From Mark Murray and Domenico Montanaro
*** Another Exit: Alberto Gonzales' resignation yesterday is just another reminder that, one by one, the most controversial members of the Bush Administration and the GOP have left the building -- or are about to leave. DeLay. Hastert. Rove. Now Gonzales. And in 17 months, Bush and Cheney will join them. These departures have allowed Democrats to rejoice in news conferences and press releases. But the Democrats shouldn't celebrate too much: They won last fall's midterm elections in large part simply because they weren't Republicans. Moreover, some of the Democratic presidential candidates -- most notably Hillary Clinton -- have campaigned against Bush, Cheney, and Rove as much as they've campaigned against their rivals for the Dem nomination. What happens when they don't have these people to kick around anymore?

VIDEO: President Bush denounces the treatment of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.

*** My Own Private Idaho? Another Republican who might be leaving soon is Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho. Yesterday, Roll Call reported that Craig "was arrested in June at a Minnesota airport by a plainclothes police officer investigating lewd conduct complaints in a men's public restroom," and that he pleaded guilty to it (a misdemeanor disorderly conduct charge) in August. Craig then released a statement after the story broke. "At the time of this incident, I complained to the police that they were misconstruing my actions. I was not involved in any inappropriate conduct," he said. "I should have had the advice of counsel in resolving this matter. In hindsight, I should not have pled guilty. I was trying to handle this matter myself quickly and expeditiously." Whatever the case, the question -- as the Cook Political Report's Jennifer Duffy said on TODAY -- is not whether he'll run for re-election next year. It's whether he decides to serve out the remainder of his term.

*** Between Iraq And A Hard Place: A day after Gonzales announced his resignation, after Roll Call reported on Craig's arrest, and after several of the presidential candidates discussed cancer and Hurricane Katrina, the political news -- as it almost always does -- returns to Iraq. At 1:00 pm ET, Bush gives yet another speech on Iraq, this one from Reno, NV at the American Legion convention. (Will he once again invoke Vietnam?) Meanwhile, the anti-war group Americans Against Escalation in Iraq hosts about 60 town hall "Take A Stand" events tonight at which they'll ask GOP congressmen if they will vote to change the course in Iraq. (Only one congressman, Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va., decided to show up at one of these forums, and that forum occurred last week.) At the same time, anti-war groups will be holding more than 500 candlelight vigils across the country, including one at the Capitol reflecting pool in DC.

*** The Tour de Iowa Continues: It's the GOP's turn to participate at the LIVESTRONG presidential cancer forum in Grand Rapids, IA, moderated by Lance Armstrong and MSNBC's Chris Matthews. Brownback (who is a cancer survivor) and Huckabee (whose wife had cancer) are the sole participants. But Romney addresses the Susan G. Komen For The Cure 10th Annual Mission Conference in Arlington, VA. (Brownback, Clinton, Edwards, Giuliani, Richardson, and Elizabeth Edwards are addressing the group via video.)

*** On The Trail: Elsewhere, Biden, in Davenport IA, holds a press conference in response to Bush's Iraq speech; Edwards and Kucinich address the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, which is meeting in Florida; McCain appears on The Tonight Show; Richardson campaigns in Iowa; and Romney (after his address in the DC area) attends a fundraiser in Atlanta.

*** And It's Another Super Tuesday: For more on these events and issues -- and much, much more -- tune into MSNBC for the channel's all-day political coverage. Anchoring Super Tuesday will be MSNBC's Chris Jansing, MSNBC's Tamron Hall, NBC's Tim Russert (who will interview top advisers to the Clinton, Obama, and Edwards campaigns), NBC's Natalie Morales, MSNBC's Contessa Brewer, MSNBC's Tucker Carlson, MSNBC's David Shuster, and MSNBC's Joe Scarborough.

Countdown to MA-05 Special Election: 6 days
Countdown to LA GOV election: 53 days
Countdown to Election Day 2007: 70 days
Countdown to LA GOV run-off (if necessary): 81 days
Countdown to Iowa: 138 days
Countdown to Tsunami Tuesday: 160 days
Countdown to Election Day 2008: 434 days
Countdown to Inauguration Day 2009: 511 days

The New York Times' analysis: "The announcement on Monday that Mr. Gonzales will step down as attorney general — coming on the heels of the resignation of Mr. Rove, the chief political strategist — effectively removes two of the biggest targets on Democrats' hit list. Both were close friends and aides from Mr. Bush's days as Texas governor, and both were being cast by Democrats as symbols of what they regarded as the Bush administration's political excesses and failures."

VIDEO: NBC's Pete Williams report on who will succeed Alberto Gonzales.

The Washington Post notes, "Rarely has a Cabinet-level resignation been so anticipated, coming long after Gonzales's credibility had been irreparably undermined by controversy. After he seemingly could do no more harm to the administration, Bush's friend and longtime confidant finally called it quits… But his case is not unique -- and that is what has confounded Bush's allies. The same pattern occurred with former defense secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld."

The Los Angeles Times says Gonzales "leaves an enduring legacy: a Justice Department mired in controversy over the firing of U.S. attorneys and a series of legal and moral challenges to his post-Sept. 11 policies on presidential power, torture and domestic spying."

The Wall Street Journal adds that Gonzales' downfall "was triggered by the Justice Department's firing of eight U.S. attorneys. But the brawl over his tenure turned on a far broader issue: the Bush administration's six-year effort to impose greater political control over the federal bureaucracy." 

In his analysis, the Boston Globe's Canellos writes that Gonzales' departure "could unlock the Bush administration's legal closet, bringing new details tumbling into the open about issues including the treatment of terrorism suspects, warrantless surveillance of Americans, and the administration's definition of official secrets. … some observers are suggesting that Bush could avoid some of the scrutiny by delaying his appointment of a successor."

The Washington Post profiles the man who -- at least temporarily -- is replacing Gonzales: Solicitor General Paul Clement. "Compared with Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, Clement is a savvy Washington insider. He has spent nearly two decades learning his way around town, starting as a Supreme Court clerk and working his way through corporate law and Capitol Hill before finding a niche in the executive branch."

