RICE AT U.N. "WILL TRY TO RECONCILE" CEASE-FIRE DEMANDS: Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will try to reconcile demands for an immediate cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah with the U.S. priority to disarm the Islamic militia when she meets United Nations officials today in New York. The U.S. hasn't endorsed the outline of a cease-fire plan presented to the Security Council yesterday by Secretary-General Kofi Annan following the return of his three envoys from the Middle East. U.S. officials insist that Annan's plea for an immediate end to hostilities won't produce a sustainable peace unless the threat posed by Hezbollah is eliminated. Bloomberg: Rice Seeks UN Help on Middle East While Resisting Cease-Fire

"THERE IS A CIVIL WAR GOING ON IN IRAQ," SAYS REID: Declaring that he believes the situation in Iraq has devolved into a civil war, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid said Thursday he plans to try to bring the war back up for debate on the Senate floor. The Nevada Democrat said he has been "somewhat gingerly approaching this.... No longer. There is a civil war going on in Iraq. In the last two months, more than 6,000 Iraqis have been killed. That's averaging more than 100 a day being killed in Iraq and we need to make sure there is a debate on this." Republicans questioned why Reid wants to go over old ground and were ready to highlight the divisions among Democrats once again. CNN: Sen. Reid: Iraq devolves into 'civil war'

VOINOVICH COMES AROUND ON BOLTON: Since last year, John R. Bolton has had the title of United States ambassador to the United Nations, and the work that goes with it. But he has not had the formal approval of the United States Senate for his appointment. Instead, President Bush installed him in the job when Congress was out of session. Now a former Republican critic of Mr. Bolton has changed his mind, giving the White House impetus to try again to get the Senate's endorsement. Senator George V. Voinovich, Republican of Ohio, urged the Senate on Thursday to approve Mr. Bolton's nomination, saying the United States needs a fully sanctioned United Nations representative in the tumultuous world climate. New York Times: Bolton's First Year at U.N. Wins Over a Critic

HOW CHARITABLE IS LEAVITT'S CHARITABLE FOUNDATION? Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt and his relatives have claimed millions of dollars in tax deductions through a type of charitable foundation they created that until recently paid out very little in actual charity, tax records show. Instead, much of the foundation's money has been invested or lent to the family's business interests and real estate holdings, or contributed to the Leavitt family genealogical society. The Leavitts used nearly $9 million of their assets to set up the foundation in 2000 under an obscure provision of the federal tax code. But unlike standard private foundations, which are required to give away at least 5 percent of their assets to charitable causes, the Leavitt organization donated less than 1 percent of its assets in 2002, 2003 and 2004. The donations jumped to 6.3 percent of total assets last year, after the sale of family water interests that also allowed the foundation to increase its lending to Leavitt business interests. Washington Post: HHS Secretary's Fund Gave Little to Charity

BUSH CHEERED, JEERED AT NAACP SPEECH: After shunning the NAACP for five years, President Bush made an effort yesterday to warm up their frosty relationship with a speech that mixed folksy humor, frank talk about political disagreements, and promises to build stronger ties between his administration and black America. The 33-minute speech at the group's annual convention drew rounds of thunderous applause, such as when the president acknowledged that his political party wrote off the black vote and when he vowed to sign a bill to renew the Voting Rights Act. At other times, the audience groaned, such as when Bush said his family is committed to civil rights. People booed sharply when he praised charter schools. Two men were quickly hustled out of the hall by Secret Service agents for heckling Bush about the Iraq war. Washington Post: At NAACP, Bush Tries to Mend Rift

SENATE PASSES VRA EXTENSION 98-0: The Senate yesterday passed a 25-year extension of the 1965 Voting Rights Act in the same form that the House passed a week ago, eliminating the need for a conference, after President Bush's call to get the bill to his desk before the summer recess. "I said that I looked forward to the Senate promptly passing the House bill without amendment. Today, the Senate acted and voted to reauthorize this historic legislation," President Bush said after the act was passed 98-0. "I will be pleased to sign the Voting Rights Act into law, and I will continue to work with Congress to ensure that our country lives up to our guiding principle that all men and women are created equal." Washington Times: Vote act renewal passes in Senate

