• Republicans raised in $23m at $2,500 a pop for President's Dinner. [WP]

•Cheney is committed to Gitmo: "My own personal view of it is that those who are most urgently advocating that we shut down Guantanamo probably don't agree with our policies anyway." [WP, NYT, WT]

• Republicans want White House to back popular, "voter-friendly" legislation. [WSJ]

• British memos "suggest that the Bush administration paid no less (and no more) heed to the concerns of its closest ally than it did to those of its own secretary of state." [NYT]

•Bush reaffirms commitment to relief for Africa. [WP]

•Bush meets with "outspoken critic" of North Korea who wrote a book about serving 10 years in prison there. [WP]

• Senate apologizes for not passing anti-lynching law. [NYT, WT]

• Long-awaited energy bill expected to pass soon. [LAT]

• Beginning Friday, Rice will visit Jerusalem, Ramallah, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Brussels, and London. [NYT]

• Giddy young conservatives find home with Heritage Foundation internships. [NYT]

• Old-school conservatives, ACLU unite to defeat Patriot Act. [WT]