The Washington Post writes, "Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor's opinions show support for the rights of criminal defendants and suspects, skepticism of corporations, and sympathy for plaintiffs alleging discrimination, an analysis of her record by The Washington Post found. And she has delivered those rulings with a level of detail considered unusual for an appellate judge. During nearly 11 years on the federal appeals court in New York, Sotomayor

has made herself an expert on subjects ranging from the intricacies of automobile mechanisms to the homicide risks posed by the city's population density. Her writings have often offered a granular analysis of every piece of evidence in criminal trials, and sometimes read as if she were retrying cases from her chambers."

More: "Legal experts said Sotomayor's rulings fall within the mainstream of those by Democratic-appointed judges. But some were critical of her style, saying it comes close to overstepping the traditional role of appellate judges, who give considerable deference to the judges and juries that observe testimony and are considered the primary finders of fact." 

The AP says Sotomayor's record is thin on presidential power. Her record "suggests she will be neither reflexively hostile to broad expansion of a president's authority nor a reliable rubber stamp in support of it."

Looking at the Blagojevich and Sanford scandals, as well as Sarah Palin's upcoming resignation, Lou Jacobson writes in Politico that "it's becoming clear that voters ought to be paying more attention to candidates for lieutenant governor." 

KENTUCKY: State Attorney General Jack Conway (D), who's running for Jim Bunning's (R) Senate seat, announced raising $1.325 million for the quarter.

MASSACHUSETTS: The Boston Globe: "Charles D. Baker Jr. announced yesterday that he will resign as chief executive of Harvard Pilgrim Health Care to seek the Republican nomination for governor, a move that infused more drama into an already chaotic political week and paved the way for a potentially momentous 2010 campaign. Baker, who has been seen by many of the party faithful as the leading Republican challenger, is planning to run a campaign that leverages his strong background in state government and his firsthand knowledge of the state's healthcare system. He intends to challenge Governor Deval Patrick's approach to the fiscal crisis and his collaboration with the Legislature to raise the sales tax." 

NEW JERSEY: A George W. Bush-era EPA administrator has an op-ed about the politics of presidential association in the New Jersey race for governor. Alan Steinberg predicts that by "late September," Obama's popularity in the Garden State will decline below 50%, citing yesterday's Quinnipiac Poll where Obama's approval dropped 13 points in eight weeks. Steinberg also calls Republican candidate Chris Christie's new video, in which he "couldn't agree more" with Obama's energy policy, "the most egregious political mistake" Christie could make. 

NEW YORK: "Richard Ravitch, the 76-year-old lion of New York civic leaders and the state's go-to guy in a crisis, Wednesday got the toughest assignment of his storied career," The New York Daily News reports. "Gov. Paterson named Ravitch the state's lieutenant governor -- a controversial move aimed at ending the month-long Senate stalemate that has made New York government a national laughingstock. For Ravitch, the self-effacing grandson of Russian immigrants with a knack for problem-solving, the new gig is just the latest in a long line of public service stints that have come at the request of governors and a President."

OHIO: "Republicans and a local coal group are giving Rep. Zack Space (D-Ohio) heat for his recent vote in favor of controversial global warming legislation, which narrowly passed the House before the July Fourth recess," Roll Call reports. "Space represents a Republican-leaning rural district in eastern Ohio that boasts a large coal industry presence. Although the GOP failed to recruit a top-tier candidate to run against Space in 2006 and 2008, it believes his vote for the cap-and-trade bill could make him vulnerable in 2010." 

VIRGINIA: Both candidates for Virginia governor, Bob McDonnell (R) and Creigh Deeds (D) hired former new media "gurus" from the Obama campaign to provide counsel on texting. McDonnell and Deeds have both harnessed the power of Twitter and update tweets daily, though to different effect. While McDonnell uses the forum primarily to raise funds, Deeds provides rapid-fire updates of his iPod selections. A recent tweet: "Listening to Stones' 'Salt of the Earth.' Life is good."

From NBC's James Rankin
President Obama's stimulus package has faced growing criticism recently for its slow implementation and inability (so far) to reduce unemployment and kick-start the economy.

House Minority Leader John Boehner added to the narrative this weekend with an appearance on Fox News Sunday, in which he claimed that the stimulus money had yet to lead to a single infrastructure contract in his home state of Ohio. In fact, as the Cleveland Plain-Dealer pointed out, 52 projects had already been approved at an estimated value of $84 million.

Video: As the effectiveness of the economic stimulus package is being scrutinized, questions swirled Wednesday around whether the Obama administration will propose another one. NBC's Lisa Myers reports.

Citing "multiple independent fact-checkers," Ohio Democratic Party Chairman Chris Redfern continued to fight back in a press call this afternoon against Boehner's claims regarding the economic stimulus. "John really needs to get home and listen to the people in his district. They're pleased that stimulus dollars are being invested in the local economy and they're pleased with the hundreds of jobs that are going to be created or retained," said Redfern.

The state of Ohio was awarded nearly $9 billion in stimulus funding by the federal government, $1.4 billion of which is devoted solely to infrastructure improvement. Only $84 million -- 6% of the total infrastructure funds for the state -- has been approved for use.

