From NBC's Pete Williams and Domenico Montanaro
The car left in Times Square Saturday night is yielding several promising clues, officials say, leading investigators to question people who are believed to have some connection to the SUV.

One such person made several phone calls overseas, but a senior official says it isn't yet known whether the calls had anything to do with the attempted bombing. 

"We live in an international society," the official said. "The calls may be completely innocent."

The official declined to say what the connection was to the car and how it was traced. But it shows that investigators are pursuing what they believe to be promising leads.

The Washington Post reported the following with this headline: "Officials increasingly see international plot in Times Square bomb attempt."

From NBC's Andrew Gross
WASHINGTON -- First Lady Michelle Obama was a guest of honor for the National Science Bowl here today, hitting two teams of middle-school students with a dizzying array of extremely complicated bonus-round questions. 

So, complicated, in fact, that she later joked in her speech that she had to "study just to read the questions" and that she practiced the questions on the president but he didn't get any right.

For those keeping score at home, the winning high-school team was North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics (coincindence -- I don't think so) and the Albuquerque Academy won in the middle-school division.

In her speech following the awarding of trophies, Obama said that science and math are key factors in the nation's prosperity and that she hopes that the high-school and middle-school students at the bowl will help reaffirm the country's role in scientific discovery. Americans discovered air-conditioning and band-aids, she noted.

The Science Bowl is made up of 105 middle-school and high-school teams from around the country, competing in the Department of Energy's 20th event in Washington, D.C. 

Today's finals were held in the gigantic National Building Museum. In round-robin and double-elimination matches over the past three days, more than 500 students answered questions on all fields of science by buzzing in during fast-paced, Jeopardy-style matches.

The Department of Energy sponsors the Science Bowl to encourage students to pursue careers in math and science, because, it says, a skilled scientific and technical workforce is essential to meeting the challenges facing our nation in the 21st Century.

From NBC's Mark Murray
As Rahm Emanuel said, never waste a crisis. And that is now playing out with the oil spill in the Gulf Coast.

In what is the first political TV advertisement to highlight the oil spill in the Gulf Coast region -- and apparently the first explicit politicization of the accident -- MoveOn.org has a new TV urging President Obama to reinstate the ban on offshore drilling.

[Youtube:vOfsFF7bAzE]

From NBC's Andrea Mitchell
Launching an attack on the United State at the United Nations, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that the U.S. has never lived up to its commitments and has tried to "change the focus" from its own noncompliance with nuclear treaties by diverting to issues like nuclear terrorism.

He also accused the CIA of working with "the Zionist regime"  (Israel) against "independent nations" in the region.

The U.S. delegation walked out, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is scheduled to be across the street at the U.S. mission until after he finishes his speech.

From NBC's Mark Murray
Remember Scott Lee Cohen -- who won February's Democratic primary in Illinois for lieutenant governor, but who dropped out after allegations that he abused his ex-wife, used steroids, failed to pay child support, and held a knife to his then-girlfriend's throat (who happened to be a prostitute)?

Well, he now has set his sights on a higher office: Illinois governor.

The Chicago Tribune writes, "Pawnbroker Scott Lee Cohen announced his independent candidacy for governor this morning, trying to leap back into the political fray that chewed him up and spit him out in February... To get on the Illinois ballot, Cohen would need to submit 25,000 signatures from registered voters on petitions by June 21."

From NBC's Pete Williams
Beginning Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court will no longer allow visitors to enter the building through the massive bronze doors at the top of the prominent steps in front of the building. Instead, visitors will enter through side doors at the base of the stairs. Two of the current justices say that's the wrong thing to do.

The new entrance, the court says, will include a screening area to check for  weapons, explosives, and chemical and biological hazards. The change is part of the court's multi-year modernization project. The new secure entrance was designed "in light of findings and recommendations from two independent security studies conducted in 2001 and 2009," a court statement says today.

Visitors will still be able to leave the court through the doors at the top of the stairs.

Justices Stephen Breyer and Ruth Bader Ginsburg both say this is the wrong step for the court to take. Breyer issued a statement today, which Ginsburg supports.

"I think the change is unfortunate, and I write in the hope that the public will one day in the future be able to enter the Court's Great Hall after passing under the famous words 'Equal Justice Under Law,'" he said.

There's important symbolism, he says, in having members of the public climb those marble steps that reflect the processional progress toward justice.

"This court's main entrance and front steps are not only a means to, but also a metaphor for, access to the court itself," Breyer says.

