From NBC's Mark Murray and Domenico Montanaro
Recently, the Democratic National Committee has referred to "Exxon-McCain '08," hitting the presumptive GOP nominee for his ties to the oil and gas industry.

But that particular hit might not be that fair. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Obama has actually raised more money from Exxon than McCain has. "Through June," the center writes, "Exxon employees have given Obama $42,100 to McCain's $35,166. Chevron favors Obama $35,157 to $28,500, and Obama edges out McCain with BP $16,046 vs. $11,500."

But: "McCain leads the money race with nearly every other top giver in the oil and gas industry, though -- Koch Industries, Valero, Marathon Oil, Occidental Petroleum, ConocoPhillips, the list goes on... McCain also has a big edge with Hess Corp. -- $91,000 to Obama's $8,000 -- which has gotten some attention. And, overall, McCain's campaign has gotten three times more money from the industry than Obama's has -- $1.3 million compared to about $394,000."

It's also worth noting the differences in how much the Republican National Committee has gotten versus the DNC. (Here's the center's spreadsheet.)
-- ExxonMobil has given $21,195 to the RNC versus $708 for the DNC.
-- Chevron has given $106,9000 to the RNC and $210 to the DNC.

For the 20 oil and gas companies the center looked at, they gave $389,735 to the RNC in total and $51,168 to the DNC.

From NBC/NJ's Adam Aigner-Treworgy
LIMA, Ohio -- After an uncharacteristic week free of any town-hall events, McCain held a public question-and-answer session here this afternoon and returned to the stump speech he debuted last week. Most of the speech is spent going through specific key issues in this election and outlining the differences between McCain and his opponent.

Today, the issue that attracted the most applause was energy and offshore drilling, a subject on which McCain has been trading jabs with Obama for more than a week.

"I spoke up against the administration and Congress and Sen. Obama when they gave us an energy bill with more than giveaways to big oil and really no solution to our energy problems," McCain said. "I want to take a minute here on this issue 'cause I think Sen. Obama might be a little bit confused. Yesterday he accused me of having President Bush's policies on energy. That's odd because he voted for the president's energy bill and I voted against it."

This is a topic that the McCain campaign has been pushing back against ever since Obama released a television commercial earlier this week accusing McCain of being the candidate of big oil. One senior advisor questioned why the media had not called Obama out on his support of the so-called 'Bush-Cheney' energy bill, when McCain's opposition was specifically based on the big tax breaks for oil companies. 

"It had $2.8 billion in corporate welfare to big oil companies and they're already making record profits as you know," McCain said of the 2005 energy bill. "Sen. Obama voted for that bill, and it's big oil giveaways. I know he hasn't been in the senate that long, but even in the real world, voting for something -- voting for something means your support, and voting against something means you oppose it."

Adding to the ongoing debate over whether inflating the tires on Americans' automobiles is an adequate solution to the country's energy crisis, today McCain said that such an idea did not constitute an energy plan.

"He actually thinks that raising taxes on oil is gonna bring down the price at the pump," McCain said of his opponent. "He's claiming that putting air in your tires is the equivalent, is the equivalent of new offshore drilling. That's not an energy plan my friends. That's a public service announcement."

While energy was clearly important to this northwestern Ohio crowd, one man seemed preoccupied with the veepstakes. The man stood up and said he wanted the race in November to be a "landslide" and he was hoping to vote for a McCain-Rice ticket, referring to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. At that point other members of the audience chimed in as both Joe Lieberman and Mitt Romney's name were yelled from different sides of the crowd.

McCain simply repeated his favorite joke about the role of a running mate saying that a vice president only has two jobs, break a tie in the senate and inquire daily about the health of the president.

From NBC/NJ's Athena Jones
EN ROUTE FROM MINNEAPOLIS TO CHICAGO -- Obama dismissed any notion that there was tension with the Clintons, suggesting during a 14-minute press conference aboard his plane today that the media was largely responsible for promoting that idea.

The Illinois senator, who departs tomorrow for a weeklong trip with his family to visit his grandmother in Hawaii, said he had spoken with both Hillary and Bill Clinton this week and that they were committed to helping him get elected. "She's campaigning for me in Nevada and Florida, and she is very enthusiastic about the need for a unified party," the senator said when asked about talk among Clinton supporters of putting her name on the ballot for a floor vote at the convention.

Obama said that the "mechanics" of the convention were still being discussed by his staff and Sen. Clinton's staff, and that he did not "anticipate any problems." But he would not say whether he would object to having Clinton's name entered into nomination, instead saying five times that his staff and hers were in contact and were working things out.

"There hasn't been controversy other than what you guys are projecting right now," Obama said in response to several questions about why details of the convention and the nature of Clinton's participation in it had not been settled.

Bill Clinton has been "very supportive", Obama said, adding that he thought the former president had shown "extraordinary restraint in a fairly provocative interview" while on his trip to Africa. "I couldn't ask for him to be any more gracious than he's been and supportive since the campaign ended," he said.

Bayh, 'Obama fatigue,' and McCain
The senator again addressed the issue of Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh's past support for Hillary Clinton. "Evan -- despite his support of Hillary -- I think was always very gracious towards me during that period, and you know I thought has been a class act throughout this election process, and he's been working very hard on our behalf ever since the primaries finished," he said.

Bayh campaigned with Obama yesterday in Indiana, a red state the Obama campaign hopes to put in the blue column. His name has been has mentioned as a potential running mate.

Obama allowed that it was not hard to understand why some voters might feel they are hearing too much about him, as a recent Pew survey finds. He said this year had seen the "longest primary in history," but that his week vacation should result in less coverage, with the media's help.

"I think that the majority of people have been fed a constant stream of political chatter," he said. "And I'm sure that having a couple weeks off and enjoying the Olympics is probably what the doctor ordered for everybody."
 
The presidential hopeful opened the Q&A with brief remarks on energy and economic issues, and he addressed the discussion about offshore drilling.

"I'm pleased that there were some serious negotiations taking place in the Senate among the so-called Gang of 10. I think it provides a framework for continued conversations," he said "I am not persuaded that offshore drilling is going to provide the kind of significant relief or long-term strategy that we need, but I think there is room for negotiations around a domestic production strategy as long as it's part of a larger comprehensive strategy to deal with our real energy challenges."

He called the back-and-forth between dueling John McCain and Paris Hilton ads a "spat" that was not of prominent concern for the American people, and said the McCain campaign's focus on tire inflation showed that his rival was more interested in scoring political points than finding real solutions to the country's energy challenges. 

From MSNBC.com's Tom Curry
Rep. Steve Cohen -- an early Obama endorser -- told me in June (right after Emily's List endorsed his primary foe Nikki Tinker) that he was disappointed that Obama was not helping him.

The primary is today in Memphis.