The Replacements: The New York Daily News writes that Chertoff "heads the list" to fill Gonzales' spot and other possibilities include interim Attorney General Paul Clement, ex-Deputy Attorney General George Terwilliger, and former Appellate Judge Laurence Silberman. "A senatorial slam dunk is ex-Deputy Attorney General Larry Thompson, now at PepsiCo. He would make history as the first black attorney general, but he turned down the job once before, a source said."

Per NBC's Andrew Merten, Fred Thompson discussed Gonzales' resignation while visiting the Minnesosta State Fair. "I was glad to see him go on and quit taking all the flack that he taking," Thompson said. "He's a good man, he's trying to do the best. They could've done things a lot better, they could've handled things a lot better over the past several months without any question. But it got to where his political enemies were making him look good. They insulted him and abused him and engaged in so much overkill that I'm glad the president didn't let them run him out of town. They did it at their own pace, and I think the timing was good, and now the Justice Department can move on."

BIDEN: In a media avail yesterday in Philadelphia, the Delaware senator talked about fundraising his standing in the polls. "The vast majority of Democrats -- over 90 percent -- have not made up their mind, every poll shows, as to who they're going to support. What you see right now is name recognition and the consequence of being able to raise large amounts of money. It's kind of obscene, when you think about a political process, for a primary requiring, if it were true, $100 million. I don't think it requires anything near that, I think you have to raise closer to $25 million to compete in those early primaries. And, quite frankly, whomever among us doesn't finish one, two, or close third in Iowa or New Hampshire is out of this race, anyway. So, this is still wide, wide open. The Democrats haven't begun to make up their minds yet."

CLINTON: The Wall Street Journal reports that a family of modest means in San Francisco -- the head of the household is a mail carrier -- has given Hillary Clinton a total of $45,000 since 2005. "The Paws' political donations closely track donations made by Norman Hsu, a wealthy New York businessman in the apparel industry who once listed the Paw home as his address, according to public records. Mr. Hsu is one of the top fund-raisers for Mrs. Clinton's presidential campaign. He has hosted or co-hosted some of her most prominent money-raising events."

More: "People who answered the phone and the door at the Paws' residence declined requests for comment last week. In an email last night, one of the Paws' sons, Winkle, said he had sometimes been asked by Mr. Hsu to make contributions, and sometimes he himself had asked family members to donate. But he added: 'I have been fortunate in my investments and all of my contributions have been my money.'"

EDWARDS: In its coverage of yesterday's Katrina recovery forum, the New York Times focused mainly on Edwards and his remarks. "No candidate is trying to associate himself more with New Orleans than Mr. Edwards, who has used the city as a microcosm for larger issues of poverty, one of his core campaign themes. 'Katrina was one of the moments where the curtain is pulled away,' Mr. Edwards said in remarks prepared for delivery last night, 'and we can all see the problems of poverty and racial discrimination for what they are, and how far we have to go for equal rights and economic justice.'"  

Edwards also said "he would propose what he called 'Brownie's Law' requiring that qualified people, not political hacks, lead key federal agencies.

OBAMA: The Chicago Sun-Times does a mid-way analysis of Obama's campaign, and the paper says he's shifting strategy now -- "taking bolder attacks against Clinton (note his description of her as 'Bush-Cheney lite' on foreign affairs); retreating from many debates and presidential forums; presenting more detailed policies, as in his recent outline about how to resurrect a New Orleans still suffering two years after the debacle of Hurricane Katrina."

The Politico: "Douglas Wilder of Virginia, who made history as the nation's first elected black governor, is preparing to campaign aggressively for Barack Obama, and predicted in an interview that the charismatic young candidate could shatter the Republican Party's virtual lock on the South… The unstinting embrace by Wilder, now the mayor of Richmond, could be important in Virginia and other southern states, where his reputation still looms large and the African-American vote could prove decisive in the Democratic nominating contest."

GIULIANI: Newsday reports that Giuliani will help read aloud the names of the 9/11 victims at this year's memorial anniversary.

HUCKABEE: The former Arkansas governor says Thompson "will have trouble meeting expectations about his candidacy." Said Huckabee: "' … I think he's going to suck a lot of the oxygen out of the room when he first comes in. But I'm not sure I'd want to be in his position where the expectations are simply just sky-high for him to be able to perform.'"

THOMPSON: The Politico writes, "With his summer-long windup to a presidential campaign finally nearing an end, actor-politician Fred Thompson defended his late entry into the race and said the continued interest in him is a reflection of Republican dissatisfaction with the rest of the field. But, in a Politico interview, Thompson also served notice that at least one measure of political strength -- fundraising -- is likely to look a bit wan when the next disclosure reports are released, reflecting a sluggish summer."

More: "Thompson's plunge into the race, which aides once indicated would happen around the Fourth of July and is now planned for after Labor Day, comes amid increasingly public hand-wringing by supporters over whether he has waited too long to capitalize on the surge of interest that accompanied reports of a potential candidacy more than five months ago."

The New York Times: "On a visit to Minnesota yesterday, Mr. Thompson, who has not formally declared his candidacy, signaled that an announcement would happen soon. 'I'll have a statement to make on that in the near future,' he said. 'It's not part of a campaign strategy or being cute or anything like that. We've been working hard for a long time. We've been doing in a few months what others have taken years to do, in some cases.'"

As we mentioned yesterday, another staffer left the soon-to-be campaign: communications director Linda Rozett.

On Rozett's departure, Thompson said, "I don't know what the story is. I don't know what to say about it except that she's a wonderful lady."

Can the answer to all his problems be that old red pick-up truck?

Pegged to today's "Take A Stand" town halls sponsored by the anti-war Americans Against Escalation in Iraq, the Republican National Committee issued a press release this morning entitled: "Meet for Defeat -- Anti-War Coalition Plans Nationwide Meetings Advocating Surrender In Iraq."

The Washington Post interviews GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham -- the only member of the Senate to actually serve in Iraq -- after he served two weeks of reserve duty there. Graham called "for continuation of the 'surge' of U.S. troops in Iraq and warned that any decision to mandate a withdrawal this year would undercut critical gains made in recent months. Graham's comments come at a time when some of his colleagues on the Senate Armed Services Committee, including Sen. John W. Warner (R-Va.) and Sen. Carl M. Levin (D-Mich.), are calling for troop withdrawals."

