltway: The Bible will be read aloud on the West Lawn of the Capitol beginning April 30th. [WT]
* Liz Smith: Democrats won’t take Larry Flynt’s “dirty money.” [NYP]
* The Scoop: Willem Dafoe says any connection between Cheney and the vice president character that he plays in “American Dreamz” is by “accident.” [MSNBC]

* Demand for oil tops agenda for meeting of Bush and Chinese President Hu Jintao; “China has invested heavily in Iran, and as a permanent member of the Security Council, its position on the question of sanctions is crucial.” [NYT]
* Pentagon preps for war games about Iran. Bush: “All options are on the table.” [USAT]
* Construction of $592M embassy in Baghdad –the size of 80 football fields– is on target. [USAT]
* Bush: “I’m the decider, and I decide what’s best, and what’s best is for Don Rumsfeld to remain as the secretary of defense.” [NYT, USAT]
* Administration has not improved the sharing of intelligence data among agencies, GAO finds. [WP]
* Rob Portman, trade representative, is selected to replace Bolten as budget director; sends “gloomy signal [about] the prospects for achieving significant gains in trade talks with foreign countries anytime soon.” [WP, NYT, WP, USAT]
* Army Maj. Gen. Geoffrey Miller ordered to testify on abuse in Iraq. [WP]
* News organizations attempt to block subpoenas for documents related to leak investigation. [NYT]
* FBI seeks access to the files of the late columnist Jack Anderson. [NYT]
* Bush’s interest in human rights complicates visit with Jintao. [WP]
* Rumsfeld is playing dead, says Dana Milbank. [WP]

Seriously, this is like the best dirt available on Rob Portman. MORE »

Jeez, this Rob Portman character — the new head of the Office of Management and Budget — appears to be a real sleeper. At 11:37 AM, Sen. Harry Reid’s office sent out the following statement by email: MORE »

Sooooounds like a shake-up! The U.S. Trade Representative has been tapped to replace the head of the OMB, who was tapped to replace the Chief of Staff. The Trade Representative’s deputy will take his place, and Andrew Card will be brought in to be her deputy. Right? MORE »