BORDER LIKE "A PATIENT WHO IS BLEEDING TO DEATH," SAYS HASTERT. "CLOSE THE WOUND FIRST": Two months after the Senate passed a bill that would give citizenship to millions of illegal immigrants, House Speaker Dennis Hastert remains adamant that border security must be improved before Congress considers other changes to the law. I would look at it as if you have a patient who is bleeding to death," Hastert told USA TODAY. "Close the wound first. Secure the border. And then you can begin to look at what other options are." The Illinois Republican's comments came on the eve of a weekend inspection of the U.S.-Mexican border, which he calls "a sieve." He is leading a delegation that includes supporters of a House immigration bill that emphasizes tighter border security and penalties on employers who hire illegal immigrants, as well as opponents who prefer the Senate bill. USA Today: Border security should be priority, Hastert says

SPECTER'S "COMPROMISE" SURVEILLANCE BILL RUNS INTO "IMMEDIATE TROUBLE": A Senate surveillance bill personally negotiated by President Bush and Vice President Cheney ran into immediate trouble this week, as Democrats and other critics attacked the proposal while key GOP leaders in the House endorsed a different bill on the same topic. The Senate legislation, drafted during negotiations between the White House and Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), would allow the administration to submit the National Security Agency's warrantless surveillance program to a secret intelligence court for review of its legality. The proposal was billed as a rare and noteworthy compromise by the administration when unveiled last week. But the legislation quickly came under attack from Democrats and many national security experts, who said it would actually give the government greater powers to spy on Americans without court oversight. Washington Post: Surveillance Bill Meets Resistance in Senate

JUDGE LETS AT&T SUIT PROCEED... "STATE SECRETS WOULD NOT BE AT RISK": A federal judge on Thursday rejected a motion by the Bush administration to dismiss a lawsuit against AT&T over its cooperation with a government surveillance program, ruling that state secrets would not be at risk if the suit proceeded. The case was filed in February by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a civil liberties group, and alleged that AT&T was collaborating with the National Security Agency in a surveillance program tracking the domestic and foreign communications of millions of Americans. In rejecting the motion brought by the Justice Department, Vaughn R. Walker, chief judge of the Federal District Court for the Northern District of California, ruled that the government had already disclosed in broad terms whose communications it monitored, and that it was generally interested in calls between the United States and other countries. New York Times: Judge Declines to Dismiss Privacy Suit Against AT&T

DEMS TO TARGET KEY HOUSE SEATS WITH $30 MILLION IN ADS: Signaling a new phase in the struggle for control of Congress, House Democrats have reserved time for more than $30 million worth of campaign advertising this fall in roughly two dozen congressional districts, with a heavy emphasis on the Northeast and Midwest. The Democratic targets include clusters of Republican-held seats in the Philadelphia area held by Reps. Jim Gerlach, Curt Weldon and Michael Fitzpatrick, as well as the Ohio River Valley, where Reps. John Hostettler of Indiana, Geoff Davis of Kentucky and Steve Chabot of Ohio can expect a protracted televised barrage. Based on information available to date, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee intends to air ads for eight weeks in an attempt to defeat Rep. Heather Wilson of New Mexico. Rep. Clay Shaw of Florida faces a particularly well-financed opponent, but he can also expect to face five weeks of Democratic-paid advertising. AP via Yahoo! News: Democrats plan $30M ad campaign

DeLAY'S ARMPAC SHUTTING DOWN: Former U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay's national political action committee was fined $115,000 on Wednesday for improperly reporting hundreds of thousands of dollars in debts and contributions, a ruling that critics say could affect his trial in Travis County. In a deal negotiated with the Federal Election Commission, DeLay's Americans for a Republican Majority Political Action Committee agreed to shut down and accepted FEC findings that:

It improperly used $203,483 from 2001 to 2002 in nonfederal "soft money" to cover expenses that should have been billed to a "hard money" federal account directly supporting federal candidates. Soft money includes funds that don't support a particular candidate but can be used for generic-issue advertising or voter registration. Hard money, funds directly support particular candidates.

