--7:30 am: Rep. Dick Gephardt has breakfast at the Golden Egg restaurant, Portsmouth, N.H. --7:45 am: Sen. Joe Lieberman has a "Cup of Joe" at In a Pinch, Concord, N.H. --8:30 am: Rep. Gephardt attends a "Countdown to Victory" event at Great Falls Grill, Somersworth, N.H. --8:30 am: Gen. Wesley Clark attends a pancake breakfast at Dartmouth's Sigma Phi Epsilon, Hanover, N.H. --9:00 am: Sen. Lieberman unveils a new plan to protect privacy and promote government Openness on New Hampshire Public Radio's "The Exchange" --9:30 am: Sen. John Edwards speaks at College Convention 2004, Manchester, N.H. —9:45 am: Gov. Howard Dean attends a town hall meeting on health care, Rochester, N.H.

—9:45 am: Off-camera press gaggle with White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan

—10:00 am: Rep. Dennis Kucinich and Ambassador Carol Moseley Braun participate in a radio-only candidate forum sponsored by WTOP, Washington, D.C.

—10:00 am: Sen. Lieberman unveils a plan to promote privacy and government openness at Orr and Reno Law Firm, Concord, N.H.

—10:30 am: Rep. Gephardt attends a "Countdown to Victory" event at the Pleasant View Retirement Community, Concord, N.H.

—10:40 am: President Bush speaks with female small business owners at the Department of Commerce, Washington, D.C.

—11:30 am: Gen. Clark meets with health care professionals and faculty from Dartmouth Medical School, Lebanon, N.H.

—11:45 am: Sen. Lieberman visits the Soda Shoppe, Laconia, N.H.

—12:00 pm: Rep. Gephardt eats lunch at Blake's Restaurant, Manchester, N.H.

—12:00 pm: Sen. Edwards visits Timoleon's Restaurant, Keene, N.H.

—12:00 pm: Rev. Al Shaprton attends a press conference with The Need for a Progressive Judiciary Press, Washington, D.C.

—12:15 pm: Rep. Kucinich has lunch with a Washington, D.C. statehood group at Mimi's American Bistro, Washington, D.C.

—12:30 pm: House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi visits Greatest Grains on behalf of Rep. Gephardt, Davenport, Iowa

—12:45 pm: On camera press briefing with National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice regarding President Bush's trip to Mexico

—1:15 pm: Gov. Dean attends a rally at the Music Hall, Portsmouth, N.H.

—1:45 pm: Sen. Lieberman discusses Social Security and Medicare with seniors, Dover, N.H.

—2:00 pm: California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger releases his state budget proposal, Sacramento, Calif.

—2:00 pm: Sen. John Kerry receives a major endorsement and holds a roundtable discussion, Davenport, Iowa

—2:05 pm: President Bush speaks to the National Catholic Educational Association, The White House

—2:30 pm: Rep. Pelosi visits Drake Diner on behalf of Rep. Gephardt, Des Moines, Iowa

—2:30 pm: Gen. Clark hosts a roundtable discussion with veterans at the public library, Lebanon, N.H.

—4:15 pm: Rep. Pelosi speaks to the press from Sioux City Airport, Sioux City, Iowa

—4:30 pm: Rep. Gephardt attends a "Countdown to Victory" event at the Tama Civic Center, Marshalltown, Iowa

—5:10 pm: Gov. Dean attends a town hall meeting at Concord High School, Concord, N.H.

—6:00 pm: Sen. John Kerry speaks to the press from the Des Moines Airport

—6:00 pm: Gen. Clark hosts a "Conversations with Clark" event at the Hopkins Center for the Arts, Hanover, N.H.

—6:30 pm: Rep. Gephardt attends a "Countdown to Victory" event at the Williamsburg Community Child Care Center, Williamsburg, Iowa

—7:00 pm: Gov. Dean attends the College Convention 2004, Manchester, N.H.

—7:00 pm: Former Vice President Al Gore campaigns at a rally for Gov. Dean, Des Moines, Iowa

—7:00 pm: Sen. Edwards holds a town hall meeting at City Hall, Nashua, N.H.

