As the Washington Post puts it, politics for McCain may stop at the water's edge -- but not above it.  "The moment Sen. John McCain touches down on foreign soil, he says, he will not criticize his Democratic rival for the presidency, Sen. Barack Obama. In international airspace, though? Well, that's a different matter. In two separate interviews with reporters en route to Colombia on Tuesday, McCain questioned Obama's shifting position on trade as well as his experience with Latino voters. Voters, he argued, will ultimately vote Republican once they see the two candidates side by side."

VIDEO: MSNBC's Contessa Brewer talks with John McCain's senior policy advisor Nancy Pfetenhauer.

The New York Times says that McCain "called Mr. Obama 'a protectionist' and cast him as ignorant about economic forces in the United States. 'We just have a difference of opinion,' Mr. McCain said, 'and I'm a student of history.' He added: 'An overwhelming majority of historians will tell you that protectionism and isolationism were a major factor in one of the greatest depressions in the modern history of this country. I'm not going to sit by and see that happen.'"

"The trade deal, which would lift tariffs on the majority of goods traded between the United States and Colombia, has recently moved from the political sidelines to the center of the presidential campaign. Mr. McCain supports the deal as essential to free trade and relations with a crucial ally that receives about $600 million a year in counterinsurgency and anti-narcotics aid, but Mr. Obama and many Democrats oppose it because of workers' fears about job losses overseas and American labor's concern over the killings of union leaders in Colombia." 

The Washington Post adds, "McCain's latest trip -- to Colombia and Mexico -- is designed to highlight his positions on trade and, to a lesser degree, immigration. Its value has been questioned by campaign strategists in both parties, since neither issue seems a winner for his campaign. His insistence on the virtues of free trade remain suspect in Rust Belt swing states, and his position on immigration continues to make many conservatives wary."  

Reuters: "McCain, in an unusual trip to Colombia as a U.S. presidential candidate, called on President Alvaro Uribe on Tuesday to make further progress on human rights while pushing the U.S. Congress to vote on a trade pact between the two countries."

Per NBC/NJ's Adam Aigner-Treworgy, McCain and his traveling companions Sens. Joe Lieberman and Lindsey Graham met with Colombian President Alvaro Uribe at Casa de Huespedes -- the Colombian Camp David, per the campaign -- in Cartagena, Colombia last night.
 
The campaign reported that the politicians' meeting lasted one hour and 40 minutes, and according to McCain's comments to the press after their meeting, the two discussed the issue of human right in Colombia for at least part of the time. During his opening comments, Uribe thanked McCain for coming and summarized the portion of their meeting that the pool camera caught on film – basically the two politicians, along with Cindy and Sens. Lieberman and Graham, looked at plaques commemorating the visits of President Clinton and President H.W. Bush.

The Politico: "Four months have passed since John McCain effectively captured the party nomination, and the insiders are getting restless. Top GOP officials, frustrated by what they view as inconsistent messaging, sluggish fundraising and an organization that is too slow to take shape, are growing increasingly uneasy about the direction of the McCain presidential campaign. While the practice of second-guessing presidential campaign decisions is a quadrennial routine, interviews with 16 Republican strategists and state party chairmen -- few of whom would agree to talk on the record -- reveal a striking level of discord and mounting criticism about the McCain operation.

VIDEO: Republican strategist Ed Rollins sits down with the "Morning Joe" team to discuss why John McCain's campaign strategy isn't working and how the Republicans can get back on the right track.

"'It's not just message or not having just one single meta-theme to compete with Obama,' said a veteran Republican strategist with close ties to McCain's top advisers. 'It's not just fundraising, which is mediocre. And it's not even just organization, which is [just] starting or nonexistent in many states.'" 

Another Politico piece also reports that Cindy McCain's wealth is both an asset and liability for the McCain campaign. "Already, Democrats have blasted Cindy McCain's less-than-full financial disclosure, asserting that it calls into question John McCain's commitment to transparency and suggests that he may be 'hiding' information about how his efforts in Congress benefited his family.

"While Cindy McCain, her dependent children and the trusts and companies they control made as much as $29 million -- and likely substantially more -- from her family's business interests from 2004 through last year, data from the Internal Revenue Service, the U.S. Senate, U.S. Office of Government Ethics and the Center for Responsive Politics also reveals that they spent $11 million purchasing five condominiums for the family, hired additional household help and racked up progressively larger credit cards bills almost every year. Their credit card bills peaked between January 2007 and May 2008, during which time Cindy McCain charged as much as $500,000 in a single month on one American Express card and $250,000 on another, while one of their two dependent children had an AmEx card with a monthly balance as large as $50,000."    

McCain "stepped up his criticism of Mr. Obama over remarks made on Monday by Wesley K. Clark, the retired general and Obama military adviser, who said he did not think that Mr. McCain's experience being shot down as a naval aviator in Vietnam was 'a qualification to be president.' General Clark stood by his remarks on Tuesday," the New York Times writes.

"Mr. McCain responded, 'I think it's up to Senator Obama now to not only repudiate him, but to cut him loose.'"  

The liberal Huffington Post digs up some news to dampen McCain's Colombia trip. The co-host of a recent top-dollar fundraiser for Sen. John McCain oversaw the payment of roughly $1.7 million to a Colombian paramilitary group that is today designated a terrorist organization by the United States. Carl H. Lindner Jr., the billionaire Cincinnati businessman, was CEO of Chiquita Brands International from 1984 to 2001, and remained on the company's board of directors until May 2002. Beginning under his tenure, Chiquita executives paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (known by the Spanish acronym AUC), which is described by George Washington University's National Security Archive as an 'illegal right-wing anti-guerrilla group tied to many of the country's most notorious civilian massacres.'"

The New Republic's Noam Scheiber doubts that the GOP attempts to paint Obama as a "typical" politician will work. "For one thing, Obama is young and black and exceptionally thoughtful and eloquent. He could spend every day between now and the election executing plays from the 'typical pol' playbook (not a very interesting read, I assure you) and still look far from typical on November 4. Likewise, it's going to be exceedingly difficult for McCain to fend off the taint of typicalness himself."

Obama's "decision to support legislation granting legal immunity to telecommunications companies that cooperated with the Bush administration's program of wiretapping without warrants has led to an intense backlash among some of his most ardent supporters," the New York Times says. 

VIDEO: A Race for the White House panel debates: Is Barack Obama taking center ground on issues such as the FISA bill, the economy, Iraq and Iran?

The New York Post: "[D]iscontent is being echoed across the very same liberal blogosphere that launched Obama from obscurity more than a year ago. So much so that thousands of dissatisfied supporters have created a group on his Web site to protest his latest position on terrorist surveillance legislation, known as FISA. Obama's waffling on the issue is so incendiary among his supporters that some 7,000 have joined, according to one of the group's organizers, making it the fourth-largest group on Obama's Web site."

Per the New York Times, Obama said yesterday "that if elected president he would expand the delivery of social services through churches and other religious organizations, vowing to achieve a goal he said President Bush had fallen short on during his two terms."

The Washington Post: "Under Obama's proposal, groups could use federal funds only to assist people in need, not people from a certain background or religion. Nor could federal funds be used to proselytize or spread religious beliefs. 'This is about providing equal treatment, but not special treatment,' an Obama aide said."

"[Bush faith-based director John] DiIulio endorsed Obama's proposal as a 'principled, prudent and problem-solving vision' for the future of faith-based social service. The Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, said he is 'disappointed that any presidential candidate would want to continue a failed policy of the Bush administration.'"   

As the Boston Globe notes, "Political analysts said Obama's proposal appeared to be part of an attempt to shift to the center and recruit moderate, evangelical Christians and mainstream Catholics, two voting blocs that consistently supported Bush and have embraced Republican candidates."

