Tonight: Bush's Farewell Address
President George W. Bush will be speaking at 8 p.m. ET on national television, giving his farewell address to the American people. Wait a minute -- wasn't that press conference on Monday more than enough?

No Obama Events Today
Barack Obama is holding private meetings at his transition office in Washington, and does not have any public events scheduled for today.

Obama Moving Into Blair House Today
Barack Obama is also set today to move into Blair House, the mansion that has served as a temporary domicile for presidents-elect. The Obama family previously wanted to move in earlier than usual, but were turned down by the Bush Administration.

Today: Burris To Be Sworn In
Roland Burris will be sworn in today as the junior senator from Illinois. This is a great day for Burris, obviously, and a very mixed day for the Democratic leadership -- on the one hand this matter has been settled and they are seating a new Democratic member, but on the other hand they were thwarted in their efforts to block any appointment by Rod Blagojevich.

Senate To Vote On TARP Money
The Senate is scheduled to vote today on a motion to block the remaining $350 billion of the $700 billion Wall St. bailout. Even if this motion passes, it is certain to be vetoed by either George W. Bush or by Barack Obama after he takes office.

WaPo: Geithner Nomination Too Big To Fail
The Washington Post points out that even most Republican Senators aren't complaining about the Timothy Geithner nomination, in the wake of stories about his tax problems, because the alternative is to derail a nomination for Treasury in the middle of an economic crisis. Dana Milbank sums it up: "Put another way, the guy is too big to fail."

NYT: Pentagon Crafting New Iraq Plans For Obama
The New York Times reports that military commanders are drawing up plans for a quicker withdrawal from Iraq than previously planned out, in order to be more in line with Barack Obama's stated policies in favor of exiting sooner. "Various options are being drawn up to give the new president choices," said one military planner involved.

Boxer Saving Committee Seat For Caroline
The New York Times reports that Barbara Boxer, as chairwoman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, is holding Hillary Clinton's seat on the committee open just for Caroline Kennedy, should she be appointed. "I would love to see Caroline Kennedy in the Senate and I would love to have her on my committee to replace Senator Clinton," said Boxer.

Obama Economic Adviser Promotes Stimulus Plan On YouTube
The Obama transition team has posted this new YouTube video featuring Christina Romer, who will be Obama's chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, to promote Obama's stimulus plan:

Back in 2007 and 2008, the Obama campaign was noted for the ways it used the Internet to reach out to voters and spread its message. Now that he's won the election, the incoming Obama Administration is still using the new medium to push its policies.

Obama Shows Reluctance On Investigating Bush White House On Torture
In an interview on ABC's This Week, Barack Obama seemed to indicate that his administration won't be investigating the Bush White House for crimes related to torture, wiretapping and other offenses:

"We're still evaluating how we're going to approach the whole issue of interrogations, detentions, and so forth. And obviously we're going to be looking at past practices and I don't believe that anybody is above the law. On the other hand I also have a belief that we need to look forward as opposed to looking backwards. And part of my job is to make sure that for example at the CIA, you've got extraordinarily talented people who are working very hard to keep Americans safe. I don't want them to suddenly feel like they've got to spend all their time looking over their shoulders and lawyering up."

Biden Visits Afghanistan
Joe Biden visited Afghanistan on Saturday, meeting with President Hamid Karzai and military leaders. He also visited the southern Afghanistan region, a Taliban stronghold. "I am very interested in what becomes of this region because it affects us all," Biden said in a statement.

Coleman Campaign Swamps Counties With Document Requests
The Star Tribune reports that county election officials in Minnesota are being overwhelmed with requests from Norm Coleman's lawyers, who are looking for documents such as approved absentee ballot envelopes and precinct voting rosters, in their effort to subtract votes from Al Franken and add votes for Norm Coleman. "You're talking 30,000, 40,000 pages of documents," said Stearns County (St. Cloud) elections chief Dave Walz -- and he was just talking about his county alone.