Roll Call broke the news: "Sen. Larry Craig (R-Idaho) was arrested in June at a Minnesota airport by a plainclothes police officer investigating lewd conduct complaints in a men's public restroom, according to an arrest report obtained by Roll Call on Monday afternoon. Craig's arrest occurred just after noon on June 11 at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. On Aug. 8, he pleaded guilty to misdemeanor disorderly conduct in the Hennepin County District Court."

VIDEO: NBC's Bob Faw reports on Sen. Craig's guilty plea.

The article also has these details: "According to the incident report, Sgt. Dave Karsnia was working as a plainclothes officer on June 11 investigating civilian complaints regarding sexual activity in the men's public restroom in which Craig was arrested. Airport police previously had made numerous arrests in the men's restroom of the Northstar Crossing in the Lindbergh Terminal in connection with sexual activity. Karsnia entered the bathroom at noon that day and about 13 minutes after taking a seat in a stall, he stated he could see 'an older white male with grey hair standing outside my stall.' The man, who lingered in front of the stall for two minutes, was later identified as Craig."

On the heels of that Roll Call story, the Idaho Statesman runs this five-month investigation into the senator's personal life. Craig's "June 11 encounter with the officer was similar to an incident in a men's room in a Washington, D.C., rail station described by a Washington-area man to the Idaho Statesman. In that case, the man said he and Craig had sexual contact… In an interview on May 14, Craig told the Idaho Statesman he'd never engaged in sex with a man or solicited sex with a man. The Craig interview was the culmination of a Statesman investigation that began after a blogger accused Craig of homosexual sex in October. Over five months, the Statesman examined rumors about Craig dating to his college days and his 1982 pre-emptive denial that he had sex with underage congressional pages."

The Washington Post adds that Craig "resigned yesterday as Idaho chairman of the presidential campaign of former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney (R). Craig 'did not want to be a distraction,' said Romney spokesman Matt Rhoades, 'and we accept his decision.'" 

"Last night, the Romney campaign restricted public access to a YouTube video in which Craig also praised Romney."

From NBC's Kelly O'Donnell
It's not yet a presidential campaign, but "Friends of Fred Thompson" is again showing signs of internal growing pains. Just last Friday, Linda Rozett was on the job and putting out releases, but today -- as we mentioned earlier -- she's out as communications director.

In an interview with NBC News, Rozett characterized her unexpected departure as "not a noteworthy event." She added, "My hope is this will be seen for nothing more than [campaign manager] Bill Lacy bringing his own team together. And while it is not my desired outcome, it happens every day in Washington in politics and with high level communications people." Rozett was told Friday.

In an internal memo to the Thompson staff obtained by NBC, Lacy explains his thinking: "I will have to make a lot of tough decisions to make our venture successful, and this was one of them. Linda is a talented, professional and gracious lady who will be missed. But in the limited amount of time we have, I feel it critical to have a communications point person with significant campaign experience."

Rozett was hired by Tom Collamore, who served as Fred Thompson's first manager of the campaign-in-waiting. Collamore and other staffers left in July amid disagreements over how the Thompson bid should be organized. Although published reports indicated that Thompson's wife Jeri had brought Rozett on board, sources say Rozett had never met Jeri Thompson until she joined the team. Sources say Rozett's tie was actually Thompson adviser Ken Rietz.

Rozett adds that despite her abrupt dismissal, she still wants to see Thompson in the race. Rozett tells NBC, "I continue to support Senator Thompson, Bill Lacey, and the committee."

Rozett had left a position at the US Chamber of Commerce to join Thompson's effort.

Bill Lacy joined Thompson August 8th and previously ran Thompson's successful Senate campaign in 1994.

After hearing this, Armstrong interjected. "This has really deteriorated," he said to crowd applause, adding, "I would just be hungry all the time, I think."

From NBC's Andrew Merten
Despite the overall serious nature of today's LIVESTRONG forum, Kucinich had several comedic moments during his turn with moderators Lance Armstrong and Chris Matthews.  After being asked if the Food and Drug Administration is always working in the best interest of the American people, the Ohio congressman lamented the amount of genetically modified food on the market -- using it is an opportunity to tout his own lifestyle choices. "This is why I happen to be a vegan, okay? I know a little bit about this." Without missing a beat, he added, smiling, "People want a president who is healthy, because if you're healthy, you can think right."

The laughs didn't stop there. Kucinich went on to explain the benefits of his diet, citing increased energy, clarity, and a better quality of life. Matthews went on to insinuate that Kucinich's new lifestyle may have helped him match up with a younger wife, to which the presidential hopeful added, "I'm 60 years old, I have a -- my wife's 29, you draw your own conclusions. Diet helps."

After hearing this, Armstrong interjected. "This has really deteriorated," he said to crowd applause, adding, "I would just be hungry all the time, I think."

While Kucinich's appearance was certainly the most heavy on the laughs, he did continue to bring it back to a serious note by telling of a woman he met in Maine who has accumulated $161,000 in debt while battling cancer. He tied this example into his call for a single-payer health-care system -- touting a bill he has written as "the only one Michael Moore says meets the requirements."

From NBC's Lauren Appelbaum
Right off the bat, Richardson called for a renewed effort in Richard Nixon's war on cancer. "This president wants a surge in the war in Iraq," Richardson said in his opening statement. "I want a surge in the war on cancer." Instead of simply allocating more money for research funds, Richardson said presidential leadership is needed to win this war. He promised to use both the bully pulpit of the president to promote healthy lifestyles and to have the same motivation John F. Kennedy had when he said America would go to the moon within 10 years. 
 
Richardson said cancer is not a front-page issue because it is "not sexy." But he has a five-fold plan: (1) focus on prevention with healthy eating and exercise habits and a smoking ban; (2) make screening available to every American; (3) dramatically increase cancer research; (4) create a cancer czar (Richardson said Armstrong would be the choice whether he wanted to be or not); and (5) increase biomedical research.
 
Richardson defended his decision to pass a medical marijuana law as a treatment for pain. "The Bush administration is trying to prosecute Department of Health employees in New Mexico that are implementing this law," Richardson said. "You know what, we're going to fight them on this because they should be going after drug dealers instead of going after people that just want to have their pain eased from a deadly disease. That is wrong. That shows a misplaced priorities, not just in this administration, but also the priorities in this country."
 
But Richardson may have stumbled when Armstrong asked him how he has been personally affected by cancer. "You know, I've been fortunate," Richardson replied. "I've been lucky. You know, I've had good lifestyle choices."
 