The Chicago Tribune reminds us that this isn't the first time Obama has talked about this subject. "Early in his Senate career, Obama gave a high-profile speech arguing on behalf of a greater role for religious faith in political debate and he cultivated relationships with evangelical leaders. But, amid false rumors he is a Muslim and controversy over incendiary sermons delivered by his former pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Obama struggled to win over white religious voters in his primary campaign."

"The faith pitch sparked more chatter that he is charging to the political center for his showdown with GOPer John McCain," the New York Daily News says. "It came a day after Obama went to another swing state, Missouri, to shore up his patriotic bona fides. Obama insisted he was just being consistent. 'What happens is, I get tagged as being on the left, and when I simply describe what have been my positions consistently, then suddenly people act surprised,' he said. 'But there haven't been substantial shifts.'"

The Washington Post writes that Obama secured a discount loan for his home in Chicago. "He locked in an interest rate of 5.625 percent on the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, below the average for such loans at the time in Chicago. The loan was unusually large, known in banker lingo as a 'super super jumbo.' Obama paid no origination fee or discount points, as some consumers do to reduce their interest rates. Compared with the average terms offered at the time in Chicago, Obama's rate could have saved him more than $300 per month. Obama spokesman Ben LaBolt said the rate was adjusted to account for a competing offer from another lender and other factors. 'The Obamas have since had as much as $3 million invested through Northern Trust,' he said in a statement."

A CNN/Opinion Research poll has Obama leading McCain nationally by five points, 50% to 45%.

VIDEO: Barack Obama made a play for the Evangelical vote in the battleground state of Ohio on Tuesday. A Hardball panel discusses.

COLORADO: The Colorado Springs Gazette tees up a preview of Obama's appearance today there, in a place "often considered the capital of conservative Christian ministries." "In previous presidential campaigns, the religious right's criticism of Democratic candidates went largely unanswered, but Obama and his evangelical supporters were quick to respond" to Dobson. "Obama kicked off his week with a speech in Missouri about patriotism and talked about faith-based initiatives in Zanesville, Ohio, in what some are calling an attempt to rally the 'Christian left' to his side."

CONNECTICUT: A new Quinnipiac poll has Obama leading McCain in Connecticut by 21 points, 56%-35%. There's also this nugget per the press release: "If McCain picks Sen. Joseph Lieberman as his running mate, only 14 percent of Connecticut voters say they are more likely to vote Republican, while 32 percent are less likely and 52 percent say it won't affect their vote."

NEW MEXICO: The potential of Latino voters: "[R]esearchers combined New Mexico data with other southwestern "battleground" states and found Obama leading McCain in those states 57 percent to 26 percent. … New Mexico has the largest rate of eligible voters who are Hispanic of any state: 38 percent. California and Texas have 25 and 23 percent, respectively. In seven other states, Hispanics constitute between 11 and 20 percent of eligible voters: Florida, New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Arizona, Nevada and Colorado."

OHIO: The Cleveland Plain-Dealer reports on Obama's visit to Zanesville. Here's the kind of coverage he got: "Hello, everybody!" boomed Obama, with his hands in the pockets of his loose gray suit, and a grin like a favorite uncle."

Compiled by NBC/NJ's Mike Memoli: Giuliani "set out to defend" John McCain's readiness to be president, but "ended up saying the presumptive nominee is second-best -- to himself." "I thought I was best qualified, but I thought John was No. 2," Giuliani told CNN. 
 
AK Gov. Sarah Palin (R) called legislators for a special session on a gas pipeline.

VIDEO: A Hardball panel discusses the possible candidates for Barack Obama and John McCain to pick as their running mates.

KS Gov. Kathleen Sebelius tells The Hill that talk of her as VP "reflects well on the work I've been trying to do over the last years." She said she backed Obama early because of "his ability and willingness to reach across party lines." "He believes as I do that good ideas don't come with party labels," Sebelius said. She also disputes that Obama has to pick a woman. "I think that once women focus clearly on the choice at hand … it will be very clear to women across America," Sebelius said. 
 
Rep. Chet Edwards (D-TX) is still being asked about VP at home. He said he "cannot imagine that many Americans would not consider it a privilege" to be asked. 
 
Rep. Eric Cantor (R-VA) gets the question at home. "I'm really not in the business of answering hypotheticals like that," he answers. 
 
A GOP strategist says that former Rep. Dick Gephardt (D) is who the party "is most afraid of." But Gephardt aides say it's unlikely. 
 
Offering advice, former VP Dan Quayle said it is important that a prospective running mate be qualified, have a "comfortable" relationship with the candidate, and be someone who could "try to unify the party." "I think he will select somebody who will take care of the base because John McCain is viewed as more independent," Quayle said. 
 
John McCain said he was "outraged" that Obama voted against Sam Alito. But "he seemed a lot less concerned" that Joe Lieberman opposed him as well. 
 
The Washington Post's Chris Cillizza makes the case for Mitt Romney, focusing first on his economic credentials, as well as his personal wealth and fundraising potential.

That must be some cheeseburger, NBC/NJ's Carrie Dann points out. At one point, North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley was considered a long-shot veep pick. Here's a window into why many Carolina insiders perhaps scoffed at the notion... The Raleigh press corps is having a good laugh over Easley's comment yesterday that the dollar is so weak in Europe that, "Let's be honest about it, a cheeseburger and onion rings is $60 over there." (Apparently it's closer to $10 in Euros.)

From NBC/NJ's Mike Memoli

THE SHORT LIST. Obama told a Missouri station: "I love Kathleen Sebelius. I think she is as talented a public official as there is right now. Integrity. Competence. She can work with all people of all walks of life, but I promised that I am not going to say anything about my vice president until I actually introduce my vice president."

WHAT THEY'RE UP TO. Colin Powell met with Obama on June 18. He and John McCain chatted on June 14, per NBC's Andrea Mitchell. 

Wes Clark again stood by his comments in an interview on MSNBC with Mitchell. And for McCain, Carly Fiorina again pushed back, saying he is a surrogate for the Obama camp. 

VIDEO: Sen. McCain's campaign says that Sen. Jim Webb, on Countdown Monday, was renewing the attack on McCain's military service launched by Wesley Clark on Sunday. But where is this in Sen. Webb's statements on the broadcast? Democratic strategist Chris Kofinis discusses.

And Sen. Jim Webb had to deny that he demeaned McCain's service when he said he needed to "calm down." 

BUZZ METER. The efforts to unite Democrats -- including the Hillary Clinton/Obama Unity event -- dominated news coverage last week. 

But Reuters finds that the chances of a "dream ticket" are increasingly less likely according to online speculators. Webb and Mitt Romney are seen as the most likely Democratic and Republican picks, respectively. 

Wall Street Journal looked at how Al Gore or Joe Biden could fill in some gaps in Obama's resume.

An influential NJ pastor likes Obama-Biden.

CHATTERING CLASS. Marc Ambinder, and loads of Mike Huckabee supporters, wonder why HuckPAC is supporting Rep. Don "Bridge to Nowhere" Young (R-AK).  

Cillizza looks at LA Gov. Bobby Jindal's (R) handling of the pay raise. And one of his consultants said that he "did something that's not in the political playbook -- he admitted a mistake and corrected it -- and he didn't try to hide any of it or pretend it was the plan all along."

New Republic's Cohn thinks Romney would be a shrewd choice.  

ELECTORAL MATH. Joe Lieberman's approval rating is under 50 percent in CT for the first time. And Chris Dodd has also taken a hit, with his lowest net approval ever.

From NBC's Ken Strickland
Who knew Nelson Mandela was on the US terror watch list? Well as of today, he's not anymore.