Breyer adds that as far as he can tell, "no other Supreme Court in the world --including those, such as Israel's, that face security concerns equal to or greater than ours -- has closed its main entrance to the public."

[EDITOR'S NOTE: An earlier version of this post noted that the court would no longer allow visitors to enter through the doors at the top of the steps, beginning Wednesday. In fact, it begins tomorrow -- Tuesday.]

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
Competitive primaries in Ohio, Indiana, and North Carolina will be decided when voters go to the polls tomorrow.

As we mentioned in First Thoughts, we're calling this "Marginal Primary Tuesday" for a couple of reasons: (1) the races aren't expected to be as competitive as the ones on May 18 are, and (2) the most important takeaways will be the actual margins of victories. In Indiana's GOP Senate primary, for example, Dan Coats is the favorite, but does he win impressively or is it close as some polls are suggesting? In North Carolina's Democratic Senate primary, the DSCC's favored candidate is Cal Cunningham, but is he able to avoid a June 22 run-off against Elaine Marshall? And in Ohio's Democratic Senate primary, just how big will Lee Fisher's likely victory over Jennifer Brunner be?

In Ohio, the big contest is Lt. Gov. Fisher vs. Secretary of State Brunner in the Democratic primary.

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Fisher is favored. Polls show him leading by double-digits. The final Quinnipiac poll before the primary has Fisher leading Brunner by 20 points among likely primary voters (43%-23%).  

Democrats will be happy to get this one overwith. Both candidates have spent a lot of money against each other. And the party can then focus on Rob Portman, a former congressman and Bush budget director.

In Indiana, it's the GOP Senate primary with former Sen. Coats.

Coats is favored over John Hostettler, a former congressman, and state Sen. Marlin Stutzman, who was endorsed by conservative Sen. Jim DeMint and David Keene of the American Conservative Union.

Hostettler and Stutzman have been knocking Coats from the right. Coats has been criticized for his ties to Washington, his current address and his lobbying record. Coats spent 30 years in Washington as a congressman and then a senator. Since retiring from Congress a decade ago, Coats became a lobbyist. He lived in Virginia, then North Carolina, and did not maintain an address in his home state -- until this campaign.

Coats defended that record in an interview with First Read.

The winner of this primary will face Democrat Brad Ellsworth, a tough-talking former sheriff from the Southwestern part of the state. Ellsworth's challenge is two-fold: (1) Environment: the national climate is trending against the Democrats, particularly in right-leaning Indiana, and (2) Name recognition: Ellsworth is popular in his eighth-congressional district, but he has to work to be recognized by the rest of the state.

And in North Carolina, the race to watch is the Democratic Senate primary between Secretary of State Marshall and Cunningham, a former state senator.

It's a toss up. And could end up in a runoff. That's bad news for Democrats because that drags the race into late June.

Marshall leads in some polls, but Cunningham has dominated the airwaves. If neither meets the 40 percent threshold to win the primary, then it would go to a June 22nd runoff.

That would delay the party from focusing on incumbent Sen. Richard Burr. Because of Burr's somewhat lackluster favorability ratings, Democrats have been optimistic about their chances. But they have struggled to get their candidate of choice, and the last thing they need in this environment is a prolonged party fight.

Either way, Burr would likely be favored, as the Democratic candidate could have an uphill battle.

From NBC's Mark Murray
With six months to go until Election Day 2010, GOP strategist Steve Lombardo has a good breakdown of the factors that seem to be benefiting Republicans and the ones helping Democrats.

The good news for Republicans:
-- Voter dissatisfaction with the country's direction and with government
-- The GOP is performing very well on the generic ballot
-- Republicans have a decided enthusiasm advantage
-- After winning in many GOP-leaning areas in '06 and '08, Democrats have nowhere to go but down

The good news for Democrats:
-- The issue environment (immigration, financial reform) doesn't help GOP candidates
-- The economy is improving
-- Unlike in 1994, the Democrats and the White House know what is coming, and still have six months to turn things around
-- Obama's poll numbers are far from a disaster. ("If his approval gets back to or above 50%, it will be a big help to Democrats in the fall.")

But Lombardo, channeling what we wrote in First Read this morning, also notes that things can change. "If anyone needed more evidence that the issue environment is shifting rapidly, the last 24 hours has surely provided it. We have seen the gulf oil spill move from a serious issue to a potentially catastrophic event. On Saturday night, Times Square was evacuated in the face of a failed car bomb attempt... The implications are clear for 2010: just when you think you have a good handle on the issue environment, you probably don't."