He then, though, added that he was lucky to have good health-care coverage as a congressman and governor.

From NBC's Andrew Merten
One point of difference that arose between Edwards and Clinton, who spoke immediately before him at the LIVESTRONG Presidential Cancer forum, was on the topic of a federal ban on smoking in public places. While Clinton said she supported such a ban, she stopped short of calling on federal regulation. Edwards, on the other hand, said support a ban "in public places, yes."
 
Edwards also continued his call for all Democrats to forego funding from Washington lobbyists, saying, "If you give them a seat at the table, they'll eat all the food."

VIDEO: John Edwards explains how to fund universal health care.

After his speaking turn at the event, Edwards took questions from reporters. He was asked about Clinton touting herself as the experienced candidate on the issue of healthcare. "It's been 13 or 14 years -- I have to do the math -- since that effort was made, and we still don't have universal health care," Edwards said, "and you cannot have universal health care by negotiating with insurance companies and drug companies."

In his opening remarks at the forum, Edwards said, "Cancer is a huge personal cancer in our family." Edwards' wife's battle with breast cancer is well known. But he conceded that his family is luckier than most, saying, "The truth is, millions of women have been diagnosed with exactly what Elizabeth's been diagnosed with, and we've been blessed. I mean, we have the best health care that you could possibly have, but here's what we know -- what we know is that every single woman who's ever diagnosed with breast cancer should get exactly the same kind of treatment that Elizabeth has gotten." 
 
He went on to say that his presidency would remain committed to finding a cure for "cancer at large." Edwards touted himself as the first candidate to come out with a truly universal health-care plan and lauded the benefits of early detection. "We don't just cover preventive care," Edwards said of his plan, "we mandate preventive care."  He went on to lament the drop in approved research grants at the National Institutes for Health under the Bush administration, saying approvals have dropped from 50 to about 20 percent in recent years, adding, "We should turn loose these young creative researchers and allow them to run in an open field."
 
While Edwards could not give Lance Armstrong an exact number for how much he would increase federal funding of cancer research, he did say that he would "dramatically increase what we're doing today." Adding to the obvious moral implications of finding a cure, he cited the "economic benefit" of reducing the "hundreds of billions of dollars that we spend taking care of people with cancer," with more research funding, calling it "basic logic."

From NBC's Lauren Appelbaum
Clinton was the first presidential candidate to speak at the LIVESTRONG presidential cancer forum, moderated by Lance Armstrong and MSNBC's Chris Matthews. Clinton, Edwards, Richardson, and Kucinich were the only Democrats who attended the forum today -- and Brownback and Huckabee are the only two to attend the Republican forum tomorrow. As he did on Meet the Press yesterday, Armstrong expressed his disappointment that other candidates chose not to attend. "It is my belief, like a lot of other Americans, that the next occupant of the Oval Office must discuss this critical issue with voters," Armstrong said at the beginning of the forum.

VIDEO: Hillary Clinton tells the Livestrong forum the Bush administration has waged a war against science and research.

Matthews asked Clinton about this during her first question -- bringing up Giuliani, McCain, and Obama, all who have a close connection to cancer but didn't attend. Clinton did not attack either Obama or any of her potential GOP opponents, but instead promised to renew Nixon's "war on cancer," making it one of her "big goals." She  brought up her universal health-care plan (which she will reportedly unveil next month) several times, tying it in to her war on cancer answer. "The big goal of the war against cancer has to be fit into the absolute essential goal of quality affordable health care, universal health care for every single American," Clinton said. "You cannot do one without the other, and we need to do both, and I intend to."
 
Clinton earned her largest applause for calling an end to President Bush's "war against science." "The president of the United States has been leading an assault on science and research," she said. "The two priorities of this president have been the war in Iraq and tax cuts for the wealthy -- neither of which he's paid for, while he has cut the budget for the National Institute of Health and the National Cancer Institute. At the same time, he has prevented a very strong majority in the Congress and the country from proceeding in an ethical way with stem cell research, which I think holds out promise for certain forms of cancer, and has muzzled government scientists, closed down government websites, refused to allow this country to continue in our governmental capacity -- this inquiry, this freedom of thought, that has made this a great country for so many years."
 
When asked if she agrees with a national ban on smoking, Clinton said yes, but she did not call for federal regulation. Rather, she said localities, counties, and states should ban smoking in public places. Yet she did say that the Food and Drug Administration should regulate tobacco, calling it an "addictive deadly substance."
 
Of note, Clinton referred several times to her nine-point plan to win the war against cancer, but she never articulated the nine steps.

From NBC's Lauren Appelbaum
Ahead of the rest of the presidential candidates, Obama visited New Orleans yesterday to commemorate the upcoming second anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. While addressing the First Emanuel Baptist Church, he focused more on a religious message and -- for the most part -- left politics off the pulpit.

Promising to remember the past but to concentrate on looking ahead to fixing the future, Obama pledged to fix an "empathy deficit" created by America's culture that promotes responsibility to selves rather than to others. He also promised to rebuild a "bond of trust that was broken" so that people can depend on one another again. "Let New Orleans be a place for those who lived in the shadows can step out into the light," the senator said. "And let it be then, as Jesus said, a city that is set on a hill cannot be hit. And in 10 years, in 100 years, let people come here and say this is where the renewal began. Let this place be where it was said that the people came together to build that foundation and a deep darkness was replaced with a light of hope."
 
The congregation received Obama well, giving him numerous applauses, standing ovations, and "Amens." In fact, the pastor introduced him as the "our candidate for president of the United States of America" -- to rousing applause.
 
But Obama recognized he will not be alone in visiting New Orleans this week -- and courting support while there. Clinton, Edwards, Huckabee, and Hunter will be speaking today at Sen. Mary Landrieu's Katrina Recovery Presidential Forum in New Orleans.

Obama urged others who come to the area to look deeper than the "city's storm battered surface" and examine the foundation. Using a metaphor from one of Jesus' teachings, Obama said New Orleans needs to be rebuilt "founded on the rock" of the principle "I am my brother's keeper," arguing the government has not lived up to that principle. "When the winds blew and the floods came, we learned that for all our wealth and power, something wasn't right in America," he said. "Our foundation wasn't built on the rock."
 
