SCOTUS REJECTS TRIBUNALS: The Supreme Court yesterday struck down the military commissions President Bush established to try suspected members of al-Qaeda, emphatically rejecting a signature Bush anti-terrorism measure and the broad assertion of executive power upon which the president had based it. Brushing aside administration pleas not to second-guess the commander in chief during wartime, a five-justice majority ruled that the commissions, which were outlined by Bush in a military order on Nov. 13, 2001, were neither authorized by federal law nor required by military necessity, and ran afoul of the Geneva Conventions. Washington Post: High Court Rejects Detainee Tribunals

BUSH TO WORK WITH CONGRESS TO "FIX THE PROBLEM": The Supreme Court's rebuff of the Bush administration's Guantanamo military tribunals knocks the issue into the halls of Congress, where GOP leaders are already trying to figure out how to give the president the options he wants for dealing with suspected terror detainees. That way forward could be long and difficult. Congress will negotiate a highly technical legal road - one fraught with political implications in an election year - under the scrutiny of the international community that has condemned the continued use of the Guantanamo prison... Within hours of the high court's ruling that the military tribunals were illegal under U.S. and international law, President Bush said he would work with Congress to fix the problem. Still, Bush vowed that the result "won't cause killers to be put out on the street." AP via Yahoo! News: Congressional hearings on Guantanamo set

A "BATTLE ROYALE" WITH MIDTERMS AROUND THE CORNER: ..."Following the July Fourth recess, I will introduce legislation, in consultation with the administration and my colleagues, that authorizes military commissions and appropriate due-process procedures for trials of terrorist combatants," Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist said yesterday after the court's decision. Both parties now face a protracted fight over the scope and meaning of the Supreme Court ruling, with each side looking to capitalize on the security issue before the November elections. "This sets up a battle royale, with the November elections just around the corner," said one senior former administration official. "Congressional Democrats screamed bloody murder that the president didn't have the authority to order military tribunals, well, now they have to decide." Washington Times: Legislative remedy to create political battle for midterms

HOUSE PASSES RESOLUTION CONDEMNING NYT: The House of Representatives on Thursday condemned the recent disclosure of a classified program to track financial transactions and called on the media to cooperate in keeping such efforts secret. Lawmakers expressed their sentiment through a resolution that was approved on a largely party-line 227-to-183 vote after days of harsh criticism by the Bush administration and Congressional Republicans aimed at The New York Times and other newspapers for publishing details of the program, which the government said was limited to following possible terrorist financial trails. The vote followed a bitter debate in which Republicans said news accounts had jeopardized the effort, and Democrats accused Republicans of trying to intimidate the press. New York Times: House Assails Media Report on Tracking of Finances

NSA COOPERATION "NOT AS EXTENSIVE AS FIRST REPORTED": Members of the House and Senate intelligence committees confirm that the National Security Agency has compiled a massive database of domestic phone call records. But some lawmakers also say that cooperation by the nation's telecommunication companies was not as extensive as first reported by USA TODAY on May 11. Several lawmakers, briefed in secret by intelligence officials about the program after the story was published, described a call records database that is enormous but incomplete. Most asked that they not be identified by name, and many offered only limited responses to questions, citing national security concerns. USA Today: Lawmakers: NSA database incomplete

BUSH BACK IN THE FORTIES: President Bush's job approval rating is up slightly, but discontent over the Iraq war, especially among women, is continuing to boost Democratic prospects in the struggle for control of Congress, a Times/Bloomberg poll has found. Bush's job approval rating edged up to 41%, his highest since January in the poll. But Democrats held a formidable advantage, 49% to 35%, when registered voters were asked which party they intended to support in fall congressional elections. Los Angeles Times: Though Bush's Numbers Edge Up, War Discontent Lifts Democrats

FIRST TOUR OF GRACELAND BY A SITTING PRESIDENT: Graceland has new paint on the fences, freshly trimmed bushes and a cleaning job worthy of heads of state. "Every little detail will be pristine," said Graceland chief executive officer Jack Soden. "There's the joke that you ought to have a big party at your house at least once a year, because if you've got really important guests coming you go the extra step to make sure everything is perfect." For Soden, who has greeted 15 million guests in 24 years, "the fact is nobody can remember a day like this one." President George Bush and first lady Laura Bush are accompanying Japan's No. 1 Elvis fan, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, on a tour of Graceland. It is the first Graceland tour by a sitting U.S. president... Graceland spokesman Todd Morgan said he is unsure who else might accompany Koizumi, but Soden said the prime minister's brother, Masaya Koizumi, is a likely guest. He said the brother is a former president of The Elvis Presley Fan Club of Tokyo and helped organize installation of an Elvis statue in a Tokyo park. Memphis Commercial Appeal: Graceland's big day