This morning, President Bush signed into law a bill granting Secretary Rice the authority to waive travel restrictions on President Mandela and other members of the African National Congress (ANC). The bill was sponsored by Democratic Sens. John Kerry and Sheldon Whitehouse, along with Republican Sen. Bob Corker.

The senators say Mandela and ANC members remained on the list "for activities they conducted against South Africa's apartheid regime decades ago." They also said in their written statement that the removal "end[s] an embarrassing impediment to improving U.S.-South Africa relations."

In announcing the president had signed of the bill, the White House did not mention Mandela by name. Instead the statement states rules under current law that "render aliens inadmissible due to terrorist or criminal activities would not apply with respect to activities undertaken in association with the [ANC] in opposition to apartheid rule in South Africa." 

"It's high time we honored his message of human dignity and valor by removing unjustified travel restrictions placed on him and other members of the ANC," said Kerry. Whitehouse added, "This problem has caused injustice to South African leaders and embarrassment to the United States, and I'm glad it will be repaired."

From NBC/NJ's Athena Jones

ZANESVILLE, Ohio -- "Inartful" was the word Obama used Tuesday to characterize remarks Gen. Wes Clark made over the weekend and subsequently about McCain's military service.

VIDEO:  NBC's Andrea Mitchell talks with John McCain supporter Carly Fiorina about the Wesley Clark controversy.

He also spoke about the telephone conversation he held with former President Bill Clinton yesterday while on a trip to Missouri.

At a press conference, the Illinois senator was asked what he thought about Clark's comments, which seemed to downplay the significance of McCain's military service -- he was shot down and held as a POW for five and-a-half years during the Vietnam War -- and whether he felt they were similar to the Swift Boat ads used to attack John Kerry in 2004.

"I don't think that Gen. Clark, you know, had the same intent as the Swiftboat ads that we saw four years ago; I reject that analogy," he said, before adding that he had said many times that McCain's deserved honor and respect for his service to the country. "Now I have differences with him on policy, and I will vigorously debate a lot of the decisions he's made when it comes to national security that have weakened our capacity to meet the threats and challenges of the 21st century. But that certainly doesn't detract from his past service to America."

He did not answer the first part of the question directly and later Obama, who said he had not spoken with Clark, seemed to bristle when asked why he had not talked with him and whether he felt the former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO owed McCain an apology, suggesting voters had more pressing matters on their minds.

"I guess my question is why, given all the vast numbers of things that we've got to work on, that that would be a top priority of mine?" he said. "I think that, you know, right now we're here to talk about how we can make sure that kids in Zanesville and across Ohio get the kind of support that they need and communities that are impoverished can start to rebuild. I'm happy to have all sorts of conversations about how we deal with Iraq and what happens with Iran, but the fact that somebody on a cable show or on a news show like Gen. Clark said something that was inartful about Sen. McCain I don't think is probably the thing that is keeping Ohioans up at night."

*** UPDATE *** To that, the McCain campaign responded this way: "Apparently Barack Obama now thinks that smear attacks on John McCain's military service are fair game. One day after earning praise for rejecting Gen. Clark's attacks, Sen. Obama clarified that his remarks had been written months before and were not even aimed at Gen. Clark. After repudiating his own repudiation, he went on to ask why an apology to Sen. McCain from Gen. Clark would even be a priority. All Barack Obama has to do is tell his campaign surrogates to stop criticizing John McCain's record of service and this discussion would be over. Apparently his campaign has no intention of doing so. The McCain campaign will not sit idly by and let these ongoing attacks go unanswered."

On Clinton
Obama again reiterated his strong desire to have Bill Clinton campaign for him and said the pair had not dwelled on some of the negative back and forth of the primary campaign during their talk.

"I absolutely want Bill Clinton campaigning for me," he said. "We had a great conversation. He is one of the most gifted public officials of our generation and you know has been one of the most successful presidents that we've had in my lifetime so I want his active involvement, his active participation."

More: "We did not belabor the primary season. I think what we both acknowledged is that when you're in a tough primary battle, you say things that you know, afterwards you may end up thinking, ah, it might have been a little intemperate. But that's the nature of political campaigns. We are absolutely united in wanting to make sure that Democrats succeed both in Congress and in the White House in November and that we can move an agenda forward that's actually going to help the people in Ohio."

Obama said he would have to campaign more in this part of Ohio to win the support of voters that have not been strong supporters of Democrats in past elections or of him during the primary election, and he responded to a vague question about how to dispel rumors about him by saying they were "bogus and false and everybody has repeatedly said they're bogus and false. I think everybody knows the answers to these questions. They're just not true."

He also talked about the economy, the home foreclosure crisis, gas prices, renegotiating NAFTA and other issues during the roughly 35-minute press conference.

Faith-based initiatives
The presumptive Democratic nominee spoke with reporters after touring the East Side Community Ministry here. He began by announcing that, as president, he would create a new Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives that would be a critical part of his administration but that would function differently than the faith-based office set up by President George W. Bush under whom he said such programs had not met their potential.

"Support for social services to the poor and the needy have been consistently under-funded, rather than promoting the cause of all faith-based organizations, former officials in the Office have described how it was used to promote partisan interests," he said. "As a result, the smaller congregations and community groups that were supposed to be empowered ended up getting short-changed."

Obama said faith-based organizations would not be allowed to use federal money to proselytize, could not discriminate on the basis of faith and could only use taxpayer dollars on secular programs and initiatives. He also said they should not be able to discriminate in hiring on the basis of sexual orientation.

"In terms of hiring, I believe that Title 7 and state and local laws apply to faith-based organizations that are taking federal funds to provide services," Obama said. "Now right now we have not passed a nondiscrimination act at the federal level that applies to sexual orientation. But there are states that have such laws in place, Illinois being one of them and in those circumstances I would expect state laws to be observed as well."

During the press conference he did not answer directly whether he would create a new cabinet level position to deal with faith-based initiatives, but that he wanted the person heading up the office to have a direct line to him and to coordinate with cabinet officers.

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
Obama and McCain met with former Secretary of State Colin Powell in recent weeks at his Arlington office, Hotline's On Call reports.

"Just an informal conversation," Peggy Cifrino, Powell's spokeswoman, told On Call about the meeting with Obama two weeks ago. McCain met with Powell a week earlier.

"There's no looming endorsement," Cifrino said. "They came to talk about issues."

From NBC/NJ's Matthew E. Berger

Where do the campaigns stand on the California initiative to ban gay marriage? It can be hard to figure out.
 
The McCain campaign quietly released their support for the initiative -- which declares marriage as a union between a man and a woman -- last Thursday. (McCain voted against the federal constitutional same-sex marriage ban.)

VIDEO: Across California, gay couples rushed to get marriage licenses and exchange vows for the first time, triggering celebrations, protests and a new cottage industry. NBC's Chris Jansing reports.

There was no press release, and the statement appears nowhere on the campaign Web site. Instead, the McCain camp gave a statement to the organization behind the California initiative.
 
"We sought the endorsement, and they gave it to us," said Jeff Flint, the campaign manager for the Protect Marriage Initiative. "We asked if we can put it out, and they said, 'yes.'"

The two-sentence statement reads: "I support the efforts of the people of California to recognize marriage as a unique institution between a man and a woman, just as we did in my home state of Arizona. I do not believe judges should be making these decisions."
 
The campaign appears to be saying one thing to conservative groups, and another to the mainstream media. When the California Supreme Court ruled on gay marriage in California on May 15, campaign spokesman Tucker Bounds made a similar statement, but didn't send it to their full press list. It's not on their Web site, either.
 
On June 3, when the California initiative qualified for the November ballot, the campaign released a less declarative statement to the national press, in John McCain's name, in which he said, "I welcome the news that the people of California will have the opportunity to decide on the question of the definition of marriage, rather than having that decision made by judicial fiat as the California Supreme Court asserted in their recent ruling." It doesn't say whether he supports it.
 