External events -- the oil spill in the Gulf and the failed bomb in Times Square -- remind us that the political landscape can change in the blink of an eye… Obama addressed both events in Louisiana yesterday… The president has now interviewed at least three SCOTUS candidates: Garland, Kagan, and Thomas… Breaking down tomorrow's Marginal Primary Tuesday… Mapping out the rest of the week… Lincoln and Halter denounce "racist" TV ad targeting Halter… And Specter and Sestak debated over the weekend, as did Whitman and Poizner.

From Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, Domenico Montanaro, and Ali Weinberg
*** External affairs: No one ever said being president was easy. After getting health care done, seeing the economy turn around, and having financial reform on the verge of Senate passage, the Obama White House now has had to deal with the oil spill in the Gulf Coast, a failed car bomb attempt in Times Square, and even Arizona's new immigration law. It's yet another reminder of how external forces play an important -- and unpredictable -- role in American politics. Just as soon we think we have a grasp of what's happening, what it means for the midterms, and what it means for 2012, we have events that potentially could throw everyone a curveball.

*** Obama on the oil spill: During his quick trip to Louisiana yesterday, President Obama addressed both the oil spill and the failed car bomb in New York. On the former: "I think the American people are now aware, certainly the folks down in the Gulf are aware, that we're dealing with a massive and potentially unprecedented environmental disaster. The oil that is still leaking from the well could seriously damage the economy and the environment of our Gulf states, and it could extend for a long time. It could jeopardize the livelihoods of thousands of Americans who call this place home." He added, "BP is responsible for this leak; BP will be paying the bill. But as President of the United States, I'm going to spare no effort to respond to this crisis for as long as it continues. And we will spare no resource to clean up whatever damage is caused."

*** Obama on Times Square: Regarding the latter, Obama said, "I want to commend the work of the NYPD, the New York Fire Department, and the FBI, which responded swiftly and aggressively to a dangerous situation. And I also want to commend the vigilant citizens who noticed this suspicious activity and reported it to the authorities... We're going to do what's necessary to protect the American people, to determine who is behind this potentially deadly act, and to see that justice is done. And I'm going to continue to monitor the situation closely and do what it takes at home and abroad to safeguard the security of the American people." On the president's schedule today: At 4:00 pm ET, he presents the commander-in-chief trophy to the Navy football team, and he hosts a dinner for the Business Council at 6:45 pm.

*** SCOTUS guidance: One thing that the White House has control over -- at least in the short term -- is its pick to replace Justice John Paul Stevens on the Supreme Court. The only guidance that Team Obama is giving for the pick is that it will happen before May 26 (when Sonia Sotomayor was announced a year ago). Also, we now know that President Obama has formally interviewed at least three candidates: Sidney Thomas of the 9th Circuit, Merrick Garland of the DC Circuit, and Solicitor General Elena Kagan.

*** Marginal Primary Tuesday: A new round of primaries takes place tomorrow, with contests in Indiana, North Carolina, and Ohio. We're dubbing this day Marginal Primary Tuesday because 1) the races aren't expected to be as competitive as the ones on May 18 are, and 2) the most important takeaways will be the actual margins of victories. In Indiana's GOP Senate primary, for example, Dan Coats is the favorite, but does he win impressively or is it close as some polls are suggesting? In North Carolina's Democratic Senate primary, the DSCC's favored candidate is Cal Cunningham, but is he able to avoid a June 22 run-off against Elaine Marshall? And in Ohio's Democratic Senate primary, just how big will Lee Fisher's likely victory over Jennifer Brunner be? The final Quinnipiac poll before tomorrow's primary has Fisher leading Brunner by 20 points among likely primary voters (43%-23%).

*** Mapping out the rest of the week: Beyond those primaries tomorrow, Britain holds its parliamentary elections on Thursday. On Friday, we'll get new jobs numbers. And on Saturday, Utah Republicans hold their convention, where Sen. Bob Bennett (R) is hoping to get the necessary percentage to even qualify for the primary.