Cohen said then that he'd asked the Obama campaign staff if Obama would come to Memphis to campaign for him, but they rejected the idea, saying Obama wouldn't get involved in congressional primaries. Yet Obama did do a radio ad in June endorsing Rep. John Barrow of Georgia, another white Democrat who faced an African-American primary opponent.

Cohen said in June he was disappointed that Obama wouldn't go to bat for him. 

As a white candidate running in a congressional district with a black majority population, Cohen likens himself to Obama, a mixed-race man running for president of a mostly white country. "I'm asking people to judge me just as [Obama] is asking people to judge him," Cohen said.

When I called Cohen's campaign manager Jerry Austin a few minutes ago, he had not yet heard of the Obama statement denouncing the inflammatory ads being aired by Nikki Tinker. 

Referring to Obama, Austin noted that this statement was not an endorsement. He said sourly, "We're going to win without his endorsement."

As for today's statement from Obama condemning the Tinker ads (although not Tinker by name) Austin said, "The ads started last Friday. He could have said this earlier rather than on election day. Better late than never."

From NBC's Mark Murray and Ken Strickland
John Kerry isn't the only Democrat who today has weighed in on McCain's new Web video, which contains clips of Democrats -- including Kerry, Joe Biden, Howard Dean, Obama and Hillary Clinton -- praising the Arizona senator. The clips all appear to be at least two years old, except for the clip of Clinton, which is from the Democratic primaries. 

In a statement released by Dean: "John McCain a maverick? The John McCain of 2000 wouldn't even consider voting for the John McCain of 2008. The American people are learning that the John McCain of 2008 represents more of the same failed policies we've gotten from George Bush for the past eight years. Senator McCain is clearly in the tank for Exxon and big oil, for keeping our troops stuck in Iraq for decades to come, and for an economic policy that puts tax breaks for the wealthy and corporations above relief for hardworking families. John McCain has changed: he's taken the low road, leveling false, negative and misleading attacks against Barack Obama. John McCain is no more a maverick within the Republican Party than Dick Cheney is. He's just more of the same."

And in a statement released by Biden: "The John McCain of 2008 is not the maverick of 2000. On the most urgent national security challenges we face - Iraq, Iran and Al Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan -- there is no day light between George Bush and John McCain. He has embraced President Bush's failed policies and will continue them. It's unfortunate he's changed so much in just eight years."

Kerry said: "The McCain campaign is determined to give their Paris Hilton ad a run for its money in the desperation department, and they've succeeded only in shining a light on the fact that the John McCain of today is unrecognizable from the John McCain of just a couple years ago. The real question is what happened to the John McCain we used to know and why he changed overnight into a George Bush nominee with a Karl Rove campaign. The new John McCain supports the Bush tax giveaways for the wealthy he once denounced, opposes his own immigration bill, flip-flopped on torture, and runs negative ads after calling for an honorable campaign. Frankly, it tells you everything about this election that the McCain campaign spins its wheels recycling what we said about John McCain way back when while scrambling and sputtering to explain away Governor Pawlenty's praise of Barack Obama today."

*** UPDATE *** Now, the Democratic National Committee has produced its own Web video that has quotes from all of these Democrats hammering McCain.

From NBC's Mark Murray
Obama just released this statement on the very negative Democratic primary taking place today between incumbent Rep. Steve Cohen and challenger Nikki Tinker.

"These incendiary and personal attacks have no place in our politics, and will do nothing to help the good people of Tennessee," Obama said. "It's time to turn the page on a politics driven by negativity and division so that we can come together to lift up our communities and our country."

As we mentioned earlier today, Cohen is a white Jew who represents a majority-black district in the Memphis area (it's Harold Ford's old congressional seat). Tinker is black.

The race has received attention -- including from today's New York Times -- because of ads that Tinker is running that features an image of the Ku Klux Klan and another one that says, "While he's in our churches, clapping his hands and tapping his feet ... he's the only senator who thought our kids shouldn't be allowed to pray in school."

Cohen won his primary in 2006 because the black vote was so split. This time, he's facing a smaller primary field.

From NBC's Mark Murray
Per today's pool covering Obama, the Illinois senator stopped at the Copper Dome Restaurant in St. Paul, MN, where about 40 patrons were having breakfast.

Obama stopped by each table, making small talk in barely a whisper. Toward the end of his 40-minute visit, he met an 18 year old, who said he was excited to vote for the first time. And Obama held a 7-month-old child for the traditional candidate baby shot.

Also this morning, McCain and his wife made an impromptu stop at a Bob Evans Restaurant in Marion, OH, which was packed with more than 120 patrons -- half of whom were there solely to greet McCain and were not eating, according to that pool report.

Upon entering the establishment, a local blogger with a video camera asked McCain how he felt, and McCain replied: "I'm feeling real good."

The blogger also jokingly asked about the importance of checking tire pressure. Said McCain: "We got to make sure that we have that public service announcement, but it doesn't solve our energy problem."

From NBC/NJ's Matthew Berger
DEMOCRATS: Clinton reignited questions about being officially placed in nomination at the Denver convention. Clinton told a California fundraiser that she was considering the option. "I happen to believe that we will come out stronger if people feel that their voices were heard and their views were respected. I think that is a very big part of how we actually come out unified," she said. "No decisions have been made. And so we are trying to work all this through with the DNC and with the Obama campaign." First Read on this from yesterday. 
 
Half of the seats for the Obama Invesco Field speech will go to Colorado residents, and about two-thirds to the Mountain West region. Those seeking tickets will first deal with a state liaison, giving information on how you plan to get to Denver and where you will stay. Tickets will have a bar code and need to be activated, to ensure they are not sold online, and can be deactivated if found for sale.  
 
A federal judge ruled the Secret Service and the city of Denver can restrict protesters' access to the convention at the Pepsi Center. The designated protest zone may limit protesters' ability, but doesn't violate their First Amendment right, Judge Marcia Kreiger ruled. Questions about protesting the Invesco Field speech are being determined separately. 
 
Since protesters will not be allowed at City Park after 11 pm, they plan to march to the protest zone at the Pepsi Center each night "to continue to demonstrate against the Iraq War and then feign sleeping as part of their act of protest."  
 
REPUBLICANS: Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal has spoken with the McCain campaign about a "prominent speaking role" at the convention, possibly the keynote, according to Louisiana Republican Party Chairman Roger Villere. 
 
Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty admitted Dick Cheney's absence in St. Paul will be conspicuous. Speaking at the National Press Club Wednesday, he said conventions have been condensed and there will likely not be afternoon sessions. "We'd love to have everybody come to Minnesota, spend money, but I suppose the answer is yes," he said.
 
House Minority Leader John Boehner will serve as permanent chairman of the Republican convention. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell will serve as temporary chairman and Rep. David Dreier will serve as parliamentarian.

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
With Paris Hilton and Britney Spears having been introduced into this campaign, check out the latest edition of Entertainment Weekly and Obama and McCain squaring off on (their versions of) pop culture. (Yes, we know... slow news day.)