Backing the California initiative is a controversial move for McCain. The state's Republican governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, opposes the measure, and while a recent Los Angeles Times poll showed 54 percent of registered voters backed the amendment, the paper's polling director, Susan Pinkus, said ballot measures usually lose support during a campaign and the current numbers "may not bode well for the measure."
 
His stated support for the measure helps McCain with social conservatives, who pressed him last week to speak more often on social issues like gay marriage and abortion. But it can hurt his standing with moderates and independent voters.
 
Obama, who also opposed the federal ban on gay marriage, took a similar tact in the opposite direction of McCain this weekend. The Illinois senator announced through the Alice B. Toklas LGBT Democratic Club that he opposed the California amendment. In a letter read in San Francisco Sunday, Obama said he he opposes "divisive and discriminatory efforts to amend the California Constitution, and similar efforts to amend the U.S. Constitution or those of other states."
 
"Sen. Obama supports civil unions, and he has consistently opposed federal and state constitutional marriage amendments because as we have seen in some states, enshrining a definition of marrigae into the constitution can allow some states to roll back the civil rights and benefits that are provided in domestic partnerships and civil unions," Obama spokesman Ben LaBolt said.

He added that Obama has made that case in front of Christian audiences as well as gay rights groups. LaBolt said the campaign has been telling reporters about their opposition to the state initiative since the Supreme Court decision, although it is not on its Web site either.
 

But Obama told the Human Rights Campaign in a questionnaire earlier this year that he opposed the idea of civil marriage for gay couples, while supporting civil unions that include the same legal rights. He also said he would oppose efforts to block states from voting on this issue.
 
"However, I do not support gay marriage," he said in the questionnaire. "Marriage has religious and social connotations, and I consider marriage to be between a man and a woman. If I was President, however, I would oppose any effort to stifle a state's ability to decide this question on its own."
 
The McCain camp has accused of Obama of changing positions on this issue.
 
"He's always said he's opposed to gay marriage and that it should be left up to the states," McCain spokesman Brian Rogers said. "I'm not sure how opposing this initiative would be opposing gay marriage. It doesn't really track."
 
Flint said McCain's endorsement of the California amendment was important because it helps show the initiative is not mean-spirited, which he said can boost support.
 
McCain's Web site has three paragraphs on protecting marriage in its "Human Dignity and Life" section of the issues tab. "John McCain believes the institution of marriage is a union between one man and one woman," it reads, adding that the "Founding Fathers reserved for the States the authority and responsibility to protect and strengthen the vital institutions of our civil society."
 
Patrick Sammon, president of the Log Cabin Republicans, a gay Republican group, said he had been talking to campaign officials since Friday to get clarification on their position.
 
"We obviously disagree with Sen. McCain and will work to convince him this amendment is wrong for California and wrong for America," Sammon said.
 
Flint said his campaign has not decided whether to feature McCain's statement in print or television advertising in California.
 
"We've put it out and we've got authorization to use the statement if and when it's helpful to our campaign," he said.

NBCNews/National Journal's Carrie Dann contributed to this report.

From NBC/NJ's Athena Jones

As presumptive Republican nominee McCain headed to Latin America today after an event in Indianapolis, the Obama camp hosted a conference call to criticize him for what it called failed trade policies.

On the call, Indiana House Majority Leader Russ Stilwell and former UAW Vice President Terry Thurman said McCain was committed to unfair trade policies that have hurt Indiana workers and resulted in the loss of thousands of jobs in the state.

VIDEO: MSNBC's Contessa Brewer talks with John McCain's senior policy advisor Nancy Pfotenhauer.

"Just recently, Sen. McCain traveled to Canada to talk about his support for NAFTA and today, after he finishes his speech here in Indiana, he's hopping on a plane and going to Colombia and Mexico to talk about how much our trade agreements are going to help those countries rather than talking about what we can do to help this country," Thurman said. "I find it no surprise that he's gonna go to Mexico to talk (sic) how great NAFTA is because he is certainly not gonna find much support for it in the Hoosier State."

Thurman said Obama understood that workers had been hurt by bad trade policies that had been poorly negotiated and inadequately enforced and that he would amend NAFTA to enforce labor and environmental standards, enforce existing trade deals and push for greater market access in trade deals.

The call was intended to paint McCain as out of touch with the concerns of American voters who are struggling economically.

"It just amazes me that John McCain comes to Indianapolis to give a little talk and a little fundraiser, and then he's off to Mexico and Colombia, and we've got hard working Hoosiers and Americans across our nation really hurting and they're hurting about high gas prices, and they're hurting about the economy and they're hurting about the hope for the future and Barack Obama is the only candidate giving them hope," Stillwell said later.

The Republican National Committee sent around a memo that said trade had brought jobs to the Hoosier State and argued that while Obama had joined the Senate Manufacturing Caucus he "rarely votes with manufacturing interests," citing the 0% rating the National Association of Manufacturers gave the him for his voting record in the 110th Congress and the 16% rating the group gave him in the 109th Congress.

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
Former Gen. Wesley Clark again defended his comments from Sunday in an interview with NBC's Andrea Mitchell on MSNBC. While calling McCain a "personal hero" and a "very honorable prisoner of war," Clark reiterated that he has said for months -- before he was an Obama supporter -- that there is a distinction between McCain's claim of experience and his "kind of service."

VIDEO: NBC's Andrea Mitchell talks with retired Gen. Wesley Clark about his comments that John McCain's military experience didn't necessarily qualify him to be president.

"Well, I think it's nice to know that" Clark thinks McCain is "honorable" and a "personal hero," McCain surrogate Carly Fiorina told Mitchell in response. "I think it's crystal clear Clark is a surrogate of the campaign and is responding to direction from the campaign." She called it "politics as usual."

The McCain campaign held an earlier conference call highlighting McCain's record as squadron leader of more than 1,000.

Clark defended his own service record, saying he had been injured, seen combat and led forces. He said McCain's service "wasn't the same as being in the White House, in the Pentagon or at Strategic Command."

Mitchell pointed out, as did Bob Schieffer on CBS's Face the Nation, that Obama doesn't have executive experience either.

"Obama's not claiming any kind of experience [on military service]," Clark said, adding, "Barack Obama's shown the better judgment."

Clark also contended that he didn't bring up the subject on Face the Nation. "I just answered a direct question," he said. "It's like, 'Is the sun shining. Yes, the sun's shining.'"

From NBC/NJ's Adam Aigner-Treworgy

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- McCain addressed the National Sheriff's Association in here this morning and spoke on a few major themes. For those CHIPS fans out there, Eric Estrada was in attendance and afterward admitted he was endorsing McCain for president.

VIDEO: NBC's Pete Williams explains U.S. Supreme Court rulings striking down the death penalty in child rape cases and cutting the payment to Exxon Valdez victims.

Now onto real news… McCain addressed the recent Supreme Court decision on the death penalty for child rapists, commending Obama's statements against the decision, but saying that such decisions would be common in an Obama court.

McCain also addressed the need for the federal government to make more of the Federal Communications Commission's spare radio spectrum available for law enforcement use, saying he would try to limit the amount of the spectrum that the FCC would be allowed to auction off.

He also addressed immigration, saying the federal government needed to relieve the burden of border security from the sheriffs and expand the Criminal Alien Program to address illegal aliens who reside in prisons.

Lastly, he addressed the need to work harder to rehabilitate criminals once they are released to prevent recidivism and said his administration would offer strong support to community groups who focus their efforts on convict rehabilitation.