Bush: GOP Shouldn't Change Philosophy -- But Needs To Change Messengers
In an interview with Fox News Sunday, President Bush said that Republicans must avoid being seen as the anti-immigrant party if they want to be viable, and also that they shouldn't deviate from an anti-tax and pro-military platform. "We shouldn't change our philosophy," said Bush. "We may want to change our messaging. We definitely want to change messengers. We need a new group of leaders."

Caroline Kennedy Meets With Paterson
The New York Times reports that Caroline Kennedy and David Paterson met on Saturday, their first formal discussion about Hillary Clinton's Senate seat. Paterson has already met with other people who are interested in the seat, including Reps. Steve Israel and Carolyn Maloney, plus Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi, and his office told the Times that he will be holding more meetings in the coming days.

Biden Officially Resigning From Senate, Effective Thursday
Joe Biden has officially tendered his resignation from the Senate, effective at 5 p.m. ET on January 15. Biden was sworn in for his seventh term just this past Saturday, choosing to remain a Senator for just a short while longer before becoming vice president -- for example, staying in the Senate enabled him to go on his current tour of Asia.

Yet more bad news for Caroline Kennedy's Senate prospects: A new survey from Public Policy Polling (D) shows that if she were appointed to Hillary Clinton's Senate seat, she could potentially put it in danger of a Republican takeover in 2010.

The numbers: Caroline 46%, GOP Rep. Peter King 44%, within the ±3.7% margin of error. State Atty. Gen. Andrew Cuomo leads King 48%-29%.

King's personal numbers are 34% favorable, 26% unfavorable, and the remainder having no opinion. So we can be pretty sure that a good chunk of people saying they would vote for him are really voting against Kennedy, whose own favorable numbers are at 44%-40%. Cuomo's numbers are 57%-20%.

A poll yesterday from PPP showed that Kennedy had also fallen way behind Cuomo as the choice of New York Democrats on who should get the appointment.

The last month's publicity hasn't been kind to Caroline Kennedy, with a new survey from Public Policy Polling (D) showing that she's now being trounced by state Atty. Gen. Andrew Cuomo as the choice of New York voters.

Cuomo now leads Kennedy 58%-27% as the one that voters would like to see Gov. David Paterson appoint to the Senate, with a 54%-34% spread among Democrats only. In last month's poll, which tested Democrats only, Kennedy had a 44%-23% lead. So a 21-point Caroline lead among Democrats has turned into a 20-point Cuomo advantage.

Ouch. If Paterson is in any way using the polls as a guide for who he should pick, this is not exactly good news for Caroline.

Senate Leaders Plan To Block Burris From Entering Senate Chamber
This could be fun: If Roland Burris shows up at the Senate on Tuesday to be sworn in, Senate leaders have a plan for Burris to be greeted by the doorman -- and possibly armed police officers -- who will tell him he is not allowed in. For his part, Burris says he wants to avoid a scene and have this business sorted out before he arrives.

Today In Minnesota: Absentee Ballot Sorting Scheduled To Finish
Today is the deadline for the Franken and Coleman campaigns, along with local election officials, to finish sorting through and approving absentee ballot envelopes that are found to have been wrongly rejected, and then send them on to the state for counting over the weekend. But any number of wrinkles could happen today -- for one thing, Coleman is suing at the state Supreme Court to restart the whole process and get some rejected ballots put in that he wants.

Obama's Vacation Over
Barack Obama and his family have finished their vacation in Hawaii, and arrived back in Chicago this morning. They are set to move to Washington this weekend, so that the children can start school on time after the Christmas vacation.

Obama To Meet With Congressional Leadership On Monday
Barack Obama will reportedly meet with Congressional leaders from both sides of the aisle on Monday, in order to discuss his economic stimulus plan. Also lined up for next week is a meeting with former presidents on Wednesday.

Biden Could Still Cast Votes In The Senate
CQ reports that Joe Biden could potentially still be casting important votes in the Senate as Congress gets to work on an economic stimulus package, due to his official resignation date not yet being determined. "If a critical vote comes up and Sen. Biden is needed, he will vote," said Biden spokeswoman Annie Tomasini.