—7:45 pm: Former Vice President Gore attends a "Caucus for Dean" kick-off event, West Des Moines, Iowa

—8:30 pm: Rep. Gephardt attends a "Countdown to Victory" event at the public library, Cedar Rapids, Iowa

—8:45 pm: Sen. Kerry attends the Iowa State Education Association Annual Legislative Conference, Altoona, Iowa

—9:00 pm: Rep. Dennis Kucinich attends a Legislative Conference of Iowa State Education Association

NEWS SUMMARY

As closely as Karen Hicks scrutinizes her "1s," what we'll be watching today and this weekend:

1. Is all the negative coverage of Howard Dean going to beget more negative coverage and an inability of Dean to retain all his current support and/or pick up Iowa and New Hampshire undecideds?

2. Is it too late for the Dean campaign to play the (inevitable) expectations game, in the event of an Iowa loss or a worse-than-expected win in New Hampshire?

3. Will the DNC and the political press corps catch on to just how wide open this nomination fight could be if Dean is brought back to the pack?

4. What will be the effects on the psychology of Democratic elites and masses of President Bush's good Friday juxtaposed with Howard Dean's (get ready) freaky Friday?

5. Will the Iowa (and New Hampshire) media be as interested in all these Dean controversies as the national media is?

6. Will Burlington be able to put aside its normal chaos and produce a strategic and tactical message plan to try to turn the page?

7. What set of Howard Dean advisers/surrogates/prominent endorsees will next display impatience with their candidate?

8. When will Dean next to deign to talk to Reena and Jodi and Matea and Glen and Patsy and Nedra?

9. What about all those (ever-more reputable) polls that the weekend news hole will slurp up?

10. What will the impact be of the expected Register endorsement this Sunday?

11. With Clark possibly gaining traction, how long until Trippi turns to Dean (or calls Kate's cell phone #2) and tells him that it's time to "Kill Bambi"?

For the national media, the storyline is becoming that Dean is in "organize, organize, organize, and hemorrhage at the end" mode, with Gephardt the steady tortoise and Kerry and Edwards the "get hot at the end" candidates.

(Fournier's take: LINK

A. Some Iowa Democrats — turned off by Dean traits that Mark Penn, Mark Mellman, Harrisson Hickman, and Ed Reilly have seen for months and months — are having second thoughts about supporting (all together now) the former Vermont governor.

B. There is unanimity that Dean is still ahead in Iowa, followed by Gephardt, and with Kerry and Edwards showing buoyancy.

C. This campaign might have been going on for too long and become too negative from some Iowans.

We'd then advise a perusal of the Wilgoren/Swarns dispatch, which gets into the twin charges of dirty tricks leveled against Gov. Dean yesterday: that his campaign intended to nudge many of its 3500 out of state volunteers to caucus, and that two of its volunteers misrepresented themselves to the Kerry campaign. Charge one, the Dean campaign calls (in the words of a senior Dean aide) "absolute crap." Charge two, it turns out, was apparently true. LINK

Then there's the NBC Nightly News story on the Canadian television appearances that Dean did when he was governor. Arguably, he doesn't come off that badly, except for an ill-timed remark or two about the caucuses.

(By the way … . aren't the caucuses dominated by special interests? Are we missing something?)

The two points in that where Dean was most exercised — when he called a charge about single mothers on welfare "absolute crap and garbage" and when he called some members of the GOP "racist" — are good for what ails his base.

And the rest of the stuff won't strike long-time Dean watchers (such as Ms. Wilgoren and Ms. Singh) as particularly different from how he normally describes the evolution of his views. He thought Bush was a moderate before he became President. He began to express reservations about NAFTA … . etc.

The sum is greater than the parts, as Howard Fineman noted yesterday LINK :

"As Howard Dean's campaign manager, Trippi has masterfully guided his man to the brink of the Democratic nomination. But Trippi has been around a long time, and he knows that in any campaign, especially a presidential nomination race, things can change faster than you can shout "Hart Upsets Mondale." If you're the front-runner at this point in a campaign, time seems to slow down to an agonizing crawl. Election Day can't come soon enough for you. Trippi knows that leads can crumble, an unexpected rival can rise up suddenly and that voters do what they want, not what pundits expect."

"And under the pressure of approaching Armageddon, campaigns make mistakes. Dean's own errors are well-known, but generally have been rendered harmless by the tactical and strategic skill of his campaign. Until now. For the first time, I'm seeing the Dean Team off its stride, behaving like mere mortals."