And read into what you will the candidates' answers on what comic book hero they would be if they could choose:

MCCAIN: "Batman. He does justice sometimes against insurmountable odds. And he doesn't make his good works known to a lot of people, so a lot of people think he's just a rich playboy."

OBAMA: "I was always into the Spider-Man/Batman model. The guys who have too many powers, like Superman, that always made me think they weren't really earning their superhero status. It's a little too easy. Whereas Spider-Man and Batman, they have some inner turmoil. They get knocked around a little bit."

The last movie McCain saw was Indiana Jones. He said he liked it because "the old guy wins." For what it's worth, Obama said he thinks the last movie he saw was Shrek 3 -- with his kids.

The magazine writes in its introduction: "Spider-Man or Batman? Jeff Bridges or Dennis Haysbert? ABBA or Javanese flute music? Candidates Barack Obama and John McCain stated their positions on these and other world-shaking pop cultural issues in exclusive interviews with Entertainment Weekly. Whose finger do you want on the button? (Of the remote control, we mean.) See their picks, and then exercise your right to vote -- in our polls -- and determine which man's (pop-culture) platform you endorse!"

From Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, and Domenico Montanaro
*** More Clinton-Obama drama: It now has been exactly two months to the day when Hillary Clinton officially ended her candidacy and endorsed Obama. But even two months -- and it seems longer ago than that, doesn't it? -- can't erase the Clinton drama, even as polls show that women and Clinton's supporters are firmly behind the Illinois Democrat. First came the Bill Clinton interview in which he wouldn't say that Obama is qualified to be president beyond the requirements set in the Constitution that you have to be 35 or older and born in the US. And now -- right before she stumps for Obama tomorrow in Nevada -- comes a YouTube clip of Hillary telling her supporters that she wants a "strategy" to have her delegates heard at the convention. (After talking to a Dem operative, Clinton must approve, in writing, for her name to appear on the ballot.

VIDEO: Sen. Hillary Clinton wants her delegates to be acknowledged at the Democratic National Convention, saying it will help unify the party. NBC's Andrea Mitchell reports.

So this is in Clinton's power whether her name is put into nomination, not Obama's nor Howard Dean's.) Watching the video clip, you can tell that Hillary still hasn't gotten over losing, and given all of the people she had telling her that she'd be the next president, we can understand the denial; she had been preparing for this moment for nearly four years. But we've asked this question a million times and we ask it again: Would the Clintons have been as deferential (or be expected to be as deferential) to Obama if the roles were reversed? What has happened over the last few days has given Obama the high ground here.

*** Obama not tough enough? If it's August, that means that Democratic politicos are wringing their hands about their presidential candidate's campaign strategy, even though this guy -- unlike the guy four years ago -- is actually winning in the mid-single digits. Today, the Washington Post runs a piece that features plenty of blind quotes from Democratic strategists worried that Obama isn't tough enough against McCain's attacks. "[Y]ou have to counterattack," said one. "You don't want to look like a whiner. You want to look tough." Has Obama had a negative TV ad that's broken through the clutter in either the primary or the general so far? Arguably, the best negative ad against Clinton was that Mac-IBM spoof created by a rogue supporter. Actually, Obama's ads -- even the positive ones -- haven't been anything that have changed the political debate. That said, we found these two quotes in the piece to be interesting. "We've been through two very tough elections at the national level, and it's very easy to lose confidence," said Tad Devine. And said a Dem consultant: "One of the great strengths of the Obama campaign has been to not listen to the D.C. chattering class. They have a plan and they stick to it. But clearly, the D.C. chattering class are all wringing their hands."

*** Time to get away? If you believe these Pew numbers about voters hearing "too much" about Obama, then Obama's vacation, which begins tomorrow, couldn't be coming at a better time. According to a new Pew poll, 48% of voters -- and 51% of independents -- say they've been hearing too much about Obama. Is that perhaps the true success of the recent spate of negative McCain ads? What does this poll number mean? Does it mean Obama can't introduce any more information to voters because they have all they need? Does this mean he simply needs to start making the public focus more on Bush or McCain? Is this simply a response to the over-the-top media blitz Obama orchestrated during his international trip? All we know is that we want to see this question asked again and see if there's a trend.

Video: NBC Political Director Chuck Todd discusses the talk of tension between Barack Obama and the Clinton's, the latest veepstakes rumors and a new poll on Barack Obama overexposure.

*** A bundle of fun? The New York Times is the latest news organization to cover the fascinating story of McCain bundler Harry Sargeant. Our favorite anecdote in the piece: A guy who, along with his wife, gave McCain $9,200 -- but who at first denied giving the donation and then said, "I'm still not going to vote for [McCain]." A GOP source reminds us about the recent story that Obama had to return $33,000 in contributions from two brothers in Gaza. The difference here is that the McCain camp hasn't yet returned the money Sargeant has bundled. Who wants to bet that by 6:00 pm ET on Friday that the campaign returns all of the money this guy bundled? Given the amounts of money both campaigns have to raise, there is bound to be a rogue element or two who infiltrates the campaign. It appears this Sargeant is just that, as there doesn't seem to be any evidence of a quid pro quo, which is what would make this story become bigger.

*** Mending fences? It's not on his schedule today, but local reporting suggests McCain has an additional stop in Wilmington, OH -- closed to the press -- "to meet with a small group of residents to gain a greater understanding of the difficult situation facing thousands of Wilmington-based workers at the DHL Air Park." Earlier in the week, the Cleveland Plain-Dealer reported on the role by McCain and campaign manager Rick Davis in helping a foreign company to acquire the Wilmington facility. By the way, this was one of the more impressive Dem oppo hits in quite some time. There's some research staff that's awfully proud of itself this morning, as they've made McCain have to play defense on the economy in a major swing state.

*** Not your average primary: Today, it's primary day in Tennessee, where incumbent Rep. Steve Cohen (D) -- a white Jew who represents a majority-black district in the Memphis area -- faces a challenge from Nikki Tinker, who is black. The race has received attention because of ads that Tinker is running that features an image of the Ku Klux Klan and another one that says, "While he's in our churches, clapping his hands and tapping his feet ... he's the only senator who thought our kids shouldn't be allowed to pray in school." The primary comes just as Matt Bai has a New York Times magazine piece looking at whether Obama represents the end of black and racial politics. Cohen, who replaced Harold Ford Jr. in Congress, won his primary in 2006 because the black vote was so split. This time, he's facing a smaller primary field.

*** On the trail: McCain holds a town hall in Lima, OH and attends a fundraiser Liberty Township, OH. And Obama begins his day in Minneapolis before heading to Chicago before his upcoming vacation to Hawaii.