Rahm Resigning Congress Today
Rahm Emanuel's resignation from Congress will take effect today, as he prepares to become Barack Obama's Chief of Staff. A special election will be called within a period established by state law, and whoever wins the Democratic primary will be nearly guaranteed to hold the seat.

Paterson: No Caretaker Senator
New York Gov. David Paterson says he will not appoint a caretaker to Hillary Clinton's Senate seat because this would deprive the state of two years to build up seniority. Paterson also had some tough words for people telling him who to appoint: "I am amazed by the willingness of my colleagues, who know this is a difficult decision, to comment on it so much. I'm not saying they shouldn't. I'm just amazed by it."

Republicans Fleeing Washington During Inauguration
Millions of people are expected to come to Washington for Barack Obama's inauguration, but Jonathan Martin reports that one group is actually leaving: Republican lobbyists and staffers, who have made various plans to get out of town. "I will be pondering the future of my party at a remote location, aided in the conversation by my friend Jack Daniels," said lobbyist Greg Crist.

Bobby Rush: We Have Three Hispanic Senators, Two Asians, 11 Women, But No African-Americans
In an appearance last night on Larry King Live, Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL) kept up his racial rhetoric in backing the Senate appointment of Roland Burris, declaring there is a "higher principle" at work:

"We've got three Hispanics. We've got two Asians. And we have 11 women. And we have just untold number of others," Rush said. "But I'm telling you, the fact that we have no African-Americans should be -- should make most fair-minded Americans very, very angry."

Rep. Davis (D-IL): I Was Offered The Appointment To Obama's Senate Seat
Rep. Danny Davis (D-IL) told the Chicago Sun-Times that an attorney for Gov. Rod Blagojevich told him last week that he was being offered the appointment to Barack Obama's Senate seat. Davis is an African-American, like Roland Burris -- but unlike Burris, Davis turned it down.

Report: Obama Family Moving To D.C. This Weekend
Barack Obama and his family will reportedly move to Washington this weekend, in order for the children to start school on time after the holiday season. The family will live in a Washington hotel until Jan. 15, when they'll move to the Blair House.

Obama Visits Old High School, Also Gets Picketed At Vacation Compound
Barack Obama's attempted vacation in Hawaii brought him to his old high school in Hawaii, along with visits to the zoo with his daughters and a stop by his late grandmother's apartment. In addition, pro-Palestinian activists have been picketing his vacation house, calling for a change to America's pro-Israel policies.

Obama Dismisses 90 Bush Pentagon Appointees
The Obama transition team has told roughly 90 Bush political appointees in the Pentagon that they will not be staying on after Obama is sworn in, a demonstration of how Obama will be changing the lineup at Defense even while simultaneously keeping Robert Gates. However, only about 90 political appointees were sacked out of roughly 250 total, after Gates sought to keep his team in place.

DeGette Takes Herself Out Of Running For Colorado Senate Seat
Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO) has withdrawn her name from consideration for appointment to Ken Salazar's seat in the Senate. Democratic Gov. Bill Ritter has a lot of other choices to pick from, and polling data thus far has suggested that any of the notable Democrats would start out as the frontrunner to hold the seat in 2010.

Clinton Team Refutes Report About Return Of Caroline Kennedy Check
The Clinton team has shot down a report from the New York Post that implied there was some ill will in the return of a 2007 donation from Caroline Kennedy. The returns were done this past August, and were refunded to everyone who had donated any money earmarked for a hypothetical Hillary Clinton general election campaign.

Although she's been getting some tough press coverage lately, a new CNN poll finds Caroline Kennedy still has some decent numbers on the biggest question facing her quasi-campaign: Whether she is qualified to serve in the Senate.

The poll found 52% of adults saying Kennedy is qualified to serve in the Senate, regardless of whether they personally would vote her, with 42% saying she is not.

The major caveat here is that this is a poll of adults nationwide, not a poll of New York specifically, where the more intense press coverage could potentially have a different effect on the numbers.

Illinois Lt. Gov.: We Can Have Blago Out Before Feb. 12
Appearing today on Face The Nation, Illinois Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn predicted that the state legislature could successfully impeach and remove Rod Blagojevich before Lincoln's 200th birthday on February 12. He also said that while he hopes they can have a special election to fill Barack Obama's Senate seat, it would not take place before June.