Making a cameo from a Sarah Leonard nightmare, Jack Cafferty went on CNN this morning to cite the (questionable) KCCI poll and suggest it represents a decline in Dean's Iowa support, as a gateway to national trouble.

(But Tom Touchet obviously thinks Lisa's scoop is less important than the Georgia manhunt, the mountain lion attack, and the bogus lottery claim.)

Freaky Friday. Mike Ford, call your office. Elizabeth Birch: welcome to the jungle.

E.T., phone home.

With that, we turn to President Bush's pretty-good, press-friendly Friday.

As for the president, as ABC News' Ann Compton mused this morning: "Out with the shuttle, in with a new vehicle, and to heck with the price tag. Reagan-esque."

And, we would add, "Rovian."

The Space Exploration President. The Education President. The Prescription Drug President. The Tax Cutting President. The Keep America Safe President. The Celebration of Immigrants President.

Somewhere, Lee Atwater is smiling.

Banner headlines around the country. LINK , and, say, LINK

The Washington Post 's Mike Allen and Kathy Sawyer point out that President George H.W. Bush "proposed a sustained commitment to human exploration of the solar system — with a return to the moon as a stepping stone to Mars — in 1989, on the 20th anniversary of the first human landing on the moon. NASA came up with a budget-busting cost estimate of $400 billion, which sank the project." LINK

The New York Times ' Matthew Wald and David Sanger Note of the space initiative and the president's immigration plan, "both new policy directives would allow the president to be portrayed as an inspirational leader whose vision goes beyond terrorism and tax cuts." LINK

ABC News' Ramona Schindelheim reports that this morning's jobs numbers show unemployment rolls virtually unchanged, adding just 1,000 jobs to the economy, when economists had predicted 150,000. And even the 150,000 expected wouldn't have been blockbuster news for the economy, Schindelheim reports, even though it would allow the Bush Administration to say that the country is moving in the right direction on jobs and the economy.

The Bush Administration has been saying that 150,000 jobs per month need to be added to the economy in order to maintain a positive level of job growth.

In addition, Schindelheim reports weak hiring on the retail front in December, along with losses in manufacturing jobs.

President Bush is in Washington, D.C. today. He has no public events over the weekend and travels to Monterey, Mexico on Monday for the Special Summit of the Americas.

Gov. Dean and Gen. Clark are in New Hampshire today. Gov. Dean campaigns in New Hampshire tomorrow before traveling to Springfield for the state AFSCME convention. He returns to Iowa on Sunday and Monday. Gen. Clark remains in New Hampshire through the weekend.

Former Vice President Gore campaigns for Gov. Dean in Iowa today and tomorrow.

Rep. Gephardt is in New Hampshire this morning and returns for an extended stay in Iowa beginning this afternoon.

Rep. Pelosi campaigns for Rep. Gephardt in Iowa today.

Senator Kerry is in Iowa today and until early next week. He campaigns with Senator Ted Kennedy tomorrow.

Senator Edwards is in New Hampshire today and tomorrow morning and in Iowa Saturday night through the middle of next week.

Senator Lieberman remains in New Hampshire until Sunday's Brown and Black debate. He travels to Oklahoma and Arizona on Monday.

Rep. Kucinich and Carol Moseley Braun participate in this morning's radio debate in Washington, D.C. Rep. Kucinich campaigns in Iowa through the weekend and Moseley Braun is in South Carolina before returning to Iowa on Sunday and Monday.

Rev. Al Sharpton is in Washington, D.C. today and in Iowa on Sunday.

All the candidates except for Gen. Clark participate in MSNBC's Brown and Black Forum on Sunday night from Des Moines.

ABC News Vote 2004: the Democratic nomination fight:

The Hill's tipsheet has this to say on the Harkin Primary: "Despite pressure from the Howard Dean camp and other campaigns, expect Senator Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) to remain neutral in the days leading up to the Jan. 19 Iowa caucus. Though Dean supporters hope to get Harkin's endorsement, which would all but clinch Dean's victory in Iowa, the lawmaker will not upset his three Senate colleagues also vying for the nomination."