VA GETS LAPTOP BACK: Federal officials yesterday announced the recovery of computer equipment stolen from an employee of the Department of Veterans Affairs. They said that sensitive personal information of 26.5 million veterans and military personnel apparently had not been accessed. The laptop and external hard drive, stolen May 3 from a VA data analyst's home in Aspen Hill, contained the names, birth dates and Social Security numbers of millions of current and former service members. The theft was the largest information security breach in government history and raised fears of potential mass identity theft. Washington Post: Stolen VA Laptop and Hard Drive Recovered

HOUSE APPROVES DRILLING 50 MILES FROM FL COAST: The House voted by a wide margin Thursday to allow oil and gas drilling as close as 50 miles off the nation's coastline, splitting a once-united Florida congressional delegation, most of whom voted to lift the historic ban that now protects coastal waters. Florida members who sided with the proposal argued that it may be the best the state can do, because bans protecting the coastline begin to expire next year and the state is losing leverage in its efforts to keep rigs from its shores. The bill passed 232 to 187. Fourteen of Florida's 25 House members voted in favor. Miami Republican Reps. Mario and Lincoln Díaz-Balart were the only South Florida House members who supported it. Miami Herald: House votes for drilling near coast

NEY'S DISTRICT OFFICE DIRECTOR SUBPOENAED: An aide to embattled Rep. Robert W. Ney has been subpoenaed in the Justice Department's investigation of influence peddling in Congress, and three other aides are leaving the Ohio Republican's staff, Ney's spokesman said yesterday. The subpoena for Matthew Parker, director of Ney's congressional district office, was issued by a federal magistrate in Washington. Ney has not been accused of any wrongdoing, but federal prosecutors have described him in court documents as having received gifts, trips and other things of value from former lobbyist Jack Abramoff and his associates. Ney spokesman Brian Walsh declined to comment on Parker's subpoena. Parker is the first member of Ney's staff to be subpoenaed by the Justice Department since Ney himself was subpoenaed in November. AP via Yahoo! News: Rep. Ney's aide subpoenaed in lobby probe

TOP THREE STAFFERS LEAVE NEY OFFICE: The top three aides for Rep. Bob Ney (R-Ohio) are leaving, or already have left, the Ohio Republican's office, the latest sign that Ney's legal and ethical troubles stemming from the Jack Abramoff scandal are growing worse with each passing day. Will Heaton, Ney's chief of staff, and Brian Walsh, the communications director, are planning to leave Ney's staff soon, according to sources close to the office. Walsh will accept a job as communications director for Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), while Heaton's destination is unknown. Heaton recently was married and was unavailable for comment Thursday. Chris Otillio, Ney's legislative director, left the office last Friday, the sources said. Roll Call: Three Top Ney Aides Departing; District Aide Subpoenaed

"MUPPET MESS" COST $160K: Rep. Vito Fossella owes taxpayers more than $160,000 for abusing free mailing privileges to boost his bid for reelection, his rival charged yesterday. As the Daily News reported yesterday, the Staten Island Republican violated House rules by plastering the same photo on free mailings to constituents and campaign flyers. He also used two photos - one with Muppets Elmo and Rosita at his side, the other with senior citizens hugging him - on the mailers and on his campaign Web Site. Although the mailings to thousands of voters was carefully vetted by the House Commission on Congressional Mailing Standards, the bipartisan committee wasn't aware of the duplication. New York Daily News: Vito's Muppets mess cost 160G, says Dem rival

EHRLICH TAPS BLIND HEAD OF STATE DISABILITIES OFFICE AS RUNNING MATE: Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. chose Kristen Cox - the legally blind head of the state disabilities office - as his running mate yesterday, a pick that makes a play for female voters and aims to show that the governor's brand of conservatism is tempered by compassion. Cox, 36, is a mother of two who has never run for elected office and is little known outside State House circles. A former Washington lobbyist for an advocacy group for the blind, she joined Ehrlich's administration in 2003 and became a department secretary when he elevated her office to Cabinet-level status. Baltimore Sun: Cox to run with Ehrlich

RI AG TOOK $$$ FROM DEFENDANT: Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch accepted $4,250 in campaign contributions from DuPont Corp. lawyers and lobbyists before and after reaching a $12-million settlement with the company in the state's lead-paint case. Lynch's opponent in the upcoming election, J. William W. Harsch, filed a complaint yesterday with the state Ethics Commission, saying Lynch's acceptance of money from a company he was prosecuting is in "substantial conflict with his duties." Harsch, a Republican, said his campaign discovered the donations while doing opposition research on Lynch, a Democrat. "It is a total abuse of the office of attorney general," Harsch said in an interview. "It is one of the things that will occur if the office is being used as a stepping stone to higher office." Providence Journal: Lynch accepted campaign donations from lead defendant