*** Super Senate Tuesday: In Arkansas, both Bill Halter and Blanche Lincoln have denounced "an advertisement that uses Indian actors and images to raise claims that Halter outsourced jobs to India," the AP says "The ad, reportedly made by a Virginia-based group called Americans for Job Security, began appearing on various websites Friday night." And in Pennsylvania, Arlen Specter and Joe Sestak participated in a heated debate on Saturday night. The Philly Inquirer says the two men "bitterly attacked each other's character during a televised debate … that was every bit as contentious as their Democratic Senate primary struggle has become in its closing days."  and  

*** More midterm news: The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has announced that operative Robby Mook will run the DCCC's independent expenditure unit… In Arizona, the controversial sheriff, Joe Arpaio, is mulling a bid for governor… In California, GOP gubernatorial hopefuls Meg Whitman and Steve Poizner participated in a debate on Sunday… In Hawaii, a Honolulu Advertiser poll shows Republican candidate Charles Djou leading Democrats Ed Case and Colleen Hanabusa in the special congressional election to replace Rep. Neil Abercrombie (D), who is running for governor; early voting by mail begins this week in Hawaii… And in Ohio, former jailed Congressman Jim Traficant reportedly will file paperwork this afternoon to launch an independent bid for Congress. 

Countdown to IN, NC, and OH primaries: 1 day
Countdown to NE and WV primaries: 8 days
Countdown to AR, KY, OR and PA primaries, and PA-12 special: 15 days
Countdown to HI special election: 19 days
Countdown to Election Day 2010: 183 days

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The Washington Post: "Driving through the marshy lowlands southeast of New Orleans on Sunday, President Obama got his first glimpse of the fallout from a huge oil spill moving in from the Gulf of Mexico -- an event that has teetered on the verge of crisis as the administration has rushed to demonstrate the situation is under control. But even as Obama visited a Coast Guard station and took a helicopter tour, another near-disaster was unfolding in New York, after a car packed with explosives smoldered in Times Square on Saturday night. That left Obama little choice but to open his remarks in Louisiana with a statement on Midtown Manhattan -- delivering a discordant message on twin crises that were unrelated except by timing."

The AP: "With no remedy in sight, President Obama warned yesterday of a 'massive and potentially unprecedented environmental disaster' as a badly damaged oil well a mile deep in the Gulf of Mexico spewed a widening and deadly slick toward delicate wetlands and wildlife. He said it could take many days to stop." 
 
The New York Post: "Amid complaints his administration moved too slowly in response to a catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, President Obama rushed to Louisiana yesterday and laid the blame squarely on BP. 'BP is responsible for this leak. BP will be paying the bill,' Obama said after getting a firsthand look at the endangered Louisiana shoreline."

Appearing on "Meet the Press" yesterday, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said it could take up to three months before crews reach an "ultimate solution" to stop the oil spill that continues to leak in the Gulf Coast, NBC's Andrew Rafferty notes. Salazar called the oil spill "a very grave scenario."  The solution the secretary referred to is a relief well that would be drilled more than three miles below the ocean floor. But in the time it would take to complete the well, "a lot of oil could spread," Salazar said.

"A balding, 40-something man caught on camera is the subject of an intense manhunt in connection with the botched but terrifying attempt to bomb Times Square," the New York Post writes. "In a chilling surveillance video released late last night, the man is seen at the end of Shubert Alley peeling off a sweatshirt he'd been wearing over a short-sleeved red shirt, furtively glancing over his shoulder, then stuffing the sweatshirt into a bag." Here's the video. 

"President Obama on Saturday directly confronted the sharpening political rancor in Washington, on the airwaves and on the Internet, telling the graduating class at the University of Michigan that the country needs a 'basic level of civility in our public discourse,'" the New York Times writes. "As a panoply of protesters shouted outside, many of them carrying signs decrying Mr. Obama as a 'socialist,' the president told some 8,500 graduates — and 80,000 family members, professors and others in the audience in Michigan Stadium — that passions were overheated and that people on all sides of the political debate needed to find ways to listen to one another."

"'Throwing around phrases like "socialist" and "Soviet-style takeover," "fascist" and "right-wing nut" may grab headlines, but it also has the effect of comparing our government, or our political opponents, to authoritarian and even murderous regimes,' Mr. Obama said. Such rhetoric, he said, closes the door to political compromise." 

"Hillary Rodham Clinton said yesterday that she intends to serve as secretary of state throughout the first term of the Obama administration," the AP says. Also: "Appearing on NBC's 'Meet the Press,' Clinton said she does not want to serve on the Supreme Court and has never wanted to be a judge." Clinton also heads for somewhat of a diplomatic showdown with Iran at the U.N. this week: "The secretary of state will speak this week at a UN conference on the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which is expected to focus on Iran's nuclear program. She has warned that if Tehran gets the bomb, the rest of the Middle East could follow."

The legislative clock is ticking. Democratic lobbyist Billy Moore estimates that there are just 60 legislative days remaining before the Oct. 8 target for adjournment -- assuming four-day work weeks for the balance of the year. That means there's little time to finish the Dems' ambitious agenda.