Deborah Orin reports on the Gephardt-Dean (or more accurately, the Murphy-Trippi) back-and-forth yesterday over accusations of caucus flooding and reminds us that the campaign hasn't really started until someone uses the word "sleazy." She also reports the Research 2000 poll for KCCI, which shows a dogfight Dean with 29 percent and Gephardt with 25, with Kerry at 18. And we at The Note would like to take a moment to loudly sing Ms. Orin's praises for reporting that Dean and Gephardt are in a statistical tie — i.e., the gap between them is within the margin of error. Thank you. LINK

The AP reports of a New Hampshire tracking poll allegedly showing Clark moving in and moving ahead of Kerry (however slightly) into second place. LINK

Al Gore leaving his options open for an '08 bid? The Washington Times ' Donald Lambro Notes the former VP's sending Christmas cards to supporters and what that may mean. LINK

Um, Don. How about … Merry Christmas?

The Post 's Vanessa Williams and historian John Harris follow the tax story into the second day, Noting that taxes "were the refrain on the Democratic campaign trail Thursday, as Senator John Edwards (N.C.) led a host of candidates promoting tax relief for the middle class." LINK

The Washington Post ed board thinks that it is much more difficult to judge NAFTA on its 10th anniversary than some of the candidates would like you to believe. LINK

Walter Shapiro wonders what it really does mean to win in Iowa and/or New Hampshire, including The Note's favorite sentence so far of 2004: "Ten days before the caucuses, it is difficult for an outsider to grasp the degree to which downtown Des Moines has been turned into a political theme park." LINK

The Wall Street Journal 's Al Hunt writes about how difficult it is for the rest of the Democratic presidential field to get any time in the spotlight with — or to challenge — Howard Dean.

Iowa:

The Wall Street Journal 's Shailagh Murray looks at the undecided voters who make predicting what will happen in the Jan. 19 caucuses so difficult.

The Los Angeles Times looks at Iowa's unique identity through the prism of the Iowa Poll, "the longest-running scientific state survey in the nation," launched in 1943. It's a great look at the one survey that gives a good picture of what Iowans are thinking about. LINK

Deirdre Shesgreen at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that Iowa voters are being turned off by the amount of mudslinging occurring between certain candidates this year. LINK

The AP's Mike Glover writes about the surrogates who will be stumping in Iowa this weekend. LINK

The Boston Globe 's Anne Kornblut looks at how the Iowa caucuses work and predicts that the ability of caucus-goers to change their votes could, for the first time since 1988, significantly affect the outcome of the tight race. LINK

The AP's Will Lester examines the Clark and Lieberman decisions to sit it out. LINK

The Des Moines Register reports that an Iowa effort for Clark has been launched anyway. LINK

The Chicago Tribune's John McCormick Notes the changes that are occurring in the Iowa caucuses in 2004, where caucus meetings will only be held in private homes (the traditional and fabled location) "as a last resort." LINK

ABC Vote 2004: Bush-Cheney re-elect:

The Los Angeles Times' Ralph Vartabedian and Maura Reynolds include Louis Friedman, executive director of the Planetary Society, saying that by planning the program in secret, President Bush has made it more difficult for himself to build congressional support for the endeavor. LINK

The New York Daily News' Ken Bazinet quotes a blind NASA source commenting on the president's plan to go back to the moon and ultimately to Mars as saying, "'Mars travel is not a real science mission. It's just for flags and footprints.'" LINK

USA Today 's Traci Watson writes about the president, the moon, Mars, and manages to sneak in the word "boondoggle." LINK

The Post 's Mike Allen Notes that the Bush team tries to find schools where "No Child Left Behind" has been successful and Notes that "finding them takes some research." LINK

Good thing he's a reporter!

The New York Times ' Richard Stevenson reports that President Bush is proposing a big education spending increase in next month's budget, "another step by the White House to keep Mr. Bush in the political center heading into his re-election campaign. LINK

So does Judy Keen. LINK

The New York Times ' Glen Justice reports that according to a nonpartisan study, brokerages, banks, and credit companies form the majority of President Bush's top career contributors, "a clear indicator of his increasing support from the financial sector." LINK

Former U.S. Secretary of Education William Bennett was in New Hampshire yesterday speaking to students and discussing the incumbent president's strengths and "firing back" at the Democrats hoping to take that position from Bush. The Union-Leader reports. LINK