Countdown to Dem convention: 18 days
Countdown to GOP convention: 25 days
Countdown to Election Day 2008: 89 days
Countdown to Inauguration Day 2009: 166 days
 
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The Washington Post's David Broder interviews both candidates on the tone of the campaign, gets them both to profess disappointment and gets them both to blame the other for going down this slippery slope. "'I'm very sorry about it," McCain said in a Saturday interview at his Arlington headquarters. 'I think we could have avoided at least some of this if we had agreed to do the town hall meetings' together, as he had suggested, during the summer months."

More: "I asked Obama if he had any regrets about turning down McCain's early June invitation to start the joint appearances back then. He said, 'I think the notion that somehow as a consequence of not having joint appearances, Senator McCain felt obliged to suggest that I'd rather lose a war to win a campaign doesn't automatically follow. I think we each have control over ourselves and our campaigns, and we have to take responsibility for that.'"

"A CBS News survey released yesterday, showing Obama with a 45 percent to 39 percent national lead, reported that 30 percent of voters said the vice presidential pick will have 'a great deal of influence' on their vote -- double the percentage who said so in the 2000 election. Nearly half of the 13 percent of voters calling themselves undecided said that the choice of running mate will make a difference."

"Senators Barack Obama and John McCain tussled again yesterday over energy policy, taunting each other over who had the most inane conservation idea as much as debating substantive differences," the Boston Globe writes. "McCain has been mocking Obama for days for suggesting that one way to ease the energy crisis is to keep tires properly inflated.
 
So the Obama campaign jumped on a comment McCain made Tuesday night: 'Senator Obama a couple of days ago said that we ought to all inflate our tires, and I don't disagree with that. The American Automobile Association strongly recommends it.' But the McCain campaign accused Obama's campaign of selectively editing the comment, noting that the presumptive GOP nominee added, 'But I also don't think that that's a way to become energy independent.' Then, the Obama campaign highlighted McCain's suggestion in April: 'We can turn out the lights five minutes earlier, we don't have to drive the extra block.'"

The Washington Post's Ignatius makes the case for either keeping Robert Gates on -- no matter who wins, or assigning him a new project. "Why not appoint Gates to head a special commission to revise the basic framework of the National Security Act of 1947? He knows all the pieces of this puzzle -- having run the CIA and worked at the National Security Council earlier in his career."

Karl Rove's free advice in the Wall Street Journal today: "To win, Mr. McCain must also make a compelling case for electing John McCain. Voters trust him on terrorism and Iraq and they see him as a patriot who puts country first. But they want to know for what purpose? In the coming weeks, he needs to lay out a bold domestic reform program. He gave a taste on energy, but with a few missteps. He should appear in front of manufacturing plants where jobs depend on affordable energy, small businesses affected by fuel prices, and farms hurt by skyrocketing fertilizer costs -- and not in front of oil rigs. He needs to describe the consequences of specific domestic policy decisions. He must explain how his proposals on energy, health care, jobs and education will make a difference for ordinary families."

"Mr. McCain also needs to elevate his arguments. It's not only that he opposes tax increases and Mr. Obama favors them. Mr. McCain must also make the principled case that there should be a limit to what government can take from its citizens. This argument will appeal to a large majority of voters. The top income tax rate is 35% and, according to the Tax Foundation, 89% of Americans believe that government should take no more than 30% from anyone's paycheck."

"McCain is taking up the issue of possible job losses due to the closure of a DHL shipping site in Ohio, the result of a corporate merger aided by his campaign manager during his work as a lobbyist," the AP writes. "In 2003, McCain campaign manager Rick Davis lobbied Congress to accept a proposal by German-owned DHL to buy Airborne Express, which kept its domestic hub in Wilmington in southwest Ohio.  McCain campaign spokesman Brian Rogers said Wednesday that Davis had not worked with DHL since 2005, long before DHL announced plans to move its work out of Wilmington. The companies merged in 2003. 'At the time of the merger, no one anticipated an impact on jobs in Wilmington,' Rogers said."

The New York Times picks up on the curious story of Harry Sargeant. "The Jordanian business partner of a prominent Florida businessman, who has raised more than $500,000 for Senator John McCain, appears to be at the center of a cluster of questionable donations to his presidential campaign. Campaign finance records show Mr. McCain collected a little more than $50,000 in March from members of a single extended family, the Abdullahs, in California and several of their friends."

More: "Amid a sea of contributions to the McCain campaign, the Abdullahs stand out. The checks come not from the usual exclusive coastal addresses, but from relatively hardscrabble inland towns like Downey and Colton. The donations are also startling because of their size: several donors initially wrote checks of $9,200, exceeding the $2,300 limit for an individual gift."

Did McCain flip-flop on taxes when he talked about everything being on the table re: Social Security? Bloomberg News is the latest news organization to examine his various contortions on this issue.

"Obama may be the fresh face in this year's presidential election, but nearly half say they're already tired of hearing about him, a poll says. With Election Day still three months away, 48 percent said they're hearing too much about the Democratic candidate, according to a poll released Wednesday by the nonpartisan Pew Research Center. Just 26 percent said the same about his Republican rival, John McCain."

"Obama came up empty in a stunt to pitch his energy policy to drivers at Florida gas stations," the New York Daily News writes. "Team Obama Wednesday announced to great fanfare it would stream ads ripping John McCain on screens at dozens of filling stations around the Sunshine State - only to have Gas Station TV pull the plug at the last minute. 'We avoid politics in general,'" Gas Station TV CEO David Leider said.

The Washington Post delves into a topic that hasn't gotten a lot of attention lately, but did get some during the primaries: Is Obama willing to get tough on his opponents? "Such attacks have raised worries among Democratic strategists -- haunted by John F. Kerry's 2004 run and Al Gore's razor-thin loss in 2000 -- that Obama has not responded in kind with a parallel assault on McCain's character. Interviews with nearly a dozen Democratic strategists found those concerns to be widespread, although few wished to be quoted by name while Obama's campaign is demanding unity."

"'Democrats are worried," said Tad Devine, a top strategist for Kerry who thinks Obama must stay on the high road. 'We've been through two very tough elections at the national level, and it's very easy to lose confidence.'"

Lots of blind quotes: "'If somebody attacks you, you have to frame the attack: "This is the same old politics, or better yet, the Bush-Rove politics," something Obama has done well, said one Democratic strategist. 'At the same time you do that, you have to counterattack. You don't want to look like a whiner. You want to look tough.'"

"Said another Democratic consultant: 'There needs to be a negative McCain track beyond the Bush policy stuff. One of the great strengths of the Obama campaign has been to not listen to the D.C. chattering class. They have a plan and they stick to it. But clearly, the D.C. chattering class are all wringing their hands.'"

The Washington Post's Marcus looks at Obama's need to start feeling the pain of blue-collar voters. "But much as John McCain needs to cultivate his party's still-skeptical base, Obama needs to tend to the anxieties of blue-collar Democratic voters in states such as Ohio who voted overwhelmingly for Hillary Clinton in the primary. More broadly, he needs to speak to the cascading economic worries felt by voters of both parties, or no party at all."

