Politicalwire claims that Arnold is considering calling off the special election this November because a court ruled the measure on redistricting could be on the ballot. It links to an article in the Sacramento Bee, but its a password site and I don't know the rules about linking to it from here.  Anyway, check out www.politicalwire.com for more, also I have some ideas about it after the fold.

I just finished reading Nicholas Kristof's op-ed piece in today's (6.26.5) NY Times. He talks about the irresponsible debt the Bush administration has accumulated and how it will impact the future of young Americans. He closes the piece by saying that while Bush rails against the death tax he has imposed a "birth tax" on American children. I have never seen this phrase used before so I am attributing it to Kristof. Democrats should pick up on it and use it in 06 and 08 when calling attention to the outrageous tax cuts of the republicans.

How much do the home states of names on a presidential ticket matter? I don't think too much can be made of this, but when I realized the numbers it made me stop and think.

So I just read the "exit interview" that Mark Bowden did with Wolfowitz in this month's Atlantic. Its actually an article culled from 4 interviews begun last September and ended this April.  It is pretty interesting, and I am sure a lot of you have read it, but if you haven't here are some high(?)lights.

Quinnipiac released a new poll this morning with Doug Forrester leading Bret Schundler 35%-33%.  Last week a Qpac poll had put Forrester's lead at 40%-29%.

I just had an interview for a graduate program in journalism yesterday. When I asked the woman how blogging was viewed in the admissions process (do blogs count as cips, etc.) she responded with, "well thats kind of a new thing, and I know some people do that...there are some people with blogs who have gotten in, and others who haven't, I know that." Then she told me the contents of a blog mattered quite a bit. Duh. Anyway, I came away without a clear understanding of if and how blogging can impact admissions. If anyone has any insight on this I would really appreciate it. Thanks.

Looking ahead to 2008 a clear wedge issue with the potential to divide the Republican base is immigration.  Simply put, there are two different camps within the GOP. There is the tight borders conservatives- the Pat Buchanan/Tom Tancredo types, and there is the George W. Bush/Karl Rove crew that want to keep the compassionate face of their conservatism and continue to bring Hispanics into the party.  The recent minutemen project which mobilized citizens to watch over areas of the border with Mexico may offer a peek into the future of this in house squabble.  While the idea has gone over well with many rank and file Republicans, the White House has made clear its wish to distance itself from the project.  This is important because if there is an issue that threatens to split the opposition we must be ready to exploit that split.