Enron and President Bush make it into the same news story in Florida. LINK

Bush picked up a not-too-shabby $1 million to add to his campaign account last night. The Miami Herald 's Lesley Clark writes that the incumbent President told Floridians he is predicting a win for himself. LINK

"There is enormous pressure on the family to win Florida," Crowley Notes, reporting that the president's brother, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, attended a fundraiser with him while President George H.W. Bush and former First Lady Barbara Bush visited an elementary school in Delray Beach. LINK

AP's Will Lester reports a new poll by his employer and Ipsos-Public Affairs showing that 41 percent of Americans say they will definitely vote for President Bush, and 33 say they would definitely vote against him. Lester Notes that men, evangelicals and rural voters make up a key part of the president's base, and that he beats Dean in a head-to-head matchup, 54-39. LINK

Dean:

The Los Angeles Times' Matea Gold reports that Dean exudes more pragmatism than charisma. LINK

Jeff Zeleny and John McCormick at the Chicago Tribune report Dean's musings that that the "the caucus system … .dominated by the special interests in both parties." LINK

So did Matea Gold. LINK

And Tom Beaumont in the home-state Register. LINK

The Wall Street Journal editorial board is betting that the International Monetary Fund, whose comments they scoff at but Dr. Dean clearly doesn't, has found a candidate to support.

Amy Fagan of The Washington Times on Dean and same-sex marriages. LINK

The Boston Globe 's Scott Lehigh details — with some great sound bites — Dean's shift toward supporting a middle class tax cut. LINK

The Kerry and Gephardt campaigns are accusing Dean of dirty tricks, the Des Moines Register reports. Dean workers are examining one charge but say the other is a smear. LINK

The Boston Globe 's Rick Klein picks up the Gephardt/Dean accusations, but does not include the attempts by the Kerry campaign to get in on the story by accusing the Dean campaign of other dirty tricks. LINK

Jonathan Finer tackles Dean's centrist gun control views in the Washington Post . LINK

In case you were wondering, Charles Krauthammer doesn't buy Howard Dean's argument that the United States isn't safer since catching Saddam Hussein. LINK

E.J. Dionne, Jr. goes through the "one hand/other hand calculations that pour forth from agonized rank-and-file and big-shot Democrats alike" when considering their support for Howard Dean. LINK

Gephardt:

From ABC News' Gephardt campaign reporter Sally Hawkins:

While the number of campaign staffers and reporters traveling with the campaign grows each day, noticeably absent from the trail are two things: the full-sized Gephardt for President 2004 campaign bus that was built more than two decades ago and couldn't survive the freezing and windswept Iowa highways; and, Jane Gephardt, whose bout with the flu took a turn for the worse. She is now home in D.C., recovering from pneumonia but expected to be back in action alongside her husband soon. Gephardt told reporters, "I miss her."

Read more from the trail with Gephardt on abcnews.com: LINK

The New York Times produces this short but crucial note: Gephardt raised $18 million this year, but only "has only enough money to carry him through the Feb. 7 contests in Michigan and Washington State." LINK

The AP's Mike Glover writes that Gephardt "faces the dual weight of high expectations and persistent rivals." LINK

Glover also reports that Gephardt claims he will get out the vote, or is it get out the caucus? LINK

Gephardt's supporters in Iowa should hope the rabid Maryland Terps don't mind that they've borrowed the "fear the turtle" battle cry. Clark:

The General lays out his tax plan in a Wall Street Journal op-ed — minus the "hey Karl Rove come and get me" theatrics.

Messieurs Slater and Barabak on the head-turning Gen. Clark: LINK

From ABC News' Clark campaign reporter Deborah Apton:

Members of the press exchanged quizzical looks when General Clark walked into a crowded room for a "Conversations with Clark" on Wednesday afternoon wearing a gray, green, maroon, cream--well, multicolored, argyle sweater. And, for those traveling with the campaign, what made it worse was knowing that General Clark borrowed the sweater from his brother-in-law, Gene. So it was no surprise when the Clark campaign made an OTS stop as they call it (Off-The-Schedule), to the LLBean factory store to get The General a new sweater.

Arkansas Senator Pryor who was in town with the campaign also came along for the last-minute stop focused solely on getting a wool sweater for Clark and a winter coat for his body man, Amad.