Redfern defended the money spent thus far and the current pace of spending, adding, "We recognize that with a stimulus package of this size, the distribution has to be done in an orderly and trackable way."

As First Read noted earlier today, Boehner's office responded to the Democratic criticism with this statement: "Ohio was very nearly the last state to get the first 50% of its stimulus construction money obligated for construction projects, which is ridiculous. As of late May, approximately, no contracts had been signed. Since that time, some contracts have been belatedly set in motion, but the entire process has been absurdly slow-moving."

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
Rod Blagojevich's former chief of staff struck a deal with U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald and pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and implicated his former boss.

"He agreed to cooperate in the federal probe against his former boss in return for a recommended prison term of just under 3 years," Chicago news outlets report, adding, "The guilty plea had long been expected.  His attorney has made clear for quite some time that Harris was cooperating with the government's investigation of Blagojevich

and would testify against him." 

The plea agreement charges that John Harris, the former chief of staff "participated in a scheme to deprive the people of the State of Illinois of their intangible right to the honest services", that he and Blagojevich "sought to obtain financial benefits for Blagojevich and his wife" in exchange for Barack Obama's Senate seat, that at Blagojevich's direction, he plotted out how to accomplish that, and he advised Blagojevich on the best way to carry it out.

The agreement hangs Blagojevich out on his own, in parts, saying that sometimes Harris expressed opposition to Blagojevich's desire to get something out of the seat and sometimes "did not follow instructions from Blagojevich to assist in those efforts."

Throughout 2008, Blagojevich shopped the seat, according to the agreement. He wanted either money or a job in exchange for appointing a Senate Candidate B (who appears to be Valerie Jarrett) to the seat, according to the document. Specifically, Blagojevich was interested in being Health and Human Services Secretary, getting a job in a private foundation that gets federal funds, an ambassadorship or a post at a union, the agreement alleges.

It also notes that Blagojevich wanted his wife to get a job with an organization that did business with the state and that "When Blagojevich concluded that officials at these institutions had been unhelpful in finding his wife a job, Blagojevich told Defendant that he did not want the institutions to receive further business from the State of Illinois."

In October 2008, the agreement states, that Blagojevich asked what he "could get in exchange for the" seat, but when told he couldn't get money for it, "Blagojevich ignored" that.

It also alleges that Blagojevich told Harris that he asked an SEIU official if could be appointed HHS Secretary in exchange for appointing a Senate Candidate B. Blagojevich also had Harris look into potential ambassadorships or, in particular, a job at a private foundation to "give President-elect Obama a buffer, meaning that it would not be obvious that Blagojevich was getting a position in exchange for making Senate Candidate B the Senator." ...

"Defendant suggested that the foundation would need to be a group that was dependent on federal funding, so that President-elect Obama would have enough influence to get Blagojevich a position. Blagojevich was very interested in this idea and told Defendant to look into options right away. Deputy Governor A asked whether Blagojevich was thinking about a position with a private foundation for 2010 (when his term as Governor ended) or now. Blagojevich said that he wanted the position now and wanted to know how much the position paid. Deputy Governor A responded that the salary was likely $200,000 to $300,000. Blagojevich seemed disappointed in that salary and asked something like, "Oh is that all?" At that point, Defendant said that he thought the salary was more like $300,000 to $500,000. Blagojevich had a more positive reaction to that salary."

Harris suggested he could become national director of Change to Win, a coalition of unions. And the agreement alleges that two SEIU union officials "would act as a buffer between President-elect Obama and Blagojevich."

And: "Defendant explained to Blagojevich that part of the advantage to the Change to Win idea was that this was something that SEIU Officials A and B could promise to Blagojevich now and Blagojevich could believe that they would follow through on later, while part of the disadvantage to the Change to Win idea was that it was not politically acceptable for Blagojevich to step down as Governor to take that position. In response, Blagojevich suggested the possibility of having his wife take a position now and then Blagojevich could take the national position later."

And it indicates that Blagojevich believed that Senate Candidate A, identified previously as Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., would raise $1.5 million "in campaign funds for Blagojevich in exchange for the U.S. Senate appointment."

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro and Chuck Todd
The former John Ensign

staffer whose wife had an affair with the senator "said Ensign abused his power, involved at least one other senator in a scheme to feign repentance, pay off Hampton's debts and quiet his paramour's husband," according to Nevada Politico Jon Ralston, who interviewed Doug Hampton, the former Ensign aide.

"Hampton provided what he asserts is a handwritten letter from Ensign to Cindy Hampton professing to end the affair and invoking his relationship with God, but was again pursuing his wife within 24 hours. Hampton, among other revelations, also said Ensign paid Cindy Hampton well over $25,000 in severance and he also acknowledged he asked the senator for millions of dollars in restitution. Hampton also intimated that his current employers at Allegiant Air are feeling pressure to get him to leave."

From NBC's Mark Murray
On the very day word came out that Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan (D) would NOT run for President Obama's old Senate seat (or also governor), the Republicans' top target for the seat -- congressman Mark Kirk (R) -- has decided that he WILL be running, according to a GOP strategist with knowledge of the decision.

Kirk gives the Republican Party its best opportunity to win major statewide office in Illinois since 1998, when GOPers George Ryan won the governor's race and Peter Fitzgerald won the Senate contest.