Obama did bring some politics inside the church, however, telling the congregation that America has failed New Orleans twice already. "America failed the people of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast long before that failure showed up on our television sets. America failed them again during Katrina," he said. "We cannot, we must not, fail for a third time. But, tragically, that's what's happening today. And that's what needs to change. I am here to remember this, but also to look ahead. We need to rebuild this city. And we need to tend to the foundation that we rebuild upon."

From NBC's Kelly O'Donnell and Domenico Montanaro
President Bush spoke today in Nevada about the Iraqi political agreement reached over the weekend. Sources say the White House feels the development should be "viewed as important" while also saying the president will be careful. "No one wants to oversell it," the source said.

"Yesterday's agreement was an important step," Bush said. "But much more needs to be done."

VIDEO: President Bush congratulates Iraqi leaders on what he called a promising sign of politcal progress.

It was announced late Sunday that Iraq's five top political leaders agreed to welcome into the government former members of Saddam Hussein's Baath Party and to release thousands of Baath Party detainees, who have been held without charge. But Sunni Arab leaders said the agreement will do little to reincorporate minority Sunnis.

From NBC's Kelly O'Donnell
Sources tell NBC News that it "won't be a long, drawn out" process to pick Gonzales' successor as attorney general. The window is possibly the end of this week when the president is back in DC and before his APEC trip to Australia. That is an insider's estimation on timing.

A "very,very short list" of people knew about the Gonzales resignation. Gonzales presented his letter in person Sunday. The letter has not been made available yet. It is also "not out of the realm of possibility" that other senior White House officials will announce their departures soon, a source said, but did not say who or when.

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
President Bush said he "reluctantly accepted" Alberto Gonzales' resignation and reflected on the attorney general's legacy and tenure, calling him a man of "integrity, decency and principle."

VIDEO: President Bush denounces what he calls unfair treatment of Alberto Gonzales.

Bush said Gonzales "played a critical role" in shaping the administration's policies on the war on terror, the Patriot Act and helping get justices John Roberts and Samuel Alito nominated and confirmed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Bush said accepting Gonzales' resignation came "after months of unfair treatment."

"It's sad that we live in a time when a talented and honorable person like Alberto Gonzales is impeded from doing important work because his good name was dragged through the mud for political reasons," Bush said.

Solicitor General Paul Clement will be Gonzales' interim replacement, Bush added.

Dramatic enough in itself, the announcement Monday morning that Attorney General Alberto Gonzales had resigned also set the stage for what may be one of most contentious confirmation hearings since the Senate rejected John Tower as defense secretary in 1989. CLICK HERE.

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales announced his resignation this morning, speaking for about a minute from prepared remarks. He didn't cite a reason for his resignation and took no questions, but Gonzales has been embroiled in a fight on Capitol Hill stemming from his role in the firing of U.S. Attorneys. Gonzales said he met with President Bush yesterday to discuss his intention to resign effective Sept. 17th.

VIDEO: Attorney General Alberto Gonzales announces he has resigned.

Gonzales said he was "grateful" to President Bush for giving him the chance to serve, said he has "lived the American dream" and that "Even my worst days as attorney general were better than my father's best days."

From NBC's Pete Williams and Domenico Montanaro
A senior administration official says Gonzales' resignation was entirely his own decision. The official says Gonzales sent a letter to the president on Friday stating his intention to step down by mid-September but that the president did not accept it and instead invited Gonzales to Texas to talk about it.

Gonzales and his wife went to Crawford. The president and Gonzales talked Sunday and the president accepted, reluctantly, the official said.

Solicitor General Paul Clement will become acting attorney general once Gonzales is gone.

Here are the reactions from presidential candidates we've heard so far:

BROWNBACK: Said on MSNBC that Gonzales' resignation is "long overdue." Easy to say now. Brownback never called for Gonzales' resignation prior to today.

EDWARDS: "Better late than never."

OBAMA: "I have long believed that Alberto Gonzales subverted justice to promote a political agenda, and so I am pleased that he has finally resigned today. The President needs to nominate an Attorney General who will be the people's lawyer, not the President's lawyer, and in an Obama Administration that person will first and foremost defend and promote the rights and liberties enshrined in our Constitution," said Obama.

RICHARDSON: "The resignation of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales is long overdue. The President must nominate an Attorney General who is a lawyer for the American people not a political arm of the White House."

VIDEO: Richardson is asked why he said he was delaying his decision on whether Alberto Gonzales should be fired.

Richardson, though, was the last major Democratic presidential candidate to call for Gonzales' resignation. He said he it took him a while to make up his mind because Gonzales is a fellow Hispanic -- a response that drew criticism.

From the MSNBC Democratic debate earlier this year:
BRIAN WILLIAMS: Governor Richardson, you were one of the last people on this stage to call for the resignation of the attorney general, Attorney General Gonzales. When asked by a journalist why you were taking long to make up your mind about this, you replied, quote, "It's because he's Hispanic. I'm honest."
Is that the right way to make personnel decisions?

RICHARDSON: That's how I felt.
Now, what I said, too, Brian, was that I wanted to await Alberto Gonzales's testimony before the U.S. Senate, before the Senate Judiciary Committee. He hadn't had a chance to fully explain why, number one, he'd politicized the Justice Department; number two, why he indiscriminately fired U.S. attorneys, including one in New Mexico who was just doing his job and was being pushed to have some political indictments; and third, why is it that, as attorney general, he did not -- he did not act as the lawyer for the American people rather than as the lawyer and political adviser to the White House, staff and the president.
 
So, yeah, you know, he's -- came from nothing. I know the guy. Did it affect that he was Hispanic in what I said? Yeah, it did, and I said so. I think the American people want candor. They don't want blow- dried candidates with perfection. That was the reason I held back. I did call for his resignation. Maybe I was last, but I wanted to give him a chance to explain his position. He didn't do it, and I called for his resignation. (MSNBC debate, 4/26/07)

****UPDATE****DODD: "Mr. Gonzales' Justice Department became a political wing of the Bush Administration and his resignation is long overdue. I will only vote to confirm a nominee for Attorney General who is truly independent and who will guarantee reforms that restore and uphold the Constitution."