It inaccurately reported almost $400,000 in contributions and expenses from 2001 to 2002.

It failed to report $322,000 in debts to vendors that had not been reported or repaid "over several reporting periods."

Austin American-Statesman: DeLay fundraising group fined, shutting down

EXCITED FOR OBAMA IN IA: Sen. Tom Harkin announced Thursday that Illinois Sen. Barack Obama will be the featured guest at his annual fundraiser in Indianola in September. Obama, an Illinois Democrat, will headline Harkin's annual steak fry scheduled for Sept. 17 at the Warren County Fairgrounds, the Iowa Democrat announced... The headline act at Harkin's event has been a plum gig, with former President Clinton and six presidential candidates appearing there in 2003. Harkin told Iowa reporters that Obama is a "very excellent speaker" and that he was glad to work out an arrangement so that the Illinois senator could appear at the steak fry. But Harkin was reluctant to characterize Obama as a potential presidential candidate in 2008. "I think he's going to motivate people to work hard for this November, and I think a lot of people are anxious to see him and - what do they say - feel the cloth," Harkin said. "I think it's going to be pretty exciting." Des Moines Register: Sen. Barack Obama to attend Harkin fundraiser

"A STEAK FRY ISN'T ALWAYS SIMPLY A STEAK FRY": In an interview, Obama said no greater significance should be attached to his trip to Iowa. Harkin extended the invitation and he accepted, he said, just as he has for other Democrats. "I've already been to 30 states," he said. "Why not Iowa?" But in Iowa, a steak fry is not always simply a steak fry. The state's precinct caucuses have helped launch the race for the White House for 30 years. Seldom does a week go by--even in off-presidential years like this one--when an ambitious Democrat or Republican isn't dropping by the state to court activists for 2008. Chicago Tribune: Obama trip to Iowa ups buzz on '08

DEMS TO VOTE ON SHAKE-UP TO THE PRIMARY CALENDAR: Democrats are on track to jumble the states in the presidential primary calendar in response to growing criticism that the same predominantly white states hold many of the cards in early voting. And not even complaints from a former president and a half-dozen White House hopefuls can stop them. Iowa would still go first in the new calendar, but a Western state - possibly Nevada or Arizona - would be wedged in before the New Hampshire primary. A Southern state - possibly Alabama or South Carolina - would follow New Hampshire. The national Democrats' rules and bylaws committee expects to vote on the proposal this weekend. AP via Yahoo! News: Democrats set to shake up primary calendar

BOB BARR SUING NYC'S BLOOMBERG: Former Congressman Bob Barr, a Cobb attorney, said aligning himself in a high-profile lawsuit against New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has nothing to do with future plans to run for public office. Barr announced to nearly 100 people gathered Thursday on the Marietta Square that he and the law office of Edwin Marger planned to represent Adventure Outdoors, a family-owned gun retailer in Smyrna, in a civil lawsuit against Bloomberg, New York officials and others. Bloomberg has targeted Adventure Outdoors - one of five gun dealers in Georgia - and 10 dealers in four other states in a federal lawsuit. The mayor's lawsuit claims that the gun store sold 21 guns over seven years that were used in New York crimes. In public statements released May 15, Bloomberg called the stores "rogue gun dealers," and claimed they violated federal and state laws. Barr plans to sue Bloomberg for $400 million in compensatory and punitive damages for bringing slander and defamation to Adventure Outdoors. Marietta Journal: Bob Barr sues N.Y. mayor