On Obama and Supreme Court nominees. "It's a peculiar kind of moral evolution that disregards the democratic process, and inures solely to the benefit of child rapists. It was such a jarring decision from the Court that my opponent, Senator Obama, immediately and to his credit expressed his disagreement. I'd like to think this signals a change of heart on his part about his votes against the confirmation of two of the four dissenters in the case, Justice Samuel Alito and Chief Justice John Roberts. Two of the finest individuals ever appointed to the United States Supreme Court. More to the point, why is it that the majority includes the same justices he usually holds out as the models for future nominations? My opponent may not care for this particular decision, but it was exactly the kind of opinion we could expect from an Obama Court."

On the Supreme Court child rapist decision. "We saw such presumption again just last week in a serious matter before the United States Supreme Court. In the considered judgment of the people of Louisiana and their elected representatives, the violent rape of a small child is a capital offense. There is nothing in our Constitution to contradict that view. But five justices decided in the people's judgment didn't take into account 'evolving standards of decency' -- whatever that means -- and so they substituted their judgment for that of the people of Louisiana, their legislators, their governor, the trial judge, the jury, the appellate judge, and the other four members of the United States Supreme Court."

On the need to expand radio spectrum for emergency use. "So that police, fire-fighters, and other public safety agencies can freely communicate with one another, we will build a long overdue national, inoperable public safety broadband network. You and all your colleagues in law enforcement need seamless communication across every agency and jurisdiction for emergency response. For more than a decade now, I have tried to persuade the Congress to provide dedicated radio spectrum and funding for communications equipment to local, state, and federal law enforcement officers."

On rehabbing ex-convicts. "Ex-convicts need more than a few bucks and a bus ticket out of town. Many will need job training, a place to live, mentors, family counseling, and much more. Beyond government, there are churches and community groups all across our country that stand ready to help even more. And these groups will have the committed support of my administration."

*** UPDATE *** The DNC called McCain's speech "a staggering display of hypocrisy and double talk today.  After decades of voting against effective and responsible efforts to keep our communities safe, put more police officers on our streets and provide law enforcement agencies the resources they need to fight crime, Senator McCain tried to claim credit for the very programs he repeatedly opposed. Now, his plan to pay for an extension of the Bush tax cuts he once opposed by eliminating every single earmark threatens to further starve law enforcement agencies of the resources they need to do their jobs.  The last thing the American people need is four more years of out of touch Republican leaders who talk tough on crime but put protecting their special interest friends ahead of keeping our communities safe."

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
The McCain campaign forcefully kept up the attack against Obama for Gen. Wes Clark's comments on McCain's military service and his readiness to be president.

In his speech on patriotism yesterday, Obama tried to distance himself from Clark's comments (without naming him) saying no military service should be disparaged. But the McCain campaign says that is not enough and that Obama is "winking and nodding" at the attacks.

VIDEO: WashingtonPost.com's Chris Cilizza talks about Barack Obama's speech defending his patriotism.

On a conference call with reporters today, Lt.Col. Orson Swindle (Ret.) called Clark's "episodes" "remarkable," but not "unusual." He cited Sen. Jay Rockefeller and Sen. Tom Harkin, who have been "hammering him on his service. …

"Frankly Sen. Obama's been doing a lot of winking and nodding for letting this go on," Swindle said. (He echoed those comments in a National Review op-ed, in which he equates calls into question Obama's judgment.)

Campaign spokesman Brian Rogers added, the Obama campaign "supposedly repudiate it … if this is the kind of wink and a nod game they want to play, that's fine, but spare us" the talk of new politics.

"I do think Gen Clark has made a huge mistake here," said Sen. Lindsey Graham. "No matter how he sugar coats it, he is attacking John McCain's military service. … Yesterday, [the Obama campaign said it's inappropriate. Today they're pretty quiet when he reiterates that attack."

Graham added that "Obama needs to show some leadership here" and called on him to either tell surrogates to "knock it off" or say he agrees with them.

Swindle put it more bluntly. "He [Obama] could display some leadership to tell his surrogates, 'Knock this crap off,'" he said. "This is not really about Gen. Clark," who Swindle called "not worth" continuing to talk about. "This is about Sen. Obama. If he can't even lead his surrogates, he won't do a very good job of leading the U.S. troops."

Ready from Day One
Graham went further, setting up the election as a choice of who is most ready to be commander in chief.

"Every voter's got to decide … who would be the best commander in chief for the nation and those in uniform, when we're fighting two wars," Graham said. "If you want to help the men and women in uniform cast your vote for the person best qualified to be commander in chief."

He called McCain the most qualified to be commander in chief since Eisenhower and then ticked off the Arizona senator's family's history of service.

"His military service is extraordinary," he said, adding that McCain is viewed as a "rock star" among the rank-and-file in the military.

"They know what John is made of, when his back is against the wall, when he had an opportunity to help himself over his comrades," Graham said, referring to McCain's days as a prisoner of war and declining an early release.

Thank you, Wes Clark
On the call, Graham brought up Bob Dole's, saying that "Bob Dole was a war hero; he wasn't elected president."

But as Newsweek's Holly Bailey pointed out, McCain and others advisers to Dole thought the World War II veteran should have emphasized his military record more:

"In the summer of 1996, McCain pulled Dole aside and urged him to be himself. In particular, says one former Dole strategist who declined to be named while discussing private conversations, McCain suggested that Dole talk more about his military service. It was a touchy subject with Dole, who believed that bringing up his experience in the war would be viewed as bragging, and would tarnish his honor. For the most part, he didn't take McCain's advice.

"It's a conversation that, ironically, McCain would have with his own aides several years later when he decided to run for president in 2000. Like Dole, McCain doesn't like to talk about his years of military service in personal terms, especially his time as a POW. … In this election, McCain has talked about some of his difficult moments -- on video that the campaign has distributed to voters and played at rallies before McCain arrives. But he still seems reluctant to address the subject in person."

Now the subject is front and center -- and brought up for him.

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
Obama will call for a new Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives and criticize President Bush's "support" for the faith-based community, which he dismisses as a "photo op," according to excerpts of the Illinois senator's prepared remarks.

VIDEO: Barack Obama announces plans to expand faith-based programs. NBC's Lee Cowan has the details.

Possibly to dissuade the angst of liberal faith intitiative opponents, Obama will invoke former President Bill Clinton signing "legislation that opened the door for faith-based groups to play a role in a number of areas" and that Al Gore "proposed a partnership between Washington and faith-based groups to provide more support for the least of these."

Obama also plays to the middle, mentioning that Clinton's legislation included trying to help "people move from welfare to work."
 
The speech marks a broader effort by the Obama campaign to try and woo evangelicals and cut into traditional Republican advantages with the group, which represented 23% of the voters in the 2004 election. Bush won them 78% to 21%.

McCain, who Obama doesn't mention in the speech, has also reached out to Christian conservatives, who have been decidedly cool to the presumptive Republican nominee. McCain met with Ohio religious leaders last week and met with Billy and son Franklin Graham over the weekend in North Carolina -- though the campaign says that was not a political meeting.

*** UPDATE *** The Obama campaign released a statement from John DiIulio, former director of Bush's White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives:

"Senator Barack Obama has offered a principled, prudent, and problem-solving vision for the future of community-serving partnerships involving religious nonprofit organizations. He has focused admirably on those groups that supply vital social services to people and communities in need. His plan reminds me of much that was best in both then Vice President Al Gore's and then Texas Governor George W. Bush's respective first speeches on the subject in 1999. Especially in urban America, all the empirical evidence continues to show that local faith-based organizations can make a measurable civic difference. His constitutionally sound and administratively feasible ideas about community-serving partnerships hold special promise for truly disadvantaged children, youth, and families. Many good community-serving initiatives can be built, expanded, or sustained on the common ground that Senator Obama has staked out for us here."
 