Kirk's entry also underscores how the Blagojevich scandal -- and the ex-governor's choice of Roland Burris to replace Obama in the Senate -- has now jeopardized the Democrats' control of this Senate seat.

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
The House Intelligence Committee Chairman Silvestre Reyes

claims the CIA "affirmatively lied to" his panel. He said so in a letter to Pete Hoekstra, the committee's ranking Republican, CQ reports.

Reyes "wrote that the committee has recently received information that reveals significant problems with the intelligence agency's reporting to the panel," CQ writes. " 'These notifications have led me to conclude this committee has been misled, has not been provided full and complete notifications, and (in at least one occasion) was affirmatively lied to,' Reyes wrote. Reyes did not describe or detail the alleged false or misleading statements to the committee."

CQ characterized it as a warning to Republicans "to avoid politicizing the intelligence authorizaton bill later this week. ... Republicans contend a provision of the fiscal 2010 bill (HR 2701) scheduled for floor action Thursday would modify congressional notification procedures to provide political cover for Speaker Nancy Pelosi . Such briefings are a sensitive political topic, because Republicans have repeatedly criticized Pelosi over what she knew and when about the Bush administration's use of harsh interrogation techniques and her assertion that the CIA "misled" Congress on that topic."

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
In a speech that played up the inevitability and urgency of a health-care bill this year, Vice President Joe Biden announced a $155 billion deal with hospitals to trim Medicare and Medicaid costs over the next 10 years.

Biden said the "reductions will be achieved through a combination of delivery system reforms, additional reductions in hospital -- and additional reductions in the hospital's annual inflationary updates. All of these savings are based on the policies the administration proposed in its budget to fund health care reform."

Video: Saying "reform is coming," Vice President Joe Biden announces a White House deal with hospitals to give up about $155 billion over 10 years in government payments in order to help pay for health care reform.

Biden made it clear that health care is getting done, and for those not yet on board, he warned, they'd better, because the train is leaving the station:

"Folks, reform is coming. It is on track; it is coming. We have tried for decades -- for decades -- to fix a broken system, and we have never, in my entire tenure in public life, been this close. We have never been as close as we are today, and things remain on track. We have these hospitals working with us, and we have the pharmaceutical industry working with us; we have doctors and nurses and health care providers with us; we have the American public behind us.  And everyone sees that we need change. And in my view, we're going to get that change, and we're going to get it this year. ...

"The hospital industry knows, and the people with me here today know, and the president knows, that the status quo is simply unacceptable. Let me say that again -- the status quo is simply unacceptable. Rising costs are crushing us. They're crushing families, crushing businesses, crushing state budgets -- and they are crushing the health-care industry itself. ...

"Today's announcement I believe represents the essential role hospitals play in making reform a reality. And a reality it will be. We must enact this reform this year. We must -- and we will -- enact reform by the end of August. And we can't wait. I know that; the leaders that are up here know that; the President knows that; my colleagues who I just spoke to know that; and the entire Congress knows it. And I look forward to hearing how their hospitals are going to be helping and bringing about this reform."

From NBC's Mike Viqueira and Domenico Montanaro
House Minority Leader John Boehner says administration claims that they didn't know just how bad the economy was when formulating the stimulus is "the greatest fabrication I have seen since I have been in Congress."

In several meetings between administration and congressional leaders that he has attended, "everyone in the room knew how serious it was," Boehner told reporters after the weekly House Republican caucus meeting.

Boehner also repeated his various statements of opposition to the energy and health care bills, asserting that the result will be that Democrats "will have to tax virtually everything that moves in America."

The Democratic National Committee turned its focus on Boehner with a Web ad, accusing him of no longer leading the "Party of No," as it claims, but the "Party of No Facts." It quotes him as saying over the weekend that "there hasn't been a contract let" in Ohio. The DNC uses an Ohio newspaper article to dispute that. "The Ohio Department of Transportation has OK'd 52 stimulus-funded road and bridge projects at a cost of nearly $84 million," the Cleveland Plain-Dealer wrote.

Boehner's office pushed back this way:

"Ohio was very nearly the last state to get the first 50 percent of its stimulus construction money obligated for construction projects, which is ridiculous," Boenher spokesman Michael Steel told First Read in an e-mailed statement. "As of late May, approximately, no contracts had been signed. Since that time, some contracts have been belatedly set in motion, but the entire process has been absurdly slow-moving -- just as Republicans warned it would be last winter when we called for an economic recovery bill based on fast-acting tax relief for small businesses and working families rather than spending on slow-moving government programs. It's embarrassing that the DNC can't defend its own indefensible trillion-dollar stimulus that isn't working and resorts to desperate tactics like this."

Boehner voted against the stimulus plan.

Republican whip Eric Cantor

was on hand to point out the seeming contradictions between Rahn Emanuel, who recently indicated that the so-called "public option" to health care could function as a fall back, triggered only if other plans fail to meet certain benchmarks in covering the uninsured, and the president, who has spoken in favor of a public option.

The "trigger" idea has been put forward by Blue Dogs in the House and has been met with resistance by Dem leaders.

And Mike Pence offered the following: "The only thing the stimulus plan has stimulated is more government debt."