She interviews Obama and gets him to sound both clinical and then empathetic. "'Not in the view of most economists,' Obama replies. 'I'm well aware of the argument  [about] singling out oil companies rather than soda pop manufacturers.'"

"Yes, but what does Obama himself believe? 'I think oil companies are amoral. They want to make as much money as they can for their shareholders, which is what corporations do,' he says. 'The difference is the nature of the kind of outsized profits they make that may have no relationship to their investments or their production. The fact, for example, [that] the shortage of refinery capacity could actually increase their profits so the less they invest the more they make indicates that you are not dealing with someone making widgets out there."

The upcoming Sunday New York Times Magazine features a cover story by Matt Bai asking the question: "Is Obama the End of Black Politics?"

From the story: "The generational transition that is reordering black politics didn't start this year. It has been happening, gradually and quietly, for at least a decade, as younger African-Americans, Barack Obama among them, have challenged their elders in traditionally black districts. What this year's Democratic nomination fight did was to accelerate that transition and thrust it into the open as never before, exposing and intensifying friction that was already there. For a lot of younger African-Americans, the resistance of the civil rights generation to Obama's candidacy signified the failure of their parents to come to terms, at the dusk of their lives, with the success of their own struggle — to embrace the idea that black politics might now be disappearing into American politics in the same way that the Irish and Italian machines long ago joined the political mainstream."

DEMOCRATS: The Clinton and Obama camps put out a joint statement, after suggestions the Clintons are not genuinely behind Obama's campaign and that she has not abandoned plans to be officially nominated at the convention. 
 
Clinton said she has no inside information on Obama's vice presidential pick. "[T]his is a very personal decision for Senator Obama and I have no inside information as to how he is proceeding with his decision," she told reporters Wednesday. "I'm out there supporting him, doing everything I can to make sure he gets elected and I will do same for whatever ticket there is." 
 
Clinton will host a web chat at noon ET for those who didn't win a chance to spend an evening with her. 
 
The New York Times tries to read between the physical lines at the Obama-Bayh event yesterday. It didn't find much.

The son and brother of Sen. Joe Biden are being sued for $10 million over a deal to buy into a hedge fund. A Deutsche Bank executive in London says the Bidens broke a contract and defrauded him.

REPUBLICANS: The Wall Street Journal on Pawlenty's big day in DC yesterday: "Even if Gov. Pawlenty doesn't wind up on Sen. McCain's ticket, some believe the Minnesota governor represents the party's future, along with a handful of other relatively young governors, including Louisiana's Bobby Jindal. Sen. McCain himself last month said that the two governors are 'the future of the Republican party, the next generation of leadership.'"

"They have become the public face of what is seen as the party's reformist wing. This group believes the Republican Party should have focused on economic issues sooner, in response to voter discontent over stagnant wages, rising gas and food costs and uncertainty over jobs and retirement. Their proposed solution: apply conservative, market-based principles, without ruling out government intervention in certain circumstances."

The New York Sun: "He did not delve into details during the speech, but he extolled ideas for a market-based expansion of health care access, energy independence, and school choice. Mr. Pawlenty clung to Mr. McCain's stance in answering questions about Iraq, saying he opposed an 'artificial time line' for withdrawal. And he criticized Mr. Obama at times, saying the Democrat's 'life oratory' was no match for Mr. McCain's life story as a war hero and longtime senator."

"The governor raised some eyebrows earlier in the day when, speaking to party activists in northern Virginia, he praised Mr. Obama's positive message. At the National Press Club, however, he made clear the comment was not meant as a slight to Mr. McCain, who he said had also run a positive and optimistic campaign."

An executive with Huron Consulting Group Inc. says he lost his job when he refused to contribute to former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney's presidential campaign. He's filed an employment bias complaint. 
 
Sen. Joe Lieberman was traveling in one of McCain's Straight Talk Express buses when it collided with a van in Miami Wednesday. And Lieberman will reach out to Jewish voters for McCain at the Detroit Holocaust Memorial Center.  and

The Washington Post has a little nugget that isn't the best PR for the GOP's effort to turn the Congressional recess against the Dems on the energy issue. The paper notes both McCain and House GOP leader John Boehner have been mostly absent during this GOP revolt that's taken place every day this week at the Capitol. Boehner, in fact, has been golfing.

This primary is getting plenty of attention. "In the 9th District Democratic primary, incumbent Steve Cohen is in a rematch of sorts with corporate lawyer Nikki Tinker," the Memphis Commercial Appeal writes. "Tinker released ads late in the campaign that Cohen's campaign considers unfair smears. One features images of the Ku Klux Klan and challenges Cohen for his 1995 Center City Commission vote not to remove the statue and remains of Nathan Bedford Forrest from a Medical Center park. The other, made public Wednesday, features the voice of a little girl reciting the 'Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep' prayer and takes Cohen to task for his 1997 state Senate vote against a bill called the 'Tennessee Student Religious Liberty Act.'"
 
"Cohen said Wednesday he unequivocally does not oppose prayer in schools, but that he opposed that bill because he said it was meaningless political pandering, saying the bill has never been used in a court of law. 'It's desperation,' Cohen said. 'No. 1, this is the last time Miss Tinker is running. After this election, she has no future in politics. And the people of Memphis are not going to put up with these desperation tactics to distort my record.' The ads were criticized by EMILY's List and even drew Worst Person In The World ranking from MSNBC's Keith Olbermann.

From NBC's Mark Murray and Domenico Montanaro
Below is the video of Hillary Clinton telling supporters at a gathering in California that she wants a "strategy" to have her delegates heard at the convention, as reported by Huffington Post and today ABC News. She said such a strategy would be cathartic, and would actually unify the party.

"Because I know from just what I'm hearing, that there's incredible pent up desire," Clinton said. "And I think that people want to feel like, 'OK, it's a catharsis, we're here, we did it, and then everybody get behind Sen. Obama.' That is what most people believe is the best way to go." She also said in the video that she was working out those details with the Obama campaign and the DNC, and that no decisions have been made.

[Youtube:M8gdU_1MM44]

From the ABC story: "Sources close to both Obama and Clinton told ABC News that the New York senator is highly unlikely to allow her name to be formally submitted for a roll-call vote on the convention floor. The Obama campaign wants to avoid such a vote, since it would underscore the party's splits and remind voters of the divisive primary campaign between the two Democrats. ...

"The refusal to publicly announce her intentions is widely seen as a bargaining chip Clinton is holding on to as party officials negotiate logistics regarding her convention speech and other activities, according to several Democrats who are closely involved in the matter."