Obama Speaks To Condoleezza Rice About Israel
Barack Obama had an eight-minute phone call with Condoleezza Rice, monitoring the situation in Israel and Gaza. However, an Obama spokesperson was careful to note that "there is one president at a time."

Caroline To NYT: "I Thought You Were The Crack Political Team"
In an interview with the New York Times, Caroline Kennedy became somewhat annoyed when asked to describe the moment when she decided to seek Hillary Clinton's Senate seat. "Have you guys ever thought about writing for, like, a woman's magazine or something?" said Kennedy. "I thought you were the crack political team."

Gibbs: Obama "Wants And Expects" Disagreement Within His Administration
In an interview with ABC News, incoming White House press secretary Robert Gibbs responded to the idea that Obama's politically diverse cabinet could lead to serious internal divisions. "I think the far greater risk is assembling a group of people that whenever the president opens their mouth they all nod their heads in agreement," said Gibbs, adding that Obama "wants and expects there to be disagreement within that room," with Obama making the final decisions.

Axelrod On Rick Warren Pick: We Have To Find Ways To Work Together
In an appearance on Meet The Press, David Axelrod defended the selection of Rick Warren to give the invocation at Barack Obama's inaugural. "You have a conservative evangelical pastor who's coming to participate in the inauguration of a progressive president," said Axelrod. "This is a healthy thing and a good thing for our country. We have to find ways to work together on the things on which we do agree, even when we profoundly disagree on other things."

Laura Bush: The Shoe-Thrower Shows That Iraqis Are Now Much Freer
In an interview on Fox News Sunday, Laura Bush said she was offended at the Iraqi reporter who threw his shoes at the president, but also looked on the bright side. "As bad as the incident is, in my view, it is a sign that Iraqis feel a lot freer to express themselves," said Mrs. Bush.

Laura Bush: The Bush Presidency Was Not A Failure
Also in her Fox News interview, Laura Bush rebutted the charge that her husband's administration was a failure. "I know it's not, and so I don't really feel like I need to respond to people that view it that way," said Mrs. Bush. "I think history will judge and we'll see later."

Poll: FDR Edges Out Reagan As Better President
As a further sign that the country appears to be taking a real turn to the left, a new Rasmussen poll pitted Franklin Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan against each other in a two-man race, asking respondent who was the better president. The numbers: Roosevelt 45%, Reagan 40%, with a ±3% margin of error.

It's been an interesting day for Caroline Kennedy, giving interviews to two separate media outlets in which she made some, well, interesting pronouncements.

In an interview with the Associated Press, Kennedy acknowledged the unusual nature of her current effort to be appointed to Hillary Clinton's Senate seat. "I came into this thinking I have to work twice as hard as anybody else," said Caroline. "I am an unconventional choice."

On the other hand, she said that her public push to get the seat is not a political campaign -- after all, the decision all comes down to one man, Gov. David Paterson -- but is instead a matter of accountability to the public. "If I were to be selected," she said, "I understand that public servants have to be accessible."

Separately, in an interview with NY1, Kennedy rebutted the comparison that Dem Congressman Gary Ackerman made this past weekend, likening her to Jennifer Lopez.

"I admire the journey J. Lo has traveled," said Kennedy. "I've been to a school in the Bronx near the house she grew up in and so I actually have a lot of admiration for her and she looks pretty good but in terms of public policy and as we spend our adults lives and I don't think there is really much we have in common."

And here's what she had to say about the criticism regarding her record of missing elections in New York Democratic primaries: "I was dismayed by my voting record."

Today: Possible Ruling From Minnesota Supreme Court
The Minnesota Supreme Court could possibly hand down a key ruling today in the Senate recount, relating to a lawsuit by Norm Coleman that alleges the double-counting of a small but potentially consequential number of absentee ballots. The Coleman campaign's requested remedy is to go back to the Election Night totals in 25 targeted precincts -- which would also undo any recount gains that Al Franken made in these areas, putting Coleman back in the lead.