Key excerpt:
Now, I know there are some who bristle at the notion that faith has a place in the public square. But the fact is, leaders in both parties have recognized the value of a partnership between the White House and faith-based groups. President Clinton signed legislation that opened the door for faith-based groups to play a role in a number of areas, including helping people move from welfare to work. Al Gore proposed a partnership between Washington and faith-based groups to provide more support for the least of these. And President Bush came into office with a promise to "rally the armies of compassion," establishing a new Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives.
 
President Bush came into office with a promise to "rally the armies of compassion," establishing a new Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives.
 
But what we saw instead was that the Office never fulfilled its promise.  Support for social services to the poor and the needy have been consistently underfunded.  Rather than promoting the cause of all faith-based organizations, former officials in the Office have described how it was used to promote partisan interests. As a result, the smaller congregations and community groups that were supposed to be empowered ended up getting short-changed.
 
Well, I still believe it's a good idea to have a partnership between the White House and grassroots groups, both faith-based and secular. But it has to be a real partnership – not a photo-op.  That's what it will be when I'm President. I'll establish a new Council for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships. The new name will reflect a new commitment. This Council will not just be another name on the White House organization chart – it will be a critical part of my administration.

From NBC/NJ's Athena Jones

The Obama campaign says the AP's first report this morning that Obama supports "their [faith-based organizations'] ability to hire and fire based on faith" is incorrect. In fact, Obama's plan, they say, would prevent organizations from discriminating based on faith.

Note: The second version of AP story says Obama would support "some ability to hire and fire based on faith."

The change is of one word, from "their" to "some."

But the campaign says the second version is still inaccurate.

From Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, and Domenico Montanaro
*** 'Cause I Gotta Have Faith': Despite his past problems with Jeremiah Wright and folks who think (incorrectly) that he's a Muslim, Obama believes he has a real opportunity to peel away evangelical votes from McCain. So cue his event on faith today from Zanesville, OH, which is located in a county Clinton easily won in that state's primary. Per the latest NBC/WSJ poll, McCain was beating Obama among evangelicals by a 69%-21% margin. But there are two dangers for McCain on this front: 1) that Obama holds McCain below the 78%-21% split Bush won in 2004, and 2) that evangelicals just don't turn out in the numbers they did four years ago, when they made up 23% of all voters. The campaign says Obama will make brief remarks on the role that faith-based and community organizations can play in American society, and the AP reports that Obama will announce plans "to expand President Bush's program steering federal social service dollars to religious groups and -- in a move sure to cause controversy -- support their ability to hire and fire based on faith." Still, this talk about Obama and evangelicals is still very speculative; it's something a lot of smart people might believe, but the data's not there just yet. Obama, more so than McCain, appears more comfortable talking about faith, and that's another reason folks believe he'll do better with evangelicals, particularly the under 40 set. Take a look at the last seven Dem nominees: The only two who could talk about their relationship with Jesus effectively -- Carter and Clinton -- the last two Dems to win.

VIDEO: NBC Political Director Chuck Todd gives his first on Obama's phone call with former President Bill Clinton and discusses the Illinois senator's new swing state television ad.

*** Utilizing Mr. Bill: As we found out yesterday, Bill Clinton and Obama finally talked. Now what? A couple of smart Democrats believe there are three ways that Obama could use Clinton with success. First -- as his wife did -- you send him to rural areas in battleground states (from North Dakota to North Carolina to even rural Georgia). Two, you have him serve as a stand-in for high-dollar fundraisers, enabling Obama to spend more time on the trail than in hotel ballrooms. And three, you send him to campaign in African-American communities. Yes, that's right. Such a move, in fact, would be a win-win for both men, especially Clinton -- it would allow the former president to repair damage to his image among blacks. 

*** Stopping the bounce: Meanwhile, the New York Times' Nagourney has a GOP source who raises an interesting idea: What if McCain waits to announce his VP until the day or two AFTER the Dem convention -- to try to stop Obama's bounce? It's one of the few things McCain can control and why not take advantage of that fact? Obama's got the edge in a lot of areas in this campaign (from the landscape to resources), so McCain shouldn't throw away any little hand he's got. Not only can McCain step a bit on Obama's post-convention bounce by announcing his running mate, he can respond to Obama's choice if the Dem picks someone who leaves a demographic or state opening.

*** The Buckeye battleground: Pegged to Obama's event in Ohio today, NBC/NJ's Carrie Dann looks at the battleground of Ohio and how Obama might be able to win it this year. Zanesville, and surrounding Muskingum County, is exactly the type of region in which Democratic strategists hope that Obama will make inroads. The city of Zanesville (population: approx 25,000) is the only major population center in the mostly rural county, which is home to just one newspaper. In 2004, John Kerry -- who won only 16 of 88 Ohio counties -- lost Muskingum by an even 15 points. But Dann notes that recent successes by statewide elected Democrats Sherrod Brown and Ted Strickland offer some guidance to the Obama campaign, which hopes to succeed in the rural and exurban counties where Kerry did not. Sherrod Brown carried Muskingum with 58% of the vote, and Appalachia native son Ted Strickland beat his Republican opponent there by 11 points. And what if Bill Clinton and Barack Obama patch up their rocky relationship enough to harness the success of the original comeback kid? Clinton lost Muskingum by seven points in 1992, but narrowed that loss four years later to a margin of less than 50 votes.

*** When surrogates get in the way of a good speech: After watching and then later re-reading Obama's remarks on patriotism yesterday, we have this reaction: Did Wes Clark mess up a good speech or what? It was easily Obama's best one since the address he gave on race back in March, and it was on a particularly sensitive subject (given the false rumors that Obama doesn't say the Pledge of Allegiance, that he is a Muslim, etc). But Clark's comments on Sunday about McCain's military service and how it relates to his experience to be president essentially wasted it. Instead of the news from the speech being about Obama's patriotism ("It is worth considering the meaning of patriotism because the question of who is -- or is not -- a patriot all too often poisons our political debates"), the focus was instead on McCain's military service ("We must always express our profound gratitude for the service of our men and women in uniform"). How would Obama's speech yesterday have played if Wes Clark hadn't been in the equation? And that's the bad luck on Clark's part. Many Democrats are upset with how quickly Obama tossed Clark under the bus (haven't we heard this criticism before?) and perhaps Obama would have allowed Clark to clean up this mess himself if it wasn't for the poor timing with his major patriotism speech.

VIDEO: Newsweek's Richard Wolffe gives analysis of Barack Obama's patriotism speech and John McCain's reaction to Gen. Wesley Clark's comments that McCain's military experience does not qualify him to become president.

*** Who plays Robin to Obama's Batman? Here's something fun to speculate: Just who goes with Obama on his upcoming trip to Iraq and Afghanistan? Here are some obvious possibilities: Joe Biden and Jim Webb (which would drive tons of veep speculation) or Carl Levin and Jack Reed (which would signal that the trip is as much about policy as it politics). Our best guess is some combination of the two. Also, what if Chuck Hagel joins Obama? To borrow a poker line: "I'll see your Joe Lieberman, and I'll raise you a Chuck Hagel…" So forget speculating on when Obama heads to Iraq, start your bloggin' about who should go!

*** Just asking: With McCain beginning his day in Indiana before heading to Colombia, are Republicans concerned at all that two months after the Democratic primary there, the Hoosier State still seems to be a toss-up right now between McCain and Obama? Is this another example of the long, competitive Dem primary actually being a good thing for the party? Or is this about Indiana feeling the effects of the GOP brand issue? Or is this a geographic reality due to the fact that three of the four states that border Indiana (Illinois, Michigan and Ohio) are either blue or purple, with only Kentucky being a solid GOP state that touches Indiana? Of course, Indiana hasn't gone Democratic since Johnson in 1964. The state has been loyal -- a veritable island of red in 1992 and 1996. Going further back, it even voted for Dewey in 1948 and against FDR in 1944 and 1940.