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
Hat tip to Ben Smith for this Palin Twitter:

Couple of thoughts for the day on beautiful bright AK morn:"You have to sacrifice to win. That's my philosophy in 6 words."- George Allen. &
16 minutes ago from TwitterBerry

But then First Read decided to log on to check out her page, and we found this wisdom:

Today,try this: "Act in accordance to your conscience -risk- by pursuing larger vision in opposition to popular, powerful pressure"-unknown
7 minutes ago from TwitterBerry

Video: Rachel Maddow considers the online consequences of Sarah Palin's resignation announcement - particularly the Google search volume and what that means for the PAC with the paid advertising on Sarah Palin search results.

And she is clearly thinking about politics:

 Talk in DC of a 2nd "Stimulus" Pkg: Impacts on AK? We'd be partaking in even more Big Govt largess & immoral natl debt accumulation when...
about 1 hour ago from TwitterBerry

...NO ONE can measure DC's 1st attempt @ growing debt to "fix" prob. AK seeks development, industry, jobs for econ recovery vs growing govt 41 minutes ago from TwitterBerry

From NBC's Mark Murray
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan -- who was mulling a possible Senate or gubernatorial bid in 2010 (and had been speaking with the Obama White House about these races) -- has instead decided to run for re-election, according to a Democratic official.

The news is a blow to the White House and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, since Madigan was widely viewed as the Democrats' top choice for Barack Obama's old Senate seat that's now filled by the embattled Roland Burris.

With Madigan's decision, the top possible Democratic contenders for the Senate seat are Chris Kennedy (Robert F. Kennedy's son) and state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias. Burris also may or may not run.

The Republicans top potential candidate is Illinois congressman Mark Kirk, but he has not yet decided whether he'll jump into the race.

Democrats insist they're still poised to hold on to this Senate seat in deep-blue Illinois, even after the Blagojevich scandal that ended up propelling Burris into Obama's Senate seat. Still, Kirk's ultimate decision will tell us much more about how competitive this Senate race will be next year.   

*** UPDATE *** Per the Washington Post Cillizza, who broke this story: "To be clear, Madigan would have been a favorite had she decided to run for either the Senate or for governor, a fact that makes her decision to run for neither office all the more puzzling."

From MSNBC's Norah O'Donnell

J.Crew today is flashing on the front-page of its crewcuts section, "The famous coats you've been waiting for."

When you click the link, you can pre-order the peach and purple coats Malia and Sasha Obama wore to their father's inauguration in January.  

The preppy clothing line is already taking heat for trying to profit off the Obamas' decision to sport their clothes. Yesterday, a spokesman for J.Crew insisted they never sent out a press release touting all the details on the trench coats and ballet flats the first daughters wore in Moscow.

Instead, J.Crew said it only responded to media inquires. The First Lady's office tells NBC News, "We do not believe the girls should be used for marketing purposes."

It should be noted that J.Crew does not mention the Obama daughters' names on its Web site.

From NBC's Mike Viqueira

House side sources are being very tight lipped about the Karl Rove testimony. Under the agreement reached earlier this year, none of the participants are allowed to speak publicly until all interviews have been concluded and transcripts have been released.

Having said that, we have confirmed from the congressional side that testimony did take place yesterday, and another session is planned for later this month.

"The agreement setting up the interviews contemplated that they would remain entirely confidential until all the interviews were complete," Rove's attorney Robert Luskin said in a statement to NBC News. "Out of respect for that term of the agreement, Mr. Rove is not commenting."

From Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, Domenico Montanaro, and Ali Weinberg
*** Time to come home? President Obama's previous overseas jaunts (to Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East) have helped to bolster his domestic image. But his current trip doesn't seem to be doing that. For one thing, the settings (Russia, earthquake-torn Italy) aren't as friendly. Also, his top two domestic priorities -- the economy and health care -- are becoming increasingly problematic. Just take a look at these headlines: "Power of Stimulus Slow to Take Hold" (Washington Post), "Democrats Stuck in Stimulus Jam" (Politico), "Report: States Aren't Using Stimulus Funds as Intended" (USA Today), and "Health Deals Could Harbor Hidden Costs" (New York Times). For the White House, the sooner Obama gets home, the better. In fact, the last thing the president wants is for T-shirts like this famous one the DNC made for George H.W. Bush in 1991: "George Bush Went to Rome … And All I Got Was This Lousy Recession."

*** The Stimulus PR problem: When it comes to the stimulus, it's interesting that it has become more of a P.R. problem rather than an economic one. After all, most economists agree that the stimulus' true benefits won't come until later this year or next (which raises the question why the previous administration didn't try to kick-start the economy in '08). But with the unemployment rate increasing, the economy still stagnant, and White House officials not on the same page (Biden's "misread" comment and Laura Tyson raising the possibility of a second stimulus), the $787 billion recovery act -- at least in the short-term -- has become an image problem for the White House, especially as the GOP pounces on every piece of bad economic news. As Obama told NBC News and First Read yesterday, "What we always knew was that: A) this recession was going to be deep, B) it was going to last for a while, and C) even when the economy pulls out of recession that you are going to see jobs emerging only at the end of that process rather than the beginning."

Video: NBC's Chuck Todd talks about President Obama's trip to Italy and how the G-20 summit has surpassed the outdated G-8 summit in terms of getting real work done.