****UPDATE 2****BIDEN: "As I've said before, Attorney General Gonzales has lost the confidence of the vast majority of the American people and the Congress.  His resignation is long overdue. When I voted against Attorney General Gonzales' confirmation, I voiced concern about his ability to go from being the President's lawyer to the people's lawyer. I expressed doubts then about his judgment in light of his track record, and role as an architect of policies attempting to place the President above the law. My skepticism was confirmed by his conduct, and his failure to put protecting the American people over protecting the President.  The next Attorney General should not make the same mistake."

****UPDATE 3****CLINTON: The New York senator has not released a statement, but during the LIVESTRONG forum, MSNBC's Chris Matthews brought up the topic. She applauded with the audience when Matthews said Gonzales had resigned and added, "The next attorney general should care about rule of law more than he protects the president."

****UPDATE 4****CLINTON: Just in... Clinton's statement: "This resignation is long overdue, and so is the appointment of an Attorney General who will put the rule of law and our Constitution above partisan politics. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales took an oath to uphold our Constitution and respect the rule of law, but time and time again, he demonstrated that his loyalties lie with the President and his political agenda, not the American people or the evenhanded and impartial enforcement of our laws. In his actions and inaction, from warantless wiretaps to the firing of U.S. Attorneys, his loyalty was to the President, not the American people. The Department's hardworking lawyers, law enforcement officers, and staff are trusted to defend our Constitution, not one Administration or political party. That trust is central to the sanctity of the rule of law and the vitality of our democracy. Because he betrayed his obligations and the trust of the American people, I welcome today's announcement that Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has resigned his post as Attorney General of the United States.

"My hope is that the President will select a new Attorney General who will respect the rule of law and abandon partisanship, who will serve the American people and not the President's political ideology, and who will answer to the Constitution and not political operatives. It is past time to clean up this mess and restore non-partisan accountability and competence to the Department of Justice."

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro

Per the Atlantic's Marc Ambinder, the exodus in the Fred Thompson communications camp continues. Linda Rozett is the latest to depart, and Ambinder posits that it speaks to the power of Thompson's campaign manager, Bill Lacy, who appears to be "firmly in charge."

Rozett was brought on board at the suggestion of Thompson's wife, Jeri Thompson. Campaign insiders complained that Jeri Thompson had too much say in her husband's yet-to-be-announced presidential run.

From Mark Murray and Domenico Montanaro
*** Gonzo Gone: Breaking news from the New York Times: "Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, whose tenure has been marred by controversy and accusations of perjury before Congress, has resigned." Per NBC's Pete Williams, Gonzales will appear before cameras at 10:30 am ET to announce the news. Williams says the word of his resignation has caught the Justice Department entirely off guard. As for the rumor that Michael Chertoff would replace him, a senior Homeland official tells Williams that Chertoff has many things he'd like to accomplish at Homeland. The official knows of no plans for Chertoff -- who is in town today -- to make any change. Edwards was the first presidential candidate out of the gate with a statement, and it was only this: "Better late than never."

Video: NBC's John Yang reports on the Gonzales resignation.

*** Another Anti-War Badge For Hillary: On Thursday, the highly disciplined Clinton made what seemed to be a pretty big faux pas: She suggested that Republicans would benefit if there's a terrorist attack between now and November 2008, and that she would be the best Democratic candidate to deal with that GOP advantage. That remark -- which was picked up by the national press on Friday, but then virtually disappeared from the papers over the weekend -- was roundly criticized by rivals Dodd, Edwards, and Richardson. Yet the comment will most certainly be eclipsed not only by the Gonzo news, but also by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's sharp criticism of the New York senator for complaining about his leadership. Is there a better way to bolster one's national security and anti-war credentials than by coming under attack from someone who seems to be even more unpopular than President Bush?

*** Experience Doesn't Matter? Speaking of foreign affairs, the New York Times' Helene Cooper made this interesting point over the weekend: that previous foreign-policy experience isn't a prerequisite for an aspiring commander-in-chief. In fact, some with the most experience had mixed foreign-policy records as president. "'I think experience is a terribly overrated idea when it comes to thinking about who should become president,' said [historian] Robert Dallek… 'Experience helped Richard Nixon, but it didn't save him, and it certainly wasn't a blanket endorsement. He blundered terribly in dealing with Vietnam." With this -- and also with Carter national security adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski essentially endorsing Obama over Clinton -- are we beginning to see a shift in the CW on Obama and the issue of national security?

*** The DNC-Florida Dem Showdown: On Saturday, the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee voted to strip the Florida Democratic Party of all of its delegates for the state moving up its primary to January 29 -- if the party doesn't come up with some sort of compromise within 30 days. Per a DNC official, the delegate reductions would be effective without further action from the full DNC or its executive committee. Yet this could all amount to nothing, even if the DNC acts. If we get a Democratic nominee by early February, as many expect, that person would effectively control the convention and would seat the Florida delegates. But what happens if -- and it's a big if -- there's a brokered convention (i.e., the nomination is still up for grabs)? Could Florida's 200-some delegates be the difference between someone winning and losing? 

*** The Tour de Iowa: In Cedar Rapids, IA beginning at 11:00 am ET, four Democratic presidential candidates -- Clinton, Edwards, Richardson, and Kucinich (in that order) -- participate today in the LIVESTRONG presidential cancer forum, moderated by MSNBC's Chris Matthews and Lance Armstrong. Each candidate will have two minutes for an opening statement, and then will engage the moderators for 13 minutes in Q&A. Tomorrow, the Republican candidates -- just Brownback and Huckabee -- will have their turn speaking to Matthews and Armstrong. Brownback is a cancer survivor, while Edwards' and Huckabee's wives have battled with cancer. Yet there are some cancer survivors who will be no-shows at the forum, including Giuliani, McCain, and Fred Thompson. Armstrong told Tim Russert on Meet the Press yesterday that he was disappointed with the no-shows: "I think the future commander-in-chief needs to show up and talk about what kills 600,000 Americans a year." Also, this will be the first forum/debate that Obama, whose mother died of ovarian cancer, has skipped since his campaign declared that it would begin limiting the senator's appearances at debates and forums.

*** Katrina Politics: The other big event today is Katrina Recovery Summit in New Orleans, which Clinton, Edwards, Huckabee, and Hunter will address. Besides Iraq and the numerous GOP corruption scandals, no other event/situation hurt the Bush White House and the Republican brand more than Hurricane Katrina -- whose two-year anniversary comes on Wednesday. It also has raised a new threshold question for the presidential candidates: Can your administration effectively respond to a natural disaster and its aftermath? On Sunday, in fact, Obama unveiled a plan to speed up New Orleans' recovery.