*** When you're getting attacked in Mississippi…: President Bush heads to Mississippi to raise money -- behind closed doors -- for Roger Wicker (R), who's running against former Gov. Ronnie Musgrove (D) in an increasingly competitive Senate contest. What's striking is that the Mississippi Democratic Party is holding a news conference before the event to, in its words, "outline why a high-dollar political fundraiser headlined by … Bush proves that electing Roger Wicker as U.S. senator and John McCain as president means nothing more than a third Bush term and a continuation of failed Bush policies." Imagine: The Mississippi Dem Party believes it can run an anti-Bush campaign against McCain (and Wicker). This ain't Ohio or Michigan or even New Jersey -- it's frickin' Mississippi.

*** On the trail: McCain delivers the keynote address at the National Sheriffs' Association meeting in Indianapolis before heading to Colombia, where he meets with that country's leaders in the evening and holds a media avail. Obama gives his speech on faith in Zanesville, OH and also holds a media avail there.

Countdown to Dem convention: 55 days
Countdown to GOP convention: 62 days
Countdown to Election Day 2008: 126 days
Countdown to Inauguration Day 2009: 203 days
 
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The Washington Post on Obama's patriotism speech. "Dogged by persistent rumors questioning his belief in country, Sen. Barack Obama journeyed to Middle America on Monday to lay out his vision of patriotism, conceding that he has learned in this presidential campaign that 'the question of who is -- or is not -- a patriot all too often poisons our political debate.'" More: "Obama's speech came on the same day that his rival for the White House, Sen. John McCain, pushed back hard against criticism of his own record as a Navy flier and a prisoner of war. On Sunday, retired Army Gen. Wesley K. Clark questioned McCain's qualifications for the White House. 'He hasn't held executive responsibility,' Clark said on CBS's 'Face the Nation.' 'I don't think getting in a fighter plane and getting shot down is a qualification to become president.'"

VIDEO: A Race for the White House panel talks about Gen. Wesley Clark's comments dismissing John McCain's military service as a qualification for becoming president.

"Obama rebuked that line of attack Monday, acknowledging McCain by name in saluting veterans 'who have endured physical torment in service to our country.'" 

The New York Times: "Yet Mr. Obama's effort to highlight his American values, delivered in a 30-minute address before a backdrop of flags, was complicated by the comment from General Clark. The war record of Mr. McCain once seemed like an unassailable asset to his presidential bid, but General Clark's comments on the CBS News program "Face the Nation" -- that being shot down in Vietnam was not a qualification to be president -- raised the possibility that Mr. McCain's military record would face scrutiny."

NBC/NJ's Matthew E. Berger notes: Wes Clark definitely played into McCain's hands here. His comments came at a time that McCain is ramping up the POW aspect of his biography -- he mentioned it on Saturday in a speech to the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials -- and his discussion with Billy and Franklin Graham Sunday focused on McCain's parents praying with Graham after McCain was captured in Vietnam. By putting McCain's military experience and his time as a POW into the mainstream conversation, Clark put a new important McCain talking point onto the front burner.

Author of "Whistling Past Dixie"/Democratic political analyst and political science professor Tom Schaller makes his case against Obama getting too fired about his ability to win Southern states. "Two pervasive and persistent myths about racial voting in the modern South are behind the notion that Mr. Obama might win in places like Georgia, North Carolina and Mississippi. The first myth is that African-American turnout in the South is low. Black voters are actually well represented in the Southern electorate: In the 11 states of the former Confederacy, African-Americans were 17.9 percent of the age-eligible population and 17.9 percent of actual voters in 2004, analysis of Census Bureau data shows."

"And when socioeconomic status is held constant, black voters go to the polls at higher rates than white voters in the South. In other words, a 40-year-old African-American plumber making $60,000 a year is, on average, more likely to vote than a white man of similar background. The second myth is that Democratic presidential candidates fare better in Southern states that have large numbers of African-Americans. In fact, the reverse is true, because the more blacks there are in a Southern state, the more likely the white voters are to vote Republican.

"Mississippi, the state with the nation's highest percentage of African-Americans in its population, illustrates how difficult Mr. Obama's task will be in the South. Four years ago, President Bush beat John Kerry there by 20 points. For the sake of argument, let's assume that Mr. Obama could increase black turnout in Mississippi to 39 percent of the statewide electorate, up from 34 percent in 2004, according to exit polls. And let's assume that Mr. Obama will win 95 percent of those voters, up from the 90 percent who voted for Mr. Kerry four years ago."

Schaller eliminates both Florida and Virginia from his Southern analysis, as the two states are not, well, Southern anymore.

Writing about Ohio, NBC/NJ's Carrie Dann notes: "Obama's team has the benefit of two different playbooks from past statewide campaigns. On the one hand, they can pore over John Kerry's 2004 plan to swell urban turnout to unprecedented levels; on the other, they can trace the county-by-county vote totals of the state's popular Democrats -- like Governor Ted Strickland and freshman senator Sherrod Brown -- who courted the support of Ohioans in rural and exurban areas." 

Conservative activist Gary Bauer claims the decision by CA to legalize gay marriage could help the GOP. "The Pew poll found that 41 percent of Republicans say same-sex marriage will be 'very important' to their vote this year, which is remarkable considering that 39 percent felt as strongly in 2004."

"These are the voters who will be motivated by the California ruling. I asked Alliance Defense Fund senior counsel Glen Lavy, who argued against same-sex marriage in the California case, to put the ruling in context. He said the decision is 'far worse' than the 2003 Massachusetts Supreme Court decision, because Massachusetts had no statutory law defining marriage at the time. In California, however, four judges rewrote a law passed only eight years earlier by a significant majority of California voters."

USA Today looks at McCain's chances to pick off Pennsylvania.

The New York Times curtain-raises McCain's trip to Colombia by writing about senior adviser Charlie Black's ties to the country. "Since 1998, the lobbying firm headed until recently by Charlie Black, one of Mr. McCain's closest confidants, has earned more than $1.8 million representing the Occidental Petroleum Corporation, the leading foreign producer of gas and oil in Colombia. The lobbying firm, BKSH & Associates, has also represented Colombian textile and apparel manufacturers and a former foreign minister and presidential candidate who is also a prominent businesswoman."

VIDEO: Senior Editor of The Atlantic, Joshua Green, talks with Countdown's Keith Olbermann about the people who are continuing to defend John McCain strategist Charlie Black and the comments he made about a terror attack on U.S. soil benefitting the McCain campaign.

"According to official filings, Mr. Black, who resigned as chairman of BKSH in March, lobbied Congress, the State Department and the White House on Occidental's behalf regarding 'general energy issues' and 'general trade issues' involving Colombia. His list of activities also included winning 'foreign assistance for Colombia' and efforts to block an economic embargo against the country, which has a questionable human rights record."

The Boston Globe: "Of the 548 leaders of Bush's vaunted money-raising machine, about 43 percent have contributed to McCain, a Globe review of finance reports covering the period through May 31 shows. Even fewer of them solicited and bundled donations from others for McCain, as they did for Bush four years ago. About 25 percent of the elite Bush money team gave to another Republican or, in several cases, to a Democrat, but not to McCain. Nearly a third remained on the sidelines, not contributing to any presidential candidate."
 
"McCain's struggle to mobilize the Bush fund-raisers is in part a sign of the disaffection among some GOP stalwarts for McCain, who positions himself as a party rebel on some issues. But it's also a sign of the obstacles that any Republican nominee would face in exciting elite GOP donors at a time of discouraging poll numbers driven by economic turmoil and frustration over the Iraq war."

Bloomberg News writes, "As a senator, John McCain has condemned policies that pick market winners and losers, aiming particular criticism at government ethanol subsidies as a taxpayer rip-off. As a presidential candidate, the Arizona Republican himself is backing specific industries in proposals for relief from high energy prices and foreign oil dependence."