Obama Attends Memorial For Late Grandmother
Barack Obama attended a memorial service yesterday for his late grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, who died the day before he was elected to the presidency. The Obama family and their friends scattered Dunham's ashes at an ocean overlook called the Lanai Lookout, the same spot where Obama scattered his mother's ashes.

Poll: Sky-High Ratings For Obama Transition, Cabinet Appointments
A new CNN poll has Barack Obama's at an 82% approval rating for how he's handled his transition, with 80% approving of his cabinet choices. Only 11% rated the cabinet picks as below average or poor, with 32% saying they are average, 38% saying they are above average, and 18% saying they're outstanding.

More New York Dems Coming Out Against Caroline Kennedy
The New York Times reports that more New York Democrats are voicing their opposition to appointing Caroline Kennedy to the Senate, due to factors ranging from an overly-aggressive publicity campaign to her refusal to commit to supporting the Democratic nominee against Mike Bloomberg next year. "If I were the governor, I would look and question whether this is the appointment I would want to make, whether her first obligation might be to the mayor of the City of New York rather than the governor who would be appointing her," said state Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver.

Denver Mayor: I Want Salazar's Senate Seat
John Hickenlooper, the mayor of Denver and a former businessman, has now confirmed that he is interested in the appointment to Ken Salazar's Senate seat and has spoken to Dem Gov. Bill Ritter about the opening. Polling has suggested that Hickenlooper would run well statewide, but Ritter also has a lot of other choices in a state that has swung strongly to the Democrats.

Corzine Calls For $1 Trillion Stimulus Over Two Years
New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine (D) has a new op-ed piece in the Washington Post, advocating an aggressive stimulus package totaling $1 trillion over two years. "This is a large sum," Corzine writes, "but if the spending is executed effectively, it should be a significant investment in our country's physical and human resources that will pay long-term dividends while also creating and saving jobs."

Obamas And Bidens To Appear At Ten Officials Inaugural Balls
Barack Obama, Joe Biden and their wives are now set to appear at a total of ten official balls to celebrate the inauguration, though it will just be to briefly stop by and wave to the crowds of well-wishers. This is less than Bill Clinton's 14 balls in 1997, greater than George W. Bush's eight from 2001, and equal to the number Ronald Reagan attended in 1985.

Poll: Blago The "Naughtiest" Politician This Year
A new pre-Christmas CNN poll asked respondents which politician has been the "naughtiest" this year, from among three choices and with their offenses listed. The winner, and by a landslide: Rod Blagojevich at 56%, followed by Eliot Spitzer with 23%, and John Edwards at 19%.

Another poll out today shows that Caroline Kennedy remains the favorite for Hillary Clinton's Senate seat, but at the same time there is serious division about whether she should get it.

The new numbers from Quinnipiac: Among all registered voters in New York, 33% say Gov. David Paterson should name Kennedy to the seat, edging out state Atty. Gen. Andrew Cuomo at 29%. Among Democrats only, it's Kennedy 41% to Cuomo 27%. On top of that, New Yorkers expect that Kennedy will get the seat by a 48%-25%.

On the other hand, the poll isn't all good news for her: Only 40% of respondents said she is qualified to be a U.S. Senator, with 41% saying she is not. And Andrew Cuomo has a better favorable-unfavorable rating of 55%-11%, compared to Kennedy's 46%-17%.

Obama: We Will Make America The World Leader In Science Again
In his newest Presidential YouTube Address, Barack Obama announced four appointees key posts on science and technology -- and said he would work to restore America's role as the world's leader in science:

"Because the truth is that promoting science isn't just about providing resources--it's about protecting free and open inquiry," Obama says, in a barely-veiled hit at the Bush Administration. "It's about ensuring that facts and evidence are never twisted or obscured by politics or ideology. It's about listening to what our scientists have to say, even when it's inconvenient--especially when it's inconvenient."

The Obamas Go To Hawaii
Barack Obama and his family have gone off to Hawaii, to spend the holidays with his family and friends there. The Obama transition team says he will continue to do transition work during this time.