*** On The Trail: Sandwiched between her appearances at the LIVESTRONG forum and the Katrina summit, Clinton participates in a conversation with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers in Florida; Huckabee also meets with the union in Florida; and Fred Thompson visits the Minnesota State Fair. 

Countdown to MA-05 Special Election: 7 days
Countdown to LA GOV election: 54 days
Countdown to Election Day 2007: 71 days
Countdown to LA GOV run-off (if necessary): 82 days
Countdown to Iowa: 139 days
Countdown to Tsunami Tuesday: 161 days
Countdown to Election Day 2008: 435 days
Countdown to Inauguration Day 2009: 512 days

The AP: "Iraq's beleaguered prime minister lashed out Sunday at Democrats who have called for his ouster, saying Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York and Carl Levin of Michigan need to 'come to their senses.'… 'There are American officials who consider Iraq as if it were one of their villages, for example Hillary Clinton and Carl Levin. They should come to their senses,' al-Maliki said at a news conference." 

Newsday: "The New York senator is likely to wear the criticism with Maliki as a political badge of honor, much as she has been able to harness a recent conflict with a hawkish Pentagon aide to win over some Democratic primary voters, aides said last night. The risks for her seem minuscule, considering Maliki is almost equally unpopular with Republicans."

GOP Sen. John Warner said yesterday on Meet the Press that "he may support Democratic legislation ordering withdrawals if President Bush refuses to set a return timetable soon. 'I'm going to have to evaluate it," Warner said. "I don't say that as a threat, but I say that is an option we all have to consider.'"

VIDEO: Sen. Warner on his recent trip to Iraq and break with the president on Iraq troop withdrawal.

For more on Warner's Meet the Press appearance, the politics of Iraq, and Lance Armstrong's presidential forum, click here.

BIDEN: Today, Biden will pick up the endorsement of Jack Carter, the son of former President Jimmy Carter who lost his bid for the US Senate last year. Per the Biden campaign, Carter is expected to say, "Sen. Biden has entered serious proposals into the debate on many of the issues critical to Americans - and others – today. His son, Beau [Biden, newly elected Attorney General of Delaware], put it best to me a couple of months ago: 'Can you imagine what would happen if Dad came in first or second in Iowa?' That statement rang in me like a bell. I know how it can work...We did it in 1976. With Joe Biden, we don't have to worry about the problems with a lack of experience or high negatives affecting our chances in November. I'm very comfortable that he can win."

Lack of experience? High negatives? We wonder which candidates Carter is thinking of here…

In addition, Iowa state Rep. Doris Kelley endorsed Biden on Friday.

CLINTON: The Politico, from conversations with Republicans gathering for the Midwest Republican Leadership Conference, says that GOPers believe that Clinton as the Dem nominee could be in the shot in the arm the party needs. "He may be on his way out the door at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. in coming days. But the party Karl Rove has labored to build over the past eight years seems to have picked up his talking points on next year's presidential race: Hillary Rodham Clinton is going to be the Democratic nominee and that could be the GOP's saving grace in an otherwise uphill battle."

Over the weekend, the New York Daily News covered Edwards and Dodd accusing Clinton of "exploiting voters' fears to bolster her campaign" by saying "she was best poised to handle the unexpected, including a terrorist attack."

Clinton raised money in Martha's Vineyard over the weekend. But: "Some were more 'electrified' for former president," the Boston Globe writes in a subheadline.

DODD: The AP reports that Dodd's Senate office in Connecticut was burglarized over the weekend.

EDWARDS: The Washington Post's Anne Kornblut writes there is "a persistent subtext of the Edwards campaign: the argument that he is the sole Southern Democrat and cultural conservative in the Democratic presidential field, making him the only top-tier candidate in his party who can appeal easily to white men."

"Although they haven't done squat yet, I would give [Iraq prime minister Nouri al-Maliki] and the Sunnis at least a few months to reach a compromise," Edwards said in New Hampshire per the Boston Globe. "But they've got to know there's a deadline." 
 
OBAMA: Per NBC's Lauren Appelbaum, Obama visited a church and neighborhood in New Orleans yesterday, promising residents he will be with them for the long haul. "The words never again cannot be another empty phrase," Obama said. "It cannot become another broken promise." Speaking in front of a rebuilt house in the middle class neighborhood in Gentilly, LA, Obama said his main issues include rebuilding New Orleans' health infrastructure, adding 100,000 more police officers to the streets, creating new schools, providing affordable housing, and reinforcing the levee system.

The New York Times adds, "Mr. Obama also said that he would seek to lessen the influence of politics in the Federal Emergency Management Agency by giving its director a fixed term, similar to the structure of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The FEMA director would serve a six-year term, under Mr. Obama's plan, and report directly to the president."

A needed foreign-policy shot in the arm for Obama? "Zbigniew Brzezinski, one of the most influential foreign-policy experts in the Democratic Party, threw his support behind Barack Obama's presidential candidacy, saying the Illinois senator has a better global grasp than his chief rival, Hillary Clinton. Obama 'recognizes that the challenge is a new face, a new sense of direction, a new definition of America's role in the world,' Brzezinski said in an interview on Bloomberg Television's 'Political Capital with Al Hunt.'"

RICHARDSON: In a meeting with Cedar Rapids firefighters today, Richardson will unveil his plan to guarantee health care for retired firefighters and police officers with 20-plus years of experience. His campaign says that such a plan would cost the federal government approximately $500 million per year.

GIULIANI: Giuliani took shots at Democrats on Saturday during his tax plan rollout. "'The Democrats believe in government when they have a choice. Republicans believe in people when we have a choice . . . The Republican Party is the party of the people. The Democratic Party is the party of the government.'"

The New Hampshire Union-Leader examined Giuliani's flat tax plan. "Holding up a single piece of paper, he said future tax returns would fit on that piece of paper under his plan."