"Coal producers and users would benefit under McCain's energy plan from about $30 billion of government funding for clean-coal technology research. Federal carbon caps and a system for trading emissions credits would create winners and losers depending on how pollution credits are doled out. McCain has promised, without details, to push for construction of 45 nuclear-power plants." 

Free tradin': "McCain said he knows he has work to do to convince voters in states losing jobs to Mexico and other countries, such as Pennsylvania where he campaigned Monday, that free-trade agreements will benefit them and their families over time. 'I have to convince them the consequences of protectionism and isolationism could be damaging to their future,' the Arizona senator said, pledging to improve programs for displaced workers and unemployment insurance if elected. 'I understand it's very tough. But for me to give up my advocacy of free trade would be a betrayal of trust. And the most precious commodity I have with the American people is that they trust me.'"

Cindy McCain has settled up her back tax issue in California.

And let's play Jeopardy: "Riding aboard his Straight Talk Express campaign bus, McCain, well-read and a trivia buff, recalled his two-day appearance on the popular program [Jeopardy] in 1965. He won the game the first day, and lost the next day in the final round."

The AP: "Reaching out to evangelical voters, Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is announcing plans that would expand President Bush's program steering federal social service dollars to religious groups and -- in a move sure to cause controversy -- support their ability to hire and fire based on faith." Obama today will be "unveiling his approach to getting religious charities more involved in government anti-poverty programs during a tour and remarks Tuesday at Eastside Community Ministry in Zanesville, Ohio. The arm of Central Presbyterian Church operates a food bank, provides clothes, has a youth ministry and provides other services in its impoverished community."

Per an email today from the campaign, "Obama does not believe that faith-based groups are an alternative to government or secular nonprofits, or that they're better at lifting people but. But what he does believe is that we all have to work together to meet the challenges of the 21st Century." In addition, it says that Obama's proposal won't violate the separation of church and state. "First, if an organization gets a federal grant, it will not be permitted to use that grant money to proselytize to the people it serves, and the group will forbidden to discriminate against them on the basis of their religion. And groups will be required to comply with federal anti-discrimination laws in their hiring practices—including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Second, federal dollars that go directly to churches, temples, and mosques will only be allowed to go toward secular programs. And Obama will ensure that taxpayer dollars only go to those programs that actually work."

The New York Times: "Obama and his advisers are seeking support not only among relatively moderate evangelicals like Mrs. Speakman, who voted for Mr. Bush in 2000 but backed Senator John Kerry, a Democrat, in 2004 because of her opposition to the war. They are also trying to take advantage of signs that some conservative Christians are rethinking their politics, urged along by a new generation of leadership and intensified concern about issues including climate change, genocide, AIDS and poverty."

"Between now and November, the Obama forces are planning as many as 1,000 house parties and dozens of Christian rock concerts, gatherings of religious leaders, campus visits and telephone conference calls to bring together voters of all ages motivated by their faith to engage in politics. It is the most intensive effort yet by a Democratic candidate to reach out to self-identified evangelical or born-again Christians and to try to pry them away from their historical attachment to the Republican Party." 

The NRA is pledging to spend some $15 million this year against Obama, Politico reports. "While the gun culture is typically associated with the South, it's actually the industrial Midwest where hunting is most popular. Pennsylvania has the most NRA members per capita of any state, and, after Texas, the next four states that sell the most hunting-related goods are Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan and Missouri, according to the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies."

"And while Bill Clinton, Gore and Kerry could all handle a gun and had been hunting many times over the years, Obama has never hunted in his life and is the furthest thing from an outdoorsman. Yet, as with so many issues on which Obama is vulnerable, McCain isn't exactly a perfect alternative."

Ad Watch: Per the AP, Obama's second general-election ad "says Obama 'passed' several initiatives, giving him all the credit, although they are bills the Legislature passed and not the work of a single lawmaker. Obama was more than one mere vote on the bills cited -- he was one of the leading negotiators who helped turn the legislation into law. He was not the only key player, but many politicians claim responsibility for passing laws that many have worked on.
 
"He was a leader in passing welfare reform, working to get changes in Illinois with the goal of moving people from welfare to work. And in the next eight years, the number of families receiving welfare dropped from 167,124 to 36,331. But to suggest Obama personally 'slashed the rolls by 80 percent' is a stretch; federal law signed by President Clinton required the state come up with a plan to trim the welfare rolls. Obama said he would have opposed Clinton's initiative."

The New York Times David Brooks examines the new donor class giving money to Obama. "The real core of his financial support is something else, the rising class of information age analysts. Once, the wealthy were solidly Republican. But the information age rewards education with money. There are many smart high achievers who grew up in liberal suburbs around San Francisco, L.A. and New York, went to left-leaning universities like Harvard and Berkeley and took their values with them when they became investment bankers, doctors and litigators."

"Obama had decided to take a stroll down one of this tiny town's quiet streets Monday after a speech on the topic of patriotism. That sort of public appearance isn't something the Democratic presidential candidate does often, and he encountered people welcoming him onto the porches of their bungalows and clamoring politely but energetically in small crowds to see him. He obliged nearly everyone who wanted to shake his hand. But he never wavered from his goal -- the imposing white Victorian manse that Harry Truman called home and used as the 'Summer White House' during his presidency.
 
"Proclaiming Truman 'one of my favorites,' Obama would chat briefly, then resume his walk toward the tour. Until he met Tootie Williams, that is. The St. Louis native was wearing an oversized white T-shirt. It featured a picture of him and said: 'Obama's in the House.' Obama said he loved it. So Williams said she'd give it to him and started to peel it off. This caused much laughter, but also obvious consternation on Obama's part, even after she assured him she had on another shirt underneath -- which she did. As she struggled to remove the T-shirt with a mob of reporters and cameras looking on, he warned "Hold the rest of it down!"

The New York Times' Nagourney has a lot of good nuggets in his piece about the selection timing. The most intriguing item is all the way at the end, where he's got a GOP source confirming that McCain is well aware that one way to step on Obama's convention bounce is to wait to name his running mate until after the Dem convo, just days or hours before the start of the GOP convo. Obama meanwhile may be looking at the end of July. 

How about Bill Gates for McCain's VP?

VIDEO: NBC News/National Journal reporter Mike Memoli discusses the Democratic and Republican veepstakes with MSNBC's Alex Witt.

NBC/NJ's Mike Memoli has more: John McCain was asked by local PA reporters if Tom Ridge is under consideration. "We haven't really talked about the list, because it then rapidly devolves into an unhealthy situation for the people whose names I mention," he said. "As far as Tom Ridge is concerned, he's a close friend, a great American, a great governor. He and I came to the House of Representatives together. I have the highest regard for Tom Ridge and the job he did as director of Homeland Security, and I think he has a big place in our party and in our country. But I can't make a specific name, I just can't do it. Because, otherwise, then who else?" 
 
Govs. Kathleen Sebelius (D-KS) and Bill Richardson (D-NM) said they did not meet with any Obama aides while in Chicago for the DLC. 
 
"I'm drinking from that pitcher," Sebelius said in response to the quote that the vice presidency not being worth a warm bucket of spit. She also said "Democrats need to be pro-business Democrats again."  
 
More from CBN's interview with Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R-MN), now on VP speculation. "I'm honored to be mentioned as somebody who might be considered for the vice-presidential slot but I've tried to stay focused on my current job in Minnesota. I have a day job which I am honored to have and enjoy. I haven't been asked to consider being VP by the McCain campaign. I haven't been asked to submit any documents or information and so I really think it is just speculation on what might or might not happen. I just tell folks I have got to stay focused on my current job and we don't need to think about those things because they really are speculation at this point."