Biden: Jill Will Still Be Working
In an interview with George Stephanopoulos, Joe Biden said that his wife Jill will still maintain her career as a community college professor, probably on a part-time basis. "But, look, I think it's very important she have and maintain her own life, her own identity," said Biden. "And she'll be a very active second lady."

NYT: Cuomo Frustrated By Kennedy
The New York Times reports that New York Atty. Gen. Andrew Cuomo has become increasingly frustrated at how Caroline Kennedy has overshadowed him in her bid for Hillary Clinton's Senate seat, after he'd made a deliberate decision to not overtly campaign for it. "It's driving him crazy," a Cuomo friend told the Times. "He's boxed in. He can't do anything except fume, and he is fuming."

Ferraro Comes Out Against Caroline Kennedy For Senate
The New York Post reports that Geraldine Ferraro has sent a letter to New York Gov. David Paterson, urging him to not appoint Caroline Kennedy to the Senate. Ferraro told the Post: "If you send someone down there who doesn't know the legislative process, they'll get chewed up alive."

Minnesota Senate Seat's Office Could End Up Closing Temporarily
Roll Call reports that if the Minnesota Senate race is not settled by January 6, the constituent services component of Norm Coleman's office may have to simply shut down: "Senate officials keep an office running when a Member dies or resigns by taking calls from constituents and performing some of the nonvoting tasks of a Member. But there's no such procedure for when a contested election keeps a Senator from taking the seat when Congress reconvenes."

Today: Big Canvass Board Meeting In Minnesota
The Minnesota state canvass board is meeting again today, at which they could end up finishing the review Norm Coleman's ballot challenges -- with Al Franken seemingly poised to take the lead for the first time in the never-ending Senate recount. But this wouldn't necessarily end the race, as there still remains a whole lot of legal wrangling left over those rejected absentee ballots.

Obama Holding Presser, Announcing Final Cabinet Picks
Barack Obama is holding a 2:15 p.m. ET press conference in Washington, at which he's expected to roll out his final cabinet choices. The appointees to be announced include retiring Rep. Ray LaHood (R-IL) as Secretary of Transportation and Rep. Hilda Solis (D-CA) as Secretary of Labor, plus former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk (D) as Trade Representative.

Rick Warren Thanks Obama For Taking Heat From The Dem Base
Rick Warren has put out a statement praising Barack Obama for selecting him to deliver the invocation at the inauguration, and courting controversy in the process. "I commend President-elect Obama for his courage to willingly take enormous heat from his base by inviting someone like me, with whom he doesn't agree on every issue, to offer the Invocation at his historic Inaugural ceremony," Warren says. "Hopefully individuals passionately expressing opinions from the left and the right will recognize that both of us have shown a commitment to model civility in America."

Solis, Kirk Disagree On Trade
The New York Times points out that two of today's Obama picks, Hilda Solis and Ron Kirk, have contrary views on trade. Solis has opposed the Central American Free Trade Agreement and the Colombian trade deal, while business groups have already praised Kirk for his advocacy for free trade.

WaPo Looks At Foreign Money On Bill Clinton's Donor List
The Washington Post has dug through the newly-released donor list for Bill Clinton's foundation, finding a whole lot of money coming from foreign governments and state-sponsored enterprises, including $10-$25 million from Saudi Arabia. The Obama transition team says any potential conflicts of interest for Hillary Clinton have been dealt with through the disclosure, combined with a wide-ranging set of new concessions by Bill on donations that he'll be receiving from now on.

Caroline Kennedy Has Missed Some Elections
The New York Post reports that Caroline Kennedy has had a less than perfect record of voting, having missed the New York City mayoral primaries in 1989, 1993, 1997 and 2005, plus the 2002 general election. On the other hand, she has made it out for most general elections -- and besides, this isn't Australia, so she won't have to pay any fines.

Pawlenty Looking At Possible Interim Senate Appointment
Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) is looking into the possibility that he might have to appoint an interim Senator if the recount drags on after Jan. 6, when the new Senators are supposed to be sworn in. Buckle up, folks -- we might be in for a very long ride.