After a day of teasing for the argyle sweater from both press and staff, Clark tried to explain the "look." "I took the sweater off the back of my brother law," Clark said as he searched for the men's sweater section, "I was cold."

Besides some retail politics (Clark extensively questioned one couple about "where to ski" in New Hampshire, and gave a lesson in baby kissing to one mother who carried his 9-month-old son), Clark seemed to be at the stop to model for the dozen or so press. And, as he so often does, Clark seemed to want to befriend the press — asking them their advice on size, color, and even offering to buy his hometown reporter from the Arkansas Democratic Gazette a sweater to keep him warm on the trail.

Read more from said trail with Clark on abcnews.com: LINK

The Note's resident Queer Eye does not approve of the new sweather, though. He prefers the slick, black, Rock The Vote look.

In a new profile of Gen. Wesley Clark, the Miami Herald 's Dana Hull explains the complexity of The General's military background and how it is the first time in recent history that Democrats have put forth a candidate with strong military and national security experience. But the complexity lies in the fact that many question what his being relieved of his NATO command really means, especially when it was for such reasons as integrity and character. LINK

USA Today 's Kathy Kiely and the Boston Herald's Steve Marantz both write about Clark's "surge." LINK

and LINK

Lloyd Grove comes up with a mystifying (get it?) scenario about The General, Madonna, and the Kabbala. LINK

Lieberman:

From ABC News' Lieberman campaign reporter Talesha Reynolds:

The rookies are getting to Senator Lieberman. In the last month, drawing distinctions between himself and the fresh faces of Dean and Clark has been the name of the survival game. Lieberman has even added a new line to his stump in recent days that is a clear reference to his opponents' relative inexperience. "I didn't just spring up yesterday," he says. "I've been doing this for 30 years."

LINK

Edwards:

From ABC News' Edwards campaign reporter Gloria Riviera:

MANCHESTER, N.H., Jan. 9 — Back in New Hampshire Thursday, where he will continue to campaign until Saturday afternoon, Senator Edwards was among the first of the candidates to get on board one of ABC News' super-production buses. As it turns out, a mobile production facility allows the candidate to fit even more into his day than before! Just what I am sure they all want to hear.

Read more from the trail with Edwards on abcnews.com: LINK

Kerry:

The New York Times ' David Halbfinger listens carefully to the Kerry stump speech to Note that "in the climax of his forceful, upbeat stump speech these days, after the stentorian rebukes of President Bush and the scornful derision of Howard Dean, there remains a plaintive note in Senator John Kerry's appeal to voters … Mr. Kerry all but pleads with Democrats to see past the more electric appeal of Dr. Dean, his chief rival, to heed their brains and not their hearts … " LINK

From ABC News' Kerry campaign reporter Ed O'Keefe:

Then: five Democrats fought for the right to challenge George Bush, two Republicans challenged him in the primary.

Now: nine Democrats fight for the right to challenge George Bush, 0 Republicans will challenge him in the primary.

Then: A (former) Massachusetts senator won in New Hampshire, but was stung by the momentum of a second place showing Southern governor.

Now: A (former) Vermont governor hopes to fend off the field, especially the Iowa-bound Massachusetts Senator and Iowa-less Southern general.

Then: 250 supporters heard Clinton's call for a second chance and he got it

Now: 550 supporters heard Kerry's call for a second look, and now he'll return to Iowa, where he hopes to get it.

Read more from the trail with Kerry on abcnews.com: LINK

Kerry's bringing it on in Iowa, Patrick Healy writes. LINK

Ceci Connolly Notes in the Washington Post that Kerry's supporters are voicing "a mixture of frustration, confusion and desperation" over his failure "to translate those credentials into the standard early measures of political success, namely money and strong poll numbers." LINK

Kucinich:

Rep. Dennis Kucinich spoke to Union-Leader staffers yesterday on how the tone of the Democratic politicking is too angry. LINK

From last night's "Who is.." series — profiles of each of the Democratic candidates for president on World News Tonight with Peter Jennings. Congressman Dennis Kucinich was the focus.

JENNINGS: Kucinich admits that politics puts a strain on relationships. He has been married and divorced twice. A New Hampshire web site held a contest to find him a date

KUCINICH: It, it just isn't easy. And you know, I still hold open the hope, but I can tell you that you know, that's one area I'm not going to be trying to give anyone any lessons in.