A Democratic Party operative familiar with DNC rules points out that Clinton must approve, in writing, for her name to be placed in nomination. DNC chairman Howard Dean repeated this to NBC's Chuck Todd on MSNBC Tuesday. The rules provide that:

1. Presidential candidates may place their name in nomination by giving their written approval and submitting delegate petitions containing at least 300 but no more than 600 delegate signatures. A delegate may not sign more than one petition and no more than 50 petition signatures may come from any one state. This means that any possible presidential candidate who wishes to place their name in nomination must give their "written approval." (Rule C.6.a-b) Candidates who are the Party's presumptive nominee must still submit these delegate petitions.

2. Each presidential candidate who has requested to be nominated is entitled to a total of 20 minutes for nominating and seconding speeches, the time to run without interruption.  (Rule C.6.d)

3. After nominations for presidential candidates have closed, "the Convention shall proceed to a roll call vote by states on the selection of the presidential candidate." A majority vote of the Convention's overall total number of delegate votes is required to nominate. (Rule. C.7a.-b)

4. During the course of the roll call vote, delegates may vote for any presidential candidate regardless of whether or not the name of that candidate was placed in nomination. However, a vote cast for LaRouche or any other non-bona-fide Democrat is considered a vote for "Present."
(Rule C.7.c)

The operative adds that balloting continues until a candidate reaches a majority of delegate votes. The last time the presidential nomination went to a second ballot was 1952.

From NBC/NJ's Matthew Berger and NBC's Kelly O'Donnell and Alex Wall WASHINGTON, DC -- When Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty was asked at the National Press Club what qualities are most important for a vice presidential prospect, he was brief -- "discretion," he said.

Pawlenty -- at the top of most short lists for McCain's vice president -- held a bit of an audition here in the DC area today, speaking both before a Republican leadership summit and the Washington press corps at the National Press Club. Pawlenty used the opportunity to make the case for expanding the Republican Party to welcome so-called "Sam's Club Republicans," essentially those of the middle, working class.

"People deserve and expect a more effective government at a better price," he said.

But Pawlenty may have made the most lasting impression by a remark he gave in the morning in front of GOPAC's leadership summit, suggesting it was the message of McCain's opponent that may resonate the best with voters.

"Say what you will about Barack Obama, and I say a lot of negative things about him," Pawlenty said. "We need leaders, and John McCain is positive as well. People gravitate when you've got something positive to say."

The comments were surprising for some who might be tasked as the campaign's "attack dog" if chosen as McCain's running mate. It also came on the heels of a series of negative ads by McCain.

Asked about the comments later, Pawlenty said some negative campaigning is inevitable and unavoidable. "His oratory is one of we're going to do big, tackle big national issues," Pawlenty said. "If you look at his record, there's not one issue of major national concern that he has led the effort on." Pawlenty also criticized Obama's lack of experience, saying "it is simply a matter of fact that less than four years ago he was a state legislator."

McCain advisers cautioned to not "read too much into" Pawlenty's warm praise of Obama. They described Pawlenty as "one of our strongest supporters" and that he plays an important role on Sunday shows and interviews. 

Advisers add that Pawlenty has "not been shy" about criticizing Obama, and they point to his leading role on a McCain conference call in which Pawlenty welcomed Obama to Minnesota and also provided "hard contrasts" on Obama's views on energy. Stepping back, they noted that Pawlenty's praise of Obama's upbeat tone may make it easier to highlight a break when Obama chooses to go negative.

In his speech today, Pawlenty also said Republicans are having a hard time in elections because "we are running against competitors that give the impression they are giving away free stuff."

Instead, he suggested an expansion of the themes of Ronald Reagan -- a common Republican refrain -- while acknowledging many the Republican Party seeks to engage do not remember Reagan's tenure well.

"Ronald Reagan was pragmatic," he said. "We have this hyper-polarized political environment, as to some extent Reagan had in his time as well. But when push came to shove, he got things done."

From NBC/NJ's Carrie Dann
NORFOLK, Va. -- In the midst of a blistering exchange of ads between the two presidential candidates, Michelle Obama chose not to mention her husband's opponent today, even during discussion of a major policy difference with vivid resonance in the military community.
 
Continuing a series of roundtable discussions with military spouses, Michelle Obama called for a brighter spotlight on the needs of veterans, including post-deployment health care and education services for service members. Appearing in battleground state Virginia, Obama listened to a panel of women who lamented the unique challenges that face the husbands and wives of soldiers.

One of the event's biggest applause lines came as she touted her husband's support of a G.I. education bill, sponsored by Virginia Democrat Jim Webb. The bill, which passed the Senate in May and was signed into law in June, will give more than $50 billion in college aid to returning service members over the next 10 years.

What Michelle Obama did not mention was a key part of the discussion among veterans watching the presidential race -- namely, that GOP presumptive nominee and Navy veteran McCain opposed Webb's bill. The aspiring First Lady steered clear of alluding to her husband's bitter counterpunches with his rival after McCain faced a battery of criticism for his resistance to the measure, which is particularly popular with veterans.

A campaign surrogate who shared the stage with her did not let the issue go unmentioned.

"Michelle's too polite. I can say it," said Paul Bucha, a decorated Vietnam veteran and Medal of Honor winner, who has joined Obama at each roundtable in the series. "We're moving forward on the plan that Barack supported and John McCain opposed."

During the spring debate over the legislation, McCain objected to two aspects of the bill: that it did not offer transferability of educational benefits to family members, and that its benefits would be so attractive to service members that they would fail to re-up after only a single tour of duty. A countering proposal offered by McCain, which included transferability, lower payments to recipients, and a tiered system of benefits based on time of service -- was defeated in the Senate.

Michelle Obama described Webb's bill as "legislation that allows service members to share their benefits with their families and achieve the American dream."

A post-passage compromise on the Webb bill meant that the final legislation signed into law by President Bush included McCain's provision that soldiers can transfer their educational benefits to their children and spouses if they choose not to use them themselves.

Obama lamented the economic, personal and medical issues that military families face, saying that she will "transfer that information into the heart and mind of my husband."

Veepstakes speculators will wonder if she'll do the same with her take on Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine, with whom she attends a fundraiser tonight.

From NBC's Mark Murray
Today, the McCain campaign announced it's airing a new anti-Obama ad that will be cycled into its buy in Colorado, Iowa, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia (Northern Virginia), and Wisconsin.

But when it released a more positive TV ad -- which called McCain "the original maverick"  and said that "we're worse off than we were four years ago" -- the campaign simply said the spot was running in "key states." Translation: It's not running as heavily as the other ads, if at all.

Then last night, the Obama camp released its rebuttal to McCain's maverick ad. "He's the original maverick. Really?... He's for billions in new oil company giveaways, while gas prices soar. And for tax breaks for companies that ship jobs overseas. The original maverick? Or just more of the same?"