*** What the White House wishes Obama could talk about today: At 10:30 am ET, Vice President Biden and HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius will announce another positive development for the administration in the health-care effort: Hospitals are committing about $150 billion in savings to help pay for reform. Indeed, chatting with NBC yesterday, Center for American Progress chief John Podesta argued that paying for health care isn't going to be as problematic as some once thought it would be. "The cost of the bill is not going to be the hurdle it was a month ago," he said. (The Center has published a report laying out how to pay for a $1.2 trillion bill that doesn't require Obama to break his promise of not raising taxes for those making less than $250,000 per year.) The bigger questions, Podesta says, are these: How bipartisan will be the bill be? Will there be a public/government option. And if so, what will it look like? By the way, just how desperate are the White House folks about having their boss back in the U.S.? They felt compelled to send a "reminder" email about Biden's announcement today. Meanwhile, on the GOP side, Sen. John Cornyn holds a conference call at 11:30 am ET to discuss health care.

*** With strings attached? Today's hospital announcement, of course, is the latest example of the health-care industry striking a deal with the Obama administration. But as the New York Times asks today, what is the industry getting in return? "'I'm delighted to hear that people are stepping up to help reduce costs,' said Senator Christopher J. Dodd, Democrat of Connecticut, who is leading the Senate health committee, 'but I want to know what the ask is, and the ask sometimes can exceed the value of your cost savings.'" Here's another health-care question: Can the White House strike a deal and still keep its base happy? MoveOn yesterday blasted out a release criticizing Rahm Emanuel's trial balloon of a "trigger" for a public/government option. "Can you call the White House switchboard and tell them you're disappointed in Chief of Staff Emanuel's comments supporting the 'trigger'? Tell them voters want a strong public health insurance option—not half-measures like the 'trigger.'" 

*** When in Rome… : President Obama today has already arrived in Rome and met with President Napolitano. At 9:00 am ET, he was scheduled to take his class photo. Afterward, he attends a G8 meeting and then the leaders, including Obama, tour the earthquake damage in L'Aquila. Just askin, but is the G8 a relic of the 20th Century? The simple fact is that at the G8, they have to hold something called the G8+5+1 (which adds China, Mexico, India, Brazil, and South Africa). And then there's Egypt, simply because Italy invited them. Bottom line: Let's just get to the G20 already; that's the 21st Century.

*** What to do about Iran? The one agenda item Obama hopes to truly accomplish on this trip is to get a tough statement from the G8 (which includes Russia!!!) on Iran. Watch the wording of this carefully. Here's the AP summary on the VERY watered down statement from the meeting of the G8 foreign ministers: "IRAN: Deplored post-election violence, urged Iran to respect human rights and to reflect the will of the Iranian people in the electoral process." Will the words be ANY tougher? Clearly, the key on this is Russia, and how tough this statement ends up being today will be a clue as to just how much Obama accomplished in Moscow earlier this week.

*** Putin as Hamlet: Speaking of Russia, a White House adviser said yesterday's nearly two-hour private meeting between Obama and Putin was dominated by a 50-minute soliloquy from Putin on the state of U.S.-Russia relations. If Obama didn't get it before he got to Russia, he gets it now: Russia wants respect, and Putin has made that clear ever since he took power. By the way, our sources also made it clear they didn't view Putin's monologue to Obama as a "lecture" or a "rant." So there were no eye rolls and placating. The key will be whether this is the start of a meaningful alliance or just another false start.

Video: In a continuing effort to win over the hearts and minds of Russia, President Obama met with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Tuesday and leaves Moscow with an appeal to Russia's people to let go of old "Russia versus the U.S." attitudes. NBC's Chief White House Correspondent Chuck Todd reports.

*** Polling Palin: A USA Today/Gallup poll conducted on Monday finds that little has changed for Sarah Palin since her surprise announcement last week that she would be resigning as governor at the end of the month -- Republicans love her, while Democrats and independents don't. According to the poll, 72% of GOPers said they were likely to vote for Palin for president. But 81% of Democrats and 53% of independents said they were unlikely to vote for her. As GOP consultant Alex Castellanos, who worked for Romney's presidential campaign, told USA Today, "For independents and Democrats, she's already not their candidate, and with Republicans her support is not based on her record as governor of Alaska." Also in the poll, 17% said her announcement gave them a less favorable impression of her, 8% said it gave them a more favorable impression, and 70% said it had no effect.

Video: MSNBC's Richard Wolffe talks about why Sarah Palin's political future no longer looks so promising.

*** Deposing Rove: NBC's Kelly O'Donnell and Mike Viquiera confirmed that Karl Rove was deposed yesterday before the House Judiciary Committee as part of the panel's investigation into the Bush administration's firing of U.S. attorneys. Per Politico, Chairman John Conyers "would not comment on what Rove told congressional investigators, what the next step in the long-running Judiciary Committee investigation would be or whether Rove would face additional questioning.  'He was deposed today,' Conyers said in an interview. 'That's all I can tell you.'"

Video: NBC's Savannah Guthrie and Jonathan Capehart of the Washington Post join MSNBC's Dylan Ratigan to discuss the impact of the proceedings involving Karl Rove.

