Fletcher To Hold "Unity" Rally — Without The Other Candidates
In Kentucky today, Governor Ernie Fletcher (R) will be holding a post-primary unity rally. One problem: His opponents in the Republican primary, Anne Northup and Billy Harper, won't actually be there. Northup has simply sent a "positive letter" to the rally, and won't be involved in the campaign, and Harper is out of the country. Others attending the rally include the state's GOP Congressional delegation, many of whom endorsed Northup in the primary.

Poll Has Even More Bad News For Fletcher
In the Kentucky Gubernatorial Race, Democratic nominee Steve Beshear has built his campaign in part on a call to expand gambling in the state and collect government revenues from it, a proposal Fletcher has derided as being a platform "based on what we can do with the roll of the dice." The new SurveyUSA poll — which has Beshear up 62%-34% — shows support for legal gambling in the state is at 81%, versus only 16% who think gambling should not be allowed.

Selective Outrage From The Right On War Funding
Steve Benen documents an overlooked aspect of the current war debate: Right-wing critics who are now outraged about Hillary and Obama's votes against the Iraq War funding bill didn't seem to mind so much when President Bush himself vetoed the last war-funding bill sent to him by Congress.

MoveOn: Send Weak Tea To Reid
MoveOn.org has announced a novel form of protest at Democratic leaders over the Iraq funding bill: They are calling upon members in Harry Reid's home state of Nevada to send bags of "weak tea" to Reid, borrowing from the term Reid himself used last week to refer to the idea of an Iraq funding bill that did not include a timeline for withdrawal. MoveOn is seeking 360 Nevadans, exactly the number the of Senators and Congressmen from both parties who voted for the bill.

Direct Mail Firm Shareholders Sue CEO Over Clinton Largesse
Vinod Gupta, a longtime Democratic donor and CEO of direct mail firm InfoUSA, is facing a shareholder lawsuit over payments made to Bill Clinton for corporate consulting work since he left office. The irate shareholders state that Gupta's favors for the Clinton's, which have over $900,000 in travel expenses and a $3.3 million consulting deal for Bill, all on the company's account, amount to a "waste of corporate assets." "The dispute over Gupta's bankrolling of the Clintons offers new detail about how successfully Bill Clinton has leveraged the inner circle of donors he cultivated during his tenure in the White House to his personal financial benefit since he left office," The Washington Post reports. "In addition, it suggests the degree to which Hillary Clinton's political career is also benefiting from those connections."

Auto Industry To Run Ads Against Mileage Standard Increases
The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers is running a radio and newspaper ad campaign starting this weekend, calling upon members of Congress to oppose a proposal to increase the fuel mileage requirements for cars and trucks by 10 miles per gallon over the next ten years. The ads will be targeted at states with a high proportion of truck and SUV drivers.

McCain: "It's no more amnesty than I am a Martian."
John McCain defended the immigration deal in a conference call with Iowa reporters: "It's no more amnesty than I am a Martian." McCain also issues an ultimatum to opponents of the legislation. "I believe that if you are opposed to this legislation, then you have the obligation to propose something of your own."

Arpaio Denounces McCain: Put Illegal Immigrants In Jail
In Arizona, popular yet controversial Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio put out a statement lambasting McCain's immigration legislation. "All they talk about is amnesty, deportation and border security because Washington politicians are scared to death to talk about putting these illegals in jail when there are already laws on the books to allow it," Arpaio writes. Arpaio is an Arizona Republican who is not supporting his home state's candidate, and is instead boosting Mitt Romney.

Fred Thompson Blames Reagan For Illegal Immigration Problem — And Terrorism
At Thursday night's Connecticut Republican dinner, Fred Thompson had very strong words for the 1986 immigration bill signed by President Reagan, which he says encouraged more illegal immigration by granting amnesty for the people here at the time. "Twelve million illegal immigrants later, we are now living in a nation that is beset by people who are suicidal maniacs and want to kill countless innocent men, women and children around the world," Thompson said.

Hillary Unveils Health Care Proposals
Hillary Clinton is walking upon ground that proved to be treacherous for her in the early 1990's, rolling out a set of health care proposals. While her proposals mainly focus on preventive health care and electronic record-keeping in order to lower costs, one aspect could have a tough time passing: "As president, I will end the practice of insurance company cherry-picking once and for all by allowing anyone who wants to join a plan to do so and prohibiting insurance companies from carving out benefits or charging higher rates to people with health problems."

Edwards Campaign: Hillary Is Taking Our Health Care Proposals
"Today's ideas have a familiar ring," said Edwards campaign spokesman Mark Kornblau, talking about Hillary's proposals for health care. "John Edwards proposed specific steps to make health care affordable three months ago and — from preventative care to chronic care to paperless records — Senator Clinton has followed him down that path. We welcome her support and eagerly await her plan for universal coverage."

NH GOP Chair Solicits $10,000 Contributions From Candidates To Speak At Dinner
New Hampshire Republican Party chairman Fergus Cullen is taking the unusual (for New Hampshire) step of soliciting donations of $10,000 from the Presidential candidates for a "premier speaking opportunity" at the state party's June 6 fundraising diner. A donation of $5,000 will grant a less cushy "opportunity to speak." The New Hampshire GOP, out of power in state government since last fall, and owing $125,000 over five years to the state Dems in a settlement for the 2002 phone-jamming, needs the money.