[Youtube:VHN9bLCgF7k]

When First Read asked an Obama spokesman yesterday where that ad was running, he responded: "Don't have any of that info yet. Will get it to you when I do." And when reached again this afternoon, the spokesman replied: "We are not going to release information about our buy. But it would be fair to say that it will run in places the McCain ad runs." Translation: probably not many places, if it all.

In short, it seems yesterday's TV ad back-and-forth took place via press release, not on TV (other than cable news channels). But if you live in a battleground state and have seen either of these ads, let us know. 

From NBC/NJ's Adam Aigner-Treworgy
JACKSON, Ohio -- For the second day in a row, McCain toured an industrial facility and then made a statement about the need for energy reform. Yesterday, the presumptive GOP nominee visited a nuclear facility in Michigan; today he toured the Merillat cabinet factory here as part of a two-day bus tour of the state.

McCain's message to the employees of Merillat after his tour regarded the need for a plan of action to fix the economy -- something he called "an economic surge."

"What we need today is an economic surge," McCain said. "Our surge has succeeded in Iraq militarily. Now we need an economic surge to keep jobs here at home and create new ones. We need to reduce the tax burden on businesses that choose to make their homes in the United States of America. We need to open new markets to U.S. products and we need to reduce the cost of health care and we need to end the out of control spending in Washington that's putting our debt on the backs of our children. Now's the time for action and when I'm president we are gonna get it done."

Asked afterwards what exactly the senator meant by the phrase "economic surge," campaign spokesman Tucker Bounds said, "More money in family jobs, more money in family budgets, and growing jobs and small businesses."

The "surge" does not necessarily entail new economic policies from the McCain campaign, but seems to be more of a re-branding that allows McCain to link the economy with the surge in Iraq, which he often says has "succeeded."

Today McCain portrayed Obama's economic plan as an example of what not to do in a struggling economy.

"Companies are moving overseas," McCain said. "We're taxing them out of the country. Unfortunately, Sen. Obama's plans would raise taxes on businesses even more. He's promised tax increases on income, tax increases on investment, tax increases on small businesses.  That's exactly the wrong strategy. Raising taxes in a bad economy is about the worst thing you can do, because it will kill even more jobs. What we need are policies that create jobs."

From NBC/NJ's Athena Jones
ELKHART, Ind. -- It was another day of Paris, Britney and energy this morning, as Obama gave a point-by-point rebuttal to a new ad from his rival, and he and a top surrogate quipped about the celebutantes, during a town hall in this red state the Democrat hopes to turn blue.

McCain began running a television ad yesterday that referred to him as the "original maverick." The ad said Washington was "broken," the country was "worse off" now than four years ago and that the Arizona senator would reform Wall Street and battle Big Oil.

Obama joked that it had taken McCain 26 years in Washington to figure out that the system was broken and argued that contradicted McCain's earlier assertions that America had made "great progress economically" over the past eight years. He said McCain had boasted about voting with George Bush 90% of the time, which showed he was no maverick.

"I know that Sen. McCain likes to call himself a maverick -- and the fact is there have been times where in the past he did show some independence," he told a crowd of about 1,600 at Concord High School here in a city known as the RV capital of America. "But the price he paid for his party's nomination has been to reverse himself on position after position, and now he embraces the failed Bush policies of the last eight years, politics that helped break Washington in the first place -- and that doesn't meet my definition of a maverick. You can't be a maverick when politically it's working for you and then not a maverick when it doesn't work for you and you're seeking your parties' nomination."

Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN), whose name has been mentioned on a short list of possible running mates, introduced Obama. Bayh praised Obama for making frequent visits to the Hoosier State -- he cited 42 trips -- asked the crowd to tune out "political nonsense" like commercials that feature Paris Hilton and Britney Spears and called the Illinois senator a true uniter.

"Our current president ran for the nation's highest office, promising us that he would be a uniter not a divider. Well, it didn't quite work out that way now did it? It's about time we had a president who not only said it but meant it and Barack Obama will," Bayh said to applause.

In his brief, energy-centered opening remarks Obama once again called for an "all hands on deck approach" to confronting the nation's energy challenges, but differentiated his plan from McCain's -- which the Arizona senator has called an "all of the above" approach to energy issues. Obama argued McCain's proposals focused too much on drilling and read like an early Christmas list for oil and gas lobbyists.

The presumptive Democratic nominee listed Iraq's $79 billion budget surplus as another example of what he said was wrong with America's current energy policy and with Bush's policies in general.

"At a time when were spending $10 billion a month in Iraq they've got almost $80 billion that's not being invested in services for suffering Iraqis or reconstruction," he said. "Some of this money is sitting in American banks in New York on Wall Street collecting interest while you the taxpayer are paying for reconstruction efforts in Iraq. That's why we've got to bring about fundamental change."

Obama appeared to want to keep the starlet storyline alive to try to portray his rivals as silly. He concluded by asking the audience to ask their friends and neighbors the simple question of whether they were better off now than they were four years ago.

"Do they think that the economy is working right now? Do they think our foreign policy is working right now? If they do, then they should work their heart out for John McCain, because his policies are not different from what George Bush has been offering," he began. "But if you think that we need fundamental change. If you think that we can create a brighter future and we can have a more serious politics than we have right now -- one that focuses on solving our problems instead of on Paris Hilton and Britney Spears, then I need you to vote for me."

The tire gauge debate continues.

At one point during the roughly 1 hour, 20-minute event, Obama noted that McCain had come around to his point of view -- during a telephone town hall meeting with Pennsylvania voters last night -- that proper tire pressure was one way to reduce gas consumption, after several days during which the Republican's campaign had mocked the Illinois senator for making such a suggestion. He sparked laughter when he said that "in the coming days it's going to be interesting to watch this debate between John McCain and John McCain."

The McCain campaign sent around a response to the remarks about tire pressure.

"Barack Obama's continued assertion that Americans simply inflating their car tires is equivalent to additional offshore oil drilling is wrong, and underscores his lack of understanding of this issue," wrote spokesman Tucker Bounds. "True energy independence requires John McCain's 'all of the above' approach which includes alternative energy, additional offshore oil drilling, and safe nuclear power."

The e-mail included a longer quote from the telephone town hall that showed that while McCain had noted that the American Automobile Association strongly recommends keeping tires properly inflated, he did not think that "that that's a way to become energy independent."

It's worth noting that Obama's original statement on the issue was in response to a question from a town hall attendee about what they could do as an individual to help tackle the energy crisis.

From NBC's Mike Viqueira
The following was written by a Republican leader in the U.S. House after it was announced that President Bush, the leader of his party, would not be calling Congress back into session to deal with energy policy.