*** Other odds and ends: Also today, Rep. Patrick Murphy (D) and the Human Rights Campaign hold a press conference at 10:00 am ET in DC to announce the launch of a nationwide tour to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." Jeb Bush speaks on immigration reform at 9:00 am before the Council on Foreign Relations in DC. And Bill Clinton keynotes the Center for American Progress' "Campus Progress National Conference," which begins at 8:00 am.

Countdown to Election Day 2009: 118 days
Countdown to Election Day 2010: 482 days

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"Following private talks with President Giorgio Napolitano before joining the G-8 summit of industrialized nations, Obama called Italy 'a great friend of the United States,'" the AP writes. "Obama, joined by Napolitano after their meeting, said the two countries 'are working hand in hand in places like Afghanistan to ensure that we're isolating extremists and strengthening the forces of moderation around the world.'"

The New York Times editorial page is pretty blunt about the incredibly low expectations for this gathering in Italy. "[I]nexcusably lax planning by the host government, Italy, and the political weakness of many of the leaders attending, leave little room for optimism. If this session is going to justify the time and effort, President Obama will have to lead the way. It is time for him to turn the diplomatic credit he has been earning over the past six months into diplomatic capital."

Video: A CNBC panel discusses the Group of Eight summit in Italy and the health of the global economy.

Wrapping up Obama's visit, the New York Times does the story we had on Nightly News last night: the lack of adulation Russians gave to the Obamas. But the Times adds this element, which we too have heard whispered but have seen no evidence: "In the background is the question of race, which Russians view through a complicated prism. For decades, Soviet propaganda hammered home the idea that the United States was an irredeemably racist country, as opposed to the Communist bloc nations. But Russia in recent years has been plagued by racist violence against people from the Caucasus region and Central Asia, as well as other immigrants."

The New York Times front-pages all the industry groups that seem about the Health-Care Reform Express. "First, it was a broad consortium of health industry groups — doctors, hospitals, drug makers and insurers, all promising to slow the growth of medical spending by 1.5 percent. Then, it was the big drug makers, promising savings of $80 billion over 10 years, by lowering the cost of medicine for the elderly. On Wednesday, it will be major hospital associations, pledging to save more than $150 billion over a decade. And a deal with doctors is said to be on tap next."

Video: Political analyst Lawrence O'Donnell and MSNBC's Pat Buchanan discuss the difficulties facing Obama's healthcare legislation with the Morning Joe gang.

"In each case, the Obama administration hailed the agreements as historic. But what has been little discussed is what the industry groups will be getting in return for their cooperation, whether or not the promised savings ever materialize."

Roll Call: "White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel reassured House Democrats on Tuesday night that President Barack Obama strongly backs a government-run health insurance plan, seeking to quell a firestorm among liberals upset at Emanuel's comments in the Wall Street Journal that suggested such a plan could be delayed."

The Washington Post: "Five months after Congress approved a massive package of spending and tax cuts aimed at reviving an ailing economy, the jobless rate is still climbing and the White House is scrambling to reassure an anxious public that President Obama's prescription for economic recovery is on the right track."

Dan Balz's take: "Nothing may be more important to public assessments of President Obama's leadership than the state of the economy, and at this point there are political warning lights flashing."

Video: New York magazine's John Heilemann debates whether the defecit-driving stimulus package was too small to affect the kind of change President Obama hopes for.

Congressional expert Norm Ornstein tries to answer the criticism that Obama is choosing to be weak when dealing with legislation: "The approach Obama has taken, cutting Congress a lot of slack and being supportive when necessary, led to a string of early and meaningful successes and enactments. True, the tough ones lie ahead. Finding any majority for any climate change bill in the Senate is even more challenging than it was to get a bill through the House. Finding any compromise between health bills that might make it through the House and Senate, pass fiscal muster, and be enacted into law is a tough slog. But I believe the approach the White House has used so far has actually been smart and tough-minded, not simply expedient and weak. A successful president looks at the endgame, sees what is possible and maneuvers in the best way to get to that endgame. If you can't get bills through committee, or you can't find a majority on the floor of either chamber, you get nowhere."

"Senate Democratic leaders have stepped up the pressure on their rank and file to unify on procedural votes after finally gaining a filibuster-proof majority, but centrists who have long been headaches for the leadership are so far refusing to commit to the strategy," Roll Call reports. "'Most Senators vote their conscience and they do what they think is right. They didn't come here to be told what to do by somebody else,' moderate Sen. Evan Bayh (Ind.) said. Majority Whip Dick Durbin (Ill.) said Tuesday that he and Senate Leader Harry Reid (Nev.) will be asking the 60-member Democratic caucus to 'stick together' on procedural votes that would allow the chamber to begin or end debate on legislation."

"Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) on Tuesday strongly urged Finance Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) to drop a proposal to tax health benefits and stop chasing Republican votes on a massive health care reform bill," Roll Call says.

More Murtha Watch:

The Justice Department "filed criminal charges against a defense contractor who has received millions of dollars worth of earmarks from Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.), bringing together two parallel cases that are swirling around a host of firms with ties to the Congressman… The charges ... stirred suspicion that the government is targeting firms close to Murtha as part of an investigation of the lawmaker himself, but the Justice Department has never confirmed it is interested in Murtha."

Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D) spoke at the Michael Jackson Memorial yesterday. Per Roll Call, Lee apparently "has a history of making cameo appearances at funerals. The Houston Chronicle reported in September 2008 that Jackson had staffers 'cull the obituaries' to find funerals at which she then requested to speak."

The Chronicle: "One job of aides is to cull the obituaries. One told friends of taking her to five funerals in one day, and of hating to have to ask the families if they would allow her to speak. The request pleased some, he said, but angered others. But her willingness to go to funerals and virtually any other kind of public gathering in her district impresses a lot of voters and gives her great name identification, making her a formidable opponent."

"GOP Senators now say their best bet for breaking into the public consciousness with their complaints about Sotomayor's record may be during next week's confirmation hearings -- although privately, many said it may be too late to have any impact on the final vote," Roll Call reports.

 And despite criticism of the president for doing too many things at once, check out this acknowledgement by a GOP senator: "I think part of it is the Democrats are benefiting right now from the deluge of issues," said John Thune (R-SD), the Senate Republican Policy Committee chairman. "They've got so many irons in the fire, it's hard for anything to come through."

OK, admit it: You want to see a debate between Maureen Dowd and Sarah Palin. "Caribou Barbie" was only the start; MoDo unloads on her again today with a Dear Diary…

More Palin quotables: "You know, politically speaking, if I die, I die. So be it," she said. But she sure sounded like someone who wants a political agenda. "President Obama is growing government outrageously, and it's immoral and it's uneconomic, his plan that he tries to sell America. His plan to 'put America on the right track' economically, incurring the debt that our nation is incurring, trillions of dollars that we're passing on to our kids, expecting them to pay off for us, is immoral and doesn't even make economic sense."

Video: Alaska's soon-to-be ex-Governor Sarah Palin re-emerged in public Tuesday for the first time since she stunned the political world with her resignation decision last week. NBC's Andrea Mitchell reports.

A new ethics complaint? "Within days of resigning from office, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) is facing a new ethics complaint, accusing her of continuing to ask for reimbursement for travel expenses for staying in her own home in Wasilla while working in Anchorage, records show," the Washington Post writes.

The New York Times' Nagourney wonders if we're reading too much into Palin's announcement on Friday. "From this perspective, the decision was simple and sensible: Less stress, and more national attention and money. A year from now, perhaps, she will find herself in a position where she wants to run, or is being pressed to run, and may do it. Or she may find that being a big player in her party and the conservative movement — you could see candidates making a pilgrimage to her doorstep for her endorsement — might be satisfying enough."

"Yes, she might have some grand plan to make her way into the White House, as so many people have speculated. But maybe, for now at least, there is less there than meets the eye."

FLORIDA: "The race for retiring Sen. Mel Martinez's (R-Fla.) seat is about to get pricey, as two candidates will report having raised more than $3 million in just the first few months of the contest." 
 
LOUISIANA: Vitter's strong hand: "Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) hauled in $1.2 million in the second quarter as he prepares to face Rep. Charlie Melancon (D-La.) in his reelection bid next year," The Hill reports. "In a statement, Vitter announced that he now has $3.2 million cash on hand."

NEW HAMPSHIRE: The Hill writes, "Five months after Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) announced he would vacate his Senate seat, state Attorney General Kelly Ayotte (R) announced Tuesday that she will resign her current office to explore a run for Senate. When it becomes official, Republicans will have a Senate candidate with no elective experience who has never run a campaign before. (In New Hampshire, attorneys general are appointed by the governor, not elected.) That can be a blessing, or it can be a disaster."

NEW JERSEY: In a new video laying out his renewable energy plan, Republican candidate Chris Christie channels an unlikely source: President Obama, at one point showing a picture of Obama inspecting solar panels. In the video, "Christie blames Corzine, who calls for some of the same measures, for not taking action" after a federal report found that only 1 percent of New Jersey's energy came from renewable sources in 2007. But the Corzine camp "blasted Christie's proposal to give companies 100 percent corporate tax credits for manufacturing renewable-energy equipment, calling it reminiscent" of George W. Bush's policies.

From NBC's Pete Williams

Texas and California today joined 32 other states in asking the U.S. Supreme Court to rule that the 2nd Amendment's right to own a gun applies to the states and not just the federal government.

It's far from commonly known that the first 10 amendments to the Constitution in the Bill of Rights do not automatically apply to the states. Over time, the Supreme Court has ruled that most do, but not all. For example, the 5th Amendment requires indictment by a grand jury for any felony, but some states don't use grand juries, and they're not required to.

Last year, the Supreme Court for the first time in U.S. history ruled that the 2nd Amendment's right to keep and bear arms protects an individual's right to own a handgun for self defense at home. In doing so, it struck down Washington, DC's strict ban on handguns.  But the court explicitly said it was reserving for another day the question of whether the amendment applies elsewhere -- beyond the federal enclave of the District of Columbia.

Challengers of Chicago's handgun ban are asking the Supreme Court to take up their case and rule that the amendment applies to the states. The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled last month that it does not apply, citing earlier Supreme Court cases. The 2nd Circuit has reached the same conclusion, in an opinion joined by none other than Judge Sonia Sotomayor. Only the 9th Circuit, based in California, has ruled that it does apply to the states.