Politico says that Nancy Pelosi and other congressional Democrats have warned the White House that President Obama's bashing of Washington could end up hurting Dems in November. "President Barack Obama's Washington-bashing could boomerang on his party in Congress if he's not careful, House Democratic leaders have warned White House senior adviser David Axelrod. The fear — raised by Speaker Nancy Pelosi, campaign chief Chris Van Hollen and Majority Whip Jim Clyburn in a closed-door meeting Thursday — is that Democrats have more to lose if anti-Washington sentiment is not directed at one party or the other."

The Washington Post profiles Pelosi. "House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is so unpopular in some places that she often avoids public appearances... But under the Capitol dome, Pelosi is a towering figure, perhaps even a historic one. Capped by her central role in passing the landmark health-care bill in March, the California Democrat, 70, has transformed herself from the caricature of a millionaire liberal with impeccable fashion taste into a speaker on par with the revered Sam Rayburn, according to historians, pollsters and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle."

"Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.) said his arrest outside the White House on Saturday was meant to raise awareness about the need for comprehensive immigration reform," Roll Call reports.

The New York Times: "As Democrats close in on their goal of overhauling the nation's financial regulations, several prominent experts say that the legislation does not even address the right problems, leaving the financial system vulnerable to another major crisis. Some point to specific issues left largely untouched, like the instability of capital markets that provide money for lenders, or the government's role in the housing market, including the future of the housing finance companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Others simply argue that it is premature to pass sweeping legislation while so much about the crisis remains unclear and so many inquiries are in progress."

ARKANSAS: "Sen. Blanche Lincoln and Lt. Gov. Bill Halter, her chief rival for the Democratic nomination, on Saturday condemned an advertisement that uses Indian actors and images to raise claims that Halter outsourced jobs to India," the AP reports. "The ad, reportedly made by a Virginia-based group called Americans for Job Security, began appearing on various websites Friday night." 

CALIFORNIA: "Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Poizner said Sunday he now supports Arizona's tough immigration law after previously opposing it, and he applauds California's neighbor for taking action where the federal government failed to do so," the San Jose Mercury News reports. "Poizner, the state insurance commissioner, said he previously had concerns that the law encouraged racial profiling, but supports it now that Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer has approved some changes to the measure."

FLORIDA. Charlie Crist told National Review Online that Joe Lieberman provided the inspiration for Crist's indie bid. "[Lieberman] told me that [going independent] is the most liberating thing," Crist says. "He was right. I'm much happier now, to be perfectly candid."

On "Meet the Press," Crist "would not say Sunday which party he'd caucus with if elected to the Senate. Crist, who left the Republican Party this week to pursue an independent bid for the state's open Senate seat, said he would be open to voting for a Democrat as majority leader. 'I'll caucus with the people of Florida,' Crist said."

HAWAII: "Honolulu City Councilman Charles Djou has the advantage in the special election for Congress, a new Hawai'i Poll has found, giving Republicans the best opportunity in two decades to claim the urban Honolulu district," the Honolulu Advertiser reports. "Djou leads with 36 percent, former congressman Ed Case is chasing at 28 percent, and state Senate President Colleen Hanabusa is trailing with 22 percent. Thirteen percent were undecided." 

More: "The poll, taken for The Advertiser and Hawai'i News Now, confirms fears among Democrats that Case and Hanabusa could split the Democratic vote in the winner-take-all election and help Djou score a rare Republican upset."

NEW YORK: GOP gubernatorial candidate Steve Levy confirmed to the New York Post that the Republican Governors Association has promised to spend $8-$10 million for him. "Nick Ayers, one of the high-up persons for (RGA chairman) Hailey Barbour," made the money pledge, he said, adding, "They said, we love what you're talking about." 

TEXAS: On Sunday, the New York Times profiled Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill White. "Democrats are more hopeful this year than in any year since George W. Bush swept into the governor's office in 1994 and began an era of Republican dominance in statewide politics. Mr. White has credentials as a fiscal conservative, having cut property tax rates in Houston, where he was a three-term mayor. And in Houston, he proved that he can win over Republicans and independents. It is also difficult for an opponent to pigeonhole Mr. White on social issues — he favors abortion rights but opposes gun control and supports the death penalty."

UTAH: "Down in the polls with less than a week before Saturday's convention, [incumbent Republican Sen. Bob] Bennett started his new campaign with an e-mail and mailing to GOP activists that ended with this slogan: 'Before you vote, know what the consequences are,'" the Salt Lake Tribune writes.