On Saturday, the New York Times fact-checked claim on the campaign trail that, as New York mayor, he turned a $2.3 billion deficit into a multi-billion-dollar surplus. "The assertion, which Mr. Giuliani has repeated on the trail as he has promoted his fiscal conservatism, is somewhat misleading, independent fiscal monitors said. In fact, Mr. Giuliani left his successor, Michael R. Bloomberg, with a bigger deficit than the one Mr. Giuliani had to deal with when he arrived in 1994. And that deficit would have been large even if the city had not been attacked on Sept. 11, 2001."

HUCKABEE: On his way to the FOX studios for his Sunday show appearance, Huckabee encountered a Code Pink Lady waiting for him, according to NBC's Lauren Appelbaum. He patiently indulged her for about a minute, telling her he appreciates her convictions. In response to her "troops home now" stance, Huckabee said he too wants the troops home soon. "I want us to get out hopefully soon and hopefully victoriously too."

The Columbia State's Lee Bandy writes that Huckabee was given a "hero's welcome" at a stop in South Carolina. "The applause and cheers were deafening, never seeming to end."

HUNTER: Are we seeing Republicans beginning to eat their own? Hunter's campaign put out this statement last night responding to John Warner's appearance on Meet the Press. "Our service men and women stand right now, as we speak, in harm's way, ready to sacrifice everything for our nation's defense and for the freedom of the Iraqi people.  Just when we are beginning to see real progress under the capable General Petraeus, Senator Warner, whom I respect, undermines their efforts by tucking tail."

More: "As President I WILL NOT cower under pressure from politicians, media, or the international community. This nation is great because it is just and free. We absolutely cannot back down in defending that freedom. I am very disappointed in Sen. Warner tonight, and I trust his comments will fall on deaf ears."

MCCAIN: The Saturday New York Times looked at McCain's age. The Arizona senator, "who will turn 71 on Wednesday, is hoping to become the oldest person ever elected to a first term as president. So on the stump, he makes his experience a central theme of his campaign, while keeping up a grueling campaign schedule and showing his not-inconsiderable store of energy, despite injuries he sustained as a prisoner of war that limit his mobility and a bout with melanoma that left his face scarred. Mr. McCain has recently been bombarded with questions about the viability of his campaign because of its fund-raising troubles. But on the campaign trail, his age is a subtler issue that could affect his candidacy."

ROMNEY: Family Matters: Check out the photo of Ann Romney holding up an oversized studio picture of her family.

THOMPSON: The New York Times front-pages this investigative piece: "As a congressional investigator in the 1970s and 80s, he "sometimes straddled a fine line between investigating his targets and defending them. Dozens of interviews and records from two administrations reveal a lawyer who often struggled to balance the agenda of his party against his duty to pursue the truth aggressively and independently."

"Over time, as Mr. Thompson traversed the highly politicized terrain of the Congressional investigations that built his off-screen career, he evolved from a man primarily cast as a defender of Republican interests to one whose fair-mindedness would win praise from Democrats and incur the wrath of the Republican leadership."

Per NBC's Domenico Montanaro, Abby Livingston, and John Yang… The Democratic National Committee took steps on Saturday that could strip the Florida Dem Party of all of its 210 delegates to next year's nominating convention -- unless it acts in the next 30 days to delay its delegate-selection contest, now set by state law for Jan. 29, by at least a week. The DNC is taking a hard line in this case because, officials say, if they don't and Florida is allowed hold its primary before Feb. 5, other states would break ranks and push to have earlier contests as well. "I hesitate of see what happens if we show somehow some wiggle room in the process," said Democratic committee member Donna Brazile, who ran Al Gore's 2000 presidential campaign.

DNC rules say no contest can be held before Feb. 5 except for Iowa (Jan. 14), Nevada (Jan. 19), New Hampshire (Jan. 22) and South Carolina (Jan. 29). The Florida primary date was set by a state law pushed by the GOP governor and the GOP-controlled legislature, which state Democratic officials say they opposed. DNC members suggested making the Jan. 29 primary a non-binding "beauty contest" and then hold a later event to allocate delegates. The DNC is offering the Florida party financial and organization help to stage caucuses on or after Feb. 5.

The New York Times: Beyond what is emerging as a clear embarrassment for the party, the practical results of this dispute were unclear. To a considerable extent, it could prove to be little more than a reminder of how little authority the party appears to have over its nominating process this year… Florida Democratic leaders said they were resistant to bowing to the party's demands, having already refused twice. And assuming the party has a presumptive nominee by the time the convention is seated in Denver next year, it will be the nominee -- not party officials -- who would have the power to resolve a dispute over who is seated."

Candidates are giving money to lawmakers in the early primary states, and the Des Moines Register notes how much.

On Sunday, the New York Times wrote that no fewer "than five presidential contenders -- Mr. Edwards, Senators Christopher J. Dodd, Sam Brownback and Barack Obama, and the almost-candidate Fred D. Thompson -- have children under 10, a circumstance historians say has no recent precedent. It is a case of campaign demographics colliding with larger ones: some contenders are running for president at relatively young ages, while others -- like many voters -- are having children later in life."

More from the New York Times on Gonzales' resignation: "Mr. Gonzales, who had rebuffed calls for his resignation, submitted his to President Bush by telephone on Friday, the official said. His decision was not immediately announced, the official added, until after the president invited him and his wife to lunch at his ranch near here. "Mr. Bush has not yet chosen a replacement but will not leave the position open long, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the Attorney General's resignation had not yet been made public."

Even though Sen. Pete Domenici has put distance between himself and the White House when it comes to Iraq, President Bush travels to New Mexico today to raise money for the senator. It's closed to the press. Then Bush heads to Washington State for an open-press fundraiser for Rep. Dave Reichert, who narrowly won re-election last fall.

From NBC's Mark Murray
-- "Senator Clinton's remarks are deeply troubling," said Edwards communications director Chris Kofinis in a statement. "After nearly seven years of George Bush and the politics of fear, the American people deserve a President who will focus first on keeping America safe, rather than calculating the political consequences. Unfortunately, Senator Clinton is seemingly taking a page straight from the GOP playbook that got us into this mess -- using fear of another terror attack as a political tactic to bolster her candidacy, and that is just wrong." 

-- "We shouldn't be thinking about terrorism in terms of its domestic political consequences, we should be protecting the country from terrorists," said Richardson in a statement. "Senator Clinton seems to think that President Bush has made this country safer. I disagree with her. Our failed policy in Iraq is making us less safe."