Texas filed its brief along with 32 other states. California's attorney general, Jerry Brown, filed separately to say his state is one of the few that has nothing in its state constitution that resembles the 2nd Amendment. In filing its friend of court brief, California joined the National Rifle Association, which is challenging the Chicago handgun ban.

In a separate move, the NRA today said Sotomayor's record on gun rights is "extremely troubling." In a letter, the NRA's executive director, Chris W. Cox, urged senators to question her on the 2nd Amendment during next week's confirmation hearings. He says the NRA takes no position on her nomination, but will oppose it if her answers are "hostile or evasive."

From NBC's Mark Murray and Domenico Montanaro
It's part of the physics of politics: When you're trailing in a race, you go negative. And here's a TV spot from New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine (D) hitting challenger Chris Christie (R).

Per the Corzine campaign, the ad will air throughout the state over the coming weeks.

[Youtube:IhqmDe8dxwI]

From NBC's Mark Murray
With New Hampshire Sen. Judd Gregg (R) retiring and with Democrats getting Rep. Paul Hodes (D) to run to replace him, this seat had once seemed like perhaps the top Senate pick-up opportunity of 2010.

Maybe not any more.

As Chuck Todd had reported late last month, Republicans have been courting state Attorney General Kelly Ayotte, who was appointed to her position by former GOP Gov. Craig Benson and re-appointed by Democratic Gov. John Lynch.

Now Ayotte says she's resigning (effective July 17) and is now officially exploring a Senate bid. "Recently, many New Hampshire citizens have urged me to run for United States Senate," she said in a statement. "I appreciate their confidence in me. After discussing this matter with my husband, Joe, and our family, I have decided to resign as Attorney General in order to explore a campaign for the United States Senate."

The National Republican Senatorial Committee welcomed the announcement. "Kelly Ayotte has been an effective Attorney General on behalf of the people of New Hampshire, and we are pleased that she is considering opportunities that many could not have anticipated even months ago. Clearly, Kelly Ayotte will be a formidable candidate for the U.S. Senate if she decides to run."

Democrats, however, are pouncing on news that Ayotte broke a pledge to Lynch to serve a full term as state attorney general. "When it comes to electoral politics, Kelly Ayotte is unproven and untested," said Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee spokesman Eric Schultz. "And considering her first move out of the gate is to break a pledge she made to the people of New Hampshire, she also seems unprepared."

Lynch's office released this statement: "This morning I received Kelly Ayotte's letter of resignation. I thank her for her service. The attorney general's office is a critical function of state government. I will move quickly to appoint a new attorney general."

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
Al Franken now gets the title senator, as he was sworn in by Vice President Biden this afternoon. He's now Minnesota's junior senator.

Here's an awkward moment. The Boston Globe: "Moments after Franken was sworn in as Minnesota's Democratic junior senator, he gave a big bear hug to Massachusetts Senator John F. Kerry (himself not much of a public hugger), followed by hearty embraces of Democratic Senators Barbara Boxer of California, Tom Harkin of Iowa, and Amy Klobuchar, who has been carrying the load for Minnesota alone during the six months of fighting over the seat. ... As fans in the visitors' gallery cheered, Franken pumped his fist in victory, still holding the Bible he used for his swearing-in."

Also his committee assignments will include Judiciary, Aging and Health. "Franken will not officially join the latter panel, however, until after it finishes work writing the healthcare overhaul bill," The Globe reports, adding this context: The Senate's No. 2 Democrat Dick Durbin "noted that the committee is considering hundreds of amendments Franken had not participated in debating; a spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada, added that it would be unfair to Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, a Rhode Island Democrat who has been working on the panel temporarily, to replace him with Franken during a time of such intense legislative activity."

Hotline notes: "Franken used the late Paul Wellstone's Bible."

With Franken's swearing in, the book is now closed on the Minnesota Senate saga. It last 246 days, eight months, four days.

From NBC's Mark Murray
This morning, the Wall Street Journal quoted White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel

saying that he's flexible about having a public/government option in any health-care bill. "The goal is to have a means and a mechanism to keep the private insurers honest," he told the paper. "The goal is non-negotiable; the path is negotiable."

The Journal continued, "Mr. Emanuel said one of several ways to meet Mr. Obama's goals is a mechanism under which a public plan is introduced only if the marketplace fails to provide sufficient competition on its own."

But the White House later pushed back a bit -- with a statement from Obama declaring his support for a public option. "I am pleased by the progress we're making on health care reform and still believe, as I've said before, that one of the best ways to bring down costs, provide more choices, and assure quality is a public option that will force the insurance companies to compete and keep them honest. I look forward to a final product that achieves these very important goals."

Video: President Obama wants a health care reform bill on his desk by October, but resistance from the industry is a big reason why that may not happen. Sens. Bernie Sanders and John Barrasso discuss on the "Ed Show."

In an interview with First Read and NBC, John Podesta, the president and CEO of the liberal-leaning Center for American Progress, said that there are essentially three variations of public plans to help compete with private insurers. One is a full public plan, which Obama and Podesta support. Two is the bipartisan Daschle-Dole-Baker proposal, which has a public plan that operates at the state level. And three, there's the co-op option.