Caroline Kennedy has quickly become the new favorite of New York's Democratic voters to be their new Senator, eclipsing the previous big name Andrew Cuomo, the state attorney general and son of former Gov. Mario Cuomo, according to two separate polls.

From Public Policy Polling (D): Kennedy 44%, Cuomo 23%, with all others in single digits. And from Marist: Kennedy 31%, Cuomo 21%, and all others way behind.

Of course, the real authority in picking the next Senator is Gov. David Paterson, who doesn't have to be guided any polls as he makes the appointment. Then again, he could certainly take the popularity of candidates into account as he seeks to win votes for his own 2010 campaign.

One other important caveat: Neither of these polls included Fran Drescher.

Poll: Obama Approval Rating Reaches 79%
A new CNN poll shows Barack Obama's honeymoon approval reaching new heights, with 79% of Americans approving of him and only 18% disapproving. "That's the sort of rating you see when the public rallies around a leader after a national disaster," said CNN's Bill Schneider. "To many Americans, the Bush Administration was a national disaster."

Obama And Biden Meeting With Gore
Barack Obama and Joe Biden are meeting today in Chicago with none other than Al Gore, to discuss energy issues and climate change. The meeting is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET.

White House Internal Memo: Bush Maintained "The Honor And The Dignity Of His Office"
The Los Angeles Times reports that Bush Administraton officials have been given an internal memo containing talking points to use in their public appearances, praising President Bush's record as he left office. Among other things they are to discuss how he "kept the American people safe," helped the economy through his 2001 tax cuts, fought AIDS in Africa, and "maintained "the honor and the dignity of his office."

Big Business Likes Obama's Infrastructure Plans
Barack Obama's policies are now receiving some support from big business, with U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of the Manufacturers asking members of Congress to support Obama's big infrastructure plan. Essentially, the more roads and building that are made, the more opportunity there is for business to receive government contracts.

NRA Gearing UP To Fight Obama
The Hill reports that the National Rifle Association's is preparing to do battle with Barack Obama, saying he can't be trusted on his statements about respecting the Second Amendment. "We have no doubt that he's going to break his promise to the American people that he made during the campaign, and we're prepared to fight him every step of the way," said Chris W. Cox, executive director of the NRA's political arm.

Inauguration Could See 10,000 Buses -- Or More
The transportation business expects an astonishing 10,000 chartered buses to bring tourists to the big event, while D.C. officials think the number could go even higher. "It's best in planning for this event to try to plan for bigger than anything we've planned for before," said city administrator Dan Tangherlini.

Fran "The Nanny" Drescher Declares Interest In Hillary's Senate Seat
Forget about Caroline Kennedy or Andrew Cuomo. A spokesperson for actress Fran Drescher -- best known for starring on the sitcom The Nanny -- has told CNN that she is putting her name into contention for Hillary Clinton's Senate seat, putting forward as her credentials her experience as a women's health advocate.

One prominent New York Democrat has already taken herself out of contention for Hillary Clinton's Senate seat, with Rep. Nita Lowey announcing that she is not interested in getting appointed.

Lowey told the Associated Press that she wouldn't want to give up her seniority and her seat on the House Appropriations Committee -- she's been in the chamber for 20 years -- and the power that it gives her to affect the federal budget.

The seat will be filled by New York's Democratic Gov. David Paterson, who has a lot of things to consider: Sectional politics, race, gender, the potential to kick an intra-party rival upstairs, and hopefully merit. Most press speculation has centered on state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, but it could conceivably go to someone else. Whoever does get the appointment would be the heavy favorite to hold the seat in 2010, as the New York Republicans don't exactly have a strong bench at the moment.

This is a novel campaign tactic for a man to use against a woman: Call your opponent ugly. But that's exactly what GOP Senate candidate John Spencer has done to opponent Hillary Clinton, today's Daily News reports. The paper has an interview with Spencer in which he says Hillary was ugly before she got “millions of dollars” of “work” done. Speaking of Clinton, Spencer said, “You ever see a picture of her back then? Whew,” and “I don’t know why Bill married her.” Spencer added: “She look good now.” Bizarrely, he concluded: “I happen to like Hillary Clinton.” Interesting way of showing it.