As chairman of the policy committee, Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI) is the No. 5-ranking Republican in the House. In unfavorably comparing George Bush to Harry Truman, here is, in part, what he wrote in a memo to fellow Republicans (bold added):

"Today, in his final term, the wildly unpopular President George W. Bush boarded Air Force One bound for the Beijing Olympics and a meeting with his chum Hu Jintao, the dapper ruler of a nuclear armed, communist dictatorship. Yet before jetting off, the President's spokesman Tony Fratto bid "Beijing George's" best wishes to the Democrats' "Drill Nothing" 110th Congress: 'We don't have plans to call Congress into session -- it won't make a difference if Democratic leaders are unwilling to bring up a bill for an up-down vote.'"

He also writes, "[P]erhaps our Compassionate Conservative-in-Chief will bring our absent Democrat Congress some "Made in (communist) China" souvenir
t-shirts: 'Bush went to Beijing and all I got was this lousy five week, paid vacation.'"

McCotters full note is here:

House GOP Fights on Alone for American Energy Security
Bush Throws Them under the Bone-Dry Bus on Way to Beijing Games

Facing momentous domestic problems and mounting disapproval ratings, two modern Presidents have differently dealt with "Do Nothing" Congresses.

Facing an "impossible" re-election, on July 26, 1948, the wildly unpopular and doggedly anti-communist President Harry S. Truman accepted his Democratic nomination and boldly confronted the GOP's "Do Nothing"
80th Congress:

"My duty as President requires that I use every means within my power to get the laws the people need on matters of such importance and urgency.
I am therefore calling this Congress back into session July 26th."

"Give 'em Hell Harry" got re-elected; and the "Do Nothing" 80th Congress got booted.

Today, in his final term, the wildly unpopular President George W. Bush boarded Air Force One bound for the Beijing Olympics and a meeting with his chum Hu Jintao, the dapper ruler of a nuclear armed, communist dictatorship.  Yet before jetting off, the President's spokesman Tony Fratto bid "Beijing George's" best wishes to the Democrats' "Drill Nothing" 110th Congress:

"We don't have plans to call Congress into session - it won't make a difference if Democratic leaders are unwilling to bring up a bill for an up-down vote." 

Regardless, we will continue our "Speak-In" on the adjourned House floor to protest Speaker Pelosi's refusal to vote on lowering gas prices and furthering American energy security and independence.

On his part, perhaps our Compassionate Conservative-in-Chief will bring our absent Democrat Congress some "Made in (communist) China" souvenir
t-shirts:

"Bush went to Beijing and all I got was this lousy five week, paid vacation."

Bon Voyage, Mr. Bush!

House Republicans will fight on for America!

From NBC/NJ's Adam Aigner-Treworgy
JACKSON, Ohio -- Kicking off a brief bus tour of West Virginia and Ohio, McCain visited a pre-season football practice at Marshall University in Huntington, W.V., this morning and gave the team a pep talk on the value of teamwork and overcoming adversity.

After watching a few plays and even calling three himself, the coaches called the players to midfield where they knelt around the senator and listened to his remarks. 

McCain referred to the adversity that the Marshall Thundering Herd overcame almost 40 years ago, which was most recently detailed in the film "We Are Marshall." In 1970, a plane carrying the school's football team crashed, killing almost everyone involved in the football program. The next year, the school decided to restart the program under the guidance of Coach Jack Lengyel -- who was played in the movie by Matthew McConaughey -- and won only two games. Years later, the school again saw success and graduated NFL players Randy Moss, Troy Brown and Chad Pennington.

McCain, a former P.O.W., said that in the Navy, "we were a team, and we had leaders. Our leaders were our senior ranking officers. They're the ones that, when we failed, they picked us up and sent us back into the fight. And we didn't always win."

"Americans are watching you," McCain said in his concluding his remarks. "And I'm watching. And millions and millions of people will be watching, including our soldiers and sailors and marines and airmen who are serving in Iraq. They are going to be watching. And they are going to be proud of you. And they will know that this is a special institution because, we are Marshall."

From NBC's Mike Viqueira
Republicans continued their occupation of what is normally a demilitarized zone this time of year, the House chamber.

To freshen things up, they brought in a living echo of revolutions past, former speaker New Gingrich, to lend his heft to the effort. Gingrich spoke briefly on camera in support of the Republican contention that the mere announcement of expanded offshore drilling would drive down prices in the short term. He also took a slap at Nancy Pelosi for spending August on tour to promote her new autobiography instead of working here in D.C. to solve this nation's energy problems.

After their presser outside of the chamber Republicans marched in to commence their speechifying. They are getting logistically more organized, as the place is packed right from the start this morning with tourists, interns, and staff. Applause and cheers can be heard coming through the cloakroom doors as one walks the halls.

Inside, it is an unusual spectacle. Instead of standing at a rostrum and speaking into a microphone, as we have all grown accustomed to seeing when the proceedings are televised, members pace back and forth in the well speaking at the top of their lungs. Cheers from the balconies punctuate their oratory, a display that is expressly forbidden during a normal, formal session. The thing has a kind of 19th Century feel to it.

They plan on continuing at least through the end of the week, and perhaps into next.

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
Given the Washington Post A1 piece on McCain fundraiser Harry Sargeant, it's worth pointing out NBC's Aram Roston's piece on Sargeant and his company from May, which sparked a congressional investigation.

Roston wrote: "A little-noticed civil lawsuit in Florida is shining a light on an unusual but hugely profitable Pentagon contract to ship millions of gallons of aviation fuel to U.S. bases in Iraq through the kingdom of Jordan. The deal involves a cast of influential characters, including the king of Jordan's brother-in-law, who is suing Harry Sargeant III, a top Florida-based fundraiser for Sen. John McCain's presidential bid.

"Sargeant is a Florida businessman and former Marine Corps pilot hailed by the McCain campaign as a "Trailblazer" for raising $100,000 or more in political donations. Through a company called International Oil Trading Co., or IOTC, Sargeant and a partner have a lucrative contract worth hundreds of millions of dollars per year to supply American military forces in Iraq with fuel, especially aviation fuel. The firm ships the fuel to Jordan and then trucks it across the border, where U.S. forces escort the convoys to air bases.

Sargeant's IOTC has experienced phenomenal growth since the Iraq war started, transforming itself from an unknown business in 2004 to a major Pentagon contractor in only a few years. The way the American military structured the deal, only a company with the blessing of the Jordanian government could win the contract.  A bidder was required to have a Jordanian government "Letter of Authorization," and only IOTC received such a letter.

"The lawsuit against Sargeant was filed April 10 in Florida state court by Mohammad Al-Saleh, who is married to the half sister of King Abdullah of Jordan. Al-Saleh's suit says he essentially brokered Sargeant's contract by arranging the approval and cooperation of the Jordanian government, using his "connections and influence." The lawsuit alleges that Al-Saleh arranged for the Jordanian government "to issue a letter of authorization to IOTC." Al-Saleh's lawyer, Jonathan Frank, said, "Were it not for my client, they would not have been able to get that letter."

Also check out NBC's Deep Background blog for more on this.