JENNINGS: And why is he running for President?

KUCINICH: I guess, you know, when you're the oldest of seven you kind of achieve a leadership of an extended family. In a way I look at this as an American family, and, and I have been in a leadership position as a member of Congress. And now I want to provide more, you know, leadership on another level.

The Post 's Brain Faler hunts down the police chief who Kucincih fired on live television to discover that the candidate talked with the former chief once recently but "didn't really apologize." LINK

Sharpton:

Page Six calls Rev. Sharpton a potential kingmaker in the March 9 New York presidential primary.

LINK

WJLA in Washington, DC reports that Rev. Al Sharpton is making his first advertising buy of the campaign season for the DC advisery primary on Jan. 13, purchasing radio time on several Washington-area stations. Rev. Sharpton says that low turnout because of candidate disinterest would send the wrong message about DC voting rights. LINK

The economy:

The Wall Street Journal 's Ann Zimmerman reports that last-minute shoppers saved the Christmas retail picture, which resulted in the strongest holiday in four years for retailers.

Big casino budget politics:

Robert Pear reports that health spending accounts for nearly 15 percent of the nation's economy, the largest share on record, the Bush Administration said on Thursday. LINK

The Wall Street Journal 's Laurie McGinley turns in a really interesting look at the way states and local communities are coming up with their own solutions to expand health care insurance, focusing on low-income employees of small companies. Like most start-ups, the ground-up efforts, are in danger of losing their starter cash — provided by federal and state governments or non-profit groups — if states' fiscal picture doesn't get better.

From the outside:

We begin with a CORRECTION. We reported yesterday that the Center for Responsive Politics issued the fine publication The Buying of the president 2004. We confess we got it wrong in our early morning haze. It is actually the Center for Public Integrity which put this book together. We do indeed regret the error.

As for today, this morning at the Mayflower Hotel the Center for American Progress hosts a forum for one Mr. Stan Greenberg's new book The Two Americas: Our Current Political Deadlock and How to Break It. In the book Greenberg argues how increasing polarization of the country and narrow election results are more hurtful than helpful in creating sound public policy. Also on hand: Center Guru John Podesta, Bill McInturff and Rudy Teixeira.

And over the weekend, those crazy kids over at Punkvoter.com will head to Des Moines to unveil their first print ads of the year and announce the lineup of artists that are contributing songs to a "Rock Against Bush" CD/DVD compilation scheduled to be released in late March.

Among those scheduled to appear in Iowa on Sunday are: Wayne Kramer, founding member of legendary punk band MC-5 and Billy Gould, founding member of rock band Faith No More. And we are told punk legend Wayne Kramer is so excited about his Iowa journey that he has agreed to play a special acoustic set at Blues on Grand in Des Moines at 9:00 local time Saturday eve.

The Note has learned that American Conservative Union is ready to make its unhappiness with the GOP's spending ways known. The David Keene folks are launching a project called "Stop the Spending!" whose aim is to "reverse the Washington spending spree, return fiscal discipline to Congress, and lay the groundwork to shrink government and its increasingly intrusive role in the private lives of average Americans."

Note the graph in the group's release showing that "despite the Republican Party's hegemony" federal spending "is increasing at a rate that is unacceptable."

This should make next Wednesday's meeting much more fun!

Politics:

Slate's Timothy Noah returns to the Rep. Nick Smith Medicare vote story. LINK

Looking at its lawmakers, the Chicago Sun Times reports freshman Democratic Rep. Rahm Emanuel "confirmed his centrist roots with a 26 percent Bush support score." LINK

The Wall Street Journal 's Jackie Calmes writes that defeated Supreme Court nominee Robert Bork joins an all-star cast of conservatives including Steve Forbes and former Reagan Attorney General Ed Meese in campaigning against incumbent Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter and for his more conservative primary rival, Rep. Pat Toomey.

The Schwarzenegger Era:

The Los Angeles Times' Evan Halper, Jeffrey L. Rabin and Nancy Vogel curtain-raise Gov. Schwarzenegger's first budget plan, Noting that it "is expected to unveil a budget plan today that would raid $1.3 billion from local governments, significantly cut back money for transportation and reduce the health benefits for low income Californians." Expect an uproar from local officials who say they didn't know it was coming. LINK