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Jonathan Tasini, who's trying to take on Hillary Clinton in the Democratic Primary, has blamed her for the deaths of Lebanese civilians in Israel, slamming her for refusing to push for a ceasefire. From today's Daily News:

"She, and a broad segment of our political leadership, bear responsibility for the deaths ofthese children," Democrat Jonathan Tasini said in a statement..

"Rather than call for restraint, Hillary Clinton stopped just short of declaring, 'Let the bombs fall.'"

Interestingly, Tasini, who is Jewish and has lived in Israel, also pointed to the involvement of relatives in Israeli conflicts as proof that he has a better grasp of the situation in Israel. Said Tasini: "I know what it is like to sit in a bomb shelter or touch the body of a person killed by war."

Hillary's opponent, former Yonkers mayor John Spencer, is making a rather novel demand of the New York Senator: He's insisting that she prove her allegiance to Israel by...supporting the confirmation of John Bolton as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.

Josh Benson of The Politicker blog has just posted a statement released today by Spencer: "If Senator Clinton truly supports Israel, if she really believes that we need to get tough with Iran and North Korea, then she should see that John Bolton is the man for the job."

As we noted below, a key step in Bill Clinton's ascension to the White House was the big speech he gave to the Democratic Leadership Council in 1990, in which he articulated some centrist themes that previewed his successful Presidential run two years later.

Now Hillary has had her very own DLC moment. This morning she spoke before the group and articulated a few themes of her own which may or may not preview her Presidential run. She even did her own version of one of her husband's most famous lines -- "It's the economy, stupid" -- which in her oration became, "It's the American dream, stupid." The Associated Press has some excerpts of her remarks. Our take on the speech follows after the jump.

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In the leadup to Bill Clinton's 1992 Presidential run, one key event which put him on the national map was a 1990 speech he gave to the Democratic Leadership Council, in which he sounded some centrist national themes which previewed his run.

Is Hillary about to have her own DLC moment? The Associated Press reports that she's delivering a speech to the DLC's annual meeting this morning in which she'll unveil "a package of economic proposals aimed at giving every American a shot at reaching the middle class." More on her speech later.

If you need further proof that mainstream media figures feel that they're free to say or write whatever the heck they want about Hillary Clinton regardless of what's true, or even verifiable at all, take a look at this.

Over the past few days, righty commentators have been gleefully trumpeting this column by Bloomberg's Margaret Carlson about Hillary Clinton and Joe Lieberman. Carlson -- exercising her heretofore unpublicized mind-reading skills -- wrote that the real reason Hillary announced she'd back the winner of the Connecticut Democratic Primary, even if it isn't Lieberman, is because...she's still mad at Lieberman for scolding her husband during the impeachment proceedings nearly a decade ago.

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Senator Clinton had a breakfast meeting yesterday with Rupert Murdoch, who threw a fundraiser for her re-election campaign. For some reason the fundraiser's been a subject of controversy for fans of both figures since the news of it broke some time back. So yesterday's meeting was kept very hush-hush:

Two of the most public people in the world had a chummy breakfast yesterday, but media mogul Rupert Murdoch and Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) tried to keep their political get-together as secret as possible...

The campaign refused to even confirm the time or location of the controversial fund-raiser. No estimate of the take or number of people who attended was released.

New York's junior senator did not make an appearance on "Fox and Friends" on her way out of the building just after 10a.m. She didn't even go through the News Corp. lobby, slipping out a side door onto W.48th St., where the CBS show "Without a Trace" was filming up the block.

Many have tried to spin elaborate theories around the rapproachement between Hillary and Rupe, with some suggesting that it's a sign that Rupert may endorse her in 2008, just as he did with Tony Blair.

I think the explanation's far more simple: Hillary is all but certain to get re-elected, and Rupert has extensive business holdings in New York, so of course he wants to stay on the Senator's good side. As for Hillary, any grief she gets on the left for taking Rupe's cash is offset by the suggestion it sends to moderate Republicans that she has bipartisan appeal and is seen as formidable by a leading conservative mogul. That's really all there is to it, methinks.