•KE04 launch ad implicating BC04 with Swift Vets and asking Bush to denounce attacks. At fundraiser, wealthy Democrats chant "fight back." [WP, NYT, LAT, BG, USAT, WP, WSJ]

• Race could be "hijacked by the past," writes Brownstein. [LAT]

• Swing states gain jobs, but not all of those lost. [WSJ, USAT]

• Unwilling soldiers forced to register to vote: it's Donkeys in the Desert vs. Baghdadis For Bush, and Iraq's only Nader voter speaks. [WSJ]

•Bush's many small proposals add up to big vision, say analysts. [LAT, USAT]

•Kerry raises $2.5m on one rainy day in the Hamptons. [NYT]

• GOP fearful of attacking Edwards on tort reform because of the victims. [WT]

• Florida ballot arguably more confusing than 2000 ballot. [WP, USAT]

• Moderates who run convention exert little influence on White House. Whitman: "If [Bush] loses, it is an absolute validation of the fact that you cannot be a national party if you are excluding people." [NYT, NYT]

•Bush probably will not stay overnight in New York. [NYT]

• Chaos may loom as protest location issues are still unresolved. [NYT, USAT]

•Protesters face challenges: first, finding New York City. [NYT]